© 1996 Meredith Sprunger
© 1996 The Christian Fellowship of Students of The Urantia Book
| Serving God Within the Church | Fall 1996 — Index | Significant Books: The Philosophical Scientists by David Foster |
Science, Anthropology, and Archaeology in The Urantia Book, by Ken. T. Glasziou, Brotherhood of Man Library, 1996, pp.54
Dr. Glasziou’s monograph begins by observing: “The expectations of readers about the content of The Urantia Book are manifold. Some may expect that the revelatory status of the book would be verified by the accuracy of its scientific content. Others may believe that if only the scientific community embraced the book, exciting new scientific discoveries would eventuate. Some are emphatic that a revelatory status carries the guarantee that all of its assertions, scientific and otherwise, will be divine truth. Many consider that even a single error nullifies any claim to be a revelation. So what does the book itself say?” (p. 1)
On UB 1:2.7 of The Urantia Book we read: “The existence of God can never be proved by scientific experiment or by the pure reason of logical deduction. God can be realized only in the realms of human experience… Those who know God have experienced the fact of his presence; such Godknowing mortals hold in their personal experience the only positive proof of the existence of the living God which one human being can offer to another.” And on UB 101:2.8: “Reason is the proof of science, faith the proof of religion, logic the proof of philosophy, but revelation is validated only by human experience.”
There are many divergent views of the science in The Urantia Book ranging from Martin Gardner’s attempt to debunk the science content of the book to Urantia Book fundamentalists who believe it is without error. Dr. Glasziou, a research scientist, has, in my judgment, written the definitive treatment of this aspect of The Urantia Book. He has a remarkable grasp of contemporary science and the history of science and evaluates the science in The Urantia Book with balance and insight. It is a seminal resource for anyone making a critical study of The Urantia Book. The basic sections of the paper are:
Part 1. Introduction and Expectations.
Part 2. U. B. Statements that May Fill “Missing Gaps.”
Part 3. Who Wrote The Urantia Book?
Part 4. Science Topics of Interest in the Urantia Papers.
Part 5. Contentious Materials.
Part 6. An Index of Archaeological and Historical Information in Part 4, The Urantia Papers.
Copies can be obtained by writing: David Biggs, G4040 Beecher Road, Flint, MI 48504. Please enclose $1.25 for postage. [Note from Urantiapedia: this book is available for reading in this site through the link above]
| Serving God Within the Church | Fall 1996 — Index | Significant Books: The Philosophical Scientists by David Foster |