7172. I once saw spirits belonging to our planet with spirits belonging to the planet Mercury, and I heard them talking to one another. Among other things the spirits belonging to our planet asked them whom they believed in, to which they replied that they believed in God. But when they questioned them further about the God they believed in they were unwilling to say anything more, because it is not their custom to answer questions directly. Yet at that point the spirits from the planet Mercury in turn asked the spirits from our planet whom they believed in. They said, In the Lord God. But the spirits belonging to Mercury then said they perceived that they believed in no God at all and that they were accustomed to say with their lips that they believed, when in fact they did not (the reason why spirits belonging to Mercury possess keen perception is that they are constantly seeking by means of their perception to get hold of what others know). The spirits belonging to our planet were some of those who in the world were moved by what the Church taught to declare their faith, yet did not lead the life of faith. When they heard these things said about themselves they fell silent, for at that point they were given the ability to see that such things were true.