© 1999 Peep Sõber
© 1999 Urantia Association International (IUA)
A Visit to Russia | Journal — September 1999 — Index | Contradictions or Creative Tensions in The URANTIA Book? |
Peep Sõber, Talilinn, Estonia
The Urantia Book Readers’ Conference in Estonia, at Karepa, 12 August 1998
Modern man tends to put his confidence in science; let us, therefore, have a look at some scientific assertions.
A recent United Nations study shows that the population of the world will be 7.4 billion in the year 2050 and 10.8 billion in 2150 . This is actually a very optimistic view, based on the assumption that every woman would give birth to only two children. The vision becomes quite something else if the average birth rate will continue to be what it was in the period of 1990 - 1995. In that latter scenario, this planet will be populated by 269 billion inhabitants in 2150 about 20 times more than in the U.N. study! Can you visualise the U.S.A. with a population of 12 billion or our small Estonia with 75 million? Another aspect: in 2150, the developed countries will accommodate only 10 percent, instead of the current 19 percent, of the world’s population. It doesn’t require much to predict that the world will be witnessing an earth-shaking crisis sometime between 2030 and 2050; our planet simply cannot sustain a population as massive as that. Our energy and other natural resources will become depleted. The ecological crisis of today will appear more like a child’s game compared with these more serious problems.
Is there a solution to these problems? It seems to me that practically nothing has been achieved. Consumption and the marketplace have become the new religion. From the viewpoint of this “religion,” only the present pleasure is real; the future is assessed only in terms of how to produce and how to make people consume material things in increasing quantities.
Leaders of our governments dare not break the sad news to us. They know it, but they don’t broadcast it that during the next century our traditional energy resources, oil and gas, will probably become depleted, even in the conditions of the most optimistic turnout of the population growth.
It is not my purpose to frighten you or to raise a “world improvement” campaign. I am merely informing you about this very precarious situation that we are facing. This situation may make us believe that the angels of the future, the Melchizedeks, Christ Michael, and others have a solution to the mounting crisis. I personally feel very pessimistic about mankind’s abilities, on its own, to control this situation and solve it. What does The Urantia Book have for us?
From a world standpoint, overpopulation has never been a serious problem in the past, but if war is lessened and science increasingly controls human diseases, it may become a serious problem in the near future [my emphasis]. At such a time the great test of the wisdom of world leadership will present itself. Will Urantia rulers have the insight and courage to foster the multiplication of the average or stabilized human being instead of the extremes of the supernormal and the enormously increasing groups of the subnormal? UB 68:6.11
You are sometimes shocked at the ravages of war, but you should recognize the necessity for producing large numbers of mortals so as to afford ample opportunity for social and moral development; with such planetary fertility there soon occurs the serious problem of overpopulation. Most of the inhabited worlds are small. Urantia is average, perhaps a trifle undersized. The optimum stabilization of national population enhances culture and prevents war. And it is a wise nation which knows when to cease growing. UB 81:6.12
It is natural that people crave a better standard of living. But a higher living standard cannot be the only objective of our lives.
At first life was a struggle for existence; now, for a standard of living; next it will be for quality of thinking, the coming earthly goal of human existence UB 81:6.28
Mechanical inventions and the dissemination of knowledge are modifying civilization; certain economic adjustments and social changes are imperative if cultural disaster is to be avoided. This new and oncoming social order will not settle down complacently for a millennium. The human race must become reconciled to a procession of changes, adjustments, and readjustments. Mankind is on the march toward a new and unrevealed planetary destiny UB 99:1.1
There is another serious danger threatening our civilisation, and that may come from space. Astronomers with their theory of probability were unable to predict well in advance that there would be a comet falling on Jupiter in 1994. Since then, astronomers have been paying much more serious attention to the dangers posed by undiscovered asteroids and comets. We know about the Asteroid 1997XF 11 which regularly tangents the earth’s orbit. In 2028 this asteroid may approach the earth within the extremely narrow margin of only 48,000 km. This is the reading of the most recent calculations. The diameter of this body is a “mere” 1.5 km.
Asteroids do pose a danger. We have to remember that these minor bodies, with an average diameter of 1 km, can usually be discovered only 25 to 50 days prior to their passing by our planet. Larger asteroids can be detected sooner, but if they do crash on the surface of the earth, the cataclysm will be of unpredictable proportions.
We have learned that the U.S. Congress has appointed special research groups to examine this danger, and the Senate has allocated a billion dollars for the project. There are similar research groups in Russia.
The latest dangerous situation of this type occurred on 20 May 1993 when an asteroid with a diameter of 5 to 10 km passed by our planet at a distance of “only” 150,000 km. In astronomy, 150,000 kilometres is a very short distance. Astronomers, however, did not detect the intruder until a day later, on 21 May.
During the last five years astronomers have discovered 20 new comets named Centaur which have not yet passed by the sun. Their orbits are irregular, and their diameters range between 100 and 300 km. Astronomers view it possible that some of those comets may, in the course of a few centuries, fall into the sun or onto any of the planets in our solar system. Astronomers are expecting to discover similar comets in the next few years.
Religious believers may assert that they trust in our loving Father’s protection. We readers of The Urantia Book may believe that eternal life is our spiritual insurance. But does that insurance have any bearing on our material life on this planet?
The mortal mind can immediately think of a thousand and one things—catastrophic physical events, appalling accidents, horrific disasters, painful illnesses, and world-wide scourges—and ask whether such visitations are correlated in the unknown maneuvering of this probable functioning of the Supreme Being. Frankly, we do not know; we are not really sure. But we do observe that, as time passes, all these difficult and more or less mysterious situations always work out for the welfare and progress of the universes. It may be that the circumstances of existence and the inexplicable vicissitudes of living are all interwoven into a meaningful pattern of high value by the function of the Supreme and the overcontrol of the Trinity. UB 10:7.5
Readers of The Urantia Book have no reason to believe that life on earth will come to an end in some kind of a cataclysm. On the other hand, our progress on Urantia has never been linear. Many crises and sudden changes have been witnessed. As I said earlier, a suddenly discovered dangerous asteroid may fall on the earth within 25 to 50 days of its discovery. We know that a recent more extensive cosmic catastrophe happened in 1908 in Siberia near Tunguska. The astronomers of those days were unable to predict it.
There are reasons also for us to keep watch on the sun. During this century astronomers have astonishingly enough observed a certain correlation between the sun’s magnetic activity and political turmoil on earth. From that viewpoint, the next three years can be politically quite hot. In the course of these three years the sun will be going through the culmination of its 11-year cycle of magnetic activity.
This is not the right place to discuss politics. I can only mention that during this century the U.S. Army has intervened eleven times in the affairs of other countries, and it has each time happened during the sun’s magnetic rise or culmination.
But let’s have a look at prophets. We sift out those prophets whose prophecies have not come true. This way we shall find the very few true prophets. One of them is, in my opinion, the famous Nostradamus. He himself asserts that he received his prophecies from a divine being. But we should beware of accepting any interpretations of his prophecies; we should instead read his original texts. Since we are attending this conference as readers of The Urantia Book and not as readers of Nostradamus, I will discuss only a few aspects. Most of us are probably familiar with his most famous prediction (Quatrain X 72):
“The year 1999, seventh month, from the sky will come a great King of Terror: to bring back to life the great King of the Mongols. Before and after Mars to reign by good luck.”
Because this translation itself is an interpretation, those who are more interested should peruse the original text in French. Some interpreters suppose that the “seventh month” can mean September; September was the seventh month of the Roman calendar, “sept” meaning “seven” in French. It may very well turn out that nothing extraordinary happens on that date. Should it so happen, it would be the first case of an indisputable error for Nostradamus.
Some of the interpreters of Nostradamus consider “King of Terror” to be a dangerous asteroid or comet. “. . . there will have fallen from the sky such a great abundance of fire, and of burning stones that nothing will remain unconsumed. And this will occur a short time before the final conflagration.”
It is good to know that Nostradamus claimed his prophecy to end in 3797.
Quatrain II 41 can also be interesting to us: “The great star will burn for seven days, the cloud will cause two suns to appear. The big mastiff will howl all night when the great pontiff will change country.” In my opinion, “the great pontiff” can mean Christ Michael, who is working some changes on Urantia.
Today it is obvious that the starting point of our traditional time reckoning (A.D.) is wrong. But perhaps we should count the millennia starting, not from the birth of Jesus, but rather from his baptism (or from the bestowal of the Spirit of Truth). If we do so, the second millennium would be a thing of the past in A.D. 2026 or respectively in 2030. That is extremely important if we read in The Urantia Book the following paragraph:
From time to time, on motion of the planetary authorities or the system rulers, special resurrections of the sleeping survivors are conducted. Such resurrections occur at least every millennium of planetary time, when not all but “many of those who sleep in the dust awake.” These special resurrections are the occasion for mobilizing special groups of ascenders for specific service in the local universe plan of mortal ascension. There are both practical reasons and sentimental associations connected with these special resurrections. UB 49:6.2
We may detect references to some kind of a cosmic event “in the end of time” also in the writings of the prophets Daniel and Ezekiel, and in the Apocalypse.
Jesus was resurrected in the beginning of the third day after his death. It is not impossible that his followers will be resurrected also in the beginning of the third (Paradise) day (third millennium) after that event.
In the instructions given by the superhuman revelators to the Contact Commission we read: “It [The Urantia Book] is not germane to the spectacular episodes of epochal revolution.” It is clear that we are not called to initiate an “epochal revolution.” But what, then, does it mean? We only know that the book has “a world-wide mission.”
We know also that there is only one way of accelerating human progress, and the way is “pressure from above.” It is quite clear that the human race as a whole has manifested little response to the centripetal power of love; hence the centrifugal power of fear is remarkably strong.
Fear has protected us from nuclear war. The fear for the former Soviet Union united the Western countries. Could it happen that a danger from the skies will make people of the Earth more friendly toward each other? Will we be more friendly also toward our cosmic brothers if they are coming to our rescue at the moment of danger?
I don’t believe in accidents. What happens depends on the human will and divine destiny. How do people of Urantia wake up from materialistic secularism and religious fanaticism? The need for a change is pressing.
Shock therapy is occasionally employed as medical treatment. Will the world as a whole need cosmic shock therapy to heal?
To speak about potential catastrophes is not popular. But to go on believing in linear progress does not help us if we find ourselves in a true crisis. A deeper understanding of the whole process can be more helpful for us.
Readers of The Urantia Book may find it fascinating to learn that an 11th-century Irish prophet, Saint Malachy O’Morgair, was in the possession of a list of all future Popes. According to his list, there will be only two more Popes. After them, a Judgment Day will dawn, said he. It is probable that this means a new dispensational adjudication.
The Urantia Book says: There has never been a magisterial mission on your world … UB 49:5.26 This anomaly is perhaps due to Caligastia’s joining the Lucifer rebellion, and Adam and Eve’s default. Divine mercy is conditioned by divine righteousness. Does this actually mean that people will be judged as righteous and unrighteous, as those who are saved and as those who are not? — This is a crucial question.
The more truth you know, the more truth you are, the more of the past you can understand and of the future you can comprehend. UB 118:3.2
Is it possible for us to comprehend the laws of human evolution — what it was, what it is, and what it will be? Do we have the adequate tools for that? Our words and concepts should be abstract, universal, and comprehensive enough.
It is difficult to find any more universal and inclusive symbols than the numbers. Number one can symbolize one moment, one man, and even one God. People of almost every culture have contemplated the meanings of numbers. The ancient Greek philosopher and mathematician Pythagoras concluded that the world as a whole was based on numbers. In our reading The Urantia Book we may observe that this notion is in part true. Why is the number of superuniverses seven, not four or thirteen? The answer is that Deity divided itself into three persons, and all possible combinations of three yield the number seven. The Seven Master Spirits were created in a similar fashion. The pattern of evolution, thus, seems to be the following:
I | II | III | IV |
---|---|---|---|
1 | God the Father | Thought | Thesis |
2 | God the Son | Word | Antithesis |
3 | God the Spirit | Action | Synthesis |
4 | Father and Son | Thought + Word | Inspiration |
5 | Father and Spirit | Thought + Action | Expression |
6 | Son and Spirit | Word + Action | Action |
7 | Father, Son, and Spirit | Thought + Word + Action | Assimilation |
The first three columns can be found in The Urantia Book; the fourth one shows seven stages of evolution the way they are sometimes described. As these fourth column concepts are easier to understand, I shall be employing them extensively. Because their origin is in the three Deities, it is possible that these seven stages are universal for all evolution. We may discern a cosmic code there, one that perhaps helps us to understand every evolutionary process as a whole—its past, present, and future. Once we have determined the current stage of any subject, we can generally comprehend the process of its whole evolution!
To begin with, let’s cast a look at the stages of human life.
1 | 1-7 | Thesis | |
2 | 8-14 | Antithesis | |
3 | 15-21 | Synthesis | Youth |
4 | 22-36 | Inspiration | |
5 | 37-50 | Expression | |
6 | 51-64 | Action | Adult age |
7 | 65-79 | Assimilation | Old age |
I am under the impression that most of us found The Urantia Book when we were between the ages of 22 to 36 — at the Inspiration stage, we were truth seekers. We then give expression to the truth, that is, we put it into action; it becomes a part of our life. In the end we assimilate the truth. The lengths of these periods vary from person to person — the scheme above is just an example.
We look next at Christianity:
1 | Thesis | Life and teachings of Jesus |
2 | Antithesis | Betrayal by Judas, Peter’s denial, crucifixion of Jesus, Apostles in confusion |
3 | Synthesis | Resurrection of Jesus and his morontia appearances |
4 | Inspiration | Bestowal of the Spirit of Truth, beginning of gospel movement |
5 | Expression | Bible as the basis of religion |
6 | Action | Christian Church as a pivotal institution |
7 | Assimilation | Conclusion of Christianity (dispensational adjudication?) |
But let us look at the epochal revelations:
1 | Dalamatia teachings | Thesis |
2 | Edentia teachings | Antithesis |
3 | Melchizedek’s teachings | Synthesis |
4 | Jesus’s teachings | Inspiration |
5 | Urantia Book teachings | Expression |
6 | ? | Action |
7 | ? | Assimilation |
There is no doubt that the Dalamatia teachings about the First Source and Centre constitute the Thesis. The Antithesis becomes clearer if we look at it as a complementary principle. We know that the Father bestowed all possible qualities to the Son. The mission of Adam and Eve consisted of anti only because of the rebellion. Otherwise, their mission had been complementary to Dalamatia teachings. The Urantia Book instructs that Adams and Eves have defaulted also on other planets. At this stage of the anti, it is easy to make mistakes. (Marriage, too, might belong to this stage. Man + woman — that seems to be a hard test.)
Melchizedek synthesised trust and faith. Jesus’ teachings as an Inspiration does not need a comment. The Urantia Book as an Expression fits also very well into the picture. The book gives a new expression, among others, to Jesus’ teachings. Had Jesus written his teachings into a book, he would have been offtarget with regard to the Inspiration stage, and the whole evolutionary process would have suffered.
If we collate the fourth and fifth epochal revelations we can understand why the religionists of the fourth stage find it difficult to understand the religionists of the fifth. The religionists of the fifth stage do not in general experience similar difficulties. Because number five symbolizes the Father and the Spirit, this stage is predominantly that of the mind. We need to focus next on Thought and Action.
Because this sevenfold pattern characterises the seven superuniverses, it gives us some inkling of the nature of the other superuniverses. Because our Orvonton is characterised by the Father, the Son, and the Spirit, its nature is that of assimilation, and Orvonton will become an assimilation of the achievements and experiences of the other six superuniverses. That is why it requires much more time to get Orvonton complete.
In conclusion we scrutinise the Urantia movement from this viewpoint. Where are we now?
1 | Thesis | Revelation process, Contact Commission, Forum Urantia Foundation (1950) Urantia Brotherhood (1955) The Urantia Book (1955) |
2 | Antithesis | Fellowship (1989), IUA (1993) Copyright battle |
3 | Synthesis | Foundation and Fellowship start cooperating (1997) |
4 | Inspiration | ? |
5 | Expression | ? |
6 | Action | ? |
7 | Assimilation | ? |
We may see that the most dangerous stage is now behind us. The Urantia movement is still relatively young, and there is potentially much to be achieved at the next stages.
The law of seven may turn out to be helpful in our getting a grasp of the present. What is most helpful is that this approach affords the opportunity of our seeing the process in its entirety. The symbolic way of thinking can be somewhat strange for a man of science; nevertheless, it is one way of describing the world.
In conclusion: We all have a tendency to overemphasise our current concepts, and in so doing we limit our potentials for growth. That is natural; we need certainty. We tend to believe that tomorrow will be like today and that the day after tomorrow will likewise be a similar one. This approach has the appearance of being realistic. One of the objectives of my discourse was to rock the boat a bit and deprive you of a part of this certainty and to show that human progress and evolution happen in a great variety of ways. Hopefully this has not aroused in you senseless fears and worries with regard to our future. This may have been a little provocative, but I felt that I mustn’t tell you just the good news.
I have been describing a number of ways of looking at the future; I wanted to limit my comments on the contemporary political issues to the minimum. You might have something to add, to ask, or to comment from your viewpoint. I don’t feel that you can or should agree with all of my approaches, interpretations, and explanations. But ultimately, Father’s will must be done. And I am sure that we all can agree on that.
Now my discourse has come to the end of stage number one. It is time to move on to number twoAntithesis-which means questions, opinions, and discussion. The same will be the pattern of all through this conference.
Cheetham, E. (1993). The Final Prophecie of Nostradamus. New York: Warner Books.
Leoni, E. (1961). Nostradamus: Life and Literature. New York: Exposition Press.
Mann, A. (1992). Millennium Prophecies. Predictions for the Year 2000. New York: Element Books.
Veskimäe, R. (Ed.) (1997). Universum. Tallinn.
A Visit to Russia | Journal — September 1999 — Index | Contradictions or Creative Tensions in The URANTIA Book? |