© 1991 Kathleen Swadling
© 1991 ANZURA, Australia & New Zealand Urantia Association
To get away from all the personal tit-for-tat that has been going on lately I would like to start by being a bit more philosophical about the role Six-O-Six has played in the past for readers of The URANTIA Book. It started up as a valuable tool to keep students of The URANTIA Book in touch with one another. People who find The URANTIA Book have a tendency to crave for the company of other readers as there are so many changes they go through and so much for them to understand as they study the book. As many readers are spread out over this vast country, the newsletter has played a vital role in keeping readers in touch with one another, sharing ideas and points of view and announcements of study group and conference activities etc. It was a newsletter which was set up for readers of The URANTIA Book. Now many of those readers have come from incredibly diverse backgrounds. Many have been searching for years for something which satisfies their spiritual yearnings. Many have found that satisfaction through The URANTIA Book — others are still seeking and The URANTIA Book is one of many wonderful works they have stumbled upon. Whatever the current status of each reader, Six-OSix has been a newsletter which services The URANTIA Book component of people’s spiritual quest. The form it was in satisfied all. Anyone wishing to investigate The URANTIA Book found Six-O-Six an assistant to their investigation. However by changing the direction of the newsletter you are catering for anyone and everyone on a spiritual quest of some kind. I have no problem with a newsletter which services this need but I do not feel it is relevant that Six-O-Six becomes a newsletter to service this need without first consulting the entire readership which is made up of people who have been contributing and supporting financially and morally since it first began. The personal attacks which have resulted from this scenario is indicative that a change was imposed rather than discussed.
Nobody (apart from those closest to me) really know what other interest I have in religious or spiritual matters outside of my involvement with The URANTIA Book. It is not something that I advertise — it is personal and it is my business. Let us suppose I have a desire to investigate The Bible, The Koran, and the Bahai Faith. I would seek out books, newsletters and groups which would enlighten me in these areas. I would attend the study groups and read their newsletters but I would not try to push The URANTIA Book onto them. I would be extremely openminded and try to glean the truth from their teachings. I would certainly not write articles in their newsletters telling them how they should believe, that there’s a new revelation of truth and they must be open-minded to new truths, that they’ve got it wrong etc. Jesus would never tell the religionists of his day that they’ve got it wrong — rather he would seek to highlight and add to those truths which existed in their religion.
The splitting of the newsletter into two parts is a compromise and a step in the right direction but I feel that Part II should be given a different name as it is really a separate newsletter dealing with a broader range of material appealing to a different group of people who are on a broader spiritual quest as opposed to those wishing to get their minds around The URANTIA Book. The fact that some readers are not interested in E-3, Melchizedek channellings and messages from Gabriel etc. does not mean that they are close-minded to everything outside of The URANTIA Book and I find it highly offensive to have someone presume this and publicly state it.
I would therefore like to propose either of the following:
Whatever happens I do not think we should be too worried about differing points of view. We are, after all, a group made up of diverse individuals. The only divisions which could be of a harmful nature is if we were divided in our hearts. Remember when Jesus said to his apostles “When did I tell you that you should all think alike?” Differing points of view often result in a separation of some kind — it’s only natural at our low stage of evolution when we are so far from mastering the art of working harmoniously together.
Remember when Jesus said to his apostles “When did I tell you that you should all think alike?”
Let’s not kid ourselves that we’re spiritually advanced yet. It doesn’t mean we stop loving one another. Some of my most cherished friends and I are often at loggerheads with one another over differing points of view. I may be at loggerheads with Madeline over the newsletter issue but it does not mean that I love her any less than before. So why don’t we agree to disagree and get on with serving in the areas we feel drawn toward and let’s stop accusing each other publicly of being spiritually retarded.
Kathleen Swadling, Sydney