© 1994 Jack Rogers
© 1994 The Christian Fellowship of Students of The Urantia Book
As I continue to contemplate the direction of this column, I am repeatedly amazed at current world events that affirm the basic thesis of my previous articles: the need for change in the interaction between the church and indigenous cultures which practice different religious beliefs. Though the handshake between the Prime Minister of Israel and the leader of the Palestine Liberation Organization produced as much surprise among political pundits as the fall of the Berlin Wall, it is only a part of the modern evolutionary process in international relations that will continue at an even faster rate. While the political “hot spots” of the world are conflicts centering around ancient human enmities, the traditional diplomatic method for dealing with them is becoming increasingly inadequate. It is obvious that new methods of human relations on an international scale must be developed.
While the political “hot spots” of the world are conflicts centering around ancient human enmities, the traditional diplomatic method for dealing with them is becoming increasingly inadequate. It is obvious that new methods of human relations on an international scale must be developed.
The most serious question of the modern era is finding the source of instruction for this new method of human relations. American democratic theory and practice have profoundly affected a worldwide understanding of such concepts as human rights, political freedom, free speech and press, legal due process, representative government, market economy, and many other political and civil concepts. But without a fundamental change in direct interpersonal relationships on an international scale, many of these lofty ideals may remain nothing but theoretical concepts around the world — practiced in name only.
In this age of ethnic liberation, the need for respect among peoples of differing cultures and religions is paramount as the nuclear world is simply too dangerous for an imperialistic approach to international relations. With our lengthy history of genocide among Native Americans and enslavement of African Americans — both events having profound consequences to this day — and with the fractured state of the American culture, the political system of the United States is little prepared to teach a new concept of interpersonal relations. What social entity is capable of this task on a worldwide scale? Perhaps the growing edge of the church is best suited to this innovative task.
In previous articles I have examined the past history of missionary imperialism and the cultural destruction of indigenous religions, music, and learning. In a recent book by Dr. Mark Plotkin, entitled Tales of the Shaman’s Apprentice (Viking Press), it is clearly demonstrated that we may lose more than just culture if we insist on an imperialistic approach to missions and science in the jungles of Brazil; we may well lose important opportunities in the cure of cancer and AIDS. In our egocentric effort to convert the “underdeveloped” peoples of the world, we stand at risk of losing the aural wisdom of the ages. Even our sciences are guilty of this imperialistic method. Knowledge that has been understood for centuries by the shamans of many native tribes living in the rain forests are repeatedly ignored by Western medical researchers as superstitious hocus pocus. Dr. Plotkin warns us that we may be within ten years of losing 50,000 years of pragmatic wisdom simply because it does not conform with our way of doing things.
I am convinced that of all of the institutions of the world, the church is one of the better suited candidates to be a teacher of this new interhuman morality.
I am convinced that of all of the institutions of the world, the church is one of the better suited candidates to be a teacher of this new interhuman morality. It has the institutional foundation, a long history of outreach, and a tradition of moral teachings. The difficulty is in defining a message that will be free of religious imperialism.
At the heart of this human spiritual growth issue is our understanding of the nature of life itself. For too long, religions and cultures around the world have lived in the context of a myopic view of human destiny and universe spiritual realities. Although there is widespread belief in eternal life, many live as if death terminates our personality development and spiritual growth. The church has virtually nothing to say about this most important aspect of human destiny. We have preached a belief in eternal life and ignored the reality and dynamics of eternal living.
In recent years I have become increasingly aware of the disparity between the understanding of eternal life held in the contemporary church and the empowering vision of life after death depicted in The Urantia Book. Many Christians have a deficient view of events relating to our post-resurrection life. For example, my grandmother, after 75 years of marriage to a highly successful evangelical minister, was truly convinced that she would be resurrected from death to a city with streets of gold and sit at the feet of Christ where all of her problems would be transformed into a life of perfection and ease! Such a magical view is an illusion of spiritual immaturity.
“The Gods cannot-at least they do not-transform a creature of gross animal nature into a perfected spirit by some mysterious act of creative magic. When the Creators desire to produce perfect beings, they do so by direct and original creation, but they never undertake to convert animal-origin and material creatures into beings of perfection in a single step.” (UB 48:0.1)
Living in an age of scientific discovery where the material astronomical universe is measured in light years, the Christian faith languishes under the burden of an obsolete, flat-earth spiritual cosmology with heaven above and hell beneath. This outdated view of spiritual reality and ambiguity of human destiny is a basic reason why the “Star Trek” generation is leaving the church.
Living in an age of scientific discovery where the material astronomical universe is measured in light years, the Christian faith languishes under the burden of an obsolete, flat-earth spiritual cosmology with heaven above and hell beneath. This outdated view of spiritual reality and ambiguity of human destiny is a basic reason why the “Star Trek” generation is leaving the church. The historic reason for this confusion, of course, is that the apostles and early church fathers did not understand the nature of the universe. The Urantia Book indicates that Jesus attempted to explain something of the organization of the universe, but the apostles simply could not grasp these more advanced cosmological concepts.
Before humankind can effectively progress and evolve spiritually, it is not only necessary to know something about universe spiritual cosmology, but also we must understand the basic requirements for attaining eternal life.
Eternal survival of personality is wholly dependent on the choosing of the mortal mind, whose decisions determine the survival potential of the immortal soul. When the mind believes God and the soul knows God, and when, with the fostering Adjuster [Indwelling Spirit], they all desire God, then survival is assured. Limitations of intellect, curtailment of education, deprivation of culture, impoverishment of social status, even inferiority of the human standards of morality resulting from the unfortunate lack of educational, cultural, and social advantages, cannot invalidate the presence of the divine spirit in such unfortunate and humanly handicapped but believing individuals. (UB 5:5.13)
Any religious institution that has fallen into the trap of daring to proclaim that it holds the key to eternal life through embracing a certain set of beliefs and rituals has, unwittingly, transgressed basic spiritual freedom. Again and again has the church and Western civilization gone into indigenous cultures with less sophisticated materialistic trappings and actively endeavored to destroy the indigenous system of religious beliefs. It has become an increasingly serious matter that missionary efforts are “converting” the people to the dogmas of Western Christian institutions with little or no regard for the spiritual truths of these indigenous peoples. These efforts are often more political than theological, carrying a well defined political and social agenda. An enlightened religious philosophy for the 21 st century needs to be based on true religious freedom, which may require a change in the organization and theology of many churches.
The visible church should refuse longer to handicap the progress of the invisible and spiritual brotherhood of the kingdom of God. And this brotherhood is destined to become a living organism in contrast to an institutionalized social organization. It may well utilize such social organizations, but it must not be supplanted by them…And the genuine lovers of truth will be slow to forget that this powerful institutionalized church has often dared to smother newborn faith and persecute truth bearers who chanced to appear in unorthodox raiment.
It is all too true that such a church would not have survived unless there had been men in the world who preferred such a style of worship. Many spiritually indolent souls crave an ancient and authoritative religion of ritual and sacred traditions. Human evolution and spiritual progress are hardly sufficient to enable all men to dispense with religious authority. And the invisible brotherhood of the kingdom may well include these family groups of various social and temperamental classes if they are only willing to become truly spirit-led sons of God. But in this brotherhood of Jesus there is no place for sectarian rivalry, group bitterness, nor assertions of moral superiority and spiritual infallibility. (UB 195:10.14)
One of the exciting and intriguing aspects of the mortal ascension plan pictured in The Urantia Book is that each person will have an opportunity to actualize all of their potentialities. There are, however, no easy paths or short cuts to Paradise. We must master each phase of spiritual growth in the universe.
The mortal-survival plan has a practical and serviceable objective; you are not the recipients of all this divine labor and painstaking training only that you may survive just to enjoy endless bliss and eternal ease. There is a goal of transcendent service concealed beyond the horizon of the present universe age. If the Gods designed merely to take you on one long and eternal joy excursion, they certainly would not so largely turn the whole universe into one vast and intricate training school, requisition a substantial part of the celestial creation as teachers and instructors, and then spend ages upon ages piloting you, one by one, through this gigantic universe school of experiential training. The furtherance of the scheme of mortal progression seems to be one of the chief businesses of the present organized universe… (UB 48:8.3)
The Urantia Book presents a vision of life that moves far beyond the constraints of this planet.
"You humans have begun an endless unfolding of an almost infinite panorama, a limitless expanding of never ending, ever-widening spheres of opportunity for exhilarating service, matchless adventure, sublime uncertainty, and boundless attainment.” (UB 108:6.8)
This liberating message of The Urantia Book will eventually catch the attention and imagination of our entire world. When people on an international scale internalize this vision of human destiny, it will change the world more dramatically than the printing press or computer.
The spiritual freedom which is ours — to follow truth, create beauty, and actualize goodness according to our unique endowments — is the beginning of eternal living. This liberating message of The Urantia Book will eventually catch the attention and imagination of our entire world. When people on an international scale internalize this vision of human destiny, it will change the world more dramatically than the printing press or computer. It will take many types of institutions to enable this enlarged conceptualization of reality to become a part of the world consciousness, but I am confident that the church can play a key role in sharing this message of hope with the peoples of the world without perpetuating the old forms of religious imperialism.
Jack Rogers is a minister, church musician, and college teacher. He has been a student of The Urantia Book for many years.