True Christian Religion (Chadwick) n. 785

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785. Everything has an internal and an external, and the external is dependent upon the internal, as the body is on the soul; a correct appreciation of matters known in the world will establish this. It is obvious in human beings: the whole human body comes from the mind, and hence everything which comes from the human being has an internal and an external. Willing on the part of the mind is present in every action, understanding on the part of the mind in every utterance, and likewise in every sense-perception. Every bird and every animal, even every insect and worm, has an internal and an external. So has every tree, plant and shoot, even every stone and particle of dust of the ground. A few examples will be sufficient to illustrate this, the silk-worm, the bee and dust. It is the silk-worm's internal which impels its external to fashion silk, and later to fly off as a butterfly. It is the bee's internal which impels its external to suck honey out of flowers, and to construct such wonderfully shaped cells. It is the internal of the dust of the ground which impels its external; it makes an effort to germinate seeds, exhaling from within itself something which enters the inmost of the seed, and makes it grow. This internal attends upon its vegetation until new seed is produced. Much the same happens in contrary examples, which also have an internal and an external. For instance in the case of the spider, whose internal which impels its external is an ability and so an inclination to construct a cunning web, in the middle of which it lies in wait for flies to be caught in it, so as to eat them. There is something similar in every noxious worm, and in every snake, as well as in every wild beast of the forest. It is similar in the case of every irreligious, crafty and deceitful person.


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