© 2005 Olga López, traducción
© 2005 Urantia Association of Spain
Extracted from http://www.urantology.org (website no longer exists)
“The great challenge to modern man is to achieve better communication with the divine Monitor that dwells within the human mind.” (UB 196:3.34).
Better communication does not necessarily imply direct conversation. Two people with a very close personal relationship may not need verbal communication to feel the other’s approval of some action or decision they may make. However, the revelators seem pessimistic about the ability of us Urantians to truly achieve direct communication with our Thought Adjusters. This pessimism is related to the disadvantages accumulated as a result of the Lucifer rebellion.
The revelators have informed us that the Thought Adjuster is an impersonal fragment of God who actually resides “in the mortal mind as a part of that mind.” They tell us that “the only means of communion with the spiritual world is embraced in the spirit endowment of mankind, the indwelling spirit of the Father, together with the outpoured spirit of the Son and the omnipresent influence of the Infinite Spirit” (UB 150:3.7). It is the Universe Mother Spirit who, through the ministry of the spirits of wisdom and worship, initially prepares our minds for the indwelling of the Thought Adjuster.
“As individuals you do not personally possess a segregated portion or entity of the spirit of the Creator Father-Son or the Creative Mother Spirit; these ministries do not contact with, nor indwell, the thinking centers of the individual’s mind as do the Mystery Monitors” (UB 34:5.6). It is evident from these statements that, in virtually all contact with our minds by superhuman sources, the final step is through the Thought Adjuster.
In view of the admonition to achieve better communication with the divine Monitor, what should be our realistic expectations? We are told that “while the voice of the Adjuster is ever within you, most of you will hear it seldom during a lifetime. Human beings below the third and second circles of attainment rarely hear the Adjuster’s direct voice except in moments of supreme desire, in a supreme situation, and consequent upon a supreme decision.” (UB 110:7.9). Hearing that voice in moments of supreme desire or in a supreme situation is the consequence of a supreme decision. But what is a supreme decision?
On page 1242, we are told that seraphim may be assigned to associate with a human soul who has attained one or more of three accomplishments. One of these three accomplishments is to make “the supreme decision to become Godlike.” Therefore, the decision to follow Jesus’ command to his followers is key to better communicating with our Thought Adjuster. “Jesus then went on to instruct his disciples on how to achieve the ultimate goal of all human striving—perfection—and even divine attainment. He always admonished them: “Be you perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.” (UB 140:5.15)
Even after making such a supreme decision, it does not follow that we will ever have anything like telephone communication with our Thought Adjuster. In the previous issue of Innerface, Ann Bendall suggested that “Jesus never really knew God’s will because of what he was; he simply did what he thought was best in each particular circumstance.” Ann then cited several pieces of evidence from The Urantia Book to support her assertions. In describing Jesus’ agony in Gethsemane, the Book says that “He endured great anguish and suffered untold sorrow, for the perspiration rolled off his face in great drops. He was at last convinced that the Father intended to allow natural events to take their course” (UB 182:3.7). Ann suggests that Jesus was finally convinced as events unfolded, that he knew not by fact but by supposition.
Returning to an earlier stage in Jesus’ career (to the point where he was 29 years of age and had just completed his Mediterranean tour), the Book tells us: “By the end of this tour Jesus virtually knew—with all human certainty—that he was a Son of God, a Creator Son of the Universal Father. The Adjuster more and more was able to bring up in the mind of the Son of Man shadowy memories of his Paradise experience in association with his divine Father ere he ever came to organize and administer this local universe of Nebadon. Thus did the Adjuster, little by little, bring to Jesus’ human consciousness those necessary memories of his former and divine existence in the various epochs of the well-nigh eternal past.” (UB 129:3.9) By this time, Jesus was a highly advanced Urantian, though it appears that his Thought Adjuster did not communicate directly with him but rather presented fleeting glimpses to his consciousness. Perhaps this is why the Book tells us that:
“Of all human knowledge, that which is of greatest value is to know the religious life of Jesus and how he lived it.” (UB 196:1.3).
If we have a clear vision of Jesus’ life firmly planted in our memory, then in any situation we find ourselves it may be possible for our Thought Adjuster to bring to us an appropriate snapshot of an incident from Jesus’ life or one or more of his teachings, to provide us with a direction on which to base our decisions, responses, actions, or attitudes.
“Though the Spirit of Truth is poured out upon all flesh, this spirit of the Son is almost wholly limited in function and power by man’s personal reception of that which constitutes the sum and substance of the mission of the bestowal Son”. (UB 34:5.5).
In other words, the effectiveness of the Spirit of Truth depends on our knowledge of Jesus’ life and teachings. For readers of The Urantia Book, that means familiarity with Part IV of the book.
As we consider our expectations of our Thought Adjuster’s guidance and the form it may take, we need to remember that “other being, force, creator, or agency in all the wide universe of universes can interfere to any degree with the absolute sovereignty of the mortal free will, as it operates within the realms of choice, regarding the eternal destiny of the personality of the choosing mortal” (UB 5:6.8).
This would rule out the childish concept, held by many Christians, and undoubtedly by many devotees of The Urantia Book, that divine guidance in our daily routine consists of a series of instructions from on high telling us exactly what we should do in every circumstance we encounter. And if we believe we hear voices giving us such instructions, we should consider this statement: “But a human being would do better to err in rejecting an Adjuster’s expression through believing it to be a purely human experience than to blunder into exalting a reaction of the mortal mind to the sphere of divine dignity. Remember, the influence of a Thought Adjuster is for the most part, though not wholly, a superconscious experience.” (UB 110:5.5)
Having reviewed some of the negative aspects of Adjuster interaction, let us now consider the means by which we can increase our communication. “The Spirit never drives, only leads. If you are a willing learner, if you want to attain spirit levels and reach divine heights, if you sincerely desire to reach the eternal goal, then the divine Spirit will gently and lovingly lead you along the pathway of sonship and spiritual progress. Every step you take must be one of willingness, intelligent and cheerful co-operation. The domination of the Spirit is never tainted with coercion nor compromised by compulsion.” (UB 34:6.11)
The Book emphasizes that it is our thoughts, not our feelings, that increase our contact with our Thought Adjuster. But “the mind that truly discerns God, that listens to the indwelling Adjuster, is the clean mind. ‘Without holiness no man can see God.’” (UB 101:1.3). We must clean up our act before we can reasonably expect great progress.
Prayer is, for the most part, a phenomenon of relating to one’s own subconsciousness, although there is a domain of prayer in which an individual achieves more or less contact with the superconscious levels of mind (UB 87:7.1). Meditation may also play a part here, but the Book states: “The contact of the mortal mind with its indwelling Adjuster, while often favored by devoted meditation, is more frequently facilitated by wholehearted and loving service in unselfish ministry to one’s fellow creatures.” (UB 91:7.1).
Speaking of children, the Book says: “In the dawn of creative imagination they manifest a tendency to converse with imaginary companions. In this way a developing self seeks communication with a fictitious other self” (UB 91:3.1). During childhood, much to the consternation of his parents, Jesus tended to use this type of technique in conversing with his heavenly Father. The Book addresses the effectiveness of prayer in facilitating contact with our Thought Adjuster in these words: “Enlightened prayer must recognize not only an external and personal God but also an internal and impersonal Divinity, the indwelling Adjuster. It is altogether fitting that man, when he prays, should strive to grasp the concept of the Universal Father on Paradise; but the more effective technique for most practical purposes will be to revert to the concept of a near-by alter ego, just as the primitive mind was wont to do, and then to recognize that the idea of this alter ego has evolved from a mere fiction to the truth of God’s indwelling mortal man in the factual presence of the Adjuster so that man can talk face to face, as it were, with a real and genuine and divine alter ego that indwells him and is the very presence and essence of the living God, the Universal Father.” (UB 91:3.7)
For most of us, it is doubtful that there is any better technique for learning to converse with our Thought Adjusters than that used by the young Jesus (his “alter ego” method). Through its use, we may become habitual in sharing both our thoughts and our lives with our Thought Adjusters. But in so doing, we should not expect to hear the Adjuster’s voice. What is important is the closeness of the relationship that develops, which affords the Adjuster the opportunity to work with us through our superconscious mind. This interaction is greatly enhanced when we are thoroughly familiar with the life and teachings of Jesus, as presented in Part Four of The Urantia Book, for it provides a memory bank of relevant information and incidents that our Adjuster can bring to mind for our guidance. It also provides a means to check that what we believe to be a direction is really that direction (under no circumstances will there be a conflict between what we do and what we consciously believe to be the nature of God, as revealed to us in The Urantia Book and in the life of Jesus) and we will feel truly comfortable with our decisions.
Do these indicators show us that we are living in accordance with our spirit guides? “The proof of fraternity with the divine Adjuster consists wholly in the nature and extent of the fruits of the spirit which are yielded in the life experience of the individual believer. “By their fruits you shall know them.”” (UB 5:2.4). And what are those fruits? “Loving service, unselfish devotion, courageous loyalty, sincere fairness, enlightened honesty, undying hope, confiding trust, merciful ministry, unfailing goodness, forgiving tolerance, and enduring peace.” (UB 193:2.2).
What follows this quote from page 2054 is probably the harshest and most uncompromising part of The Urantia Book and requires personal reflection from every serious reader. We should know it’s there:
“If professed believers bear not these fruits of the divine spirit in their lives, they are dead; the Spirit of Truth is not in them; they are useless branches on the living vine, and they soon will be taken away. My Father requires of the children of faith that they bear much spirit fruit. If, therefore, you are not fruitful, he will dig about your roots and cut away your unfruitful branches. Increasingly, must you yield the fruits of the spirit as you progress heavenward in the kingdom of God. You may enter the kingdom as a child, but the Father requires that you grow up, by grace, to the full stature of spiritual adulthood. And when you go abroad to tell all nations the good news of this gospel, I will go before you, and my Spirit of Truth shall abide in your hearts. My peace I leave with you.” UB 193:2.2