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Remarks of Rev. Eric Carswell, President

What do you see when you look around the campus where we are gathered today—grass, trees, grey sky, buildings and people. In the Writings of the New Church we are invited to see more. In several dozen places in those books we are told that all that we see can remind us of heaven and the Lord. For example:

. . . the whole visible universe is therefore nothing else than a theatre that is representative of the Lord's kingdom. And this in turn is a theatre representative of the Lord Himself. (Arcana Caelestia 3483)

. . . the whole natural order is a theatre representative of the Lord's kingdom in heaven, and therefore of the Lord's kingdom on earth, which is the Church, and consequently of the Lord's kingdom with every regenerate person. (Arcana Caelestia 3518)

Ideas like these were profoundly inspiring to many 19th century writers such as those known as the transcendentalists. The idea that the Lord can be seen within all things has inspired scientists with the wonderful order of the natural world, artists with the beauty that can be seen, mathematicians with the power and precision of numbers, and countless others with the qualities that make human beings what they are and how they react to their life experiences.

One might think that this concept would have one only focus on what was good and whole. We also know that in the Gospel of Matthew the Lord invited us to see His presence in things that are incomplete or need help.

. . . for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me. (Matthew 25:35–36)

Many of us have looked at this campus and seen something that was missing. Bryn Athyn College has not had its own science building. We have gathered to symbolically mark the beginning of filling in that missing quality. When we think of it, it is not the stone, glass and metal that we most care about. All of these things will exist to create a space for students to learn together. We picture the generations of students who, within the walls of the Doering Center for Science and Research will be able to be inspired with the wonder and power of science and its ability to serve us in our roles as stewards of this natural world. We want them to come to see for themselves that the universe is a theatre representative of the Lord's kingdom and of the Lord Himself. Thank you.

All Speakers' Remarks (PDF)