© 2012 Ivan Stol, Guy de Viron, Chris Ragetly, Max Masotti, Meredith J. Sprunger, Benjamin Boisson, Georges Donnadieu, Chris Ragetly, Rosette Poletti, Barbara Dobbs, Jean Annet, Dominique Ronfet
© 2012 Association Francophone des Lecteurs du Livre d'Urantia
¶ The President’s Note: Re
Dear Urantians,
The world is in the midst of social and economic upheaval. Some are in a warlike revolution, others are prey to a breathless and poorly managed economy. Many hope without knowing what exactly, having lost the reference values.
Through The Urantia Book we have gained invaluable knowledge that can enable us to light the way for others through our wise service, social, material, intellectual or spiritual.
Ivan Stol
¶ Edito: Artisans of Peace
Summer season obliges, here is a simplified edition of the Link with the resumption of two texts by Chris Ragetly, specially at the request of our friend Lucas. The first addresses the theme of suicide while the second is rather a series of short reflections.
Next, the fourth part of Meredith Sprunger’s text: Personal Temporal Realities: Our Material Body and Material Mind-Brain and Planetary Realities: The Total Ecological Environment.
As self-esteem is a current topic, here is the sequel to which it is good to link the Art of Blessing, a good habit to acquire!
Georges takes us in the footsteps of Jesus and draws us into the lyricism of the songs.
Guy from Viron
Editor’s note (editor’s note):
The Links are quarterly and appear on the 15th of March, June, September and December! They are first sent to subscribers in digital form (PDF format) on these same dates and then, as far as possible, in their “paper” form. As AFLUB prints are grouped with other periodicals, it is possible that the deadline for the paper format is longer. As for the texts intended to be published within the Link concerned, they must imperatively arrive 30 days before the aforementioned publication date and approved by our president, Ivan Stol, director of publication. Thank you for your understanding.
¶ Study: Suicide
In any universe contest between actual levels of reality, the personality of the higher level will ultimately triumph over the personality of the lower level. This inevitable outcome of universe controversy is inherent in the fact that divinity of quality equals the degree of reality or actuality of any will creature. Undiluted evil, complete error, willful sin, and unmitigated iniquity are inherently and automatically suicidal. Such attitudes of cosmic unreality can survive in the universe only because of transient mercy-tolerance pending the action of the justice-determining and fairness-finding mechanisms of the universe tribunals of righteous adjudication. (UB 2:3.5)
Note that there are 4 conditions that lead to suicide. In this study, it is suicide that leads to the definitive annihilation of the personality concerned.
Chris Ragetly
¶ Testimony: Peace Initiatives
Where yesterday’s enemies meet
In Caux (Montreux), the world headquarters of “Initiatives of Change”, young peacemakers find a fertile ground to study conflict resolution. Because it is there that the foundation welcomes yesterday’s enemies, in order to heal the wounds of history. On July 12, former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd reiterated his government’s apologies to two Australian Aborigines for having separated children from their families.
“Initiatives of Change” also played an important role in Franco-German reconciliation - with the visit of Chancellor Konrad Adenauer in 1947 - and during decolonization in Africa. The movement was notably chaired by Rajmohan Gandhi, grandson of the Mahatma - who himself came to Caux three times - and Comelio Sommaruga, former president of the International Committee of the Red Cross. Its current president is the Egyptian Omnia Marzouk, an Arab Muslim, based in London.
¶ Maxien Quiz No. 11: The questions
Superuniverse
- Our system, our constellation, and Salvington are all registered. Do you remember their registration numbers?
- We all know about the Master Physical Controllers, but do you know the functions of the Frandalanks?
- What is the name of the first Finalitarian Agondonarian and survivor of the First Rebellion of Time and Space?
Max Masotti
¶ Psychospi: The Seven Fundamental Realities IV
6. Personal temporal realities: our material body and our material brain-mind
The human body and mind are rooted in the electrochemical nature of matter and are the products of organic evolution. We are both the creation of past history and individuals in the process of becoming. Heredity determines most of the tendencies, potentials, and limitations of our body, mind, emotional temperament, and general behavior. The divine creative process uses this evolutionary methodology to enact the potential for personal-volitional soul growth and spiritual development.
Human beings are dynamic organisms. Most psychological-affective reactions and experiences are determined by biochemical conditions. Similarly, mental-emotional attitudes can influence physical conditions, including the autonomic nervous system that regulates such things as heart rate, blood pressure, and hormonal secretions. The human brain-body is a holistic bio-electrochemical organism with a mind and inhabited by spirit.
Meredith J. Sprunger
¶ Humor: Saint Philip Neri
Saint Philip Neri, patron saint of humorists (16th century)
The astonishing holiness of Philip Neri, the Italian priest who died in 1595, earned him the title of “Saint Humorist” from Goethe. Now, this saint of joy lived in one of the darkest times in the history of the Church. In fact, he lived during the terrible schism that gave rise in a short time in the 16th century to Lutheran Protestantism and all sorts of other “reforms” that have today divided Christians from Catholicism into more than thirty thousand different Churches or sects.
Not only that, but he also lived at the time of the reform of the Catholic Church, which imposed strict discipline, establishing the Holy Office and the Index of Proscribed Books, and further tightening the severity of the Inquisition. Now, here arises, thanks to the Spirit, this Saint of joy and profound faith.
Benjamin Boisson
¶ Song: An evening at Neylière
The 2012 national meeting of French-speaking readers of the Urantia Book took place at Pentecost at the Domaine de La Neylière. Some participants were able to listen, during the recreational evening of Saturday, May 26, to the song Suzanne performed by Alain Bashung (album “Bleu Pétrole” 2008). The lyrics of the 2nd verse and chorus are as follows: original lyrics in English by Leonard Cohen and French adaptation by Graeme Allwright, Australian folk singer.
| Original text (L Cohen) | French adaptation (G. Allwright) |
|---|---|
| And Jesus was a sailor | He was a fisherman who came to Earth |
| When he walked upon the water | Who stayed up very long |
| And he spent a long time watching | From the top of a lonely tower |
| From his lonely wooden tower | When he understood that only |
| And when he knew for certain | Lost men saw him |
| Only drowning men could see him | He said we would sail |
Georges Donnadieu
¶ PracticeThe art of blessing
The Simple Art of Blessing
To bless means to recognize the infinite good that is an integral part of the very fabric of the universe - It is only waiting for a sign from us to manifest itself.
To bless means to unconditionally desire and will the unlimited good for others and the events of life—drawing from the deepest and most intimate sources of our being. It means to revere and regard with total wonder that which is always a gift from the Creator—and this, regardless of appearances.
¶ Reflection: Some passages from LU
We conceive that physical evolution will have attained its full development by the end of the fifth epoch of the light-and-life era. We observe that the upper limits of spiritual development associated with evolving human mind are determined by the Adjuster-fusion level of conjoint morontia values and cosmic meanings. But concerning wisdom: While we do not really know, we conjecture that there can never be a limit to intellectual evolution and the attainment of wisdom. On a seventh-stage world, wisdom can exhaust the material potentials, enter upon mota insight, and eventually even taste of absonite grandeur. (UB 55:6.5)
Chris Ragetly
¶ Story: In the footsteps of Jesus (fiction)
Hello friends, I propose you a short text on the footsteps of Jesus. Fiction is also a way to connect with the spirit of truth, as Juan Benitez and Joseph Servant did.
This winter Sabbath, in Tiberias (UB 150:3.2), Andrew asked a question about the star that had recently appeared in the sky. At that time, the appearance of a bright and supposedly new star was considered a sign that a great man had been born on earth. One of these stars had recently been observed, and Andrew asked Jesus if these beliefs were well founded. In his long answer to all the superstitions of his contemporaries as well as of Babylonian astrology. But about the latter he conversed deeply only with his apostles.
Georges Donnadieu
¶ Practice: Self-Esteem II
Clarifying external communication
Interpersonal communication is based directly on the inner dialogue of the people involved. If our inner parent is constantly condemning and scolding us, the content of our communication with others will reflect this state of affairs. We will tend to “apologize for existing”, “efface ourselves for the benefit of others”, “be afraid of disturbing others”, “tend to manipulate rather than directly ask for what we need”, “complain instead of taking responsibility for our reality” and above all, “we will be very afraid of having to assert ourselves in front of others, speak in public, refuse a service or take our place among others”.
Rosette Poletti and Barbara Dobbs
¶ Belgian meeting: August 19, 2012
Urantia Book readers in Belgium gathered to celebrate the birth of Jesus.
Every year, we gather to share our common passion and discuss the Urantia Book. This year, we also had the pleasure of welcoming Dominique and Anne-Marie Ronfet who had traveled north to participate in the meeting. Fortunately, the sun was out. They did not feel too disoriented.
Everyone brought a dish or a drink that we shared in a friendly atmosphere. It was also an opportunity to delve deeper into a message from Jesus on the positive side of his religion (“If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn the other!”). Everyone was able to express concretely how they lived this teaching, without getting into big ideas or mentalizing.
Jean Annet
¶ History
Two twins are talking in their mother’s womb:
- Baby 1: And you, do you believe in life after childbirth?
- Baby 2: Sure. It’s obvious that life after childbirth exists. We are here to become strong and prepare for what awaits us after.
- Baby 1: Pffff… This is all crazy. There’s nothing after giving birth! What would life be like outside the womb?
- Baby 2: Well, there are many stories about the “other side”… They say that there is a lot of light, a lot of joy and emotions, thousands of things to experience… For example, they say that there we will eat with our mouths.
Anonymous author
¶ Maxien Quiz No. 11: The answers
Superuniverse
- Satania is number 24: Norlatiadek is number 70: Salvington is number 84 in the Ensa Minor Sector.(UB 15:14.7)
- The Frandalanks are the living instruments which indicate the power pressure and energy charge of an entire superuniverse.(UB 29:4.2) The Frandalanks. These beings are the joint creation of the three orders of energy controllers.(UB 29:4.36) .
- This agondontary is named Tabamantia. Glory to him! (UB 50:7.2) Tabamantia is an agondontary of finalitarian status, survivor of one of the quarantined spheres after the first rebellion that ever took place in the universes of time and space.
Max Masotti
¶ Brother Dom’s Little Corner
- Hello, still looking?
- I don’t know…
- Ahhh, the “I don’t know”, you’re very lucky!
- How so?
- The “I don’t know” is an endless well of knowledge, said…I don’t remember who.
- What if I had told you: “I know…”?
- Do you know anyone who could limit their sentence to these two simple words? No, obviously, it would have been followed by an indispensable complement, probably long and invasive.
Dominique Ronfet
¶ Imprint
Le Lien Urantien is the journal of the French-speaking Association of Readers of the Urantia Book, a member of the UAI, the Urantia Association International.
| Head office | rue du Temple 1, F-13012 Marseille, +33 (0)4 91 27 13 20 |
| afflu@urantia.fr | |
| Site | www.urantia.fr / http://forum.urantia.fr |
| Publication Director | Ivan Stol, ivan.stol@free.fr |
| Editor in Chief | Guy de Viron, guydeviron@bluewin.ch |
| Reading Committee | Jean Royer, Max Masotti |
| Subscription | €20 per year (quarterly publication 4 issues) |
| Legal deposit | December 1997 — ISSN 1285-1116 |
| Print run | 125 copies © 1955 URANTIA Foundation |
All rights reserved. Materials from The Urantia Book are used with permission. Any artistic depictions, interpretations, opinions or conclusions implied or stated are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of URANTIA Foundation or its affiliates.