© 2018 Georges Michelson-Dupont
© 2018 French-speaking Association of Readers of the Urantia Book
| All These Trips in Europe | Le Lien Urantien — Issue 84 — December 2018 | Studying The Urantia Book. What For? |
Georges Michelson-Dupont
At some point, everyone can stop and reflect on the meaning of life. For what? For whom? Love? Suffering? Death? To this legitimate questioning, institutional religions and human philosophies cannot provide a satisfactory answer because it can only come from the one who planned the universe, that is to say, the First Source-Center. It is up to it to enlighten us because, locked as we are in our earthly and material tautology, we can only escape with the help and support of the Creator. This is the purpose of the revelations of the times of which The Urantia Book is a part. The careful study of this revelation must lead us to a better understanding of our life, our future, our relationship with this Source and our place in the universe. For this, the authors have received the mandate to broaden our conceptual framework, to relax our cosmic consciousness in order to enhance our spiritual perception because God is spirit.
From the first page (page 21) the authors answer our questions: the destiny of our upward career, from the beginning of our life on this unfortunate planet to Paradise and beyond is thus summarized in this sentence: “Be perfect in your sphere as God is perfect in his”.
“Personality is a level of deified reality and ranges from the mortal and midwayer level of the higher mind activation of worship and wisdom up through the morontial and spiritual to the attainment of finality of personality status. That is the evolutionary ascent of mortal- and kindred-creature personality, but there are numerous other orders of universe personalities.” ([UB 0:5.1)
God the Universal Father is the personal face that Deity offers to our understanding. Deity is characterized by the quality of unity, actual (on the existential level) as the Paradise Trinity or potential (on experiential levels) as the Supreme Being and other deities. For us, the quality of unity is best understood as “divinity”; it is expressed at many levels of perfection. God being the level of absolute divinity, we understand this quality as truth, beauty, and goodness. It is expressed on the personality level as love, mercy, and ministry and on the impersonal level as justice, power, and sovereignty.
Our individuality is a composite of energy, mind and spirit with the distinctive mark of a unique personality, a gift from the Universal Father, who possesses the power to unify these components, that is to say to “divinize” us.
To unify our individuality means to bring the choices of our personality into harmony with the will of the Universal Father who is love, mercy and ministry, but also justice, power and sovereignty. Jesus, by his very life, showed us the way. By rereading section 7 of booklet 100 “the culmination of the religious life” depicting the perfectly unified human personality of Jesus, we have a reference example.
For us, ascenders, divinity is not innate, it is an adventure of conquest, an achievement in time and space, it is measured by the degree of perfection as we progress. This is the meaning of the divine injunction: “become perfect”. Note that it is the fusion with our Thought Adjuster which “fixes” forever the quality of divinity which was until then only provisional. (UB 112:7.1)
Our life is part of a creative series of successive ages, initiated by the Trinity, supported by its various personalizations and programmed in the different ages of the universe. I emphasize the term “creative” because the Deity, as well as ourselves, participate in the actualization of potentials, constituting in this way creativity at the level of the finite, it is our contribution to the second age of the universe. But, to understand our destiny, we must begin at the beginning:
“Even in the study of man’s biologic evolution on Urantia, there are grave objections to the exclusive historic approach to his present-day status and his current problems. The true perspective of any reality problem—human or divine, terrestrial or cosmic—can be had only by the full and unprejudiced study and correlation of three phases of universe reality: origin, history, and destiny. The proper understanding of these three experiential realities affords the basis for a wise estimate of the current status.” (UB 19:1.6)
In approaching the origin and its developments, we must keep in a corner of our consciousness that the point of view of time differs considerably from the point of view of eternity. Eternal realities cannot be completely understood by our finite mind. In approaching timeless origins, there will always remain a paradox, that of the absolute versus the temporal. The authors, themselves being subabsolute, do not hide their embarrassment in trying to explain phenomena taking place in eternity; thus they use expressions such as “creation of eternity” or “eternity past”. This is why we will adopt the term “sequences” to explain developments taking place in eternity as suggested by the Divine Counselor:
“We speak of God’s “first” thought and allude to an impossible time origin of the Eternal Son for the purpose of gaining access to the thought channels of the human intellect. Such distortions of language represent our best efforts at contact-compromise with the time-bound minds of mortal creatures. In the sequential sense the Universal Father never could have had a first thought, nor could the Eternal Son ever have had a beginning. But I was instructed to portray the realities of eternity to the time-limited minds of mortals by such symbols of thought and to designate the relationships of eternity by such time concepts of sequentiality.” (UB 6:0.2)
¶ THE ORIGIN.
Maturation of the Infinite-Infinitude of the I AM
As previously noted, it is difficult to present eternal events in a space-time sphere; nevertheless, the authors develop a chronological conceptualization of the origin of all reality and the different stages of its maturation from its static state to the appearance of potential and actual absolutes, personal and non-personal, and their interassociations in Trinity, triunities and triodities to culminate in the dawn of creation.
To do this, the authors [a Divine Counselor in the Introduction and a Melchizedek of Nebadon fascicle 105 & 106] introduce a postulate, that of I AM Infinite — Infinity solitary in eternity to present the origin of REALITY. As we will see, it is only a rational intellectual construction but very useful for understanding the maturation of all realities which will subsequently be actualized.
For us, living in space-time, admitting this postulate leads us to recognize that:
- The I AM is ONE and inclusive of all reality past, present and future.
- Nothing can exist outside of the I AM; we live, move and have our existence in the I AM.
- Being in the I AM means that all reality is unified. For us, in space-time, all reality, material, intellectual, spiritual and personal must ultimately tend towards unification.
For a better understanding of the chronology we must anticipate the rest of this presentation by introducing three remarks.
First remark: By admitting as a point of origin that this solitary I AM has its own volition, we recognize de facto that it has a goal, a design in itself. (See further sequence 1) This important remark conditions the sequence of events. Indeed, the I AM faces a problem in the execution of its design: it is solitary, it fills Infinity. Consequently, it can only call upon itself and find all the resources within itself to carry out its plan. This is the reason why it will have to “distribute itself”, establish phases within itself which will externalize itself.
Second remark: “AN ARCHETYPE can be projected under a material, spiritual or mental aspect, or as a combination of these energies. It can impregnate personalities, identities, entities or non-living matter. But an archetype is an archetype and remains an archetype. Only copies of it are multiplied”. (UB 0:6.10)
Let’s look a little closer at these relationships:
“2. The Second Source and Center. Second Person of Deity, the Eternal and Original Son; the absolute personality realities of the I AM and the basis for the realization-revelation of “I AM personality.” No personality can hope to attain the Universal Father except through his Eternal Son; neither can personality attain to spirit levels of existence apart from the action and aid of this absolute pattern for all personalities. In the Second Source and Center spirit is unqualified while personality is absolute.” ([UB 105:3.3)
- Unity relationships is the primordial relationship with oneself.
“4. The Third Source and Center. Third Person of Deity, the Conjoint Actor; infinite integrator of Paradise cosmic energies with the spirit energies of the Eternal Son; perfect co-ordinator of the motives of will and the mechanics of force; unifier of all actual and actualizing reality. Through the ministrations of his manifold children the Infinite Spirit reveals the mercy of the Eternal Son while at the same time functioning as the infinite manipulator, forever weaving the pattern of Paradise into the energies of space. This selfsame Conjoint Actor, this God of Action, is the perfect expression of the limitless plans and purposes of the Father-Son while functioning himself as the source of mind and the bestower of intellect upon the creatures of a far-flung cosmos.” (UB 105:3.5)
The primordial unity relationship lays the foundations for all types of internal relationships. In man, unity relationships take place in the inner life, between oneself and one’s divine alter ego, where destiny is determined and survival is ensured by choosing to do the will of the Universal Father.
2. Relationships of duality, they eternalize the foundations of reality.
“4. The Third Source and Center. Third Person of Deity, the Conjoint Actor; infinite integrator of Paradise cosmic energies with the spirit energies of the Eternal Son; perfect co-ordinator of the motives of will and the mechanics of force; unifier of all actual and actualizing reality. Through the ministrations of his manifold children the Infinite Spirit reveals the mercy of the Eternal Son while at the same time functioning as the infinite manipulator, forever weaving the pattern of Paradise into the energies of space. This selfsame Conjoint Actor, this God of Action, is the perfect expression of the limitless plans and purposes of the Father-Son while functioning himself as the source of mind and the bestower of intellect upon the creatures of a far-flung cosmos.” (UB 105:3.5)
The relationship of duality lays the foundation for all types of interpersonal relationships, paternal, fraternal and filial. The modus operandi is Love, Mercy and Selfless Service. In man, relationships of duality are the basis of creativity, produce the fruits of the Spirit and ensure spiritual growth. It is this type of brotherly relationships in which love, mercy and selfless service are expressed.
3. Triunity relations. They externalize the realization of infinity as a universal function.
“5. The Deity Absolute. The causational, potentially personal possibilities of universal reality, the totality of all Deity potential. The Deity Absolute is the purposive qualifier of the unqualified, absolute, and nondeity realities. The Deity Absolute is the qualifier of the absolute and the absolutizer of the qualified—the destiny inceptor.” ([UB 105:3.6)
The triunity relationship lays the foundation for all types of group or system relationships. The modus operandi is Justice, Power and Sovereignty. In humans, triunity relationships are the basis of teamwork and social relationships. Mastering these three qualities is an integral part of our spiritual growth program.
Third remark: The fact of I AM possessing a will of its own and a purpose in itself: (self-will and self purposive Deity = Deity wanting itself and having its purpose in itself [UB 0:1.5]) implies that the finality (destiny) determines the development of history; in other words, that things and non-things, that the causes and effects which will last, then externalize themselves and finally actualize themselves in response to the purpose of I AM are determined from the beginning, and that all these events have as their finality the unity of diversity and the diversity of unity.
This teleology [1] is the underlying modus operandi that animates the purpose of the I AM in the subsequent developments of all material, intellectual, spiritual and/or personal realities whose finality is the expression of the I AM, in all its forms and in all possibilities. It is reassuring to know that the universe in which we live, move and have our existence, is not chaos, it is created, controlled and sustained by an I AM, First Source Center. This aspect of the I AM is essential to understand because, for each of us “God, as your spiritual Father, is understandable by you and by all other mortals, your experiential cult concept of the Universal Father must always be less than your philosophical postulate of the infinity of the First Source-Center, the I AM.” [UB 105:1.6]
What could this goal be?
The Divine Counselor gives us part of the answer but it would be presumptuous to believe that this is the only reason.
“It would seem that the Father, back in eternity, inaugurated a policy of profound self-distribution. There is inherent in the selfless, loving, and lovable nature of the Universal Father something which causes him to reserve to himself the exercise of only those powers and that authority which he apparently finds it impossible to delegate or to bestow.”
It would seem that the Father, back in eternity, inaugurated a policy of profound self-distribution. There is inherent in the selfless, loving, and lovable nature of the Universal Father something which causes him to reserve to himself the exercise of only those powers and that authority which he apparently finds it impossible to delegate or to bestow. (UB 10:1.1)
Let us also note that the solitary and static I AM possesses a volition and therefore must be absolute love, a love that it cannot share unless it diversifies itself to bestow it on its future creation. This is undoubtedly another reason that we can put forward without fear of being mistaken.
So let’s look at the chronology of these different sequences.
¶ SEQUENCE 1
I AM static (Figure 1)
“To the finite mind there simply must be a beginning, and though there never was a real beginning to reality, still there are certain source relationships which reality manifests to infinity. The prereality, primordial, eternity situation may be thought of something like this: At some infinitely distant, hypothetical, past-eternity moment, the I AM may be conceived as both thing and no thing, as both cause and effect, as both volition and response. At this hypothetical eternity moment there is no differentiation throughout all infinity. Infinity is filled by the Infinite; the Infinite encompasses infinity. This is the hypothetical static moment of eternity; actuals are still contained within their potentials, and potentials have not yet appeared within the infinity of the I AM. But even in this conjectured situation we must assume the existence of the possibility of self-will.” (UB 105:1.5)
We will represent the I AM as a circle with a blue dot indicating that it has its own volition.
Contained in itself
Existing in itself
Wanting itself
Having a goal in itself
What are these things and non-things, these causes and effects, this volition and these reactions; these potentials and actuals to which the Melchizedek alludes and which are not yet “eternalized”? These are the future personalizations of the I AM with their natures and their attributes, the different elements of the four levels of reality which will be necessary for the I AM to realize its purpose. Let us simply note that at this hypothetical stage of “past eternity” all this is in gestation, included in the plan, but nothing is not yet “eternalized” except that the I AM IS.
To better understand the reasons for this metamorphosis of the I AM, I will make an analogy with stem cells at the first stage of the human fetus. At the very beginning, they are undifferentiated a bit like the I AM, like it, they possess within themselves a plan, the genetic code which, depending on their maturation and the growing needs of the fetus, will externalize into liver cells, eye cells, heart cells etc. I use the verb “externalize” on purpose because as we have seen previously, to externalize means to come into existence in full possession of one’s means to respond to a need and fulfill a function. Liver cells do not need to experiment to function, the Carriers of Life have provided for this by means of the genetic code.
So let’s continue the sequencing of our I AM.
¶ SEQUENCE 2
UNIT RELATIONS
First step (Figure 2)
“In following the chronological portrayal of the origins of reality, there must be a postulated theoretical moment of “first” volitional expression and “first” repercussional reaction within the I AM. In our attempts to portray the genesis and generation of reality, this stage may be conceived as the self-differentiation of The Infinite One from The Infinitude, but the postulation of this dual relationship must always be expanded to a triune conception by the recognition of the eternal continuum of The Infinity, the I AM.” (UB 105:2.2)
These operations take place within the solitary I AM which, while remaining ONE, differentiates itself to arrive at a triune conception within itself. This is the first level of differentiation within itself. It is the separation between what will become personal reality and non-personal reality.
Self-volition involves a purpose of the I AM which manifests itself in liberation from the chains of the Infinite-Infinitude through the differentiation between the pre-personal and the pre-impersonal.
The Infinite differentiating itself from Infinitude to arrive at a triune conception
Second step (Figure 3)
"The self-metamorphosis of the I AM culminates in the multiple differentiations of deified and undeified reality, of potential and actual reality, and of certain other realities which can hardly be classified in this way. These differentiations of the theoretical and monistic I AM are eternally integrated by simultaneous relations which are established in the same I AM — the prepotential, preactual, prepersonal, monothetic prereality; this prereality, while being infinite, reveals itself as an absolute in the presence of the First SourceCenter and as a personality in the limitless love of the Universal Father.
Here, the deified reality is the precursor of all that will become deity at the eternal level (the Eternal Son and the Infinite Spirit) and the undeified reality of all eternal energy (Paradise). The potential reality is the precursor of the three Absolutes of Potentiality, and the actual reality, of the three Absolutes of Actuality, the reality of the I AM remaining that I AM.
Text of figure 3:
Center:
- I AM ETERNAL: The Universal One of Infinity. I AM that I AM. To the extent that this relationship is discernible as a personality it is revealed as the divine Father of all personalities. To the extent that this relationship is expressible impersonally, the universe contacts it as an absolute coherence of pure energy and pure spirit in the presence of the Universal Father. To the extent that this relationship is conceivable as an absolute, it is revealed in the primacy of the First Source and Center.
Around:
- I AM POTENTIAL: The Infinite Sustainer. Primordial association of the static and potentials of reality. In this relationship, all qualified and unqualified factors are balanced. The Universal Absolute.
- I AM ACTUAL: The Universal Father. Father of the Eternal Son. The personality of the Son makes the paternity of God absolute. Primordial personality relationship of actualities
- I AM ACTUAL: The Universal Controller. Cause of eternal Paradise. Primordial impersonal relationship of actualities. The God-archetypes of impersonal forms, configurations and relationships
- I AM CURRENT: The Universal Creator. Union of the Father and the Son (in the presence of Paradise). Inaugurates the creative cycle consummated in the person of the Infinite Spirit and Havona.
- I AM POTENTIAL: The Infinite Capacity. Static, reactive the boundless matrix, the possibility of all future cosmic expansions. Supergravitational presence of the Unqualified Absolute
- I AM POTENTIAL: The Infinite Potential. It is the landmark of infinity bearing witness that the I AM has limited itself by its own will, following which it has self-expressed and self-revealed itself in triple form. The Universal Absolute
The purpose of the I AM includes everything that is capable of existing in order to fulfill destiny. This is why all material, intellectual, spiritual and personal reality as well as all mechanisms operating on, with and in these realities exist in the form of pre-reality within the I AM. They take shape in its differentiations.
“Destiny is established by the volitional act of the Deities who constitute the Paradise Trinity; destiny is established in the vastness of the three great potentials whose absoluteness encompasses the possibilities of all future development; destiny is probably consummated by the act of the Consummator of Universe Destiny, and this act is probably involved with the Supreme and the Ultimate in the Trinity Absolute. Any experiential destiny can be at least partially comprehended by experiencing creatures; but a destiny which impinges on infinite existentials is hardly comprehensible. Finality destiny is an existential-experiential attainment which appears to involve the Deity Absolute. But the Deity Absolute stands in eternity relationship with the Unqualified Absolute by virtue of the Universal Absolute. And these three Absolutes, experiential in possibility, are actually existential and more, being limitless, timeless, spaceless, boundless, and measureless—truly infinite.” ([UB 106:7.3)
Mechanisms are the products of mind, creative mind acting on and in cosmic potentials. Mechanisms are the fixed crystallizations of Creator thought, and they ever function true to the volitional concept that gave them origin. But the purposiveness of any mechanism is in its origin, not in its function. (UB 118:9.5)
All this is purely hypothetical and remains an attempt by the authors to present to our finite mind, operations of eternity.
¶ SEQUENCE 3
Duality Relations — Eternalization of the Seven Absolutes of Infinity
The seven prime relationships within the I AM eternalize as the Seven Absolutes of Infinity. But though we may portray reality origins and infinity differentiation by a sequential narrative, in fact all seven Absolutes are unqualifiedly and co-ordinately eternal. It may be necessary for mortal minds to conceive of their beginnings, but always should this conception be overshadowed by the realization that the seven Absolutes had no beginning; they are eternal and as such have always been. The seven Absolutes are the premise of reality. They have been described in these papers as follows: (UB 105:3.1)
This third sequence (figure 4) inaugurates the relationships of duality. They are established between the I AM what the original I AM was and its 6 differentiations thus forming 7 metamorphoses. These relationships eternalize them outside of the I AM in the form of the Seven Absolutes of Infinity. These dual relationships allow the I AM to break the chains of its solitary absoluteness and thus, to be able to subsequently associate with each of them in sequence 4 in the form of triunity and triodity.
The Seven Absolutes of Infinity constitute the beginnings of reality. As mortal minds would regard it, the First Source and Center would appear to be antecedent to all absolutes. But such a postulate, however helpful, is invalidated by the eternity coexistence of the Son, the Spirit, the three Absolutes, and the Paradise Isle.
It is a truth that the Absolutes are manifestations of the I AM-First Source and Center; it is a fact that these Absolutes never had a beginning but are co-ordinate eternals with the First Source and Center. The relationships of absolutes in eternity cannot always be presented without involving paradoxes in the language of time and in the concept patterns of space. But regardless of any confusion concerning the origin of the Seven Absolutes of Infinity, it is both fact and truth that all reality is predicated upon their eternity existence and infinity relationships. ([UB 105:3.9-10)
The authors present the Seven Absolutes of Infinity under the title of Source Center for the actual and Absolute for the potential.
- First Source-Center, for the eternal relationship.
- Second Source-Center, Source-Center of Paradise, Third Source-Center for the present ones.
- The Deity Absolute, The Unqualified Absolute, The Universal Absolute for potentials.
Thus, gathered in this diagram (Figure 4), the Seven Absolutes of Infinity constitute, together, the beginnings of reality. It will be noted that each Absolute has a specific nature and attributes, a logical consequence of the teleology of the divine project. The solitary and volitional I AM matures in itself the specific elements of reality which appear from the second sequence and are eternalized in the third in the form of the Absolutes, a bit like an architect planning to construct a building takes inventory in his head of all the necessary human and material elements then materializes them on paper before its realization.
Thus, the potentials and the actuals, the personal and the nonpersonal, the deities and nondeities are in place but they are not yet functional. They lay the foundation for future triune relationships of functionality.
The I AM is unqualified infinity as unity. The dualities eternalize reality foundations. The triunities eventuate the realization of infinity as universal function. (UB 105:4.8)
It seems necessary to me to explain the nature and attributes of each of the Absolutes and to present them in the form of a non-exhaustive list gleaned throughout the reading of the book in order to fully understand the role that they will be brought to play in the triune associations which will be presented in sequence 4 which will follow.
At this point in our study, do we realize how lucky we are to finally be able to understand the genesis of the reality of our universe and the laws that govern it, to be able to explain what happened before the appearance of time and space, before the zero point that astronomer scientists call the “Big Bang”.
The First Source-Center.
- First Person of Deity and primordial non-deity archetype.
- God, the Universal Father, creator, controller and sustainer,
- Universal love, eternal spirit and infinite energy;
- Potential of all potentials and source of all actuals;
- Stability of all statics and dynamism of all changes;
- Source of archetypes and Father of people.
- Collectively, the seven Absolutes amount to infinity, but the Universal Father Himself is indeed infinite.
The Second Source-Center.
- The Second Person of the Deity, The Eternal and Original Son;
- The absolute personality realities of the I AM and the basis for the realization-revelation of the “I AM personality”.
- No personality can hope to reach the Universal Father except through his Eternal Son.
- Nor can the personality reach the spiritual levels of existence without the action and help of this absolute archetype of all personalities.
- In the Second Source and Center, the spirit is unqualified, while the personality is absolute.
The Source-Center of Paradise:
- In relation to all actualized, non-spiritual, impersonal and non-volitional reality, Paradise is the absolute of archetypes.
- All cosmic energy is held under the gravitational control of the First Source-Center by the absolute archetype of the Isle of Paradise.
- Paradise is not in space, it is space which exists relative to Paradise, and the chronicity of movement is determined by its relation with Paradise.
- The Eternal Island is absolutely at rest; all other energies organized or in the process of being organized are in perpetual motion.
- In all space, only the presence of the Unqualified Absolute is tranquil, and the Unqualified is coordinated with Paradise.
- Paradise exists at the hearth of space, the Unqualified penetrates it and everything that is relative to its existence in this domain. [UB 105:3.1]
The Third Source-Center.
- Third Person of the Deity, the Conjoint Actor;
- The infinite integrator of the cosmic energies of Paradise with the spiritual energies of the Eternal Son;
- The perfect coordinator of the motives of the will and the mechanisms of force;
- The unifier of all current or emerging reality.
- Through the care of His many children, the Infinite Spirit reveals the mercy of the Eternal Son, while at the same time operating as the infinite manipulator, perpetually weaving the archetype of Paradise into the energies of space.
- This same Conjoint Actor, this God of Action, is the perfect expression of the unlimited plans and designs of the Father-Son, while himself acting as the source of the mind and dispenser of intellect to the creatures of an immense cosmos.
The Absolute of Deity.
- He is that potential which has been separated from total and infinite reality by the free choice of the Universal Father and in whom all activities of divinity—existential and experiential—take place.
- The potentially personal causal possibilities of universal reality,
- The totality of all Deity potential.
- The Deity Absolute intentionally qualifies unqualified realities, absolute realities, and non-deity realities.
- The Absolute of Deity qualifies the absolute and makes absolute the qualified — it is the initiator of destiny.
- In all circumstances, this Absolute always appears to respond in terms involving the well-being of things and beings of all creation, not only in its present state of existence, but also in view of the infinite possibilities of all future eternity.
- He is the Qualified Absolute in contrast to the Unqualified Absolute.
The Unqualified Absolute.
- Static, reactive and waiting;
- The unrevealed cosmic infinity of the I AM;
- It is devoid of personality and any creative prerogative.
- The totality of non-deified reality and the finality of all non-personal potential.
- Space limits the function of the Unqualified, but the presence of the Unqualified is limitless, it is infinite.
- There is a concept of periphery for the master universe, but the presence of the Unqualified is unlimited;
- Eternity itself cannot exhaust the boundless tranquility of this Absolute of non-deity.
The Universal Absolute.
- Unifier of the deified and the non-deified, of the personal and the non-personal;
- Correlator of the absolute and the relative.
- Being static, potential and associative, it compensates for the tension between the eternal existential and the unfinished.
- It is the phenomenon of Deity indicating that the tension created by the act of free will which thus differentiates the reality of the universe is resolved. Archetype of the Power-Personality Synthesis
- It functions as an associative coordinator of the general total of existential potentialities.
- It is the differential of infinity potential between the Unqualified Absolute and the Deity Absolute that makes the Universal Absolute eternal. It makes it cosmically possible to have material universes in space and spiritually possible to have finite personalities in time.
- In the cosmos, the finite can only coexist with the Infinite as a result of the associative presence of the Universal Absolute which so perfectly balances the tensions between time and eternity, the finite and the infinite, the potential of reality and the actuality of reality, Paradise and space, man and God.
- It is the potential of static-dynamic Deity functionally realizable on the levels of time-eternity as finite-absolute values susceptible of an experiential-existential approach. This incomprehensible aspect of Deity may be static, potential, and associative, but it is experientially neither creative nor evolutionary as far as the intelligent personalities now functioning in the master universe are concerned.
We have seen that the I AM is ONE and inclusive. In the diagram of Figure 4 we see that the associations of the Seven Absolutes of Infinity are externalizing themselves, they have become distinct realities from the original I AM. How, then, does the I AM maintain the unity and cohesion of the system? These dual associations are based on two archetypal relationships: love for personal relationships and gravity for nonpersonal relationships. Thus, the I AM is the source of these two archetypes of relationship. Love and gravity are integral to the divine design; they are the basis of all relationships. The primordial personal relationship of duality allows the I AM to express Universal Love by becoming the Father of the Eternal Son and the source of all personalities. The primordial nonpersonal relationship of duality also allows the First Source and Center to control all nonpersonal realities through the hold of the gravity of Paradise, the archetype of all nonpersonal reality.
Thus we see that if the eternal design requires the production of energy, the functional association of the Universal Father (primordial Archetype of the nonpersonal) and the Infinite Spirit (the universal manipulator) will mobilize it in the potential of the Unqualified Absolute and make it current under the influence of Paradise. Taking the analogy with the architect (the Universal Father), the purchase of construction materials will be done with his agreement by the person responsible for the work (the Infinite Spirit) from the supplier (the Unqualified Absolute) and will become usable (Paradise) once on the construction site (the universe).
Again, this diversification of the I AM is the consequence of divine design and responds exactly to the needs that will manifest in the future. Without this design, none of this would exist. The First Source Center would seem chronologically prior to the other Absolutes but in fact, they never had a beginning.
Thus ends the first part of our exploration of the ages of the master universe. We will address in the next LINK, the consequences of the diversification of this same I AM leading to the functional triune relationships of the Absolutes in Trinity, triunities and triodity; the foundations of the universe.
| All These Trips in Europe | Le Lien Urantien — Issue 84 — December 2018 | Studying The Urantia Book. What For? |
¶ Notes
Teleology: This term is derived from two Greek words: telos (end, goal, design) and logos (reason, explanation). Teleology is the study of final causes, of finality, in analytical philosophy. It forms a specification of finalism with teleonomy. This doctrine aims to explain phenomena by the intervention of a final cause. It considers that every being has an end. It conceives of the world as a system of relations, of relationships between means and ends.
Natural teleology, common in classical philosophy but controversial today, holds that natural entities also have intrinsic purposes, independent of human use or opinion. For example, Aristotle claimed that the intrinsic telos of an acorn was to become a fully grown oak tree. In this, teleology opposes the mechanistic view of explaining phenomena, particularly within the life sciences and cybernetics.
We must give thanks to Socrates and Aristotle for having formalized teleology in their philosophy. However, primitive religions and then monotheism carry within themselves this notion of divine design. Melchizedek himself taught the idea that the world comes from a divine design: “Melchizedek, however, taught some higher truths, including the conduct and organization of the local universe. But to his brilliant disciple Nordan the Kenite and his group of diligent students, he taught the truths of the superuniverse and even of Havona.” [UB 93:3.4]
In truth and in fact, the genesis of reality described by the authors of The Urantia Book is entirely teleological. The I AM Infinite-Infinitude has a will of its own, that of freeing itself from the chains of absoluteness, to execute its primordial design which will engender the further development of reality in relation to the finality of its design: “Be perfect as I myself am perfect.” ↩︎