Personal Interest Helpful Quotations
Listed here are selected quotations from The Urantia Book or commentary to encourage thought about personal development and service to friends and strangers too. What can each of us do to help inspire people to greater desire for learning and spiritual growth? Southeast readers are encouraged to submit inspiring commentary and quotation selections. Please keep your posts focused on The Urantia Book.
Tact
"As the days pass, every true believer becomes more skillful in alluring his fellows into the love of eternal truth. Are you more resourceful in revealing goodness to humanity today than you were yesterday? Are you a better righteousness recommender this year than you were last year? Are you becoming increasingly artistic in your technique of leading hungry souls into the spiritual kingdom?" 156:5:15
True believers
"The true believer does not grow weary in well-doing just because he is thwarted. Difficulty whets the ardor of the truth lover, while obstacles only challenge the exertions of the undaunted kingdom builder." 156:5.21
Be A Good Flash
"Then exclaimed Ganid: "Teacher, let's you and I make a new religion, one good enough for India and big enough for Rome, and maybe we can trade it to the Jews for Yahweh." And Jesus replied: "Ganid, religions are not made. The religions of men grow up over long periods of time, while the revelations of God flash upon earth in the lives of the men who reveal God to their fellows." But they did not comprehend the meaning of these prophetic words." 132:7.6
It seems right to encourage one another to be a good "flash" on earth. Compared to eternity, even to a thousand years, men and women are a mere flash on earth, spending so little time in the mortal material life phase. While we are here, may we suggest to be the best flash you can be as you serve the Father's purposes and attempt to help Michael and our Universe Mother to move Urantia onward their eternal goals. As others have said, 'Be all you can be', but be the unique light "flash" the Father intends for you.
What does it mean to you to follow Jesus?
Perhaps this is one of the most important questions to ponder upon considering teachings from The Urantia Book. Consider his life model, philosophy, loyalty and plans, some of which are hinted in the book. To what degree could we give up something that inhibits following him sincerely. More could be said, but this is enough.
Overheard in a study group:
"Do you want to be a disciple or and Apostle?" This was related to a person's dedication to God and the Urantia Book revelation and personal service. Believing in and sharing the Revelation, acting on Jesus' teachings, makes one an Apostle, not just a disciple, in the opinion of the speaker.
Query on word Trust
Trust and growing faith were major features of Jesus' personal religion. His life and personal religion, teaching and ministry are central themes in The Urantia Book. A search report "Query On Word Trust And Derivatives" is available here.
Planetary change
"When we contemplate the seemingly solid tangle of planetary problems that crowd in upon us, we may sense the magnitude of the wisdom, power, creativity, courage, and love it will take to untangle them. In another thousand years, things should be much better. By our mistaken choices, humankind has usually learned things the hard way; but that can change. There is an easier way. That easier way is rugged, but it is vastly superior to the hard way of barricaded folly. Inspired leadership and teamwork could save our world from the mountains of needless suffering. We could change this world's direction in one generation."
Jeffery Wattles, PhD
From the Introduction in his book, Living in Truth, Beauty, and Goodness; Cascade Books, 2016
Shared comments by Alice Wood, Wisconsin
I think that it is easy for people to think that if they have a study group that they don't need to continue to expand, or if they don't have a study group, that no one would be interested in joining. But I am inspired by people who actively seed the book and build communities in places like Africa, Latin America, and the Philippines, where their economic conditions weigh so heavily against them, so I have to think to myself, "I can do that here." Green Bay is not a progressive mecca like Boulder, so I think it is an interesting experiment that I have embarked on--finding out what happens when I simply decide to build a study group in an industrial Midwestern town and then devote myself, using every resource available, to that end.
When I am successful, I hope to inspire others to do the same, or to inspire current study groups to decide that it is not enough to just have one study group in their town, so they support a member or two in an endeavor to build another study group on the other side of town. I really like the idea of local study groups supporting one another.
I don't know exactly how all of this will take shape. I have lots of thoughts on this that I am sifting through--various next steps in study group growth. I think it would be good to host study groups or workshops that follow a specific theme that can be advertised ahead of time.
….here in the Midwest we have benefited from consistent mini-conferences. Building ourselves up is not an option, it is an assumption.
I think that it is easy for people to think that if they have a study group that they don't need to continue to expand, or if they don't have a study group, that no one would be interested in joining. But I am inspired by people who actively seed the book and build communities in places like Africa, Latin America, and the Philippines, where their economic conditions weigh so heavily against them, so I have to think to myself, "I can do that here." Green Bay is not a progressive mecca like Boulder, so I think it is an interesting experiment that I have embarked on--finding out what happens when I simply decide to build a study group in an industrial Midwestern town and then devote myself, using every resource available, to that end.
When I am successful, I hope to inspire others to do the same, or to inspire current study groups to decide that it is not enough to just have one study group in their town, so they support a member or two in an endeavor to build another study group on the other side of town. I really like the idea of local study groups supporting one another.
I don't know exactly how all of this will take shape. I have lots of thoughts on this that I am sifting through--various next steps in study group growth. I think it would be good to host study groups or workshops that follow a specific theme that can be advertised ahead of time.
….here in the Midwest we have benefited from consistent mini-conferences. Building ourselves up is not an option, it is an assumption.
Urantia and the English language by Peter Walker; Florida
It was in 2018 that I read of the new library in the Urantia Foundation’s building, which was dedicated to containing the works of literature assumed to have been used by the revelators in the formation of the Urantia papers. Over the years I’ve wondered about the origins of the Urantia papers and have occasionally reviewed such websites as Matthew Block’s Square Circles and his efforts to match the Urantia Book to human sources. The new library at the Urantia Foundation preserving such works is an invaluable collection, especially for future generations.
Having studied the Urantia Book for years, I am still amazed at the quality of the English language used in the papers. The Urantia Book is a masterpiece of prose literature that has its own poetic cadence, with each author representing their thoughts through the written word. The style of the Urantia papers are exclusive from any human author’s works I have read or glanced through. Even the style of each author is unique. From a Divine Counselor compared to a Solitary or Mighty Messenger, or the Midwayer Commission, each has their own style of writing.
One of my favorite passages from the Urantia papers, which is one of the finest works of prose poetry I have ever read, is the opening section of Paper 102, The Foundations of Religious Faith. This excerpt, which has been traced to Bertrand Russell’s A Free Man’s Worship, turns Russell’s pessimistic sentiment into a statement of resonating truth and beauty. I still remember reading this for the first time. How ironic that such a profound passage in the Urantia Book would be sourced from one of the most well-known atheists of the 20th century!
It was nearly 30 years ago, in the summer of 1989, I introduced the Urantia Book to a friend who happened to have a vintage English dictionary. He took an interest in the Urantia Book, and with his dictionary we decided to explore the meaning of the word Urantia. Since such a word is not defined, we searched through various similar words, and at that time determined Urantia as meaning “of or belonging to the Heavens”. Since then I have remembered that definition. As I read the Urantia Book these days, I listen to the audio version of the papers, and while doing so, I refer to an online dictionary to clarify the meanings of certain words.
Realizing the importance of a dictionary from the same period as the Urantia papers, and with the new library at the Foundation, I thought to donate a vintage dictionary to their collection. Reviewing various dictionaries, the Webster's New International Dictionary Second Edition was the ideal choice having been first published in 1934, the same year the Urantia Papers were finalized. In looking at suitable stands for the dictionary, I was not able to find an ideal match on several retailer sites, and online auctions rarely sell these items. As such, I had one made by a craftsman in Oregon.
Before shipping the dictionary and stand to Chicago, I decided to research the word Urantia again to review its meaning. Glancing through the Internet I discovered similar definitions for Urantia but felt I may be able to refine it further. The word Urantia can be broken into two separate parts of ‘Uran’ and ‘tia’. What I found interesting is there are two similar words whose specific definitions are no longer used in the English language today; even having been removed from the current Webster’s dictionary. These words are ‘Urania, and ‘Uranian’, which are related to the root ‘Uran’. These definitions are found only in earlier 20th century English dictionaries. The definitions are as follows.
Urania - (Latin fr. Greek) "heavenly, heaven"
(Greek) Ourania, Ouranios - "heavenly" Ouranos - "heaven"
Uranian - "Of, pertaining to, or concerned with the heavens,
or the science of astronomy; astronomical"
Looking at the definition for ‘tia’, which has Latin and Greek origins, is related to the suffix ‘cy’ which has the following meaning.
-cy (-tia [Latin, Greek]) "signifying state, quality, office, rank"
I am not an etymologist but looking at the context of the word Urantia it would have its origin as an adjective forming the actual use as a proper noun. As such, I postulate the meanings as follows.
u·ran'tia \yu̇·rān'shə\, adj. 1a: [L., fr. Gr.] of or belonging to the Heavens;
b: having a heavenly status or quality
U·ran'tia \yu̇·rān'shə\, n. (cosmology). 1a: a name designating the planet Earth;
b: the Earth within the Heavens
The final definition for Urantia, “the Earth within the Heavens”, has the words ‘Earth’ and ‘Heavens’ in proper case designating their specific reference and location. Choosing the word ‘within’ took some liberty of thought but anticipating what the revelators envisioned in formulating a meaning, the future of Earth will inevitably evolve into a status of Light and Life. As such, Urantia would embody a state of ‘heaven on earth’ and be a member of the Heavens in the eternal future of the Grand and Master Universe.
Access to a vintage dictionary is invaluable for referencing the changes in language. Even now, 85 years after the completion of the Urantia papers, the English language is altering the meanings of certain words. For example, the word ‘universe’, which still includes the definition of “a galaxy or group of galaxies” as relevant to the Urantia papers, is now different from the common definition used today, which represents the millions of galaxies in their entirety, thanks in part to the advancements in astronomy.
Reviewing how languages change over time, I can think of three causes that alters their course. I’m sure there are other influences as well.
Infusion – the colonization of countries that blend languages together, as when France occupied England, which incorporated French words into the English language.
Isolation – the separation of societies that create unique words, definitions, and even different languages altogether.
Transformation – the modernization of languages influenced by changes in culture, science, and standardizations.
Regarding the future of language and the progress of our planet, a unification of languages will inevitably occur. In paper 55, section 3, regarding the Golden Age of Light and Life, it states.
“During this age of light and life the world increasingly prospers under the fatherly rule of the Planetary Sovereign. By this time the worlds are progressing under the momentum of one language, one religion, and, on normal spheres, one race.”
Although the Sun now sets on the British Empire, its legacy of spreading the English language throughout the world remains. Most likely, the English language will become the one language of Urantia, while continuing to be influence by other languages and cultures. In time, a standardization of the English language will render further unification and direction.
In the eras to come, avid students of the Urantia Book will reference the English language as it was used during the times of the creation of the Urantia papers. Eventually, vintage dictionaries, as the one now in the Foundation’s library, will be available online so that definitions of the English language from the 20th century will be accessible to everyone.
In conclusion, in music it is not just the notes, but the changes between the notes that constitutes the melody. In the revelation of the Urantia papers, regardless of the language, it is not just the words, but the insights they represent that transforms their concepts into spiritual meanings and values.