© 2015 Ivan Stol
© 2015 French-speaking Association of Readers of the Urantia Book
| Bill Sadler's Study on Synthesis and Functional Coordination | Le Lien Urantien — Issue 72 — Winter 2015 | Consciousness — Self-Consciousness & God-Consciousness |
After a “timeless” journey (departure 12:00 p.m., arrival 2:00 p.m. and 9:00 a.m. flight) the 175 km transit between Montreal and Sherbrooke which takes us to Bishops University gives us a glimpse of a landscape which encourages us to ask all kinds of questions to the driver who was happy to answer them. The weather was nice, not too hot and everything was green with little relief.
Arriving at this university just in time to participate in the presentation evening on the 30th at 7:00 p.m., I was immediately able to see a volunteer organization that was up to par and welcoming.
This first evening was devoted to a presentation of the participants, globally by country and quickly individually, then of the different speakers with the subjects which will be covered. There were between 150 and 160 of us, which seems lower than other international conferences, with a large proportion of French speakers and, I must say, a substantial representation of France and Belgium. A dynamic and friendly atmosphere which allowed, from the first evening, to engage in conversations like long-time friends meeting up. The following two days were organized into half-days of two types:
- In the morning, presentations for all, in the amphitheater, on family life and education in general, moving towards a life of service and the search for God
- In the afternoon, various workshops on different subjects in small groups (choice depending on the sensitivity of the moment).
The presentations were in English (with the possibility of “instant” translation) but the workshops were in two languages (French, English) and you had to choose from the schedule in French or English to find a workshop on a subject because no subject was in two languages.
I am not going to describe these presentations in detail, you have the videos (in English) accessible via the following link: https://vimeo.com/album/3537836 and the photos here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/zxw1xv6wa95wx4b/AADMRCTiusFSOIEPxJhwANjUa?dl=0.
The details of the presentations and workshops will be on our site (very detailed schedule with explanation of each presentation and workshop and the names of the speakers). Some workshops are available on request in PowerPoint from the speakers through those who attended or from the Quebec association.
I will give you my impression of these few days. First of all, I noticed that no one started on the fact of “studying the Urantia book”. The talk was to understand how to apply what this book teaches us in educational life, both family and social, by allowing the student to perceive and discover what works in him and then use it to know, understand and make choices during his experiences. The goal is not to put information in the heads of the participants but to develop in the student his capacity to discover it through his own effort of discernment. These people seem to have understood the message of the book well. These presentations were delivered with a refreshing humor and a dynamic verve strongly capturing the attention either by individuals or in pairs in the form of a sketch or dialogue.
All of these presentations were of a high standard and often based on personal experiences, struggles transformed into positive and visible learnings through the presentations in the souls of these speakers.
The workshops were also of excellent quality and provided, through their variety, answers to many questions. They were based on in-depth studies in groups which gives a great depth of research.
And all this in a high-level cultural atmosphere full of surprises.
We were treated to intermissions punctuated by piano music (Rebecca Oswald) and six musicians and singers from several countries (whose names I don’t remember) gave us a high-level surprise in choir.
Without telling anyone, they prepared hymns by sending each other scores and came the day before to be able to rehearse together. Finally a variety pianist (whose name also escapes me, although it’s not the first time I’ve seen him) gave us a pleasant musical dream. These people really know how to give.
At the table, discussions were going well, among occasional students, some of whom lent an attentive ear while others asked for further explanations.
The food was light and plentiful, to everyone’s taste. The whole thing was very well orchestrated (if I dare say).
The last morning was an opportunity to recall the greatness and importance of this book and to talk about future meetings such as in Germany in 2016 and Amsterdam in 2018. Exchanges of email addresses took place throughout the stay, and the head of the new Ukrainian association asked me if we could help them a little according to our possibilities, which I accepted.
You recently had a glimpse of it. I had the opportunity to stay on site an extra day and was able to observe the diligent work of your organizing brothers from Quebec who welcomed us so well.
The return journey (still as timeless) was full of good memories in my sleepiness.
Meeting people so different, from a social, ethical and color point of view, around the same interest, that of brotherhood, is simply wonderful, especially when we see this torn world which is agitated around us.
Brotherly friendships. Ivan Stol
| Bill Sadler's Study on Synthesis and Functional Coordination | Le Lien Urantien — Issue 72 — Winter 2015 | Consciousness — Self-Consciousness & God-Consciousness |