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Part IV. The Life And Teachings Of Jesus
PAPER 176: Section 1. The Destruction
Of Jerusalem
P1912:3, 176:1.1
In answering Nathaniel's question, Jesus said: "Yes, I will tell you about the
times when this people shall have filled up the cup of their iniquity; when
justice shall swiftly descend upon this city of our fathers. I am about to leave
you; I go to the Father. After I leave you, take heed that no man deceive you,
for many will come as deliverers and will lead many astray. When you hear of
wars and rumors of wars, be not troubled, for though all these things will
happen, the end of Jerusalem is not yet at hand. You should not be perturbed by
famines or earthquakes; neither should you be
concerned when you are delivered up to the civil authorities and are persecuted
for the sake of the gospel. You will be thrown out of the synagogue and put in
prison for my sake, and some of you will be killed. When you are brought up
before governors and rulers, it shall be for a testimony of your faith and to
show your steadfastness in the gospel of the kingdom. And when you stand before
judges, be not anxious beforehand as to what you should say, for the spirit will
teach you in that very hour what you should answer your adversaries. In these
days of travail, even your own kinsfolk, under the leadership of those who have
rejected the Son of Man, will deliver you up to prison and death. For a time you
may be hated by all men for my sake, but even in these persecutions I will not
forsake you; my spirit will not desert you. Be patient! doubt not that this
gospel of the kingdom will triumph over all enemies and, eventually, be
proclaimed to all nations."
P1913:1, 176:1.2
Jesus paused while he looked down upon the city. The Master realized that the
rejection of the spiritual concept of the Messiah, the determination to cling
persistently and blindly to the material mission of the expected deliverer,
would presently bring the Jews in direct conflict with the powerful Roman
armies, and that such a contest could only result in the final and complete
overthrow of the Jewish nation. When his people rejected his spiritual bestowal
and refused to receive the light of heaven as it so mercifully shone upon them,
they thereby sealed their doom as an independent people with a special spiritual
mission on earth. Even the Jewish leaders subsequently recognized that it was
this secular idea of the Messiah which directly led to the turbulence which eventually brought about their destruction.
P1913:2, 176:1.3
Since Jerusalem was to become the cradle of the early gospel movement, Jesus did
not want its teachers and preachers to perish in the terrible overthrow of the
Jewish people in connection with the destruction of Jerusalem; wherefore did he
give these instructions to his followers. Jesus was much concerned lest some of
his disciples become involved in these soon-coming revolts
and so perish in the downfall of Jerusalem.
P1913:3, 176:1.4
Then Andrew inquired: "But, Master, if the Holy City and the temple are to be
destroyed, and if you are not here to direct us, when should we forsake
Jerusalem?" Said Jesus: "You may remain in the city after I have gone, even
through these times of travail and bitter persecution, but when you finally see
Jerusalem being encompassed by the Roman armies after the revolt of the false
prophets, then will you know that her desolation is at hand; then must you flee
to the mountains. Let none who are in the city and around about tarry to save
aught, neither let those who are outside dare to enter therein. There will be
great tribulation, for these will be the days of gentile vengeance. And after
you have deserted the city, this disobedient people will fall by the edge of the
sword and will be led captive into all nations; and so shall Jerusalem be
trodden down by the gentiles. In the meantime, I warn you, be not deceived. If
any man comes to you, saying, `Behold, here is the Deliverer,' or `Behold, there
is he,' believe it not, for many false teachers will arise and many will be led
astray; but you should not be deceived, for I have told you all this
beforehand."
P1913:4, 176:1.5
The apostles sat in silence in the moonlight for a considerable time while these
astounding predictions of the Master sank into their bewildered minds. And it
was in conformity with this very warning that practically the entire group of
believers and disciples fled from Jerusalem upon the first appearance of the
Roman troops, finding a safe shelter in Pella to the north.
P1913:5, 176:1.6
Even after this explicit warning, many of Jesus' followers interpreted these
predictions as referring to the changes which would obviously occur in Jerusalem
when the reappearing of the Messiah would result in the establishment of the New
Jerusalem and in the enlargement of the city to become the world's capital. In
their minds these Jews were determined to connect the destruction of the temple
with the "end of the world." They believed this New Jerusalem would fill all
Palestine; that the end of the world would be followed by the immediate
appearance of the "new heavens and the new earth." And so it was not strange
that Peter should say: "Master, we know that all things will pass away when the
new heavens and the new earth appear, but how shall we know when you will return
to bring all this about?"
P1914:1, 176:1.7
When Jesus heard this, he was thoughtful for some time and then said: "You ever
err since you always try to attach the new teaching to the old; you are
determined to misunderstand all my teaching; you insist on interpreting the
gospel in accordance with your established beliefs. Nevertheless, I will try to
enlighten you."
The Urantia Book
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Earth is called "Urantia" in The Urantia Book.The
Urantia Book (also sometimes called The Urantia Papers or the Fifth Epochal
Revelation) is a spiritual and philosophical book that discusses God,
science, religion, history, philosophy, and destiny.[1] It originated in
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A., sometime between 1924 and 1955, but its
authorship is considered to be a mystery.
The writers introduce the word Urantia as the name of the planet Earth and
state that their intent is to "present enlarged concepts and advanced truth"
in an "endeavor to expand cosmic consciousness and enhance spiritual
perception". Among many other topics, it expands on the origin and meaning
of life, describes humankind's place in the universe, discusses the
relationship between God and people, and presents a detailed biography of
Jesus. The book is 2,097 pages long, and consists of a Foreword and 196
papers, divided into four parts.
The Urantia Foundation first published The Urantia Book in 1955 in English.
Translations into numerous languages are available, with several new
translations in process.
In 2001, a United States District Court jury trial in the Western District
of Oklahoma found that the Urantia Foundation's 1983 renewal of the book's
copyright was invalid.[2] This decision was upheld on appeal in the United
States Court of Appeals 10th District.[3] The English version of the book is
considered to have entered the public domain in the U.S. as of 1983, and in
2006, the international copyright on the English text expired.[4] Complete,
searchable editions of The Urantia Book are available on the Internet, as
well as free audio versions.
Contents
1 Overview of The Urantia Book
2 Authorship
3 Teachings
3.1 Nature of God
3.2 God and the individual
3.3 Cosmology
3.4 History and future of the world
4 Comparisons to religious teachings
4.1 Comparison to Christianity
4.2 Comparison to Buddhism
4.3 Comparison to other world religions
5 Consideration as literature
6 Critical views
6.1 Criticisms of claims as a revelation
6.2 Criticism of science
6.3 Plagiarism allegations
7 Adherents
8 Symbols
9 The Urantia Book in popular culture
10 See also
11 References
12 External links
Overview of The Urantia Book
The Urantia Book consists of the following:
Table of Contents
Foreword
Part I: The Central and Superuniverses
Part II: The Local Universe
Part III: The History of Urantia
Part IV: The Life and Teachings of Jesus
The Foreword is in outline form and is presented as a guide to the
terminology used throughout the rest of the book, introducing explanations
for concepts and words that are developed in greater detail with later
papers.
Part I consists of 31 papers that address what are considered the highest
levels of creation, beginning with the concepts of the eternal and infinite
God.
Part II consists of 25 papers dedicated to an array of subjects pertaining
to "local universes." Part II expands on Part I and presents narratives on
the inhabitants of local universes and their work, as it is coordinated with
God’s plans in the larger schemes of creation.
Part III consists of 63 papers that compile a broad history of the Earth.
Part III presents a story of yet further examination and explanation of the
origin, history, purpose and destiny of the world and its inhabitants. The
last paper of this section outlines the six bestowal incarnations of Jesus
before his advent on earth for a final and seventh bestowal.
Part IV consists of 77 papers and narrates "The Life and Teachings of
Jesus." Included are papers about his childhood, teenage years, numerous
travels, several preaching tours, miracles, crises, and the events that led
to his crucifixion, death and resurrection. It continues with papers on
Pentecost, and finally, "The Faith of Jesus." Part IV illustrates many of
the concepts presented in the first three parts through the story of Jesus'
life.
Authorship
William S. Sadler, MDThe exact circumstances of the origin of The Urantia
Book are unknown. The book and its publishers do not name a human author,
but instead it is written as if directly presented by numerous celestial
beings appointed to the task of providing an "epochal" spiritual revelation
to humankind.[5][6][7]
As early as 1911, William S. Sadler and his wife Lena Sadler, physicians in
Chicago and well known in the community, were approached by a neighbor who
was concerned that she would occasionally find her husband in a deep sleep
and breathing abnormally. She reported that she was unable to wake him at
these times. The Sadlers came to observe the episodes, and over time, the
unconscious individual produced communications that seemed as if they were
from entities who claimed to be spiritual beings. The Sadlers were both
respected physicians, and William Sadler was a debunker of paranormal
claims, who is portrayed as not believing in the supernatural. In 1929, he
published a book The Mind at Mischief in which he explained fraudulent
methods of mediums and how self-deception leads to psychic claims. He wrote
in an appendix that there were two cases that he had not explained to his
satisfaction.[1]
The other exception has to do with a rather peculiar case of psychic
phenomena, one which I find myself unable to classify, and which I would
like very much to narrate more fully; I cannot do so here, however, because
of a promise which I feel under obligation to keep sacredly. In other words,
I have promised not to publish this case during the lifetime of the
individual. I hope sometime to secure a modification of that promise and be
able to report this case more fully because of its interesting features. I
was brought in contact with it, in the summer of 1911, and I have had it
under my observation more or less ever since, having been present at
probably 250 of the night sessions, many of which have been attended by a
stenographer who made voluminous notes.
A thorough study of this case has convinced me that it is not one of
ordinary trance. While the sleep seems to be quite of a natural order, it is
very profound, and so far we have never been able to awaken the subject when
in this state; but the body is never rigid, and the heart action is never
modified, though respiration is sometimes markedly interfered with. This man
is utterly unconscious, wholly oblivious to what takes place, and unless
told about it subsequently, never knows that he has been used as a sort of
clearing house for the coming and going of alleged extra-planetary
personalities. In fact, he is more or less indifferent to the whole
proceeding, and shows a surprising lack of interest in these affairs as they
occur from time to time.
Eighteen years of study and careful investigation have failed to reveal the
psychic origin of these messages. I find myself at the present time just
where I was when I started. Psychoanalysis, hypnotism, intensive comparison,
fail to show that the written or spoken messages of this individual have
origin in his own mind. Much of the material secured through this subject is
quite contrary to his habits of thought, to the way in which he has been
taught, and to his entire philosophy. In fact, of much that we have secured,
we have failed to find anything of its nature in existence. Its philosophic
content is quite new, and we are unable to find where very much of it has
ever found human expression.
In 1924, a group of Sadler's friends, former patients, and colleagues began
meeting for Sunday intellectual discussions, but became interested in the
strange communications when Sadler mentioned the case and read samples at
their request. Shortly afterwards, a communication reportedly was received
that this group would be allowed to devise questions and that answers would
be given by celestial beings through the "contact personality".
Sadler presented this development to the group, and they generated hundreds
of questions without full seriousness, but it resulted in the appearance,
one by one, of answers in the form of fully written papers. They became more
impressed with the quality of the answers and continued to ask questions,
until all papers now collected together as The Urantia Book were received.
The group was known as the Forum. A smaller group of five individuals called
the Contact Commission, including the Sadlers, was responsible for gathering
the questions from the Forum, acting as the custodians of the handwritten
manuscripts that were presented as answers, and arranging for proofreading
and typing of the material that arrived.
The Sadlers and others involved, now all deceased, claimed[8] that the
papers of the book were physically materialized from 1925 until 1935 in a
way that was not understood even by them, with the first three parts being
completed in 1934 and the fourth in 1935. The last Forum gathering was in
1942. Also documented are methods of reception that Sadler refuted as the
way the papers were received.[6] The individual known as the "contact
personality" or "sleeping subject" is said to have been kept anonymous in
order to prevent undesirable future veneration or reverence for him.
After all of the written material was received in 1935, an additional period
of time took place where requests for clarifications resulted in revisions.
Sadler and his son William (Bill) Sadler, Jr. at one point wrote a draft
introduction but were supposedly told that they could not add their
introduction because "A city can not be lit by a candle."[2] The Foreword
was then provided. Bill Sadler is noted to have composed the table of
contents that is published with the book.
The communications with the celestial beings purportedly continued for
another two decades while members of the Forum began to study the book in
depth, and according to Sadler and others, permission to publish it was
given to them in 1955. The Urantia Foundation was formed in 1950, and
through privately raised funds, the book was published under international
copyright on October 12, 1955.
Teachings
Nature of God
God in The Urantia Book is the creator and upholder of all reality — an
omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent, infinite and eternal spirit
personality.
The most fundamental teaching about God in the book is that he is a loving
Father, with whom all may have a personal relationship. "The face which the
Infinite turns toward all universe personalities is the face of a Father,
the Universal Father of love." Even during the development of numerous other
themes in The Urantia Book, God as a loving Father is emphasized as the
central, unifying attitude of God toward his creation.
From Paper 2, "The Nature of God":
God is inherently kind, naturally compassionate, and everlastingly merciful.
And never is it necessary that any influence be brought to bear upon the
Father to call forth his loving-kindness. The creature's need is wholly
sufficient to insure the full flow of the Father's tender mercies and his
saving grace. Since God knows all about his children, it is easy for him to
forgive. The better man understands his neighbor, the easier it will be to
forgive him, even to love him.
God is said to be a mystery though because of the infinite scope of his
perfection and his attributes. From Paper 1, "The Universal Father":
God is not hiding from any of his creatures. He is unapproachable to so many
orders of beings only because he "dwells in a light which no material
creature can approach." The immensity and grandeur of the divine personality
is beyond the grasp of the unperfected mind of evolutionary mortals. Today,
and as you are, you must discern the invisible Maker through his manifold
and diverse creation, as well as through the revelation and ministration of
his Sons and their numerous subordinates.
God according to the book is one Deity who functions on a range of different
levels of reality, both personal and impersonal. God is taught to exist in a
Trinity of three perfectly individualized persons who are co-equal: God the
Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit. These persons are referred to by
additional titles in the book, primarily as the "Universal Father", "Eternal
Son", and "Infinite Spirit". While stating that the concept of one God in
three persons is difficult to fully understand, the book says it "in no
manner violates the truth of the divine unity. The three personalities of
Paradise Deity are, in all universe reality reactions and in all creature
relations, as one."
The Father, Son, and Spirit are considered "existential" persons of Deity,
those in existence from the eternal past to the eternal future. In addition,
three persons of Deity are described who are "experiential", or incomplete
and in the process of actualizing: God the Supreme, God the Ultimate, and
God the Absolute. Of these three, God the Supreme, or "the Supreme Being",
is given the most explanation, as the person of Deity evolving in time and
space to unify finite reality and the infinite. The persons of God the
Ultimate and God the Absolute are considered to be remote from the
possibility of comprehension and are covered on a limited basis.
Many types of celestial beings are enumerated in the book, and one of
particular note is a joint "offspring" of the Universal Father and Eternal
Son called a "Creator Son". A divine Creator Son is considered the full
representation of the Universal Father and Eternal Son that is possible to
people. Jesus of Nazareth is identified as a Creator Son who incarnated on
Earth and whose life and teachings are portrayed as the fullest revelation
of the personality and attitude of God ever given to humanity.
Paper 196, the final paper, states:
To "follow Jesus" means to personally share his religious faith and to enter
into the spirit of the Master's life of unselfish service for man. One of
the most important things in human living is to find out what Jesus
believed, to discover his ideals, and to strive for the achievement of his
exalted life purpose. Of all human knowledge, that which is of greatest
value is to know the religious life of Jesus and how he lived it.
God and the individual
God is described as the Father of each individual, and through the direct
gift of a fragment of his eternal spirit, called a Thought Adjuster, God is
able to communicate with the individual. The Thought Adjuster is also called
a "Mystery Monitor," "inner voice," "divine spark," and "pilot light." The
concept is in ways comparable to the Hindu atman, the ancient Egyptian ka,
and the Quaker inner light. From philosophy, it is similar to what Socrates'
described as his "daimonion." In relation to biblical traditions, the
Thought Adjuster is described by the book as the meaning behind "being made
in God's image" and the "kingdom of God is within you."
According to The Urantia Book, each normal-minded person receives one such
fragment at the time of his or her first independent moral decision, on
average around the age of five years and ten months. The Adjuster then
serves noncoercively as a divine partner for the rest of life, and to the
extent that a person consents with their free will to want to find God, it
constantly leads the person toward more mature, spiritualized thinking.
Through the practice of learning how to follow the inner leadings of the
Adjuster — choose "God's will" — the individual progresses to greater God
consciousness and spiritual growth.
A person's "Thought Adjuster" is described as distinct from either the soul
or the conscience. In The Urantia Book's teachings, the degree to which a
human mind chooses to accept its Adjuster's guidance becomes the degree to
which a person's soul "grows" and becomes a reality that can then survive
death. The soul is in essence an embryonic spiritual development, with one
parental factor being the divine Adjuster and the other being the human
will.
The book many times links the biblical New Testament teachings of becoming
like a little child in attitude of trust and sincerity as being the
essential and ideal stance each person should have toward God. It says this
attitude of open-minded teachability facilitates spiritual growth in liaison
with the work of the Thought Adjuster and invariably leads a person to love
and serve other people. The book is strongly fideistic and teaches that
neither science nor logic will ever be able to prove or disprove the
existence of God, that faith is necessary to become conscious of God's
presence in human experience, the Thought Adjuster.
From Paper 101, "The Real Nature of Religion":
Religious experience, being essentially spiritual, can never be fully
understood by the material mind; hence the function of theology, the
psychology of religion. The essential doctrine of the human realization of
God creates a paradox in finite comprehension. It is well-nigh impossible
for human logic and finite reason to harmonize the concept of divine
immanence, God within and a part of every individual, with the idea of God's
transcendence, the divine domination of the universe of universes. These two
essential concepts of Deity must be unified in the faith-grasp of the
concept of the transcendence of a personal God and in the realization of the
indwelling presence of a fragment of that God in order to justify
intelligent worship and validate the hope of personality survival. The
difficulties and paradoxes of religion are inherent in the fact that the
realities of religion are utterly beyond the mortal capacity for
intellectual comprehension.
Persistently embracing sin is the same as rejecting the leadings of the
Adjuster, the same as rejecting the will of God. Constant selfishness and
sinful choosing will lead eventually to iniquity and full identification
with unrighteousness, and since unrighteousness is unreal, it results in the
eventual annihilation of the individual's identity — personalities like this
become "as if they never were." The book says that "in the last analysis,
such sin-identified individuals have destroyed themselves by becoming wholly
unreal through their embrace of iniquity." The concepts of Hell and
reincarnation are not taught.
From Paper 5, "God's Relation to the Individual":
The great God makes direct contact with mortal man and gives a part of his
infinite and eternal and incomprehensible self to live and dwell within him.
God has embarked upon the eternal adventure with man. If you yield to the
leadings of the spiritual forces in you and around you, you cannot fail to
attain the high destiny established by a loving God as the universe goal of
his ascendant creatures from the evolutionary worlds of space.
The book says that a person is ultimately destined to fuse with his or her
divine fragment and become one inseparable entity with it, if the person has
chosen to accept the Adjuster's leadings and become self-identified with it.
The act of fusion is the moment when a human personality has successfully
and unalterably won eternal life, typically taking place in the afterlife,
but also a possibility during earthly life. Once fused with his or her
fragment of God, a person continues as an ascending citizen in the universe
and travels through numerous worlds on a long, adventurous pilgrimage of
growth and learning that eventually leads to God and Paradise. Mortals who
reach this stage are called "finaliters." The book goes on to discuss the
potential destinies of these "glorified mortals."
The Urantia Book places much emphasis on the idea that all individuals have
the same opportunity to come to know God, and it says nothing can hinder or
hurt a human being's spiritual progression if he or she is sincerely
motivated to be spirit led. To want to know God and become like him is to be
the supreme quest of each person. God mandated "be you perfect, even as I am
perfect," and brought into existence a vast universe scheme of ascension to
assist mortal man in attaining the goal. The destiny of each person who
chooses to search for God is to traverse the many levels of creation to
"meet God."
People are to actively work to understand each other and to seek to live in
love and peace, being of help to one another. The practice of the "religion
of Jesus" is to love God the Father with a person's whole being, thereby
learning to love each person the way Jesus loves people; that is,
recognizing others as brothers and sisters and being of unselfish service to
one another.
Cosmology
The Urantia Book presents a detailed cosmological perspective on the
universe and humankind's relation to it. It teaches that the universe is
vastly older than current scientific theories state, and that the universe
is the product of intelligent and purposeful organization.[5][9]
The term "universe" is used to denote a number of different scales of
organization. (The book was written at a time when galaxies outside of the
Milky Way were still called "island universes.") A superuniverse is roughly
the size of a galaxy or group of galaxies. A local universe is described as
approximately 0.00001 the size of a superuniverse. The modern dictionary
definition of universe — all existing matter and space taken as a whole — is
referred to as the "master universe." When the term "universe" is used
alone, the type usually can be inferred from the context.
The visualization of the cosmos presented from the center outward is:
The Isle of Paradise — "the most gigantic organized body of cosmic reality
in all the master universe."
The Sacred Spheres of Paradise — twenty-one enormous
worlds, three circuits of seven worlds each — the Worlds of the Father, the
Worlds of the Son, and the Worlds of the Spirit orbiting in three
processions on the inner margin of space.
Havona — one billion (1,000,000,000) perfect worlds across seven circuits,
with "upwards of thirty-five million worlds" in the first or inner circuit,
"over two hundred and forty-five million worlds" in the seventh or
"outermost" circuit, and "proportional numbers" of worlds in the intervening
circuits.
Surrounding these are "dark gravity bodies" that "completely encircle and
enshroud Havona" and whose "multitudinous bodies" are "divided into two
equal elliptical circuits by a unique space intrusion." The Isle of
Paradise, the twenty-one Sacred Spheres, the one billion worlds of Havona,
and the orbiting dark gravity bodies taken as a whole are interchangeably
referred to as the "central universe," the "divine universe," and the
"Paradise-Havona system."
The central universe is surrounded by a "relatively quiet midspace zone" of
lessened motion and undisclosed diameter.
Beyond the midspace zone, seven superuniverses swing around the central
universe and have an approximate diameter of 400,000 - 500,000 light-years.
These contain the evolutionary worlds of time and space. The seven
superuniverses are then immediately surrounded by another midspace zone
"which varies in width but averages 400,000 light-years". One of the stated
purposes of the cosmos is to provide worlds where intelligent life may be
created or evolved from primitive life. Each of the seven superuniverses,
when fully developed, would have approximately one trillion inhabited
worlds. Each divisional level has "architectural worlds," including a
headquarters sphere, which are worlds made to order and are independently
lighted and heated for the celestial and other life of those spheres. They
are created to be administrative and educational worlds and are said to be
at the approximate, and sometimes exact, gravity center of their regions of
inhabited worlds and physical systems. A detailed organization of
superuniverses is provided. Briefly, levels of organization are:
Individual inhabited worlds such as Urantia
Local systems — 1,000 inhabited worlds
Constellations — 100 local systems
Local universes — 100 constellations
Minor sectors — 100 local universes
Major sectors — 100 minor sectors
Superuniverses — 10 major sectors
Beyond are enormous uninhabited "outer space levels." The first outer space
level is estimated to be fifty million light-years in diameter and
surrounded by a midspace zone of approximately the same diameter.
The second, third, and fourth outer space levels surround each previous
level with greater and greater magnitude and each is separated by a midspace
zone of about the same magnitude as the previous space level.
From Appendix 3, Section 3 in "Sadler, William S., Jr., Appendices to A
Study of The Master Universe", the authors of The Urantia Book "postulate an
additional and unrevealed creation" beyond this, "a possible
never-beginning, never-ending universe of infinity."
The book describes alternative explanations to current hypotheses in science
regarding the universe's origin, and suggests sources of error in current
astronomical observations. For example, the concept of "space respiration" —
that all of space itself undergoes "two-billion-year expansion-contraction
cycles"— is claimed to be part of the explanation for astronomic redshift.
The Urantia Book says we are currently almost half way through an expansion
cycle.
The Urantia Book states that the cosmology in the papers will be in need of
revision as new discoveries emerge in science, and that its presentations
are not meant to be a substitute for science.
History and future of the world
Main article: History and future of the world (The
Urantia Book)
Urantia is considered one inhabited sphere among millions of others in the
universe. The book's extensive teachings about the history of the world
include its physical development billions of years ago from cataclysmic
meteor captures, the gradual changes in conditions that allowed life to
develop, and the long ages of organic evolution that started with
microscopic marine life and led to plant and animal life in the oceans,
later on land. The emergence of humans is presented as having occurred about
a million years ago from a branch of superior primates originating from a
lemur ancestor.
The Urantia Book says "this story is graphically told within the fossil
pages of the vast 'stone book' of world record ... the pages of this
gigantic biogeologic record unfailingly tell the truth if you but acquire
skill in their interpretation." Unlike current scientific views, evolution
is said to be orderly and controlled. Primordial life is taught to have been
intelligently planned, implanted, and monitored by "Life Carriers," instead
of arising spontaneously. The book says that "mortal man is not an
evolutionary accident," and that the purpose of evolution on a planet such
as Urantia is to produce creatures of "will dignity" that can develop
spiritual natures and survive material existence, going on to have eternal
spiritual careers.
The Urantia Book teaches not only biological evolution, but that human
society and spiritual understandings evolve by slow progression, subject
both to periods of rapid improvement and the possibility of retrogression.
Progress is said to follow a divine plan that includes periodic gifts of
revelation and ministry by heavenly teachers, which eventually will lead to
an ideal world status of "light and life" in the far distant future.
Though there is the ideal and divine plan, it is fostered and administered
by various orders of celestial beings who are less than perfect. Through
mistakes or deliberate rebellion, the plan can be wrecked, requiring long
spans of time to recoup lost progress. Urantia is taught to be a markedly
"dark and confused" planet that is "greatly retarded in all phases of
intellectual progress and spiritual attainment" compared to more typical
inhabited worlds, due to an unusually severe history of rebellion and
default by its spiritual supervisors.
Comparisons to religious teachings
Comparison to Christianity
Of all current world major religions, The Urantia Book's teachings are most
consistent with the teachings of Christianity.[citation needed] However,
there are numerous and significant differences between The Urantia Book and
commonly accepted Christian beliefs.
Jesus is held in high regard by The Urantia Book, as he is in the New
Testament of the Bible. More than one third of the content of the book (Part
IV), is devoted to a narrative of his life and teachings. The narrative is
said to be a restatement of Jesus' life and teachings based on a gathering
of "superior concepts" from over two thousand individuals who have lived
since his times, as well as "superhuman" and "superplanetary sources of
information".
The following are attributed to Jesus, as in the Bible[1]:
He was a Son of God incarnate, born to Mary and Joseph
He was God in man, both human and divine
He lived a perfect life
He revealed God to man as "the way, the truth, and the life"
He performed many of the miracles described in the Bible, such as the
resurrection of Lazarus, the turning of water into wine, the feeding of the
five thousand, and numerous healings of the blind, diseased, and infirm
He taught twelve apostles, nine of whom went on to spread his teachings
He was crucified, and on the third day after his death, rose from the dead
He will return to our world again some day
The Urantia Book shares the following general concepts with most Christian
faiths[1]:
God is the creator of all reality
God is omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent, infinite, and eternal
God is described as a loving personality–"God is love"
God is a single deity that exists in a Trinity of three persons
God has a vast "heavenly host"
Believers who have a personal relationship with God are "born of the spirit"
Those having faith in God survive death (regardless of their specific
religious orientation)
Angels and divine personalities exist and are sent to guard and minister to
people throughout their lives.
Some differences with Christianity include[5][10][9]:
Jesus' crucifixion is not considered an atonement for the sins of humanity.
The crucifixion is taught to be an outcome of the fears of religious leaders
of the day, who regarded his teachings as a threat to their positions of
authority.
God is never wrathful or angry. He is a personality entirely motivated by
Father-like love.
Jesus is the human incarnation of "Michael of Nebadon," one of more than
700,000 "Paradise Sons" of God, or "Creator Sons." Jesus is not considered
the second person of the Trinity as he is in Christianity. The book refers
to the Eternal Son as the second person of the Trinity.
Jesus was born on earth through natural means of conception instead of a
virgin birth.
Jesus did not walk on water or perform some of the miracles that are
attributed to him in the Bible.
Jesus rose from the dead in a "more glorified form," reflective of a
transitional state between material and spiritual existence known as "morontia".
As with all mortals, his physical body was subject to decomposition, but
celestial beings removed his body from the tomb for the immediate
dissolution of his remains through a process of "accelerated time."
The book states that Jesus may return to the world many times. Christian
eschatology doctrines such as the Rapture, where Jesus returns to take
faithful believers to heaven and leaves behind unbelievers for tribulation,
are not supported.
Comparison to Buddhism
The Urantia Book considers Buddhism one of the "great international,
interracial faiths" and says it "has shown an adaptability to the mores of
many peoples that has been equaled only by Christianity."
Gautama Siddhartha is called a real prophet whose doctrines were
revolutionary and amazing for their time. He is credited with being one of
the seven outstanding teachers in human history, a group that includes
Moses, Laozi, and the Apostle Paul.
The teaching that a divine nature — the Buddha-nature — resides in all
people, and that through their own endeavors people can attain a realization
of this inner divinity, is cited as one of the clearest presentations of the
concept of the Thought Adjuster to be found in non-revelatory religion.
The book says Gautama's experience was tragic, however, in that he was an
"orphan prophet" whose philosophy failed early on to envision the reality of
a spiritual God.
Despite this, the book states: "Buddhism is a living, growing religion today
because it succeeds in conserving many of the highest moral values of its
adherents. It promotes calmness and self-control, augments serenity and
happiness, and does much to prevent sorrow and mourning. Those who believe
this philosophy live better lives than many who do not."
Comparison to other world religions
Numerous facets of the book are recognizeable in other world religions.
There are commonalities with Islam, Taoism, Judaism, Hinduism, Shinto, and
Confucianism, and several other religions throughout recorded history. The
authors of The Urantia Book encourage the study of all religions to take
"the best" from each.
Paper 131, "The World's Religions", discusses more in-depth those facets of
some of the world's religions that have commonalities with the "religion of
Jesus," but there are also numerous other references to the world's various
religions throughout Part III, "The History of Urantia," beginning with
Paper 86, "Early Evolution of Religion".
Consideration as literature
The Urantia Book has been enjoyed by some as a form of science fiction,
historical fiction, or fantasy. By others it is considered as historical
fact. The Urantia Book is noted for its high level of internal consistency
and an advanced writing style. Even the skeptic Martin Gardner, in his
critical book, writes that it is "highly imaginative" and that the
"cosmology outrivals in fantasy the cosmology of any science-fiction work
known to me."
Parts I, II, and III are chiefly written in expository language. The papers
are informational, matter-of-fact, and instructional. Part IV of the book is
written as a biography of Jesus' life, and some feel it is a rich narrative
with well-developed characters, high attention to detail, woven sub-plots,
and realistic dialogue. Considered as literature, Part IV is favorably
compared to other retellings of Jesus' life, such as The Gospel According to
Jesus Christ by José Saramago and Behold the Man by Michael Moorcock. Martin
Gardner considers Part IV to be an especially "well-written, impressive
work," and says, "Either it is accurate in its history, coming directly from
higher beings in position to know, or it is a work of fertile imagination by
someone who knew the New Testament by heart and who was also steeped in
knowledge of the times when Jesus lived."
Critical views
The Urantia Book has received limited published or formal critical analysis.
Likely the most common points of contention include:
It claims to be a revelation from celestial beings and is written as if
directly presented by these celestial beings.
From a scientific point of view, parts of the science it describes conflict
with modern theories.
Some of the concepts are alleged to have been plagiarized.
To those who assert that the Bible is the inerrant word of God, it denies
some Christian doctrines that are held to be true, and therefore is not
acceptable.
Criticisms of claims as a revelation
In Paper 92, "The Later Evolution of Religion", the authors list the papers
as the fifth revelation of "epochal significance" to humankind, the fourth
epochal revelation having been the life of Jesus.
The book has been in print since 1955, but in comparison to other religious
or holy books that have a recent origin and revelatory claims, such as the
Book of Mormon, popularity of The Urantia Book has not grown as fast. Brad
Gooch writes, "Because of its insistence on having been written by a
committee of extraterrestrial beings, The Urantia Book falls for most people
to the far left of believability."[9] The small movement inspired by The
Urantia Book has not developed institutions such as churches, reading rooms,
or temples, and has no membership by which a census of the number of
followers can be taken.[9] As of 2006, the Urantia Foundation had one office
in Chicago and five people on staff.[4]
The claim of revelation in The Urantia Book has been criticized for various
reasons. Skeptics such as Martin Gardner say it is a product of human
efforts rather than a revelation because some of its science is flawed.
Because the book does not support certain fundamental tenets of
Christianity, while at the same time presenting an account of Jesus' life
with non-Biblical elements, those with a Christian viewpoint have argued it
cannot be a genuine divine revelation.[10] Some have considered it to be
gnostic, however The Urantia Book does not advocate tenets associated with
Gnosticism.
Other critics have felt that at over 2,000 pages — nearly twice the length
of the King James Bible — it is too long, complex, and bureaucratic in its
thinking.[9][11][12]
Criticism of science
In Paper 101, "The Real Nature of Religion," the authors write:
We full well know that, while the historic facts and religious truths of
this series of revelatory presentations will stand on the records of the
ages to come, within a few short years many of our statements regarding the
physical sciences will stand in need of revision in consequence of
additional scientific developments and new discoveries. These new
developments we even now foresee, but we are forbidden to include such
humanly undiscovered facts in the revelatory records. Let it be made clear
that revelations are not necessarily inspired. The cosmology of these
revelations is not inspired.
Skeptics like Martin Gardner see the science in The Urantia Book as clear
reflections of the views that prevailed at the time the book is said to have
originated. The claim by the authors that no unknown scientific discoveries
could be imparted is seen as a ruse to allow mistakes to be dismissed later.
That presentation of post-1955 scientific knowledge is avoided is taken to
be evidence it was written by humans and not by celestial beings with
superior knowledge.
Criticisms regarding the science in The Urantia Book include[5]:
The described formation of the solar system is consistent with the
Chamberlin-Moulton planetesimal hypothesis [3]. Though popular in the early
part of the 20th century, by the early 1940s it was discarded by Henry
Russell's argument that it was incompatible with the angular momentum of
planets such as Jupiter [4]. The currently accepted scientific explanation
for the origin of the solar system is based on the nebular hypothesis.
The age of our universe is stated to be more than
1,000,000,000,000 years old and the universe is said to periodically expand
and contract — respire — at 2-billion-year intervals. The big bang theory is
not supported.
A fundamental particle called an "ultimaton" is proposed,
with an electron being composed of 100 ultimatons. The particle is not known
to be described anywhere else and the concept is not supported by modern
particle physics.
Some species are said to have evolved suddenly from
single mutations without transitional species. The theory originated with
Dutch botanist Hugo De Vries but was short-lived and is not now supported.
According to The Urantia Book, multi-colored human races
originated suddenly in one generation and in one family, producing brothers
and sisters that variously turned blue, yellow, red, green, orange, and
indigo when exposed to sunlight. Their offspring subsequently favored the
parent color. Later, Adam and Eve produced a violet race. In the book's
account, the blue, yellow, and red races were considered "primary," and the
green, orange, and indigo "secondary." The green and orange races were
driven to extinction, and the rest mixed over time. Modern evolutionary
theory does not support this account.
The book repeats the idea prevalent at the time of its
origin that one side of the planet Mercury always faces the sun due to tidal
locking. In 1965, radio astronomers discovered that Mercury actually rotates
fast enough for all sides to see exposure to the sun. Also in the same
passage, the book erroneously states that tidal friction will slow the
rotation of a planet or other orbiting body "until axial revolution ceases."
Revolutions do not cease, however, but stabilize so that the time to
complete one revolution becomes equal to the time needed to complete an
orbit.
The book says that a solar eclipse was predicted in 1808 by the Native
American prophet Tenskwatawa. The eclipse actually was predicted in late
April of 1806 and occurred on June 16, 1806.
Controversial statements about human races can be found
in the book. Supporters state that criticism has arisen mainly due to
reading passages out of context. Gardner believes that William S. Sadler,
who wrote some eugenicist works, had a hand in editing or writing the book,
and that this is how the ideas were included.
While some adherents of the book believe that all of the information in The
Urantia Book including its science is literally true, many others accept the
book's caveats and do not believe that the science is fully accurate.
Meredith Sprunger, a liberal believer in The Urantia Book and retired
minister in the United Church of Christ, writes, "research has revealed that
virtually all of the scientific material found in The Urantia Book was the
accepted scientific knowledge of the period in which the book was written,
was held by some scientists of that time, or was about to be discovered or
recognized." He argues against its literal infallibility and that
fundamentalism over the book is "just as untenable as Biblical
fundamentalism."[5]
Other believers maintain that the book has prophetically anticipated
scientific advances already. They believe more of its science — if not all
of it — will be proven correct in the future. Gardner evaluated many of
these claims as of 1995 and found them unconvincing. Some arise because the
book is said to have been indited by the revelators by 1935, but then was
not published until 1955. Science discovered during the two intervening
decades can be perceived as prophetic by believers, while skeptics think
such facts were added prior to publication. For instance, the catalytic role
that carbon plays in the sun's nuclear reactions is described in the book,
though Hans Bethe's announcement of the discovery was not made until 1938.
The only apparent anticipation of science the book has made, in Gardner's
opinion, is that it says the magnetic sense that homing pigeons possess is
"not wholly wanting as a conscious possession by mankind." In 1980, a
British zoologist, Robin Baker, published evidence that humans have a
limited magnetic sense. Others have noted the apparent knowledge of the
Viking exploration of America nearly five hundred years before the arrival
of Columbus, even though the Viking settlements weren't discovered until
decades after "The Urantia Book" was written. In Paper 79, the author
writes:
"These races and cultural groups remained almost completely isolated from
the remainder of the world from their arrival in the Americas down to the
end of the first millennium of the Christian era, when they were discovered
by the white races of Europe"
Recently, there has also been new research into what causes auroras ("The
Northern Lights") which corresponds relatively closely to what is written in
the Urantia Book. Both ascertain that the auroras are caused by charged
particles following a magnetic path from the sun to the earth. The exact
wording is, of course, different but the overall meanings of each text are
questionably close.
Plagiarism allegations
The Urantia Book states in its Foreword that more than one thousand "human
concepts representing the highest and most advanced planetary knowledge of
spiritual values and universe meanings" were selected in preparing the
papers concerning the Deities and the "universe of universes." The authors
say that although "it is exceedingly difficult to present enlarged concepts
and advanced truth" using the English language, they are required to "give
preference to the highest existing human concepts pertaining to the subjects
to be presented" and "may resort to pure revelation only when the concept of
presentation has had no adequate previous expression by the human mind."
In recent years, students of the papers have found that the free use of
other sources appears to be true.[5][9] None of the material allegedly used
from other sources are directly cited or referenced within the book.
In 1992, a reader of The Urantia Book, Matthew Block, self-published a paper
that showed nineteen alleged examples of The Urantia Book utilizing material
published earlier.[13] All of the source authors identified in Block's paper
were published in English between 1905 and 1943 by U.S. publishers and are
typically scholarly or academic works that contain concepts and wording
similar to what is found in The Urantia Book. Block has since claimed to
have discovered over 125 source books and articles, written by over 90
authors, which were incorporated into the papers.[5]
The use of outside source materials was studied separately by Gardner and
Gooch, and they concluded that the book did use many of the sources noted by
Block. Gardner found that at least one of the source book authors was quoted
in earlier works by Sadler, and most of the books purportedly would have
been available to Sadler or Forum members in Chicago prior to 1955.
For instance, Gardner and Block note that Paper 85 appears to have been
taken from the first eight chapters of Origin and Evolution of Religion by
E. Washburn Hopkins, published by Yale University Press in 1923. Each
section of the paper corresponds to a chapter in the book, with several
passages possibly used as direct material. Likewise, much of The Urantia
Book material relating to the evolution of mankind appears to have been
directly taken from Henry Fairfield Osborn, Man Rises to Parnassus: Critical
Epochs in the Prehistory of Man published by Princeton University Press in
1928.
In one example cited by Block, the original author discusses the periodicity
of the chemical elements and concludes that the harmony in the construction
of the atom suggests some unspecified plan of organization. After being
"plagiarized," the authors of The Urantia Book assert that this harmony is
evidence of the intelligent design of the universe. W. F. G. Swann writes on
page 64 of The Architecture of the Universe (italics indicate edits, bolding
indicates deletions):
Starting from any one of them [i.e., chemical elements], and noting some
property such as the melting point, for example, the property would change
as we went along the row, but as we continued it would gradually come back
to the condition very similar to that which we started ... The eighth
element was in many respects like the first, the ninth like the second, the
tenth like the third, and so on. Such a slate of affairs point[s] not only
to a varied internal structure, but also to a certain harmony in that
variation suggestive of some organized plan in building the atom.
Contrast with The Urantia Book's version:
Starting from any one element, after noting some one property, such a
quality will exchange for six consecutive elements, but on reaching the
eighth, it tends to reappear, that is, the eighth chemically active element
resembles the first, the ninth the second, and so on. Such a fact of the
physical world unmistakably points to the sevenfold constitution of
ancestral energy and is indicative of the fundamental reality of the
sevenfold diversity of the creations of time and space.
Block and many believers do not see the use of human source materials as
plagiarism. Block writes:
One probable reason that the human sources were left undisguised was to
enable students to discern, through comparative analysis, how this
coordination of planetary knowledge was actually effected. As mentioned
above, the initial analyses have already proved tremendously illuminating in
this regard. Another reason was to keep us aware of the book’s anchorage in
a specific time and place. While a very large part of the book is of
timeless value and perennial applicability, some of its discussions directly
address and respond to the world situation of the early 20th century. Thus,
every generation will have to determine the relevance and applicability of
certain of the book’s teachings to its own situation.
Emerging from all these discoveries is the gratifying realization that the
Urantia Book is exactly what its authors claim it to be....
It should be noted that the wording and phraseology is not identical to the
alleged source materials.
Adherents
This short section requires expansion.
There is no way to gauge who "adherents" are as there are no groups to
census. Urantia Foundation has advocated a "slow growth" policy in the past
and not actively marketed the book. At one time, a person who wished to
acquire The Urantia Book would need to contact the foundation directly, and
a copy would not be provided unless the person provided their name.[citation
needed] However, it appears that a growing number of people are reading the
book and forming study groups, creating and joining Internet discussion
groups, and hosting or visiting websites about it.[9]
Symbols
A symbol described in The Urantia Book consists of three concentric blue
circles on a white background. The circles are said to have symbolized
several trinity associations in the history of humankind. The authors of The
Urantia Book indicate its revealed meaning as being "the infinity, eternity,
and universality of the Paradise Trinity of divine maintenance and
direction."
The original publisher, Urantia Foundation, placed the concentric circles on
the cover of The Urantia Book and has a United States trademark. The circles
are used to indicate other organizations affiliated with the Urantia
Foundation.
The Urantia Association International, one of the main readership
organizations in the movement, has been licensed by Urantia Foundation to
use the three blue concentric circles on a white background.
Some other groups use the symbol in various altered forms.
The Urantia Book in popular culture
German composer Karlheinz Stockhausen's massive opera
cycle Licht makes reference to it in the first and third acts of Donnerstag
(Thursday), and in the symbols associated with two of the three main
characters, Michael and Lucifer.
The band Deadsy is influenced by The Urantia Book, and
makes references to it in several songs.
The album Monolith, by the American progressive rock
group Kansas, was largely influenced by The Urantia Book.
The psychedelic/rock group Spirit released a series of
albums influenced by The Urantia Book during the mid-1970s, most notable on
the albums Spirit of '76 and Son of Spirit.
Pato Banton, international reggae recording artist,
regularly performs and has dedicated himself to raising awareness about it.
Jazz Fusion band Weather Report's seventh album titled
"Heavy Weather" features a track titled "Havona" written by bass guitar
legend Jaco Pastorius.
Author Denis Johnson describes a follower of the book
within his novel Angels,
There have been accusations of J.J. Benítez plagiarizing The Urantia Book
for his Spanish-language novel series Caballo de Troya
Mentioned In the Six Feet Under tie-in book Better Living
Through Death
Ashtar-Urantia- Audio CD- Celtic-flavoured progressive
rock,
Urantia Rising by Various Artists (Audio CD - 2006) -Import
Mykl Lozin -Ascension - the 7th Wave -Audio CD-Australian composer and
Violinist - Mykl Lozin. 3.Urantia
See also
Glossary of terms in The Urantia Book
Revelation (The Urantia Book)
References
a b c Urantia Foundation (1955). The Urantia Book. Urantia Foundation.
ISBN 0-911560-02-5
^ Michael Foundation, Inc. v. Urantia Foundation v. Harry McMullan, III US
District Court decision by jury that Urantia Foundation does not hold the
copyright to The Urantia Book
^ Michael Foundation, Inc. v. Urantia Foundation v. Harry McMullan, III US
Court of Appeals affirms the jury decision that Urantia Foundation does not
hold the copyright to The Urantia Book
^ a b 2006 Urantia Foundation annual report (PDF)
^ a b c d e f g Gardner, Martin (1995). Urantia: The Great Cult Mystery.
Prometheus Books. ISBN 0-87975-955-0
^ a b "Notes For A History of The Urantia Movement"
^ "How The Urantia Book Came Into Existence" by William S. Sadler, Jr.,
February 18, 1962.
^ Affidavit of Dr. Meredith Sprunger on October 24, 1998 regarding the
origin of The Urantia Book
^ a b c d e f g Gooch, Brad (2002). Godtalk : Travels in Spiritual America.
Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 0-679-44709-1
^ a b House, Dr. H. Wayne (2000). Charts of Cults, Sects, and Religious
Movements. Zondervan. ISBN 0-310-38551-2
^ Mather, George A. and Nichols, Larry A. (1993). Dictionary of Cults,
Sects, Religions and the Occult. Zondervan Publishing House. ISBN 0310531004
^ "Clergy Evaluate The Urantia Book - I" by Meredith Sprunger, January 1986.
^ "Some Human Sources of The Urantia Book" by Matthew Block, originally
published in 1992. Describes suspected parallels Block found between The
Urantia Book and possible human sources of material.
External links
Wikisource has original text related to this article:
The Urantia BookUrantia Foundation The Urantia Foundation website — the
original publisher but now one of several; complete online copy of the book
The Urantia Book Fellowship Website of The Urantia Book Fellowship
Urantia Association International Website of Urantia Association
International
Free Audio Book Listen to or download free MP3 audio of The Urantia Book
from the Internet Archive.
A review of The Urantia Book at ReligiousTolerance.org
A review of The Urantia Book at The Skeptic's Dictionary
Urantia Book Related Web Sites Over 200 sites in 26 categories
Urantia Historical Society Hundreds of digital documents from the 1900s to
present
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