The Purposes of Truth

We talk a lot about truth in the New Church. It's good to have a reminder, though, of what the point of truth is. Apocalypse Revealed 161:2 provides an interesting list of things that are done by means of truth. (It also lists Arcana Coelestia references where you can read more about each of them.)

[1] by truths comes faith....
[2] by truths comes love towards the neighbor, or charity....
[3] by truths comes love to the Lord....
[4] by truths come intelligence and wisdom....
[5] by truths regeneration is effected....
[6] by truths there is power against evils and falsities, and against hell....
[7] by truths there is purification from evils and falsities....
[8] by truths the church exists....
[9] by truths heaven exists....
[10] by truths comes the innocence of wisdom....
[11] by truths there is conscience....
[12] by truths there is order....
[13] by truths is the beauty of angels, and also of men as to the interiors which are of their spirit....
[14] by truths man is man....
But all this by truths from good, and not by truths without good, and good is from the Lord....

New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine 24 has a similar list and also some other general statements about truth. It can be useful, when thinking about a specific truth, to consider how it might serve some of the purposes mentioned in these passages.