© 1992 Matthew Block
© 1992 ANZURA, Australia & New Zealand Urantia Association
| Summary Of Elanora Conference 1992 | Vol 13 No 6 Nov 1992 — Index | The Purpose Of The Fifth Epochal Revelation? |
Matthew Block, Chicago
“…in making these presentations about God and his universe associates, we have selected as the basis of these papers more than one thousand human concepts representing the highest and most advanced planetary knowledge of spiritual values and universe meanings.” (UB 0:12.12)
“We may resort to pure revelation only when the concept of presentation has had no adequate previous expression by the human mind.” (UB 0:12.11)
“The memoranda which I have collected…embrace thought gems and superior concepts of Jesus’ teachings assembled from more than two thousand human beings who have lived on earth from the days of Jesus down to the times of the inditing of these revelations, more correctly restatements…the majority of the ideas and even some of the effective expressions which I have thus utilised had their origin in the men of many races who have lived on earth during the intervening generations, right on down to those who are still alive at the time of this undertaking.” (UB 121:8.13-14)
Following these introductory remarks is a list of nineteen books which in all probability were used in the inditement of some of the Urantia Papers. Each of these books (with a few exceptions noted in the list) contains sentences, paragraphs or even whole chapters whose phrasings and organization of thoughts or information are so closely paralleled in The URANTIA Book as to strongly suggest their use as source materials by the revelators. While a few of these have long been known to some URANTIA Book readers (e.g. the books by Breasted, Bundy, Jones), most were apparently first discovered in libraries and used book stores in the Chicago area during the spring, summer and fall of 1992 in the course of my research into The URANTIA Book’s human sources.
The research so far has been so fruitful mainly because none of the books were obscure; they were all written by authorities in their respective fields (often by professors from prominent American universities) and many were reviewed in the popular and academic press. Further, the book titles themselves are often giveaways to the alert URANTIA Book reader, by their very titles, for instance, I targetted ‘Purposive Evolution’ and ‘The Architecture of the Universe’ (listed below) as likely primary sources.
It is interesting to note that, while these books cover many fields, including religion, philosophy, archaeology, physics, astronomy and history, the revelators directly acknowledge using only the highest human concepts and insights pertaining to God and the seven superuniverses and to the life and teachings of Jesus as the above quotations attest. I was thus quite surprised, initially, at the extent to which the revelators culled from books which do not focus on these areas. But, regardless of the lack of specific acknowledgements, it is clear that many more textual sources (both direct and indirect) in various fields will eventually be traced. I estimate that writings published before 1936 form the basis of at least two-thirds of Part III and IV, and most of these works will probably be found within the next few years. Eventually we will be able to map out the whole URANTIA Book according to which parts were apparently revealed for the first time and which were not. And, again, this will not be too difficult since the revelators, while avoiding extensive word-for-word borrowings, made no attempt to disguise their sources by departing widely from the original human expressions.
Clearly, these findings are of great importance to serious URANTIA Book readers. In addition to providing further substantiation of the revelators’ acknowedgements, they spark new insights into what this revelation really is and how human and superhuman voices and viewpoints interfaced in its production. As we gain a better grasp of how original it is (in its function of pure revelation), and how derivative (in its function of presenting superhuman restatements of human concepts and expressions), we will be better able to see how the revelation positions itself with regard to evolutionary human knowledge, wisdom, and faith.
My own experience has taught me that, as a result of my ignorance and underestimation of early 20th century thought, my sense of this positioning has been skewed. If unfamiliar with a concept or a piece of information presented in the papers — especially if it struck me as uncommonly beautiful, brilliant or incisive — I would automatically assume it was revealed for the first time, little realising that it might have been common knowledge, in some form or other, to some Urantians of earlier generations. But in becoming more familiar with thought trends of that period and others, and with the discovery of more human sources, I’ve come to a better appreciation of the higher reaches of human thought (as reflected in the book) and can now begin to give the book’s human side its proper due. Moreover, I now have added resources at my disposal when attempting to share URANTIA Book teachings with people| ‘not ready’ for the book itself.
These initial findings have already convinced me of two things. First, while no longer equating ‘revelation’ with complete superhuman originality, I have no doubt that The Urantia Papers were superhumanly ‘indited’. Each of the books below was deftly and creatively used, so as to seamlessly integrate human observations with revelatory supplementation or correction. Thus, to give just one example, the adjutant mind spirits of worship and wisdom are incorporated into ‘The Origins of Worship’ paper, a paper which is very largely derived from the ‘Origin and Evolution of Religion’ (see below), whose author held to a wholly natural motivation of the worship urge.
Second, rather than being an embarrassment to The URANTIA Book’s credibility as a revelation, these books are of great help in the further understanding of the papers which use them. Often the revelators are obliged to present an abbreviated treatment of a concept or a history which is discussed at greater length by the human source. For instance, my understanding of the book’s puzzling reference to ‘cosmic self-maintenance’ (UB 42:11.7) was greatly enhanced when I came upon this concept presented at length in the Noble book (see below). In the light of these benefits to comprehension, of both content and context, I feel it would be helpful for the readership to be made aware of these sources, and perhaps some of these books with expired copyrights could be republished. Further, as an organization dedicated to furthering the study of The URANTIA Book, The Fellowship would do well to openly acknowledge the existence of these works in some way, perhaps even in our informational literature about The URANTIA Book. We should be aware, as well, that a confident and wellreasoned acknowledgement would disarm debunkers who hold the notion that revelation always and necessarily means, to its gulled believers, complete superhuman inspiration.
…While no longer equating ‘revelation’ with complete superhuman originality, I have no doubt that The URANTIA Papers were superhumanly ‘indited’.
The following list is necessarily brief and incomplete. In the coming months I intend to analyze some of these books at greater length, detailing the often ingenious ways the revelators make use of them. My main goals in each of the essays, which I hope to publish in various movement journals and newsletters will be: (1) To lay out the parallels between the book in question and The URANTIA Book, (2) To show how the superhuman presenters supplemented the human statements with revelatory information or insights, and (3) To see whether and how the book in question sheds light on the corresponding passages in The URANTIA Book. In the meantime, I and other readers will continue to be on the lookout for more human sources. If anyone knows of books or writings not included in this list, I would be grateful to hear from you. If anyone has any questions about these books or the projects, please feel free to contact me at:
3719 N. Southport Avenue, #217,
Chicago, IL 60613 (312/975 1764).
1. Aston, W.G., 1905, ‘Shinto:The Way Of The Gods’ (Longmans, Green & Co., New York).
Paper 131, ‘The World’s Religions‘, Section 7. Sentences from Aston’s translation of the ‘Wa Rongo’ collection of Shinto oracles, lightly rewritten or paraphrased, constitute the entire selection of Ganid’s abstract of Shinto.
2. Bishop, William Samuel, 1926, ‘The Theology Of Personality’ (Longmans, Green and Co., New York).
Foreword, Section XII; Paper 106, ‘Universe Levels of Reality’, Section 8. Although there appears to be no superhuman lifting of content here, Bishop uses the terms ‘trinity’, ‘triunity’ and — amazingly — ‘A Trinity of Trinities’ in the exposition of his constructive theology. These terms are completely re-worked in The URANTIA Book.
3. Breasted, James Henry, 1933, ‘The Dawn Of Conscience’ (Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York).
Paper 95, ‘The Melchizedek Teachings in the Levant’, Sections 2-5; Paper 111, ‘The Adjuster and the Soul’, preamble. Breasted’s analysis and assessments of early Egyptian social idealism and religion — including the teachings of Amenemope and Ikhnaton, the ka and the ba, Egypt’s influence on the hebrews, etc. are incorporated into The URANTIA Book’s corresponding discussions.
4. Bundy, Walter E., 1928. ‘The Religion Of Jesus’ (The Bobs-Merrill Company, Indianapolis).
Paper 196, ‘The Faith of Jesus’, preamble, Sections 1-2; etc. Portions from every chapter of this book, whose thesis is that the human Jesus founded the religion of personal experience and that we must recover the religion of Jesus from the religion about Jesus, are deftly concentrated in Paper 196, with the retention of many of Bundy’s exact wordings.
5. Bundy, Walter E., 1929, ‘Our Recovery Of Jesus’
(The Bobs-Merrill Company, Indianapolis).Paper 196, ‘The Faith of Jesus’, preamble, sections 1 and 2. A companion volume to the preceding book, this one has material that parallels paragraphs in Paper 196 which were not paralleled by the preceding book. The two books together supply about 95% of the basis of the preamble and the first two sections. The last differs in tone and content and may be original with the midwayers.
6. Burton, Ernest Dewitt And Matthews, Shailer, 1900, 1927, ‘The Life Of Christ’ (University of Chicago Press, Chicago).
Part IV, Passim. The content of this book does not appear to be used but rather its chapter and section titles. Parallel titles include: ‘The Crisis at Capernaum’, ‘Discourse on Spiritual Freedom’, ‘The Widespread Fame of Jesus [Christ]’, ‘The Man with the Withered Hand’, ‘The Woman Taken from Adultery’ and ‘[More] Parables by the Sea’.
7. Cowdry, E.V., Editor, 1930, ‘Human Biology & Racial Welfare’ (Paul B. Hoeber, Inc., New York).
Paper 51, ‘The Planetary Adams’, Section 4; Paper 65, ‘The Overcontrol of Evolution’, Section 2; Paper 82, ‘The Evolution of Marriage’, Section 6; etc. The revelators use essays by Hrdlicka, Conklin and Davenport in their discussions of race differences, the dangers and benefits of race mixing, and the feasibility of a modest eugenics program.
8. Edwards, Tryon, Original Compiler, 1890-1934 and later ‘The New Dictionary of Thoughts’ (Classic Publishing Co., London & New York).
Paper 48, ‘The Morontia Life’, Section 7. The vast majority of the 28 ‘statements of human philosophy’ in the Morontia Mota section are taken directly and consecutively from the first 50 pages of this 750-page book, which is arranged alphabetically by subject. The subjects from which the revelators cull quotations include: Ability, Accident, Adversity, Affectation, Affliction, Anger, Anxiety, Art, Aspiration, etc. These quotes are usually not reproduced verbatim in the Papers, but are recast so as to have a more cosmic and spiritual tone.
9. Fosdick, Harry Emerson, 1933, ‘The Hope of the World’ (Harper and Brothers, New York & London).
Paper 171, ‘On the Way to Jerusalem’, Section 7. “Goodness is effective only when it is attractive”, on page 1874, is the essence of Fosdick’s sermon ‘The Fine Art of Making Goodness Attractive’.
10. Frost Jr., S.E., Compiler and Editor, 1943, ‘The Sacred Writings of the World’s Great Religions’ (The New Home Library, New York).
Paper 131, ‘The World’s Religions’. This book is a selection from previous (and unfortunately, uncited) translations of various holy books. The URANTIA Book appears to use this book’s Jain and Shinto translations and selections in its ‘abstract of Ganid’s manuscript’ dealing with these religions.
11. Hartshorne, Charles, 1941, ‘Men’s Vision of God’ (Willett, Clark and Co., Chicago).
‘Foreword’, Section 1. Hartshorne’s list of seven conceivable types of perfection is reproduced almost verbatim on page 3 of the URANTIA Book. I suspect that Hartshorne published an earlier (pre-1935) presentation of this system in a journal, so it was probably already in print before the ‘Foreword’ was written.
12. Hopkins, E. Washburn, 1923, ‘Origin and Evolution of Religion’ (Yale University Press, New Haven, Connecticut).
The whole of Paper 85, ‘The Origins of Worship’, is taken directly and consecutively from the first eight chapters of this book, each section in the paper corresponding to a chapter in the book. Paper 92, ‘The Later Evolution of Religion’ incorporates some of Hopkin’s comments as ido Paper 90 , and 95 ; and the preamble and Section 1 of Paper 104, ‘Growtn of the Trinity Concept’ are taken directly from Hopkins’ chapters on ‘The Triad’, ‘The Hindu Trinity’, ‘The Buddhistic Trinity’, and ‘The Christian Trinity’.
13. Jones, Rufus M., 1932, ‘A Preface to Christian Faith in a New Age’ (Macmillan Co., New York).
Paper 195, ‘After Pentecost’, Sections 5-10. Every chapter of the book is used in the revelators’ discussions of Christianity’s struggle to awaken to its spiritual mission in the face of modern secularism and its own institutional shortcomings. Virtually every paragraph of section 10, ‘The Future’ is drawn consecutively from the last half of this book.
14. Jones, Rufus M., 1916, ‘The Inner Life’ (McMillan Co., New York).
Paper 102, ‘The Foundations of Religious Faith’ preamble. Jones quotes the same two extracts of Bertrand Russell’s ‘A Free Man’s Worship’ (1906?) which the Melchizedek paraphrases in the first two paragraphs of the paper. Both Jones and the Melchizedek use these passages to illustrate materialistic despair, which can only be remedied by faith in God and a spiritual interpretation of the Universe.
15. Noble, Edmund, 1926, ‘Purposive Evolution: The Link between Science and Religion’ (Henry Bolt and Co., New York).
Paper 42, ‘Energy — Mind and Matter’, Section 11; Paper 116, ‘The Almighty Supreme’, Section 7. Noble’s theory of cosmic self- maintenance (the universe as purposive) is referred to in The URANTIA Book on page 482; his chapter, ‘Is the Universe an Organism?’ (in which he gives a negative answer) seems to be responded to by the revelators on pages 1276-77, ‘The Living Organism of the Grand Universe’.
16. Osborn, Henry Fairfield, 1928, ‘Man Rises to Parnassus: Critical Epochs in the Prehistory of Man’ (Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey).
Paper 64, ‘The Evolutionary Races of Color’, Sections 2,4; Paper 80, ‘Andite Expansion in the Occident’, Sections 3,8,9; etc. This book seems to be the prime source for The URANTIA Book’s discussion of the successive human races in Europe from the Foxhall peoples to the Neanderthals, the Cro-magnons and the ancestors of the Nordics. The URANTIA Book adheres to Osborn’s geological, racial, and cultural chronologies and to his characterizations of the cultures of these various peoples. Osborn’s discussion of the Bretons is paralleled exactly on page 899 of The URANTIA Book.
17. Palmer, George Herbert, 1930, ‘The Autobiography of a Philosopher’ (Greenwood Press reprint, New York, 1968).
Paper 181, ‘Final Admonitions and Warnings’, Section 1. Palmer’s assertion of the superiority of the inner peace resulting from faith in the Father’s loving care over the “two inferior forms of hardihood” (optimism and stoicism) is paralleled in The URANTIA Book’s discussion on pages 1954-55.
18. Sabatier, Auguste, 1904, ‘Religions of Authority and the Religion of the Spirit’ (McClure, Phillips & Co., New York).
Paper 155, ‘Fleeing Through Northern Galilee’, Sections & The sections in The URANTIA Book on ‘The Discourse on True Religion’ — which distinguish the religions of authority from the religion of the spirit are an amplification of Sabatier’s thesis. The URANTIA Book’s listing of “three manifestations of the religious urge” on page 1728 correspond to Sabatier’s “Three Degrees of Religious Evolution”. Sabatier’s book was quite influential; both Rufus Jones and Walter Bundy, among others refer to the religions of authority and the religion of the spirit, attributing the origin of the latter to Jesus, as does Sabatier.
19. Swann, W.F.G., 1934, ‘The Architecture of the Universe’ (The Macmillan Co., New York).
Paper 41, ‘Physical Aspects of the Local Universe’; Paper 42, ‘Energy — Mind and Matter’, passim. Swann’s opening chapter on, ‘The Dogmas of Natural Philosophy’ is reproduced with little change in Section 9, ‘Natural Philosophy’. Many of his temperature, size and distance estimates relating to intra-atomic and astronomic bodies are used in The URANTIA Book, as are several of his analogies and illustrations (e.g. if the volume of a proton should be magnified to the size of a head of a pin, then, in comparison, a pin’s head would attain a diameter equal to that of the earth’s orbit around the sun).
| Summary Of Elanora Conference 1992 | Vol 13 No 6 Nov 1992 — Index | The Purpose Of The Fifth Epochal Revelation? |