In Swedenborg's works, “enlightenment” means an ordering and linking of truths in our minds by the Lord, so that we understand them more clearly and deeply than before. Perhaps because of his intense awareness of spiritual world influences on us, Swedenborg does not advocate us seeking our own enlightenment on what is true, but instead to acquire it through hearing and obeying what the Lord reveals to us through the Word.

When people read the Word as a holy book in order to know what’s true, and think about what they are reading, they are inviting the Lord to flow into their minds, and carry out this ordering and linking process.

When someone then tries to put those truths into the acts of his or her life, the order and enlightenment are much increased. Note that the Lord doesn’t reveal new truths this way, but simply casts new light on the truths that the person has freely acquired.

Such enlightenment can go on through this life on earth and on to eternity in heaven. Some translators of Swedenborg's Latin have used the word “illustration” instead of “enlightenment.”

(참조: Arcana Coelestia 8211, 9424, 10551, Arcana Coelestia 10551 [2]; The Word 13; The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem Regarding the Sacred Scripture 57; The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem Regarding Faith 5)

3. It is, however, a common saying that no one can comprehend spiritual or theological matters because they transcend human understanding. Yet spiritual truths are as comprehensible as natural ones. And if they are not clearly understood, still, when they are heard, it falls within its scope of the intellect to perceive whether they are true or not. This is especially the case with people who have an affection for truths.

I have been given to know this from much personal experience. I have been given to speak with ignorant people, with obtuse people, with stupid people, and even with people caught up in falsities and people caught up in evils, all of whom were born into the church and learned something about the Lord, faith and charity; and it has been granted me to discuss with them secrets of wisdom. And they understood and acknowledged them all. However, they then possessed an intellectual light which is possible to everyone, and were at the same time prompted by the conceit of believing themselves intelligent. But this I learned in conversation with spirits.

Many others with me were convinced by these experiences that spiritual matters are as comprehensible as natural ones, but only when they are heard or read. Otherwise they are comprehended with difficulty by a person on his own when thinking independently.

The reason spiritual matters are comprehensible is that a person’s intellect can be raised into the light of heaven, the light in which only spiritual matters are seen, which are the truths of faith. For the light of heaven is a spiritual light.