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Juan José lives in Pamplona. He is married and has 5 children. He is a doctor engineer I.C.A.I. You have known The Urantia Book for about 30 years. Participate in the study group of the northern zone.
¶ 1. How did you get to “The Urantia Book” and why do you think you found it?
Always attracted to esoteric themes and also interested in religious issues (although observing them from a very critical perspective), I have been a regular reader of books related to both issues. The Trojan Horse was a starting point that opened my way to The Urantia Book, although it came into my hands years later, incidentally, it would seem thanks to synchronicity.
¶ 2. What was your first impression when reading it?
Despite the effort that reading it caused me (it was the old version translated in America, in which I could not repress my obsession with correcting its infumable text), it seemed to me a great discovery, since it answered many of my permanent questions.
¶ 3. At what point in the reading (document, sentence, etc.) did you accept that “The Urantia Book” is really what it claims to be?
Given the time that has elapsed, it is difficult for me to point out this aspect. I remember being particularly drawn to the description of the life of Jesus.
¶ 4. How has “The Urantia Book” changed your life?
I dare say that in a radical way. On the one hand, by being relieved of the previous search for answers to a large number of the questions that troubled me in those years: the presence of civilizations in remote times on Urantia; the explanation of certain myths that dot our culture; the existence of paranormal events without logical explanation; etc And, on the other hand, the detailed knowledge of the life and messages of Jesus, which do not stop impacting me and have given a new direction to my way of being.
¶ 5. Has the faith you had after reading it changed? If so, in what way?
It has taken a complete turn. You would not find a better description of this transformation than the one that the book itself offers in paper 101, section 8: “Faith and belief.” As can be deduced from these paragraphs, I no longer consider faith as a blind submission to abstract concepts without any content, but rather as a spirited collaboration with that spirit that accompanies us and tries to show us at all times the way to extract the greatest possible benefit from our talents.
¶ 6. Are there any points (or points) of the revelation that you find difficult to accept?
It is difficult to accept the supremacy of some races over others. Also the indication of the existence of inferior human beings; and that we should do something to prevent its proliferation.
I also have the impression about the fact (in my opinion, evident) that The Urantia Book tells the truth, but it does not tell the whole truth. We observe events (from the remote past and present) for which no explanation can be found if we stick exclusively to the narratives of the book. Many events of great moment occur on Urantia that, for some reason, we are not allowed to comprehend.
¶ 7. What is the part that has most deeply impressed you?
Without a doubt, the life of Jesus. The wisdom that the documents of the 4th part exude directly impacts the center of the heart of all of us who consider ourselves believers in Him.
It is true that by giving The Urantia Book abundant answers to questions that we have been asking ourselves, we come to satisfy our personal curiosity, to the extent that we accept them without reservation. But it is in the 4th part where I feel that the book takes a turn. Describing in great detail the life and doctrine of Jesus, he announces to us in a loud and clear voice what our Adjuster constantly hints at us, but so quietly that we cannot hear it. For this reason, I believe that this part of the book is the one that can have the greatest influence on our way of living, since it appeals not only to our rational component but also, above all, to our personal behavior. Jesus did not come down to Urantia to satisfy the curiosity of the people who were listening to him; He came to give us very simple guidelines for life that we should all willingly follow.
¶ 8. How do you understand “doing the will of the Father”?
In my view, it derives from guessing the why of man in the universe.
My reflections lead me to this conception of teleology: God creates permanently, and his design is that this Creation, starting from an initial primordial state, progressively divinizes itself until it becomes as perfect as He is. Throughout this trajectory of eternal evolution, some of its strata reach certain prerogatives or conditions that make it possible for them to be endowed with a first glimmer of consciousness. From that moment is when they acquire the status of creature and their participation in this magnificent project is made known to them in an incipient way.
Right at this precise level we humans find ourselves, allowing us to intuit the divine plan and inviting us to collaborate actively in it. It is thus, through this incessant process of perfection of Creation, how God, infinite and perfect under an existential prism, gradually acquires infinity and experiential perfection, with the help of those creatures that decide to cooperate with Him. And it is precisely this voluntary act that which can be called “doing his will”.
¶ 9. Have you become aware of the presence of your Adjuster?
Not in the sense given in The Urantia Book. But once you understand what the book says about who he really is, it becomes easier to focus your thoughts on him as a divine being accompanying us on our eternal adventure.
¶ 10. Have you tried to put the Master’s teachings into practice? What was the result?
Of course I try, with mixed results. But undoubtedly the general balance has been very positive.
¶ 11. Do you think that “The Urantia Book” has something “mysterious” that makes not everyone decide to read it?
I don’t think it’s the mysterious character that retracts most people from reading it. For this to be the case, they should find out about the circumstances that gave rise to it, and they are not even interested in them. But The Urantia Book comes with a set of peculiarities that make it unpopular:
- Its extension.
- The intricate (and certainly unattractive) text for those who do not have a strong interest in readings of an esoteric nature, far removed from the usual concerns and entertainment.
- That it is a book that comes to alter or contradict some deeply rooted beliefs in common mortals, or at least they suspect it before knowing it.
- The one that is not the work of a recognized author, of those that appear in the latest literary novelties; or, as they say, of those that it is “essential to read to be up to date”. And this contemptuous perception increases when they are told that “it has no author” and that it was transcribed through a strange process.
¶ 12. Is there anything else you would like to say regarding “The Urantia Book”?
I wish to add a personal circumstance. Quite a few years after knowing this book, I went through a period in which I had an active participation in a long series of “automatic writing” sessions, encouraged by suggestions from my old friend Juan José Benítez, author of the Caballos de Troya (years before the would write). That experience positively influenced my character and also made it easier for me to accept the hypothesis of the book’s mysterious origin and read it with complete confidence.
¶ References
- Article of the Magazine Light and Life Online: https://aue.urantia-association.org/2022/08/30/cuestionario-urantiano-juan-jose-lopez-vallejos