© 2024 Gaétan G. Charland
© 2024 Urantia Association of Quebec
Gaetan G. Charland
president@urantiaqc.organique
Dear readers and esteemed members of the association,
We are preparing to experience an exceptional year within the Urantia movement, marked by a return to normality imbued with a renewal of hope for the future of our two fraternal organizations dedicated to the dissemination of the Urantia Book and its teachings. The year has already started well, with the holding of an international congress in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, an event in which several Quebec members of the Urantia Association of Quebec had the pleasure of participating.
In-person conferences are also planned around the world, hosted by various national Urantia associations. The Urantia Book Fellowship is hosting its annual meeting, The Summer Study Session, under the theme “Igniting the Word,” in Missouri from July 24-27. My wife Line and I will have the honor of leading a workshop on study groups. For those interested in participating, I invite you to visit urantiabook.org.
One of the major hopes for the Urantia movement this year is the achievement of organizational unification between Urantia Association International and Urantia Book Fellowship. For many years, these two organizations, although having the same goal, have been in competition with each other, creating problems of credibility and resources, as well as confusion. In order to achieve this goal of unification, each association has formed a dedicated unity committee to facilitate discussions and explore different paths toward this common goal.
Within Urantia Association International, I have the honor of having been appointed chair of this committee on unity. In accordance with the agreement between the two organizations, each committee includes five members, of which, for UAI, two must come from different continents, one from South America and the other from Europe. Our first meeting will be held via Zoom on Monday, April 29, 2024, where we will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of unification, in order to better understand the different issues to be negotiated to achieve this objective.
The results of a poll conducted in March, and now continuing, among members of the Urantia Association of the United States show a majority in favor of unification, subject to certain conditions. One of these conditions concerns the publication of an edition of The Urantia Book in competition with that published by Urantia Foundation. Of course, there are other conditions which I cannot reveal here, but which are equally crucial. It is obvious that the Fellowship will also present its own list of points to negotiate.
If you are wondering how you can contribute to the success of this initiative, your prayers and spiritual support are welcome. We will need all the help we can get, especially spiritual support.
In closing, I traveled to Chicago the weekend of April 19 to attend my final meeting as Associate Trustee of Urantia Foundation. These three years as Associate Trustee have passed with astonishing speed. This experience has taught me much about the workings of the Foundation, and I come away with a high regard for its management and its future. Urantia Foundation is in a state of confusion. In order to achieve this unification goal, each association has formed a committee dedicated to easy-hands unity; the individuals who contribute to it are deeply devoted to the welfare of the revelation and its mission for our world.
Don’t forget our Annual General Meeting, which will be held in person at the Hôtel Dauphin in Drummondville, on Sunday, May 5 at 10 a.m. This meeting will be an opportunity to elect or re-elect a new vice-president and secretary. In the afternoon, I will give a conference on “Spiritual Unity and Us”, offering a valuable opportunity to reconnect in person with many readers after many years.
I wish you all a wonderful spring, and look forward to seeing you again at our annual meeting.
To love is to serve!