About Us

The New Church in Australia is an organisation established in 1885 to serve the independent congregations around Australia. This website provides a central place to introduce people to

  • the New Church communities around Australia,
  • the life and teachings of Emanuel Swedenborg who inspired people to a renewed vision of Christianity,
  • the beliefs of the New Church,
  • various spiritual practices to assist in spiritual growth
  • and links to helpful Swedenborgian websites around the world.

A main focus of the New Church communities around Australia is to support people’s spiritual journey and their deeper connection with the Lord Jesus Christ.

Please explore our site. We’d love it if you attended one of our events! We’ll do our best to make you feel right at home.

About the New Church

People often ask, ‘What is the New Church?’ To start with, it is a Christian denomination that utilises the teachings of Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772). If you haven’t encountered his name before, you’re not alone – he was a brilliant thinker from Sweden, comparable to Leonardo da Vinci in terms of exceptional intellect, diverse talents, and profound influence on subsequent generations.

Swedenborg underwent a profound spiritual transformation in his fifties leading him to write extensively about God’s nature, Christianity’s deeper essence, and the inner meaning behind many Biblical stories rather than taking them literally. His goal was to help people live fulfilling and meaningful lives based on spiritual truths.

At this time Swedenborg perceived the dawn of a new era—a fresh way for people to connect with God. He became a conduit for profound wisdom, offering insights and a heightened understanding of spirituality. It’s important to know that Swedenborg uses the term “church” in a unique manner. For him, the church isn’t merely a physical structure; it’s the intimate presence of God within each human soul. Anyone who consciously and lovingly embraces God becomes a miniature church.

During his life time Swedenborg’s religious writings attracted widespread interest. He never attempted to set up a separate denomination and hoped that the new teachings would be taken up within the existing Christian Churches. While some embraced these ideas, they were often met with resistance.

In 1787, a group of individuals, convinced of their truth, founded the organized New Church. When selecting a name, they turned to Swedenborg’s own terminology: “The New Church.” For Swedenborg, this name encapsulated the new way God was enabling a closer connection with humanity.

Centres sprung up throughout Britain and later spread to America and other parts of the world.

In summary, the New Church represents a spiritual movement that seeks to restore the essence of Christianity, emphasizing loving God and loving each other, inner understanding, and a dynamic communion with the Divine.