© 1991 Meredith J. Sprunger
© 1991 The Christian Fellowship of Students of The Urantia Book
Although mainline Christian churches have experienced a substantial loss of membership in the last twenty years, we believe these religious institutions in the center of our historical culture carry the latent potentials to continue to be the growing edge of the Christian faith. Liberal church executives and theologians during the last quarter century became so involved in social issues and action that they have tended to lose touch with the spiritual concerns and needs of parishioners. Mainline churches unwittingly created a spiritual vacuum waiting to be filled. Evangelical and fundamentalist churches emphasizing “the word of God,” the saving message of the gospel and loving interpersonal relationships, packaged in effective forms and channels of communication, became the most rapidly growing communions.
In our contemporary hi-tech society, sustained loyalty to religious institutions will be closely related to the scientific and theological quality of the forms in which faith is communicated. The ersatz science and outmoded theology of ultra conservative churches will not be credible to an increasing number of young people attending our colleges and universities. We will always have people who belong to the Flat Earth Research Society and churches which cultivate a similar mentality; however, the religion of the future must be guided by a post modern theology of high spiritual and intellectual credibility.
A fresh and relevant view of universe Reality must have two dominant characteristics: a spiritual emphasis highlighting a personal relationship with God, and an intellectually coherent spiritual cosmology commensurate with our scientific cosmology. These trends are already in evidence. Most mainline denominations have groups promoting spiritual renewal movements, and the writing of scientists like Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking are laying the foundations for a larger spiritual comprehension of the universe.
These are areas in which The Urantia Book can furnish unparalleled resources. The book’s extensive portrayal of the essence of religion as a personal relationship with God, along with its expanded description of the life and teachings of Jesus, will bring a fresh spiritual orientation and an enhanced appreciation of Jesus to all who read it. The enlarged spiritual cosmology of The Urantia Book is awe inspiring, overshadowing even the enormous and expanding picture of the universe by contemporary astronomy. Because of these and many other insights of The Urantia Book, we believe it will be a key factor in the resurgence of mainline Christianity and establish it as the cutting edge of a new spiritual renaissance on our planet.