© 2023 Gaétan G. Charland
© 2023 Urantia Association of Quebec
Gaetan G. Charland
president@urantiaqc.org
Hello members and friends of the association,
During the past month I have sent you a message regarding a petition for unity in the Urantia movement. While most of you may not feel concerned about such an initiative, I would like to invite you to change your attitude by broadening your view of the Urantia movement and its mission.
Many of you may be more or less familiar with the story surrounding the 1989 separation between the Urantia Foundation and the Brotherhood. In fact, as I mentioned in my message about the petition, we Quebecers were largely spared from the conflict generated by this separation. There is no need to go back in time to explore the reasons for this separation. We could come away even more confused and discouraged by seeing the state of mind that prevailed at that time in the hearts of those who had embarked on this path of separation.
What we need to understand today is that the mission that The Urantia Book gives us requires that all readers and organizations be united to face the challenge of the difficult times ahead. It does not take a fortune teller to see where the world is now and where it could go if good people do nothing. We all see the rise of the populist who is seriously endangering the democracies of the world. We all see the alliances that are being forged between communist countries and those ruled by dictators.
We are all witnesses to the many changes that have begun to be felt in the world, climate change, migration crises, wars in many countries, a global pandemic and so on. Associated with all this, social networks and all the disinformation that is conveyed there and which will soon be largely amplified by artificial intelligence. We even see in the community of readers of the Urantia Book several who have adhered to certain radical forms of thought and become fervent conspirators. Even the right-thinking are being deceived a little like what happened during the Lucifer rebellion.
We were given The Urantia Book if I may say so, to inoculate us against the sophistries of false prophets. In addition to this crisis that is raging in the world, our movement is almost paralyzed and even in some places in decline because of certain problems generated by competition. Even in Quebec our movement is losing momentum, the number of members is decreasing every year, the number of study groups is stagnant, the presence in Zoom conferences is decreasing. There are no young readers joining us, and why?
I could give you several reasons for this situation that I consider deplorable. Here are a few; the lack of involvement, the laissez-faire not only at the local level, but also at the international level, the indifference to the spiritual needs of our environment and of ourselves. Indolence and the lack of sincerity are also factors that contribute to the lack of dynamism of our movement.
Many readers believe that simply distributing books all over the planet will change the world. I regret to tell you that this will not work; it takes much more than that, we must make efforts consistent not only with our mission, but also with the spirit and spiritual flavor of the Book we cherish. The Publication Mandate contains important directives given by the revelators, enjoining us to train teachers and leaders, to establish thousands of study groups.
In order to achieve these goals and succeed in the mission of The Urantia Book, we need the cooperation of every serious reader and every organization working to promote The Urantia Book and its teachings. What is currently happening almost everywhere on the planet where The Urantia Book is present is a growth of confusion caused by the competition that members of different organizations engage in. Added to this is the availability of different translations of The Urantia Book in the same language, translations made in opposition to the mandate of Urantia Foundation by certain organizations or individuals.
Many of the problems caused by competition between organizations have their origins in the separation that took place in 1989 between the Foundation and the Brotherhood. I also believe that this lack of unity in our movement is one of the important causes that contributes to the reluctance of the younger generation of readers to join the Urantia movement. In fact, we present to the world an inconsistent image of what a true spiritual brotherhood should be. It seems that the Ego has taken precedence in many activities related to The Urantia Book.
Far too many of us have forgotten that we must embody the change we desire to see in the world, we must become bearers of light, we must transform ourselves and become authentic sons of God involved in loving service to others. We must work to unify the world, to create harmony around us, to make truth shine in discussions, we must become ambassadors of peace, builders of spiritual brotherhood.
What are we waiting for to demonstrate our commitment to the high values that The Urantia Book teaches us? Tomorrow will be too late.
To love is to serve
Link to access the Choose Urantia Unity petition: