© 2000 Urantia Foundation
¶ Urantia Foundation Celebrates Its 50th Anniversary
URANTIA Foundation’s 50th Anniversary prompted us to reflect on the past, assess the present, and plan for the future. Since 1950 the Foundation has established a Trust to translate, publish, and protect the revelation; and provided for the growth of study groups and membership organizations. At the heart of all these accomplishments lie the genuine motivations of scores of individuals. From the Contact Commission, to the Forum, to the line of Trustees, to the service-minded individuals who built and nurtured the readership groups, to the countless volunteers and the translators whose efforts inspire us all, this endeavor has been blessed with sincere men and women aspiring to the highest levels of service.
Because the Foundation was created in 1950, a fifties-style sock hop was a natural choice to kick off the celebration. Before the dancing started, several presentations were offered to an attentive audience. Trustee Richard Keeler was both serious and humorous in his acknowledgment of the Foundation’s past accomplishments, but his message was clear: though much remains to be done, willing hands are in evidence and with God’s help, the revelation is gaining momentum as it heads into the new millennium. Next, the Foundation’s Executive Director, Tonia Baney, came to the podium sporting a ponytail, pleated skirt, and saddle oxfords. Tonia stressed the Foundation’s role as the custodian of the book. She utilized marketing maxims to demonstrate that the copyright and marks must be preserved and protected.
Paul and Mary Snider (Paul is a past president of the former URANTIA Brotherhood) gave an eloquent presentation that underscored their support of URANTIA Foundation, its policies, and agenda for future growth.
They were the first of several speakers to introduce The Matthew Project during the anniversary weekend. The Matthew Project is a strategic plan to provide for the future of the revelation. Its task force members include devoted readers dedicated to the Foundation’s long-range goals of financial security for the continued printing and translating of The URANTIA Book. The planning group is diverse in nature, including members of International Urantia Association (IUA), the Fellowship, and unaffiliated readers. All share in the desire to serve, offering their time and support to insure the continued growth of the revelation.
A playful skit followed, and then Dorothy Elder, the coordinator of The URANTIA Book Internet School, gave an update on the progress of that program. Although the school is only in its second semester, classes are full, and students are speaking highly of their learning experiences. Dorothy indicated that classes are filling up with students, many of whom are young readers, and more teachers are needed. (Individuals who are interested and have the time and computer skills to contribute may contact her at delder03@sprynet.com for more information.)
Audience participation in an auction livened up the evening as the crowd bid on vacation packages donated by readers. Proceeds from the auction went into the Foundation’s general fund.
Saturday morning began with a moving session of worship, prayer, and reflection accented by readings from the book and contemplative music performed by a piano-violin duo. Steve Shinall then delivered a thought-provoking message that recounted his personal journey with the teachings. The service concluded with “Pray Tell Me How,” a hymn composed by students of the book.
The remainder of Saturday morning was devoted to the translators’ discussion panel. Each of the translators offered insights into their motivations, the challenges of translating, and the difficulties of translating a work as comprehensive as The URANTIA Book. Their enthusiasm for the revelation and their desire to make the teachings available to their people in their own language were evident from the presentations.
The afternoon session was memorable, featuring a panel of former Trustees and Forum members, who shared their recollections of the early days and answered questions from an intrigued audience. These pioneers of the movement offered valuable historical memories and interesting stories. Neal Waldrop, a former Trustee, presented an engaging speech on living the teachings, and Tonia Baney served as moderator.
Saturday night proved to be an elegant affair with fine dining and good music performed by a longtime reader and his orchestra. After dinner, Carolyn Kendall, who was a member of the Forum, delivered a fascinating speech that invoked visions of what life will be like in the age of light and life. From her dramatic, telescopic view of the future, she then shared with us much history of the early days before the book was published.
Quin Frazer, corporate legal counsel for URANTIA Foundation for the past 15 years, served as the auctioneer for an effort to raise funds for translations. Most of the attendees were moved to donate; they were allowed to specify a particular translation as the beneficiary of their donation. Two first-edition copies of The URANTIA Book were also auctioned off. At the end of the spirited bidding and generous outpouring of donations, the total exceeded all expectations. The mood of people at the auction was one of hope and optimism, as people saw money being raised to provide for quality translations which will allow truth seekers to read the book in their own languages. The remainder of the evening was spent dancing and socializing.
On Sunday, Carrie Prentice, editor of the IUA Journal, moderated a panel of speakers on the continuing topic of dissemination of the teachings. Jeffrey Wattles, Ralph Zehr, and Seppo Kanerva offered their personal insights into the methods, pitfalls, and rewards involved in outreach. Carrie stressed the importance of becoming active at any level that benefits our fellows. Will Sherwood then gave a visual tour of the new IUA website.
Finally, Tonia Baney summed up the value of the weekend’s celebration: presenting the translators and discussing their important work; meeting and getting to know some veterans of the revelation; allowing readers the opportunity to direct their generosity into translations; and the coming together as an affirmation of support for the ongoing work of URANTIA Foundation to publish the inviolate text of The URANTIA Book and to spread its teachings to the world.
¶ Korean Translation Published
The first translation of The URANTIA Book into an Asian language is a reality! In January, the long and painstaking effort of translating The URANTIA Book into the Korean language reached its fruition when the translators could finally hold in their hands fresh-from-the-printing-press copies of the Korean book. It is a hard cover publication with the same cover design as the latest English and Spanish books. Trustee Kwan Choi oversaw the printing in South Korea. We consider this first non-European language translation to be a significant milestone in the history of the revelation.
The Korean translation effort was initiated in 1993, thus taking six and a half years to complete. In most cases it takes six years of dedicated work to translate The URANTIA Book into any language.
An agreement was reached with a Korean distributor who will be distributing the new book to bookstores and libraries throughout Korea. We have also arranged for a distributor to make the Korean book available in the United States market. We are confident that the revelation will find hungry souls among the Korean people, and we are pleased that our Asian brothers and sisters will have the opportunity to experience, first hand, its supernal teachings.
The Korean language is spoken by some 76 million people: 45 million in the Republic of Korea (South Korea), 24 million in the People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea), and five million in pockets of Japan and China. Moreover, there are over two million Korean-speaking people in the United States and Canada.
We thank all of the translators for their tireless efforts in helping to make the dissemination of The URANTIA Book possible to a worldwide community. As stated by a former Trustee, “The 21st Century brings the challenge of growth. The Foundation is laying the groundwork to meet this growth explosion. These are exciting times for all of us. This is surely the ‘time of translation’ and the beginning of the worldwide spread of these beloved teachings. Come join us and share the joy of this service.”
¶ The URANTIA Book In India
Encouraged by the response of the Indian people to The URANTIA Book at the 1999 book fair of New Delhi, URANTIA Foundation decided to attend the New Delhi World Book Fair in February 2000. The largest book event of Asia and Africa, the fair occupied nine halls at the Pragati Maidan exhibition center in New Delhi. The majority of the books displayed were in English, with only one of the nine halls being dedicated to Hindi and the other Indian languages.
The educated middle classes of India prefer to use English for intellectual pursuits. Despite the high rate of poverty and illiteracy in India, this emerging, educated, middle classnow an estimated 10 percent of the populationrepresents some 100 million people. The publishing industry has its sights set on this market.
Three distributors agreed to carry The URANTIA Book and signed distribution agreements with the Foundation. One of them is among the largest in India and distributes throughout the entire country. Another specializes in spiritual and religious books and distributes in Kathmandu and Nepal as well as India. The “mega stores” in Kathmandu and Varanassi are considered centers of learning. They specialize in religion and philosophy and are frequented by travelers from all over the world who are searching for spiritual enlightenment.
The Foundation booth at the New Delhi World Book Fair was constantly busy. The Indian people, most of whom have either Hindu or Muslim backgrounds, had a good command of the English language and were very receptive to The URANTIA Book. There was instant recognition of the spiritual and philosophical value of the book. Over 100 books were sold. The Hindus in particular were open to the philosophy of the book and seemed unconcerned by its superhuman origins. Most of the people that visited our booth were either students or professionals; many were schoolteachers. Most of them seemed to be concerned with the social problems of India. Many believe that ignorance is the key factor in keeping the social status quo, and that education is the key to improving their society. It is clear the Hindu religion provides rich soil for the reception of the book and its teachings. A Foundation Representative who assisted at the book fair has placed nearly 1000 copies of The URANTIA Book in Indian libraries since 1997. URANTIA Foundation is continuing to make the book widely available to the people of India. These are the people who will be responsible for transforming their country, and the URANTIA teachings may provide the inspiration.
One of the highlights of the book fair was an agreement made with a leader of a prominent non-profit Christian society, whose purpose is to promote Christian knowledge throughout India. This leader, a reverend, agreed to place The URANTIA Book into the theological college library system in India. The purpose of this non-profit Christian society is to print and distribute anything that promotes the Christian message of Jesus or the brotherhood and unity of mankind. After looking through the table of contents and particular sections of the book, the reverend decided that The URANTIA Book was of great spiritual import and would be of great use to theology students in the Christian colleges. Through his distribution network, he arranged for the immediate placement of over two hundred books into theological colleges throughout India, as well as into church headquarters and other suitable institutions. The reverend also felt that he would like to make The URANTIA Book available to over 1000 English-speaking theology students in India. In a letter received after the book fair, he said, “We hope you would give us an opportunity to be mission partners in the dissemination of His knowledge in this country as we are all working for His kingdom.” The Foundation has already received letters of gratitude from librarians and theology students in India.
The URANTIA Book states the following about Hinduism and India:
Its [Hinduism’s] great strength lies in the fact that it has proved to be the most adap tive, amorphic religion to appear on Urantia. It is capable of almost unlimited change and possesses an unusual range of flexible adjust ment… (UB 94:4.8)
Today, in India, the great need is for the portrayal of the Jesusonian gospel-the Fatherhood of God and the sonship and consequent brotherhood of all men, which is personally realized in loving ministry and social service. In India the philosophical framework is existent, the cult structure is present; all that is needed is the vitalizing spark of the dynamic love portrayed in the original gospel of the Son of Man, divested of the Occidental dogmas and doctrines which have tended to make Michael’s life bestowal a white man’s religion. (UB 94:4.10)
¶ Urantia Foundation In Canada
We are very pleased to announce that URANTIA Foundation has opened two offices in Canada, one in Quebec City and the other in Vancouver. The Vancouver office will serve English-speaking readers and will be a distribution and information center for The URANTIA Book throughout Canada. The Quebec City office will serve a similar role for French-speaking readers of Canada and will be the distribution center for Le Livre d’Urantia.
Both the French and English editions of the book will be available at both of our Canadian offices. Here is the contact information for the new offices:
| English | French |
|---|---|
| URANTIA Foundation, Vancouver 2150 Bellevue Ave #805 West Vancouver BC V7V 1C3 CANADA Tel: +1-604-926-5836 E-mail: urantia@telus.net |
URANTIA Foundation, Quebec 707, route 138 Cap-Sante (Quebec) G0A 1L0 CANADA Tel: +1-418-285-3333 E-mail: fondation@urantia-quebec.org |
¶ New Staff Members
There have been a few staff changes at URANTIA Foundation’s Chicago office. In our Reader Services Department, James Woodward has replaced Connie Greene. Connie had been commuting from Wisconsin on a weekly basis for the past two years and decided to stay closer to home so she could spend more time with her family. She has been a great asset to the Foundation. James, a student of the book since 1972, comes to us from California and brings with him extensive experience in writing, editing, and photography.
Kathleen and Trevor Swadling are back in Sydney, Australia. Kathleen had been working in Chicago as the Development Coordinator for the past three years. During the Swadlings’ stay in Chicago, Trevor devoted two years of voluntary service to the Foundation. He returned to Australia in April 1999,and Kathleen returned in December 1999. She and Trevor will be managing the Australian URANTIA Foundation office, which provides services throughout the Asia Pacific region.
Lynn Prentice of Missouri has filled the Development Coordinator position and will be handling community relations, development, and event planning. Lynn has a strong background in journalism, communications, and public relations.
Mindy Williams is our new Office Manager. With her husband Allen, she moved from Florida to Chicago last October and started her new assignment at the Foundation. Mindy brings with her valuable paralegal, administrative, and computer systems skills.
Angelle Tolliver, Tonia Baney’s personal assistant, has relocated to another state. Her last day in the office was April 15, 2000. Sheila Schneider will now be Tonia’s assistant. Sheila’s new assignment will put to good use her considerable knowledge of URANTIA Foundation, as she has now been employed at the Foundation for more than twelve years. She will work with Foundation publications and book distribution and assist in the coordination of translations.
Gustavo Proafo, our Foundation Representative from Lima, Peru, has temporarily joined the staff in Chicago to assist in our computer and Internet website department. Gustavo is also contributing as a translator in our growing need to provide our publications and reader services in Spanish for Hispanic readers.
We welcome Mindy, Lynn, James, and Gustavo to our team and look forward to having them on our staff. We are grateful to Connie, Kathleen, and Trevor for their loyal and effective efforts in service to the Foundation. They will be greatly missed.
The Trustees are pleased to have the following staff:
- Tonia Baney ~ Executive Director
- Mindy Williams ~ Office Manager/Legal
- Lynn Prentice ~ Community Relations and Development Coordinator
- Marcia Lansu ~ Financial Manager/Certified Public Accountant
- Sheila Schneider ~ Assistant to Executive Director/Publishing
- Robert Solone ~ Spanish Desk/Copyright and Trademark Permissions
- James Woodward ~ Reader Services
- Steve Baney ~ Distribution/Book Fairs/Shipping
- Jay Peregrine ~ Web Master
- Gustavo Proafo ~ Computer Systems/Internet website
- Seppo Kanerva ~ International Office
- Kathleen Swadling ~ International Office
¶ Foundation Representatives
Five new URANTIA Foundation Representatives have been appointed in the past several months, bringing the total number of Representatives to 19. The new Rep resentatives are: Alberto and Horacio Brupbacher, Uruguay, appointed in September 1999; Ana Beatriz Garcia, Mexico, appointed in February of 2000; Kathy Choi, United States (for the Korean translation), appointed in March 2000; and Mark Bloomfield, Field Representative, appointed in August 1999.
Alberto and Horacio Brupbacher have already established contact with readers and booksellers in Uruguay and are forming a study group.
Ana Beatriz Garcia began working with the Foundation at the Guadalajara Book Fair last December. She become a representative in February 2000 and will be working with the Foundation on book distribution throughout Latin America. Ana has already negotiated contracts with some of Mexico and Argentina’s largest distributors, which has resulted in reduced prices for El libro de URANTIA in these countries. In addition, she has arranged for the first distribution of El libro de URANTIA throughout the library system in Cuba.
Kathy Choi has assumed the responsibility of providing service for the Korean-speaking readers in the United States and assisting with distribution and book fairs in Korea.
Mark Bloomfield has been traveling throughout India, placing copies of The URANTIA Book in libraries. He plans to spend most of this year continuing this pursuit. He assisted at the Foundation booth at both the recent New Delhi Book Fairs and plans to do so again in August.
In 1997, the Trustees began appointing URANTIA Foundation Representatives in several countries where the Foundation has not yet established an office. This was done to establish the book in bookstores and libraries and to help the Trustees tobe in touch with readers around the world and to learn from them and work with them on the dissemination of the teachings of the book in their countries.
URANTIA Foundation Representatives must have read the entire book and be willing to serve without pay. They respond to readers’ inquiries and they foster study groups. They also attend book fairs and establish ties with the book industry in their countries. They provide a means to inform readers of Foundation policies and programs and, in turn, provide information to the Foundation, which helps us to better serve readers worldwide. The Representatives provide a necessary link in the continuing efforts to internationalize the fifth epochal revelation.
Our current Representatives are:
- Mark Bloomfield, Field Representative
- Moussa N’Diaye, Senegal
- Alberto and Horacio Brupbacher, Uruguay
- Carlos Ortega-Santos, Venezuela
- Mario Casassus Bulnes, Chile
- Ramon J. Ortiz V., Colombia
- Luiz C. Dolabella Chagas, Brazil
- Gustavo A. Proafo, Peru
- Kathy Choi, Korean Translation-U.S.
- Carlos Rubinsky, Argentina
- Franyois Dupont, Belgium
- Gabriel J. Salazar, Mexico
- Ana Beatriz Garcia, Mexico
- Peep Sober, Estonia
- Nigel Hornby, Norway
- Alfonso Luque Vasquez, Peru
- Algimantas Jokubenas, Lithuania
- Nugroho Widi, Indonesia
- Vitali Kondratyev, Russia
¶ New Associations of the IUA
Several new associations of the International URANTIA Association (IUA) have been licensed in recent months. Estonian readers have formalized their relationship with URANTIA Foundation and IUA by forming the URANTIA Association of Estonia. There are more than 100 readers of The URANTIA Book in Estonia, many of whom began studying the book during the Russian occupation.
Mexico and Central and South America have been enjoying rapid growth in readership as is evidenced by the increasing sales of El libro de Urantia. Recently a new local association was formed in South America. It is called URANTIA Association of the Southern Cone and is composed of members from Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, and Bolivia.
In North America, the three existing Canadian local associations of the IUA have formed a national association, the Canada URANTIA Association. Over the years, the number of readers in Canada has steadily increased in both English- and French-speaking regions. By forming a national association, our fellow readers in Canada can now better coordinate their coast-tocoast activities and better serve their constituents.
The IUA has also expanded to 23 local associations in the United States. The most recent addition was the URANTIA Association of Utah. In order to better serve their members, the formerly combined Missouri-Kansas URANTIA group has become two separate organizations, the Kansas City URANTIA Association and the Zebedee Guild of Missouri.
The IUA is a task-oriented, social and service organization formed by URANTIA Foundation to foster the in-depth study and orderly dissemination of the teachings of The URANTIA Book. It does this by means of a minimal, flexible organizational structure. Is not associated with any religion. A total of 35 local and national associations are licensed worldwide. These associations provide a venue for readers to gather, to increase their understanding of the teachings, and to pursue worthy dissemination-outreach goals. These associations are interdependent with URANTIA Foundation. Its members support the Declaration of Trust Creating URANTIA Foundation and the Foundation’s ownership of the copyright and the marks. The associations of IUA use the Concentric-Circles trademark with the permission of URANTIA Foundation. We welcome the new associations of the IUA into our growing organizational community of readers.
¶ Foundation-Fellowship Meeting April 8-9, 2000
On April 8 and 9, 2000, representatives of URANTIA Foundation met with representatives of the Executive Committee of the Fellowship regarding the Fellowship’s infringement of the copyright and marks held by URANTIA Foundation.
The following Executive Committee members represented the Fellowship: Steve Dreier, Marvin Gawryn, Marilyn Kulieke, and Dan Massey. URANTIA Foundation was represented by Tonia Baney, Executive Director of URANTIA Foundation; Georges Michelson-Dupont, Trustee of URANTIA Foundation; Steve Hill, Intellectual Properties Counsel for URANTIA Foundation; Seppo Kanerva, Translation Manager and Chairman of the Council of National Presidents of the IUA; and Nancy Shaffer, member of the Matthew Project Task Force. The Foundation’s representatives feel the discussions were positive.
The Trustees of URANTIA Foundation desire to make clear their objectives regarding the protection of the copyright and trademarks. The Foundation is committed to perpetually preserving inviolate the text of The URANTIA Book, as required by its Declaration of Trust. We recognize that some readers may question the importance of the copyright and even question whether the copyright is necessary to preserve the text inviolate. The URANTIA Book itself explicitly states that the fifth epochal revelation is for all of the peoples of the world.
URANTIA Foundation is in the process of translating The URANTIA Book into the languages of the world. As long as the Foundation holds a valid copyright in The URANTIA Book, it can control the quality and content of all translations and can defend against infringing works in any language.
The Trustees regard the copyright as essential to fulfilling the mandates of the Declaration of Trust Creating URANTIA Foundation to perpetually preserve inviolate the text and to disseminate the teachings of The URANTIA Book to the peoples of the world. When the copyright expires, thetrademarks will serve as an identifier of the inviolate text of The URANTIA Book. Accordingly, URANTIA Foundation will take the appropriate measures to protect the copyright and trademarks.
It is also important to URANTIA Foundation to foster dissemination of the teachings of The URANTIA Book by individuals and fraternal organizations, such as the International URANTIA Association and the Fellowship. URANTIA Foundation applauds many of the Fellowship’s programs and service projects.
URANTIA Foundation does not want to censor or control the freedom of religious expression by any individual or group, nor is it interested in policing the activities of any individual or organization. A well-intentioned offer by the Foundation to license the Fellowship to display the text of The URANTIA Book on its website has given rise to a number of unanticipated difficulties and, as a result, has required a great deal of time and attention. The difficulties may well have been as frustrating for the Fellowship as they have been for the Foundation.
URANTIA Foundation felt it was imperative to take positive steps to resolve the problems concerning the Fellowship’s use of the text and trademarks and appreciates the Fellowship’s willingness to meet. The representatives of the two organizations met for a day and a half. Prior to entering into these discussions, the representatives all agreed that the content of the discussions would remain confidential. The parties anticipate ongoing communications over the next month. URANTIA Foundation is hopeful that these discussions will lead to an amicable resolution of the issues.
To prevent ongoing problems arising from the licensing of websites to display the inviolate text of The URANTIA Book, URANTIA Foundation has announced new policies that invite readers to link to URANTIA Foundation’s website for access to the English text and the official translations, as they become available. The policies are posted on the Foundation’s website: https://www.urantia.org/urantia-foundation/urantia-foundation-copyright-trademark-policies
¶ Web Site Licensing Policy
URANTIA Foundation, upon its establishment in 1950, commenced using the Concentric-Circles Symbol and the words “URANTIA,” “URANTIAN,” and The URANTIA Book to identify itself, its publications, and its educational services. Between 1952 and 1978, it registered “URANTIA,” “URANTIAN,” and the circles as trademarks, service marks, and collective membership marks, that is, as the official marks of URANTIA Foundation and its affiliated organizations. After the copyright expires (currently anticipated in 2050 for the English text), these registered marks will continue to serve as identifiers to the public of the inviolate text of The URANTIA Book published by URANTIA Foundation, whether in English or other languages.
In September 1998, URANTIA Foundation implemented new copyright and trademark policies which addressed a number of issues of concern to readers of The URANTIA Book. The policies permit the liberal use of quotes from The URANTIA Book for labors of love, for educational purposes, and for commercial use. In addition, policies were announced permitting the personal, noncommercial use of URANTIA Foundation’s trademarks in certain circumstances.
At the same time, the Trustees announced the availability of a License to Reproduce The URANTIA Book on an Internet Web Site. Under this policy, the Trustees offered to license any Web site to reproduce the entire copyrighted, inviolate text of The URANTIA Book free of charge provided the site agreed not to charge others to view the text, the text displayed would be the inviolate text (not revised, altered, or amended), and the site displayed a specific copyright notice prior to displaying The URANTIA Book text. This policy was clarified in September 1999 to make it clear that the License to Reproduce The URANTIA Book on an Internet Web Site applied only to the English edition of The URANTIA Book and not to translations.
Although the policies regarding the use of quotes from The URANTIA Book seem to have met a need for many readers who wish to prepare educational material and derivative works utilizing quotations from The URANTIA Book, only two Web sites availed themselves of the License to Reproduce The URANTIA Book on an Internet Web Site. And one of the sites claiming license did not meet the criteria specified in the policy. We had hoped our policies would encourage sites to include the inviolate text according to the terms of our proposed license agreement, but instead we have seen a proliferation of unlicensed, unauthorized texts on an increasing number of Web sites. This proliferation of such Web sites is making it increasingly difficult for the Trustees to fulfill their responsibility to preserve inviolate the text of The URANTIA Book and to retain control of all printing and reproduction of The URANTIA Book and its translations as required by Article 3.3 of the Declaration of Trust. (The Declaration of Trust Creating URANTIA Foundation is available upon request or by viewing our Web site at www.urantia.org)
In light of this experience, the Trustees have decided to cease offering a License to Reproduce The URANTIA Book on an Internet Web Site. We feel that the better policy is to maintain the inviolate text of The URANTIA Book and its translations on URANTIA Foundation’s Web sites and allow others to link to the text. This will permit us to maintain that delicate balance required by our trust between preserving the text inviolate and disseminating the teachings to the peoples of the world. At the same time, anyone who shares our interest in making the text available may do so by linking to the text on URANTIA Foundation’s Web site at www.urantia.org
This policy of allowing others to link to the text on the Foundation’s Web site is not intended to confer any license to engage in any framing or caching of URANTIA Foundation’s Web site when linking to the text. Any special requests regarding specific manners of linking should be directed to Mindy Williams or Lynn Prentice at the head office of URANTIA Foundation, 533 Diversey Parkway, Chicago, IL 60614, (773) 525-3319.
¶ Personal Use of Registered Marks
There has been some confusion about the permissible use of “URANTIA,” “URANTIAN,” and The URANTIA Book as part of organizational names and Internet domain names. We have slightly revised our policy, therefore, in the hope of clarifying the permissible use of URANTIA Foundation’s trademarks. We will address the use of these trademarks by groups or organizations.
Because URANTIA Foundation holds the URANTIA trademarks for books, publications, services, and collective membership organizations, when an organization or group (unaffiliated with URANTIA Foundation) adopts a name that includes the word URANTIA or appropriates an Internet domain name that includes URANTIA, the Foundation’s marks are implicated. This is because such use could confuse people about that organization’s affiliation with URANTIA Foundation. URANTIA Foundation adopted its previous policies regarding personal use of the marks because individual use is not likely to engender confusion as to sponsorship or affiliation. Subject to the qualifications discussed below, URANTIA Foundation discourages the use of URANTIA in organizational names and Internet domain names because, in the event people are confused (or would likely be confused) by the unlicensed inclusion of the word URANTIA in an organization’s name, the Foundation may have to assert its rights under trademark law against the infringing organization in order to preserve the Foundation’s rights to the marks.
That having been said, an organization need not be licensed to include the words Readers (or Students or the like) of The URANTIA Book in its group name or domain name. The use of this phrase, when taken as a whole, is descriptive and is fair use for those persons who wish to describe the relationship between their organization and the book.
The use of the words “The URANTIA Book” not preceded by the words “readers of” or “students of” raises some difficult questions. Under trademark law, the owner of a copyright in a book holds common law trademark rights in the book’s title. Any use of the title of the book as a designation of origin or sponsorship that causes a likelihood of consumer confusion violates these legal rights. In light of the confusion we have observed regarding names using URANTIA Book without such descriptive modifiers as indicated above, we advise against an organization calling itself a name that suggests source, sponsorship, or custody of The URANTIA Book, such as “The URANTIA Book Society” (as opposed to “The Society for Readers of The URANTIA Book”). The risk of confusion is simply too great.
None of this has anything to do with referring to The URANTIA Book in writings or speeches. The Foundation has policies permitting liberal quotation of the text for labors of love, educational purposes, and commercial works. We recognize that the trademark rights, which the Foundation has acquired through long-standing use and registration of its marks, provide us only with the exclusive rights to use “URANTIA,” “URANTIAN,” “The URANTIA Book,” and the Concentric-Circles Symbol as means of identifying URANTIA Foundation, its affiliate organizations, its products, and its services. Other organizations may use the words The URANTIA Book in the name of their organization or Internet domain name as long as the words are preceded by such words as readers of or students of.
We realize that, as awareness of the book and its teachings increases, individuals and groups of readers will make use of the teachings in myriads of ways. We encourage such efforts. The Foundation does not interfere with the efforts of individuals to introduce The URANTIA Book to others. We do not desire to be the arbiter of anyone’s philosophy, beliefs, or conduct. However, to prevent confusion in the eyes of the public, the words “URANTIA,” “URANTIAN,” and the Concentric-Circles Symbol must be reserved as the exclusive identifiers of those organizations affiliated with URANTIA Foundation. Use of the marks by unaffiliated organizations would cause confusion. We believe it is the Foundation’s duty and responsibility to prevent this confusion.
It is our desire to work cooperatively with all individuals, groups, and organizations working to bring the teachings of The URANTIA Book to the world. If you have any questions, please contact us.
¶ The Web Site Address
During the last months of 1999, URANTIA Foundation initiated the development of a new Web site in Latin America. The site provides several services for the Spanish-speaking readers, including chat rooms, a Forum school (an interactive resource), email discussion lists, and information about The URANTIA Book and news of URANTIA Foundation activities. You can visit the new web site at: www.urantia-latina.org
¶ The Decision Is Final
Court of Appeals Affirms Copyright in Maaherra Case
The United States Court of Appeals has issued its decision in the case of Maaherra v. URANTIA Foundation, once again affirming the validity of URANTIA Foundation’s copyright in The URANTIA Book. In 1997, the Court of Appeals upheld URANTIA Foundation’s copyright in The URANTIA Book and declared that Maaherra’s unauthorized electronic version of The URANTIA Book was an infringement of URANTIA Foundation’s copyright. The case was then returned to the Federal District Court, which entered judgment in favor of URANTIA Foundation. Maaherra appealed that judgment. In its latest decision, the appellate court confirmed that the district court correctly entered judgment in favor of URANTIA Foundation based upon the earlier appellate opinion. Given the fact URANTIA Foundation elected not to seek injunctive relief or monetary damages against Maaherra, there was nothing more for the Court to consider.
¶ Michael Foundation Sues Foundation Contesting Validity Of Copyright
On May 12, 2000, Michael Foundation, Inc., owned by Harry McMullan, III, filed suit against URANTIA Foundation in the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma challenging the validity of URANTIA Foundation’s copyright in The URANTIA Book. The lawsuit alleges that the Foundation’s copyright is invalid, or in the alternative, that Michael Foundation’s book, Jesus—A New Revelation, does not infringe the copyright. Michael Foundation is seeking to have the case heard in Oklahoma City, where Mr. McMullan resides.
In June 1999 Mr. McMullan published and distributed all but the first paper of Part IV of The URANTIA Book as a separate publication entitled Jesus—A New Revelation. Following unsuccessful out-of-court attempts to resolve the matter with Mr. McMullan, URANTIA Foundation decided to defend the copyright in The URANTIA Book through the United States legal system. The Trustees filed suit in November 1999 requesting the Arizona District Court to enjoin the Michael Foundation, from its continued infringement of the copyright. URANTIA Foundation had filed suit in the Arizona District Court because of the proximity of many of the witnesses who would be needed during the case and because of the court’s familiarity with the issues and circumstances surrounding The URANTIA Book due to the prior decisions of the court in the URANTIA Foundation v. Maaherra litigation. In those decisions the court upheld the copyright after appeal to the Ninth Circuit and found that the defendant infringed the copyright. Despite evidence that Michael Foundation had shipped 34 copies of its infringing book directly into Arizona and had advertised and sold the work there, the court held Michael Foundation’s contacts with Arizona were insufficient to justify the court’s exercise of personal jurisdiction.
On May 8, 2000, the Arizona District Court granted a motion by Michael Foundation to dismiss the case on jurisdictional grounds. This decision was made without prejudice to the right of URANTIA Foundation to refile and in no way reflects on the merits of the case.
As an immediate response to dismissal of the case in Arizona, Mr. McMullan filed his suit in Oklahoma. The Trustees are confident that wherever the case is heard their concerns regarding protection of the copyright in The URANTIA Book will be given a full and fair hearing.
¶ Placing Orders
There are several ways to place orders for books and the other items available from URANTIA Foundation. As always, a request may be sent to any of the worldwide Foundation offices by mail, or if preferred, by telephone. We also have all of our current products available to order via our Web site (www.urantia.org). These include the new English paperback, the small hard cover, the gift-box leather, the Spanish paperback, and the Spanish hard cover. If you need further information about placing an order, please contact the Book Department at +(773) 525-3319.
¶ Reader Comments About The Urantia Book
“I owe an immeasurable debt of gratitude for the book, The URANTIA Book, you have gifted to the Papal Seminary, Pune. I am the Seminary’s librarian and at the moment I can only imagine the ‘oh’s’ and ‘ah’s’ they will be saying when, on their return from their holidays, they see this book. What a wealth of knowledge this one huge volume contains. And so I say with the deepest sense of gratitude, God bless you many times over for this priceless gift you have sent us!” ~ Pune, INDIA
“The name of TRUTH is The URANTIA Book!” ~ Varna, BULGARIA
“I…was always interested in anything that offered ‘answers’ to the eternal questions and I got through a lot of books, only to reject what I was reading because it did not ring true. But that ‘quest’ eventually led me to The URANTIA Book…I sometimes think at the end of every spiritual quest, The URANTIA Book is waiting there for anyone who persevere that far.” ~ Belfast, NORTHERN IRELAND
“The URANTIA Book came into my hands while I was living in Bogota, Colombia. I was living a troubled life and had asked God for a revelation and that is when a neighbor of mine one day gave me a copy of the Book. It has opened my eyes to a better reality of life and I thank you.” ~ Bensalem, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.