© 1996 George Michelson-Dupont, Jean Yves Vigneron, Jacques Dupont, Raimo Ala-Hynnila, Jean Claude Romeuf, François Dupont
© 1996 French-speaking Association of Readers of the Urantia Book
| Le Lien Urantien — Issue 3 — Winter 1996 | Artistic conception of the Master Universe (2) Artistic conception of the Master Universe (2) |
Journal of the association L'A.F.L.L.U. French-speaking Association of Readers of the URANTIA Book
Member of the I.U.A.
Head office:
8, Passage of the Good Seed
75011 PARIS—France
¶ A Word from the President
So here is the third issue of your Urantian Link. The big news of this Urantian Link No. 3 is the announcement of the printing and availability of the Russian version of The URANTIA Book to which a full article is devoted.
In this issue we have also introduced a new section called: “Food for Thought” in which we propose a theme for reflection. We naturally await your articles and comments, even brief ones, on the subject.
In “The Gazette” you will find news of the reconciliation meeting between the Foundation and the Fellowship and an interesting communication from our friends in Finland.
Finally, the announcement of the summons of the members of the A.F.L.L.U. to the General Assembly will be an opportunity to take stock of our first year.
G. Michelson-Dupont
¶ Summary
- The President’s word.
- Artistic conception of the Master Universe (continued)
- A study on personality
- Communiqué from the Urantia Society of Finland
- Russian translation released
- The Adjuster according to C.G.Young: comments from a reader
- Open letter to my family and friends.
- Bruno Bettelheim and our anxious times
- Food for thought: “Loyalty”
- The Gazette
❧ 1955 URANTIA Foundation. All rights reserved. These materials from The URANTIA Book are used with permission. Any artistic representation(s), interpretation(s), opinion(s) or conclusion(s) implied or stated are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of URANTIA Foundation or its affiliates.
¶ Artistic conception of the Master Universe
Drawings made by Jean Yves Vigneron using the Windows® “Paint” software — (Texts taken from the URANTIA Book) (Continuation of the article published in Le Lien No. 2)
THE CENTRAL AND DIVINE UNIVERSE
THE perfect and divine UNIVERSE occupies the center of all creation. It is the eternal nucleus around which revolves the vast creation of time and space. Paradise is the gigantic nuclear Island of absolute stability which lies motionless in the very heart of the magnificent eternal universe. This central planetary family is called Havona and lies far removed from the local universe of Nebadon. Its dimensions are enormous and its mass almost incredible. It is formed of a billion spheres of unimaginable beauty and superb splendor, but the true dimensions of this vast creation are truly beyond the comprehension of the human mind.
¶ The Personality
The Book makes it clear that a complete revelation would hardly be desirable. It is better that men not receive an excessive revelation; it stifles the imagination and would deprive the thinkers of the next millennium of creative speculation. (See UB 0:1.2)
Let us follow this invitation and attempt to approach personality, though it is “one of the unfathomed mysteries of the universe” (UB 5:6.2), endeavoring to discover, through the particulars furnished in the Book, the meanings within our reach.
First, let’s try to define personality and present its basic characteristics.
In a second step we will seek to determine the moment when the gift of personality takes place.
Thirdly, we will talk about the secondary (although very important) characteristics of the personality.
Jacques Dupont — Recloses
¶ Communiqué from our friends at the Finnish Urantia Association
transmitted to AFFUB through its president
Dear friends, from URANTIA in Finland, nevertheless we offer you here a brief summary.
In Finland we have decided to use the Internet to communicate with other national Urantia Associations and therefore to transmit some information concerning our activities to you French speakers, as well as to the Associations of Australia/New Zealand and the United States.
You probably know some things about the readers of the Book
We estimate that there may be some 3000 readers, because since the book was published in Finnish in 1993, about 3000 books have been sold. In addition, the book is in great demand in libraries. For example, in the main library of my city (Jyvaskyla) the Finnish version of The URANTIA Book is in tenth place among the most requested books, with the longest waiting list.
Our Association has existed officially since 1989, and as a National Member Association of the IUA since 1993. It currently has 55 members who come from all regions of Finland.
Geographically speaking, this means that the greatest distance between us is about 800 kilometers. We have a board of directors meeting at least four times a year and an annual general meeting. These two bodies are the main decision-makers of our Association. We publish a newsletter called Heijaste (in English “Reflection”). We send it to almost 200 subscribers in addition to the members of the Association. The study groups are very lively and active in all the major cities of Finland. There are probably more than 20 study groups that meet regularly to study The URANTIA Book; most of them meet once a week.
We have a long experience in organizing URANTIA conferences on a national level. During the past twelve years we have held a conference every summer and we have also held winter conferences since 1987. We have always enjoyed welcoming guests from other countries. Therefore we are very happy to have the opportunity to organize the next International Conference here. As a preliminary information we can tell you that the chosen venue is the Gustavelund Training and Conference Center which is located some 10 kilometers from Helsinki Airport. It is a modern venue with many meeting rooms equipped with all the necessary audio and video equipment. The conference center also has its own hotel and restaurant. Although it is not far from the capital Helsinki, it is a very quiet place. The conference is scheduled to last four full days, from August 7 to 10, 1998. The overall theme of the conference will be “Facts, Meanings and Values.”
You are all invited to the conference.
As for other countries, we hope to have among our guests people from, among others, the USA, Australia, Holland, Spain, Germany, Estonia, Sweden, Norway and Russia. Of course, we will provide you with further, more detailed information later. Let us know your own wishes both for the conference itself and for the side activities. Some of the members of your Association are likely to speak at the 1998 Conference, we would be very pleased if you could help us find them.
We, the readers of The URANTIA Book, feel very strongly that readers of all nationalities and countries of the world are our closest friends and that our lives are moving in the same direction. There is, however, the problem of the great geographical distances that separate us. Let us try to solve this problem and shorten these distances by this new medium of expression which is the Internet.
Our association has established its own page (website) as well as an email address.
The website is: koti.kolombus.fi/urantia
and E.mail is: urantia@pp.kolumbus.fi
Please forward all messages to the E-mail address.
We do not know the email address of your association but we have been given a list including that of your (NdT add: very dear) President, Georges Michelson-Dupont and we are sending him this message. We hope to have a prompt response from you. Jyvaskyla; Finland December 3, 1996
Yours sincerely
Finnish URANTIA Association.
Raimo Ala-Hynnila; President.
¶ Russian translation is printed and available
The URANTIA Foundation is pleased to announce the birth of the Russian translation of the URANTIA Book. This new edition, printed in France and available in Russia from February 28, 1997, is the culmination of a long adventure.
Begun in 1990, this immense task will have required more than 6 years of daily and hard work to achieve this happy event: the translation, printing and distribution of a translation. It is a bit like giving birth except that the gestation will have lasted 6 years.
TRANSLATION AND TRANSLATORS. Who are the parents of this newcomer, the fourth in a series that will only end with the total coverage of the planet by the Fifth Revelation? On one side, the URANTIA Foundation, the sponsor, represented by a Trustee whose mission was to coordinate, advise and help, and on the other, a team composed of a chief translator and two translators/proofreaders.
The chief translator is a Russian born in Kishinev, Moldova. Aged 41 and recently married, he is a long-time reader, perfectly bilingual. Since his early childhood the quest for Truth was an integral part of his life and his encounter with the URANTIA Book in Helsinki, where he emigrated in 1980, was decisive. He approached the URANTIA Foundation in 1990 and decided to stop his profession as a musician and presenter on Finnish television to devote himself full-time to translation. This man, gentle, calm and profound, while being a laugher and very sociable, carried out his work with perseverance and lucidity.
The first proofreader, the translator’s brother, was also born in Kishinev, Moldova. He now lives in Petrozavodsk, northeast of Saint Petersburg, where he lives with his wife and two children. A professor of philology at the university of that city, he is the author of a dozen scientific publications. Like his brother, he is strongly attracted to spirituality. His brother shared his discovery with him and, in 1990, he decided to join him in this enterprise by working part-time. This man, humble, reserved and profound like his brother, is nevertheless cheerful and always in a good mood despite the difficulties of all kinds that he may experience in his country.
The second proofreader is a Muscovite born in St. Petersburg. Professor at the physics department of the Moscow Technical University. He is the author of more than 80 scientific publications, he is a member of the Scientific Research Council of the Russian Academy of Sciences on Combustion and a member of the American International Institute for Combustion Studies. His wife is a reader of The URANTIA Book and he became one by proofreading it. Behind this rational scientist hides a poet, in love with his mother tongue and author of several works of poetry. he was in charge of linguistic verification. This man, laughing, jovial, fond of witticisms and jokes, shows great culture.
LAYOUT AND PRINTING
The second step is therefore printing, which can be divided into two different and complementary phases:
1st. the “pre-press” work including the composition and layout at
At the top The chief translator Below the first proofreader the identical version of the original English text, and the production of proofs or “films” for the printer (equipment with which the Paris office has equipped itself and which allows substantial savings and appreciable autonomy)
2nd. Printing and binding. The films produced are used to manufacture offset plates by exposure. The text will be arranged in a very precise order allowing, after printing and folding, the production of “notebooks” containing the paginated text. The printing itself is carried out on classic rotary presses adapted for thin paper. These machines, which are 30 m long and 3.50 m high, are impressive to watch in operation. The paper can run at up to 60 m / min. Each turn of the roller prints 36 pages and the text comes out in the form of “notebooks” of 18 sheets, cut, numbered and folded. The sounds, mixing with the smells and the ambient light, create a very special atmosphere around the rotary press. The regular clicking of the rotating mechanical elements, the rhythmic jets of compressed air used for the knives that cut the sheets, the mixed smells of fresh ink, grease and hot paper, contribute to the magic of the place. Stored on pallets, these notebooks are then transported by truck to the bookbinder.
Russian Translation in a few figures
Total duration: 6 years and 5 months Chief translator: 14,500 h. (full-time.)
The first proofreader: 8,500 hours (all his free time and practically full time the last 16 months)
The second corrector: 1,200 h. TOTAL: 24,200 h.
Cost of translation: 990,000 F.F. Cost of printing: 350,000 F.F.
For the binding, we chose the technique that would give the book the best resistance to use. It consists of sewing the pages forming the “book” together in the middle, then these books are assembled together and the whole thing is glued onto a light cardboard spine. The binding is placed afterwards and the bookmarks are placed at the same time.
All these operations are carried out entirely on automatic machines forming a set of more than 100 m long. At the start of the machine, the “notebooks” are stacked in as many boxes as there are notebooks to form a book, and at the end, a finished book comes out. Here again, it is simply magical.
TRANSPORT AND DISTRIBUTION.
Once printed, the books have to be transported to Moscow and St. Petersburg. The only quick and relatively reasonable way in terms of cost and safety is by truck.
There is no longer an organized system of book distribution in Russia and each publisher “gets by” as best he can. The cities of Moscow and Saint Petersburg concentrate all the purchases and the Russians come there to stock up. The URANTIA Foundation will open an office in Moscow and an annex in Saint Petersburg thanks to the help of volunteer and enthusiastic readers. They will be responsible for visiting the bookstores in these two cities, depositing copies and charging the bookstores as sales are made.
Text and photos: A.F.L.L.U.
¶ The Adjuster according to C.G. Young
I read with pleasure the article devoted to “The Adjuster according to C.G. Young” in Le Lien Urantien No. 1.
On page 9 the facts attributed to the Mystery Monitor, in the paragraph: “The creative function of psychic dynamism, producer of images, always appears in isolated individuals. It is there only that new thoughts, artistic inspirations, spontaneous constructive ideas are produced which can, on occasion, be received and imitated by the group.”, are perhaps not attributable to him.
Indeed, UB 108:5.5: “The Mystery Monitors do not help to think; they adjust thought. They work with the material mind in order to build, by adjustment and spiritualization, a new mind.”
Their role, then, seems to correspond to the preparation of the human mind for the acceptance of new concepts. The will of the Adjuster, which in no way prevails over ours, is perhaps to free human thought from all manner of prejudices and other mental poisons which might retard the appearance of the new man destined for fusion.
It is from there, and with coordination, that the seraphim will be able to act in accordance with our aspirations, our choices and our abilities. Was it not said of Mozart that he heard the music of the angels? His seraphim was certainly a musician!
The seraphim also act on our environment (P. 1245§6). Without them, Cézanne would perhaps never have met Zola and his talent would not have flourished.
But in all artistic creation, the Spirit of Truth which is the Spirit of Beauty certainly does not count for nothing.
Jean Claude Romeuf / October 15, 1996
¶ Open letter to my family and friends Letter of Hope
It is because the world evolves that art also evolves. But I know deep down that the opposite is also true: the awareness of beauty through human artistic creations is a factor of global growth.
Everything that exists is in perpetual advancement. Everything that is immobile is drawn towards the fall. The inexorable law of nature, whether it be the rotation of the electron around the nucleus of the atom or that of the planets around the sun, is movement. It is the same for men: physical or intellectual laziness is synonymous with death. A religion that is content only with creed is dying.
There may be delays in the march of the world, but the returns are only apparent. Nothing is retrograde: everything is experience and serves. After the war, cities are reborn from their ashes like flowers at the coming of spring. Evil does not prevent progress.
Men are embarked on a great train. The departure station is called “Nothingness” and the destination “Light”. At each of the stations which are the stages of life, the train passes from light to light. Effort, suffering and even physical death are tests of light.
The locomotive is driven by those who are in love with beauty, truth and goodness. Those who are the poets, the painters, the musicians, the scholars, the philosophers (for me the true religious), have the heavy responsibility of moving the machine forward. They are called Van Gogh, Mozart, Descartes, Shakespeare, Newton, Thérèse la petite de Lisieux, François d’Assise or Edison.
In the wagons travels the populous mass and the aim of the game is to approach the machine. Each time one of these “little ones”, these “unknowns”, these “no ranks” finds a part of the truth he seeks, he enters a wagon closer to the machine. It is then that with him, the world and the century grow by that much.
As long as a part of youth :
will seek Beauty through art, will seek Truth through thought, that is to say philosophy, science or theology (I prefer to say the religious way),
we can say that Love is not in danger because “Love, Truth and Beauty” are the clear water of the same source from the heavens. It is the water of the fountains of Youth and of the well of the Samaritan woman.
These three words are the symbol of the star of Bethlehem.
That’s the one you have to follow. It’s easy to recognize: it’s the only one that shines in the sky.
Jean-Claude December 24, 1996
¶ Bruno Bettelheim and our anxious times
The ends of centuries, the ends of millennia and, even more so, the ends of civilizations have always provoked reactions of fear and anxiety in the face of what was going to happen. It is as if each secular transition of a millennium could only bring profound and lasting upheavals. Perhaps what was most feared in this change in the state of things was the fact of not being able to adapt to it, or the idea that inevitably new catastrophes would emerge from behind the threatening horizons of this end of period.
So we know that the end of the 18th century was characterized by the advent of the French Revolution, itself leading to the Napoleonic Wars, establishing a new order in most European states. The end of the 19th century prepared the way for the First World War and its offshoot, the Second World War, each of which led to unnecessary slaughter and a new social order.
François Dupont — Brussels
¶ Food for thought
Loyalty is an essential quality for the cohesion of our personality, for our spiritual progression and for the acquisition of cosmic citizenship. Loyalty is innate in the creatures of the central universe because they are born (or rather externalized) “perfect” but it becomes an acquired experience in man born in time and space. Even the personalities of the local universe, charged with our education, must exercise loyalty because they are subject to the possibilities of betrayal or failure. Loyalty is the mark of a unified and courageous personality.
We read 51.11 7. “Is loyalty-devotion to the higher duty-desirable? Then must man pursue his path amidst the possibilities of betrayal and desertion. The value of devotion to duty implies the danger that would result from failure.” UB 3:5.12 We can therefore trust the angels who educate us, they know how to manipulate circumstances and provide opportunities!
But are we loyal to someone, an idea or a value?
I propose this theme for your consideration and we will publish, in the next “Urantian Link” the responses that will have reached the headquarters of the association.
The publisher
¶ Gazette section
The purpose of this column is to disseminate information from groups of readers of the Urantia Book and relating to the life of the Urantia movement.
¶ FROM FRANCE
A.F.L.L.U. NEWS
CALL FOR THE GENERAL MEETING OF AFLLU MEMBERS
(Letter sent to each member on January 25, 1997)
Dear members,
The first year of life of our association "AFLLU" is coming to an end. It will be considered as a year of start-up and running-in.
The coming year promises to be interesting from every point of view, with prospects for internationalization and collaboration.
Major projects are planned, but there is a lack of enthusiasm, goodwill and commitment, in short, active participation.
I therefore suggest that we meet for our second general meeting on Sunday, April 6 at 9 a.m., 8, passage de la bonne graine in Paris 11th at the association's headquarters.
The proposed agenda is as follows:
- Summary of the association's activity in 1996.
- Approval of the accounts for the year 1996 and management discharge to the President and the Treasurer.
- Adoption of our “internal regulations” proposed by the president in office in 1996. and structuring of the association.
- Discussion and vote on the expansion of our association to the Francophonie.
- Election of the management committees for:
- “Study groups”
- “Le Lien Urantien”
- "Projects for additional aids to reading the URANTIA Book."
- Projects for the year 1997-1998.
- Election of the new President, Vice-President, Treasurer and Secretary. If a member wishes to add other subjects to the agenda, he is requested to make this known as soon as possible by letter addressed to the headquarters of the association and before February 15, the date on which the agenda of the meeting will be definitively established.
Looking forward to seeing you all again, please accept, dear members, my fraternal friendship.
G. Michelson-Dupont
President of AFLLU
¶ UNITED STATES
ATTEMPT AT RECONCILIATION BETWEEN THE FELLOWSHIP AND THE FOUNDATION
A first meeting between 5 Fellowship leaders and the Trustees of Urantia Foundation took place on Saturday, January 11 at 533 Diversey Parkway in Chicago. Present were:
For the Fellowship: Steve Dreier (current President), Marilyn Kulieke (current Vice President), Harry McMullan, Mo Siegel and Gard Jameson.
For URANTIA Foundation: Patricia Mundelius (President), Richard Keeler, Tom Burns and Georges Michelson-Dupont.
We can call this meeting historic since it is the first since the separation of 1989. The atmosphere was friendly and fraternal although a little tense at the beginning. Due to the various changes in the Foundation's board of directors in recent years, several participants did not know each other.
The agenda had been prepared by the Trustees, initiators and organizers of the meeting. Its theme was: Understanding each other on a personal and organizational level.
The meeting began with 5 minutes of silence conducive to contemplation. Then, each of the participants introduced themselves and shared with the others the difficult trials of their life, their encounter with the URANTIA Book and the meaning of their commitment to the Revelation. I admit that some of the stories were moving but all demonstrated the sincerity and motivation of each. Then, certain problems causing friction between the two organizations were addressed with frankness and courtesy and on a certain number of subjects unanimous decisions were adopted, of which here is the list:
Referring new North American readers writing to URANTIA Foundation to Fellowship study groups: It has been agreed by the Foundation that, since Fellowship study groups concentrate their efforts on the study of The URANTIA Book and do not engage in "politics," readers seeking to participate in study groups will be referred to them.
Communications: Every effort will be made to facilitate communications between the two organizations including the organization of meetings such as this one.
Mutual respect of each organization: No derogatory remarks or criticisms will be made in public by either the leaders or employees of the two organizations.
Trials and legal proceedings: No trial or legal proceedings will be initiated before a meeting, if possible "face to face", takes place.
Contacts: Every effort will be made to resolve issues when they arise through direct contact.
Projects: Both organizations agree to seek projects with joint participation.
Finally the meeting ended with a few minutes of silent meditation and the decision to meet again very soon was taken by mutual agreement.
We will keep readers informed of the progress of the next meetings.
GROWING INTEREST IN THE HISPANIC WORLD FOR “EL BIBRO DE URANTIA” IN SMALL FORMAT VERSION.
Thanks to the relatively low price of the small format edition, the book is enjoying growing interest in Spanish-speaking countries, particularly in Central and South America, despite the high customs duties and various taxes imposed by these respective countries to limit imports.
The Chicago office ships an average of 800 books per month and the Paris office 200 books per month to Spain, a monthly average of 1,000 books, bringing total sales since this edition became available in July 1995 to 16,000. A third printing is therefore in preparation.
¶ FROM FINLAND
SWEDISH TRANSLATION.
Our friends in Finland inform us that the Swedish translation is entering the final stages of proofreading and layout. It could be printed and distributed later this year.
With the Dutch and Russian translations, this would bring to three the number of translations put on the market by the Foundation for this year, which would constitute a record when one considers the time needed, the patience deployed, the means implemented and the quality sought. We are beginning to reap the fruits of the combined efforts of the various translation teams and the determination of the Foundation for several years.
Address your articles, comments and suggestions to:
AFLLU
8, Passage of the Good Seed
75011 PARIS
FRANCE
Link No. 3 was printed in 100 copies
¶ References
| Le Lien Urantien — Issue 3 — Winter 1996 | Artistic conception of the Master Universe (2) Artistic conception of the Master Universe (2) |