"Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars...." (Revelation 12:1,3)

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THE WOMAN CLOTHED WITH THE SUN

In the book of Revelation visions are described which the Lord permitted His disciple John to see when he was an old man on the Isle of Patmos. John described the vision we are focusing on as a great wonder in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon at her feet, and with a crown of twelve stars on her head, and she was going to have a child.

There was also another wonder in the heavens: a great, red, horrible-looking dragon, with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns upon his heads. This dragon was raging, waiting to destroy the woman and the child that she was to have. While waiting, it was lashing its tail, and its tail was sweeping the stars from the sky. But, in the Lord's mercy, the woman was able to escape from the dragon, and to find a safe place prepared for her in the wilderness. And the Lord sent the angel, Michael, to fight against the dragon, and the dragon was defeated and cast out of the heavens.

Now this strange vision has an important meaning. For the vision was not telling about things that actually took place in this world; both the woman and the dragon were in the spiritual world. They represented things - that is, they were symbols of things - important for us to know and think about.

We are taught that the woman is a symbol representing the New Church in heaven and also on earth. The sun, which clothed the woman, means love to the Lord, which makes the glory of the New Church and fills life with warmth and happiness. The moon at the woman's feet means the faith of the New Church - the faith in the Lord and in the truths of His Word which is to shine brightly in the New Church for all to see, and which is to lead us in all that we think and do.

The woman in John's vision is the symbol of the New Church. She was beautiful, as all things of the New Church should be beautiful. A woman represents love, and in the New Church there is to be a great love for the things that the Lord makes known in His Word. This is especially true for the spiritual sense of the Word which the Lord has made known in the Heavenly Doctrine for the New Church. This doctrine is what is meant by the child that was to be born to the woman. These teachings - the spiritual sense of the Word - have been given to us by the Lord to cherish and to guard, even as a mother cherishes and guards her child.

The horrible red dragon is a symbol representing evil thoughts and loves. These, if they are clearly seen, are as dreadful and horrifying as the red dragon. They also lead to hatred of the Lord and all that is from Him. These evil thoughts and feelings are stirred to great anger when they sense that there is a love for the Lord and for things that are from Him, especially for the truths revealed in the Heavenly Doctrine. Like the dragon, evil becomes particularly enraged at the things of the New Church and will try to destroy it and all who belong to it.

But remember that the great dragon could not prevail over the woman. She was kept safe by the Lord, and He sent His angel to overthrow the dragon. This is true with each one of us. If our love to the Lord is strong, and our faith in Him is clear, if we love the things of the church and try to keep them safe, He will protect us with His great power. He will help us to overcome and cast away our evil thoughts and desires.

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