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Distributed for Swedenborg Foundation Publishers

Shining Soul

Helen Keller’s Spiritual Life & Legacy

This state-of-the-art documentary combines archival footage, interviews, stills, and dramatic re-enactments to explore one of the most significant and defining factors in the life of Helen Keller, whom Time chose as one of the most influential people of the twentieth century: the lilfelong spiritual inspiration she derived from her encounter with the writings of the visionary sage and philosopher Emanuel Swedenborg.

John Hitz, consul general of Switzerland to the United States, superintendent of the Volta Bureau, and friend of Alexander Graham Bell, befriended the teenaged Helen and created a Braille translation of Swedenborg’s Heaven and Hell for her, setting in motion a regeneration in her spiritual life that was to have a monumental impact on the world at large.

In 1927, Keller published My Religion, her affirmation of the effect of Swedenborg’s message in her life. "Swedenborg does such good to me," she once attested, "that I long to scatter his teachings among men and women wherever I go."

This 57-minute DVD explores the specific ideas and visionary theology that fired Helen Keller’s long and productive life of triumphant accomplishment in the face of all odds and her tireless philanthropic efforts to improve the lives of the less fortunate throughout the world.


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