© 2011 Michelle Klimesh, Dolores Nice
© 2011 The Urantia Book Fellowship
¶ SUMMER STUDY SESSION 2012
Progressive Planetary Civilization
The Education Committee of The Urantia Book Fellowship invites you to come and join us for the Fellowship Summer Study Session, August 1-5, 2012, at beautiful Techny Towers, a conference and retreat center located in Chicago’s North Shore. Plans for the conference include a pre-conference retreat from Wednesday evening, August 1st through Friday morning, August 3rd, and a pre-conference guided City Tour of Chicago’s lakefront architecture is also available. We really want to make this a family event. Prices have been kept as they were in 2010. There will be no registration fees for children under 18, and we have scholarships available especially for families in order to bring costs down and allow attendees to bring children or grandchildren. A special children’s program will be provided.
If you would like to conduct a workshop, a Workshop Proposal Form should be filled out and returned to Peter Laurence, Program Chair, by March 1st, 2012. After that date the Education Committee will review the proposals and select the ones that will provide a balanced and informative program. We invite proposals from both those who are experienced workshop presenters and those who may be presenting for the first time.
The committee is encouraging people who’ve never created a workshop to do so. We will partner with people one on one and give as much or as little assistance as someone may need or want. Workshops may be focused on the broader aspects of the topic or on any subset such as ‘education’ or ‘religion.’
The primary focus of the Summer Study Session is an in-depth study of The Urantia Book, but proposals that link Urantia Book concepts to contemporary thought and practice are welcome. There are numerous parts of the book that speak to progressive planetary evolution and not just those that are labeled as such. Workshops should examine the broad implications of the theme so we that we have an interestingly diverse scope of programs. Study of the book can be greatly enriched by relating it to its present context.
¶ Eugenics Seminar at SSS 12
This is an invitation to join a seminar on “Eugenics and Evolutionary Progressive Civilization” that is being tutored by Katharina Becker and Charles Laurence Olivea. The deadline to sign up is July 1, 2012. You must pre-register in order to participate in the seminar. This seminar will use the method of “intelligent conversation.” Participants are required to read and study assigned readings from The Urantia Book prior to the seminar. Participation is limited to 12 persons; provision will be made for a second seminar if the number of persons interested in this subject warrants it. Anyone interested in the topic, but is not pre-registered, is welcomed to observe but may not participate in the discussion.
Those who wish to sign up should contact Mr. Olivea at: CLOlivea@gmail.com. Or, write to him at 3320 Camino Prado Vista, Santa Fe, NM 87507, or call him at (505) 438-7746. If you write an e-mail or a letter, please include your full name, mailing address, telephone number, and e-mail address. After you are signed up, the reading assignment will be sent to you. If it turns out later on you cannot attend, please notify in a timely a fashion.
¶ Children Welcome at SSS 12
The Education Committee of The Urantia Book Fellowship seeks children for next summer’s Study Session. The Committee wants the Seminars to be a family-friendly event; and to help make that a reality, parents should know that not only will there be a full program for children, there will be events and activities for families. Furthermore, children’s registrations and lodging will be free!
For planning purposes the Committee must know how many children will come to the Sessions as well as the ages of the children, so when parents register they should let the planners know. For the sake of the other children who will be there, please consider bringing your children or grandchildren.
Anyone with questions should contact: Lara Amyx, 772-466-7950, lara10@bellsouth.net.
¶ Education Committee Activities
The Education Committee of The Urantia Book Fellowship had a strong presence at the triennial International Conference, held in late July near Salt Lake City, Utah.
The committee provided a booth for conference attenders to inquire about committee activities. Education Committee Chair Lila Dogim commented that it was a chance for committee members to meet with those who happened by the booth and discuss the committee’s Summer Study Session 2012, August 1-5, 2012.
“The committee was highly visible at the conference. In addition advertising the Summer Study Session, we sponsored two workshops on education, both led by members of the committee, and both were well-received and well-connected to the conference theme.” Nick Stefero led one of these workshops, entitled “How Jesus Taught.” It asked such questions as “Why Jesus was such an effective teacher? How did he prepare others to teach? What specifically did he do and how can we use these methods?”
Marilynn Kulieke, with help from her husband, twice presented an inquiry into “Education in The Urantia Book: Expanding Our Views.” This presentation examined quotations about education from The Urantia Book and discussed current brain research and how we might use them to up-step our outreach efforts. It also looked into the book’s explanation of the mind and how it relates to spirit growth. Members of the New York Society attended the workshop and arranged for it to be presented at that group’s November retreat.
The busy Education Committee meets frequently via conference calls and once yearly in person for a weekend business meeting. They met this year at Techny Towers, October 28-30. While much of the meeting was directed at committee business, the Friday morning session, led by Charles Olivea, was a study group for the committee members to discuss the “Nature and Evolution of Civilization.”
¶ Orvonton Society Celebrates 50th Anniversary
On February 14, 1961, the Executive Committee of the Urantia Brotherhood approved the application for a charter on behalf of the Orvonton Urantia Society of Chicago, the seventh such charter to be granted by the Urantia Brotherhood. The name Orvonton was selected after the name of our seventh superuniverse. But it wasn’t until June 27, 1961 when the Society was officially presented its charter along with the installation of the founding members. The presentation of the Charter was made by Dr. Sadler and was accepted by Al Leverenz. The Orvonton Society adopted the motto, “We Aim to Fuse.”
The Society changed its name in 2007 to the Orvonton Society dropping “Chicago” from its name since most of the membership had moved from the Chicago area, but decided to maintain their loyalty to the Orvonton Society. As a result, it became a virtual Society with its center in Indianapolis. The Society currently has three study groups in the Indianapolis area, one in Brookston, Indiana, a newly formed group in Bloomington, Indiana, a study group in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and a study group in Oaxaca, Mexico. Officers and members conduct business by email and Skype.
On June 25, 2011, members of the Society and local discussion groups and friends met at the Marriott in Indianapolis to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Society. Carolyn Kendall, one of the founding members of the Orvonton Society, was the keynote speaker and spoke of the early days with Dr. Sadler and the Forum. Marilynn Kulieke, Foundation Trustee, was guest speaker, and facilitated a group discussion. John Hales, Vice-President of the The Urantia Book Fellowship, guest speaker, shared his experiences in those early days. Frank Sgaraglino, another founding member of the Society, also attended the special commemoration.
Besides Carolyn Kendall and Frank Sgaraglino, the founding members alive today are Joe Liska, currently living in Key West, Florida, and Larry Bowman, an active member of the Grand Canyon Society and a Fellowship General Councilor.
¶ IC 11 - An Amazing Conference
By Michelle Klimesh
The Fellowship’s 2011 Conference for Readers of The Urantia Book was the highlight of my summer. Many thanks to Susan Cook, Conference Chair, and her amazing Conference team for bringing us this joyful experience in Salt Lake City.
Plenary sessions brought everyone together to start each morning with a shared experience. The first morning was led by our men, the second by our women, then our Youth and Young Adult Committee, and finally Truthseekers. All four sessions provided a blend of music to nourish our hearts, worship to feed our souls, and speakers to enrich our thoughts. Each afternoon we were offered two sets of eight workshops. After dinner, special events highlighted films, astronomy, art, music, and the everpopular Club UB.
The third day of the conference was a ‘light day.’ There was no plenary session, and I finally found time to attend my first workshop. Sara Blackstock and Marilyn O’Neill-Eash designed a workshop called “Bevy of Women” for women from eight to eighty. We shared poetry, music, and experience from our lives. It was profound, humorous, sad, and loving; the connections we made with each other were precious.
The second workshop I attended was David Kantor and Eric Cosh’s session “Exploring the Context of Michael’s Bestowal.” David gave us background on the historical, religious, and cosmic context into which Jesus appeared; insights into the pattern of how each epochal revelation builds upon previous revelation; and what that pattern might mean for effective introduction of the fifth epochal revelation to the planet.
A highlight of the conference was the worship session on day four. One man told me that he felt this was the best plenary session ever in the history of our conferences. The morning ended with Josh Wilson playing the massive pipe organ from the front of the room while Albert Einstein blew trumpet from the back. One woman described the audience at the end of the session as “400 puddles of tears.”
The Truthseekers plenary on day five was my personal favorite. The spirit of family our young people demonstrated, their music, their humor, their willingness to share their stories with us…truly amazing. What a way to close the conference! I felt so blessed to have witnessed that session, and feel hopeful for the future because of it.
¶ Society Conclave at IC 11
On Friday, July 29, 31 members representing 17 local societies met in Conclave for three hours in Salt Lake City. The central topic was the health of local societies; and after listening to everyone report, the good news is the that overall, our societies are healthy and active. Of course, all would like to build some youthful muscle.
North Texas, New York, and the First Society (Chicago) stand out as highly active, while the majority of societies meet very regularly and work to reach out and grow. Others having reached a plateau still hold fast, doing what they can.
A new organizational link between the General Council and the societies was presented, getting officers in touch with officers, President to President, Treasurer to Treasurer, etc. They will establish conference calls on a quarterly basis, along with e-mail support, to share common challenges while lending support and guidance.
Also discussed and now in the works, is the development of two new communications lists. The first, a Fellowship members list, open to ALL Fellowship members. The second is a Society Leadership list for currently serving society officers and committee chairs. These new tools have been enthusiastically supported by the General Council and the Executive Committee, and the staff is actively working toward implementation.
The more we can establish and use such communication tools to encourage each other in our appointed tasks, the more we can share and collectively motivate each other to spread the teachings of The Urantia Book to all the peoples of the world—one call, one e-mail, one connection at a time.
Next summer, the 17th Triennial Delegate Assembly will convene; therefore the next Society Conclave will convene in the summer of 2013.
¶ Happy Birthday
¶ The YaYa Committee Speaks!
What a week of inspiring, life-changing events that will forever shape the culture of our movement. As youth and young adults, we felt blessed to be a focus of IC11; we planned and rocked out the opening night dance party, spearheaded over a dozen workshops for youth, young adults, and families, filled the closing plenary with incredible music and truly moving sharing, and throughout worked to show what’s possible for the future of our community. We are so grateful for support from the Fellowship in making this conference one to be remembered.
What we took away from Salt Lake was a strong sense of community, and not just because each of us had about 40 new Facebook friends after we left. It was because we felt an instant, deep connection to our peers at the conference, based on The Urantia Book. It was truly remarkable to be so in tune with each other and to be able to share on such a personal level.
A few experiences sounded a change in the culture of the Urantia movement. One is the interest we saw from Truthseekers about The Urantia Book after we returned from Snow Bird. Never before had we felt such a genuine level of intrigue from young people at a conference. It was very clear that the years of work that have been put into the dissemination of The Urantia Book teachings and the Truthseekers curriculum are beginning to bear fruit.
We are thrilled that IC 11 was such an amazing success. Now our mission is to take this inspiration and forge it into service to our fellows. As The Urantia Book says: “To ‘ follow Jesus’ means to personally share his religious faith and to enter into the spirit of the Master’s life of unselfish service for man.” [UB 196:1.3] We can each do something every day to foster a life that is selflessly dedicated to service. And when we do, we find God in others and others find God in us. Our generation is called to serve and we hope our mentors will stand with us hand in hand as we tackle the marvelous challenge of furthering this revelation. This is our commitment!!
Another wonder development is the approval of a standing Youth and Young Adult Committee of the Fellowship. This is the first new standing committee in the Fellowship’s 56-year history, and we are honored by the great opportunity and responsibility to support young people in their quest for spiritual truth.
So where do we go from here? At the conference and through Truthseekers we created a family of friends and gained a level of trust that is in many cases unmatched in the rest of our lives. The only way to keep this connection alive is to stay in touch and support each other in any way we can. As individuals, we are committed to reaching out and letting each other know we’re on each other’s minds. Anything we can do not only means a lot, but also reminds us that the community we are growing is real and doesn’t just exist when we’re together at a conference. So give that someone a call to say hi or send them a picture that will brighten their weekend.
As we move forward this year we have many projects for which we would love support. Just a few right off the bat: The website www.urantianow.com is always in need of contributors and volunteers to help with its promotion. We are also starting our College Outreach initiative, which means we need volunteers to man booths at colleges all over the country. For our invitational gatherings we welcome ideas for lodgings, meeting spaces, and service projects in the area and help getting the word out to young people! Please contact us if you wish to serve any of the projects listed here, or to find out more about our many initiatives.
Tuevo Orjala, Angie Thurston, Mae Thompson, Liz Craig, Tony Finstad
¶ Truthseekers
Our promise to you fulfilled. Come help build your community.
During our outing at Snowbird in Utah last summer several Truthseekers asked us to plan a reunion sometime in 2012. The general consensus was that our community needed to meet more than every three years. Well, have we got an AWESOME adventure for you! The summer of 2012, July 16th, thru 22nd, we will be co-sponsoring a quest with The Urantia Book Fellowship’s YaYA committee in Taos, New Mexico, at the San Geronimo Lodge, (check out their web site).
You are cordially invited to join us in the mountains of New Mexico, land of enchantment and mystery, for an adventure that will tax your imagination, nurture your spirit of adventure, deepen your understanding of life, entice you to become that powerful individual you were meant to be and grow in our community of Truthseekers. WOW! I’m sure some of you are thinking, “no way, Tom must be nuts”! That’s where the money back guarantee comes in. If not totally satisfied we will refund your cost to come play with us, and, as usual, we offer partial or full scholarships to those in need.
Taos is centrally located and a mere 15-hour drive from LA, 13 hours from Omaha, 12 hours from Dallas and Kansas City, 10 hours from Salt Lake City and Oklahoma City, and 5 hours from Denver. You get the point. But wait, there’s more: for the first 50 Truthseekers that sign up we will reimburse your gas money to and from Taos Imagine carpooling to our adventure? Additional fun you weren’t even planning on. For those of you flying into Albuquerque, New Mexico, we will arrange transportation for you both from and to the airport. Our age group ranges from 15 to 25, (some exceptions apply). If you have attended a YaYA or Truthseekers event in the past, of course, you are always welcome.
Not only will we be growing in community, we will be dancing with the spirits of the great southwest. I see us white water rafting, rock climbing, mountain exploring, and delving into the great mysteries of the environment around us. We will also continue growing in the knowledge of who we really are and of the destiny that awaits each of us as we journey within towards the recognition of our own personal Truths.
We will be posting prices and updated materials on the following three web sites. www.urantianow.com, www.urantiabook.org , and www.truthseekersquest.com. As usual, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Fred Harris at Harrisf@gtlaw.com, phone number 850-528-3393, or myself, Tom Choquette at tomchoquette@aol.com, phone number 425-218-2216.
¶ International News: The 2011 Seoul, Korea Book Fair
The 2011 International Seoul Book Fair was held from June 15 through June 19, marking the third consecutive year the Fellowship International Committee has participated in the event, this year committee members Dolores Nice and Buck Weimer.
Our primary contact person in Korea, Sy Chang, met us on our first day there and guided us through the maze of security. Realizing we had no Spiritual Vitamins in Korean when we arrived, we quickly rolled them and continued doing so throughout the fair. The term “spiritual vitamins” does not translate well in Korean, but after Sy marked them “Mind Vitamins” they became a hit. We distributed over 1,700 of them.
We learned another cultural lesson in relation to the Jesusonian booklet: “There is LIFE AFTER DEATH,” of which we carried 10 copies with us for the English-speaking Koreans. The word ‘death’ is taboo in Korea and would have turned some visitors to the booth away.
There are currently over 420 members/readers of The Urantia Book in South Korea registered on their website: www.urantia.or.kr. There are two conditions for joining the Korean group: 1) to have a willingness to read The Urantia Book, and 2) a commitment to remaining organizationally neutral. A particular pleasure this year was a greater presence of female readers. Given the long history of a male-dominated society, it was refreshing to see these Korean women make their presence known.
In addition to the 21 Korean books sold (UB’s, UB Basics, and author Byung Seo’s book) we gifted 4 Urantia Books in English and 5 JANRs (Jesus, A New Revelation.) And as in India earlier this year we could have distributed many, many more of the JANRs. People continue to be attracted to it internationally. The book fair closed with all at our booth agreeing it was a great success! Each year has shown growth in the number of readers participating in booth activities; and this year especially saw the influx of newer and younger readers.
Now more than ever, South Korea continues to emerge as the cornerstone for the Fifth Epochal Revelation in all of Asia. Sy and several others expressed to us their high hopes in anticipation of the printing of the Japanese translation because of their desire to travel there and help infuse the latent spiritual yearnings of their cousins with The Urantia Book truths. As the friendships with our Korean brothers and sisters continue to solidify in the values of eternity, as new ones are forged out of the mutual work of duty to the Supreme, the barriers of race, culture, gender, and intellectual difference are slowly melting away.
¶ Guayaquil, Ecuador Conference
By Dolores Nice
The recent Urantia Book conference in Latin America was held in Guayaquil, Ecuador. It attracted many new readers attending their first Urantia conference, so plenty of time was allocated for questions and discussions.
Topics and presenters included: “The Origins of The Urantia Book” by Nelida Oliver, “Michael’s Seven Bestowals” by Buck Weimer, “The Beginning of Life on Urantia” by Agustin Arellano, “Personalities of the Local Universe” by Carlos Zambrano, “How I Found The Urantia Book” by Sandra Naranjo, “The Foreword” by Julio Mero, and “The Road to Paradise” by Fernando Delgado.
Other topics of special interest were the differences between the Bible and The Urantia Book, and the concept of bestowals.
I was especially impressed with two of the presenters, Fernando Delgado and Julio Mero, young men in their twenties who had recently found the book and were so motivated that they had started study groups in their home towns. They also invited other young people to come to the conference. What a joy to see the caliber of these young new readers join the movement!
After the conference we held a meeting to plan for future Urantia activities in Ecuador. Some of the ideas included a series of weekly radio shows, active placement and follow-up of Urantia Books in public libraries, and the formation of a national organization of readers called Urantia Ecuador. Representatives from different areas of the country were present and officers were nominated. We look forward to learning more about these new developments. I am happy to report that the Revelation is alive and growing in this beautiful country.
Special thanks to Nelida Oliver for her role as chief organizer of this conference.
¶ Pipeline of Light 2003 – 2011
This summer volunteers of the Pipeline of Light achieved a milestone. In the eight years since our inception, we have placed a total of three thousand copies of The Urantia Book with readers around the world. The Pipeline of Light is a service of The Urantia Book Fellowship, but the effort is truly a cooperative one; the bulk of books we ship out each year are translations produced by the Urantia Foundation. The Spanish translation, El Libro de Urantia, is our most highly requested book.
Readers in seventy-one countries have received The Urantia Book from the Pipeline:
| Algeria | |||
| Argentina | Cyprus | Italy | Romania |
| Armenia | Dominican Rep. | Kenya | Russia |
| Australia | Ecuador | Kyrgyzstan | South Africa |
| Bahrain | Egypt | Lithuania | South Korea |
| Belize | El Salvador | Malaysia | South Vietnam |
| Bolivia | England | Maldives | Spain |
| Botswana | Fiji | Mexico | Switzerland |
| Brazil | France | Moldavia | Taiwan |
| Bulgaria | Germany | Myanmar | Togo |
| Cameroon | Ghana | Nepal | Turkey |
| Canada | Greece | Nicaragua | Uganda |
| Chechnya | Guinea | Nigeria | United States |
| Chile | Guatemala | Pakistan | Uruguay |
| China | Haiti | Palestine | Venezuela |
| Colombia | Honduras | Panama | Yemen |
| Costa Rica | Hungary | Peru | Zambia |
| Croatia | Iceland | Philippines | |
| Cuba | India | Poland |
I deeply appreciate the continuing efforts of the Pipeline volunteers, and the continuing donations from readers who make our work possible. If you would like to participate, donations can be made online at www.urantiabook.org/support or by mail to: The Urantia Book Fellowship, PO Box 6631, Broomfield, CO 80021
Michelle Klimesh, Coordinator
Pipeline of Light
“Of all human knowledge, that which is of greatest value is to know the religious life of Jesus and how he lived it.” [UB 196:1.3]
¶ Turkish Translation of Urantia Book Launched
This summer The Urantia Book Society of Greater New York (UBSGNY) began a translation of The Urantia Book into Turkish. “This opportunity came our way and we just found it irresistible,” said Eileen Laurence, the UBSGNY Translation Oversight Committee Chair. “It so happens,” Eileen said, “that long time Urantia Book reader, Bill Rocap, lives in Turkey now and has volunteered to facilitate the process.” Bill knows a group of Urantia Book readers in Turkey who read the book in the original English. He also helped the TOC find a competent translator and negotiate a contract with him.
“A Turkish translation just makes a great deal of sense,” Eileen says. “Turkey is a country of about 80 million people, almost 100 percent of whom are Muslim (mostly Sunni). Unlike most of the other Muslim countries in the Middle East and North Africa, Turkey is a reasonably stable, secular democracy with an average literacy rate of close to 90 percent. Turkey straddles Europe and Asia and its political and cultural influence, particularly in the Middle East, seems to be growing. Turkey has for many years tried to become part of the “European community.” Given all this, it seems to us that there is great potential for effective dissemination of The Urantia Book through this translation effort with an extremely low probability of official governmental suppression.”
The Turkish translation is UBSGNY’s third translation project. The New York society has already completed translations of The Urantia Book into Korean and Russian. The society considers translations of The Urantia Book to be one of the most important and effective tools available for the dissemination of the revelation. Seven of the eight current members of the UBSGNY Translation Oversight Committee have each accumulated twenty years of experience managing translations and related activities. “We consider any translation of The Urantia Book to be a work in progress that can always be improved,” Eileen says. “Any translation completed by UBSGNY is and will continue to be freely available to any individual or group of readers wishing to improve it. Our translations are posted on the web and are available for download.”
If you have any questions, please contact our chair person, Eileen Laurence, Laurence@concentric.net
¶ OK Urantians, its nearing that time again.! 17th Triennial Delegate Assembly
which means we’re looking for some NEW UBFellowship General Councilors
Every three years, the terms of 12 councilors are up for election. Next summer the TDA will need candidates. Do you know someone qualified and willing to step up serve?
So come on folks, start thinking about it. After group, during socials, start talking about who might be a good candidate for the General Council. For applications, please go to: http://fefadmin.org/forms/UBF_App_For_Organizational_Service.pdf
¶ Upcoming events
- July 16-22, 2012: Truthseekers/YaYa Quest, Taos, NM, San Geronimo Lodge. For further information contact: tomchoquette@aol.com or Fred Harris, Harrisf@gtlaw.com.
- August 1-5, 2012: The Urantia Book Fellowship Summer Study Session will be held at Techny Towers, Northbrook, IL. For information contact: www.urantia-education.org.
¶ This ‘n That
- To receive the Fellowship’s monthly e-mail newsletter online, go to www.urantiabook.org and click on Subscriptions at the bottom of the home page. If you are already registered for this service, please remember to keep us updated as to any e-mail changes.
- If you would like to volunteer some of your time to serving the Fellowship on one of its various committees, please contact our Volunteer Coordinator at: andbarnes@gmail.com.
- Have you visited the Fellowship website recently? You can find various types of information such as study group information, the latest online newsletter and other publications, an audio version of the book you can use during study group sessions, the webstore, archives of the history of the revelation, studies on virtually every topic in the book, and much, much more. Spend a winter afternoon exploring the resources available to you at www.urantiabook.org.
¶ The Mighty Messenger Staff
Published by Uversa Press for the Publications Committee of The Urantia Book Fellowship.
Members: Linda Buselli, Chair Cece Forrester, David Glass, Nancy Johnson, Sage Waitts
877.288.3772
fellowship@urantiabook.org
www.urantiabook.org