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IN THIS ISSUE: Fraternal Associations,
Not Ecclesiatical Institutions Race and The Urantia Book The Quality of
Thought The Construction
Zone of the Soul:
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Fraternal Associations, Not Ecclesiatical Institutions
William S. Sadler, Jr., the first President of Urantia Brotherhood, spoke these words to the General Council of the Urantia Brotherhood in delivering the "President's First Triennial Report (1955-1957)": "The Urantia Brotherhood is neither a church nor a sect. It is simply a social group which has a religious objective. "There is a real place in modern civilization for a group of religious people who are '…willing to completely divest themselves of all ecclesiastical authority and fully surrender all concept of spiritual sovereignty. God alone is spiritual sovereign' [1487:1]. The modern world hardly needs another church, another sect. At the present time, we suffer from a plethora of churches and a multiplication of sects. "But, if we are not a church, how then do we differ
from a church? If we can clearly see how we differ, then perchance we
can maintain such differences. And, if we can maintain these differences,
then we may be able to preserve our organization as a distinctive Brotherhood;
we may be able to avoid a possible evolution in the direction of a church. "But, even if we are not a church, even if we never become a church, is it also true that we are not a sect? A Urantian could be a sectarian religionist; he could be a religionist who is primarily dedicated to the propagation of The Urantia Book. Would such a dedication, however, be a valid dedication—in the light of what we all know? The writer submits that such a dedication is not valid as a primary dedication. Such an exaltation of a most worthy secondary dedication to primary status could well transform a religious Urantian into a sectarian Urantian—a Urantian who has allowed the importance of The Urantia Book to take precedence over the importance of God. "How then can we, as Urantians, avoid not only churchification but also sectarianization? The writer believes that both of these unfortunate developments can be avoided if we are careful in distinguishing between Means and Ends. This is another way of saying that we should be careful not to confuse our Secondary loyalties and our Primary loyalties. The writer would accordingly submit for the careful consideration of the Brotherhood the following philosophy of action: 1. God is the only true End. Our primary spiritual loyalty and dedication is to the Universal Father, and to Him alone. When we encounter some spiritually hungry brother, our first objective is to bring him closer to his spiritual Father. This we may attempt with, or without, the book. All other things are secondary and subordinate to the acquisition of this one "pearl of great price"—the realization of sonship with God. 2. The Urantia Book as a Means to the End. The Book itself is not an End—it is a most important Means to an End. It is designed to bring God closer to man and to bring man closer to God. We may minister to our spiritually hungry brothers with or without the aid of The Urantia Book. But, if the book ever becomes mandatory in our ministry, then have we truly become sectarian. Our primary objective, as Urantians, is the service of God, and the book is an important Means to that great End. Here we should make a vital distinction between that which is value and that which has value. 3. The Urantia Brotherhood as a Means to the End. Neither is the Urantia Brotherhood, nor membership in it, a true End. The real function of the Brotherhood is also the function of a Means to accomplish a desired End. The structure of the Brotherhood is to the spiritual experiences of its members as the river banks are to a river; it is true that no river can be had without its banks-but neither should the banks be confused with the flowing river. The Brotherhood is designed to promote the book, and the book is designed to bring God and man closer to each other. "If we can clearly separate Means and Ends, if we can always subordinate Means to the true End, then we shall continue for a very long time as a real Brotherhood. And we shall avoid becoming merely another church or another sect in the world of the twentieth century-a world which needs neither a new church nor a new sect." Dr. William S. Sadler, in his treatise "Consideration of Some Criticisms of The Urantia Book", said: "The book condemns sectarian religions. The book is a gift to all religions, including Christianity." Said Bill Sadler, Junior: "This book is not a religion. This book is a cosmology, a philosophy, a metaphysics, a theology. Anything which is in written language is not religion. It's intellectual. That should be very, very clear." I am in accord with Dr. Sadler and Bill Sadler, Junior. We must not become a church. Back in Oklahoma, where I grew up, a minister was droning his sermon in a theological baritone when he heard someone snoring. Spotting the sonorous slumberer—an elderly gentleman with his wife seated at his side—the preacher said crossly to the woman, "Wake that man up." She replied, "You wake him up. You put him to sleep!" Our mission is not to put people to sleep but to wake them up to the enthralling truths of the fifth epochal revelation! We, the trustees and staff of the Urantia Foundation, believe that we are commissioned to publish, translate, protect, and disseminate the most thrilling book in all of human history. We must not drift into the doldrums of "churchification". We must not become "God's frozen people", slumbering in a stupor of self-satisfied self-righteousness. To me, the Urantia Foundation and the International Urantia Association are among the most thrilling organizations on earth because they promulgate the most thrilling book on earth. The International Urantia Association isn't a club, it's a cause. It is vibrant with the pulse beat of scientific, philosophic, and spiritual life. But it is not a church. It claims no spiritual sovereignty, no exclusive path to salvation, and no ecclesiastical authority. Those who desire to build a "Urantia Church" also espouse mass advertising of the book. However, my conversations with readers around the world indicate that no more than ten percent of the people who have been introduced to The Urantia Book on a person-to-person basis have gone on to become committed students of the book. Ninety percent have been indifferent or even hostile to The Urantia Book. I conclude, therefore, that mass advertising of the Book at present would generate more antagonism than support. Since the first publication of The Urantia Book in 1955, our early leaders encouraged many young students of the revelation to express their "evangelical enthusiasm" by promoting the spiritual message of the book without publicizing the book itself. This is an important mission which will not only help to foster a planetary spiritual renaissance, but which will lead many individual truth seekers to The Urantia Book "as we pass by". So let us maintain person-to-person introduction as our top priority. Consider the following mathematical analysis. If there were only 100 students of The Urantia Book today, and if each of those persons introduced The Urantia Book to only one other person per year, and if each one of them introduced the book to only one other person a year, every man, woman, and child on earth would have been personally introduced to The Urantia Book within only 30 years! This is the quiet, unspectacular, but enormously effective spread of the revelation as envisioned by the Trustees of the Urantia Foundation. Let us create fraternal associations, not ecclesiastical
institutions; let us build personal relations, not churches.
Race relations are very much a problem in the world today. In the United States an effort is being made to harmonize race relations, and to some extent to compensate for past inequities. These efforts are somewhat successful though much remains to be done. Many of our social and economic difficulties on the whole can be traced back to race relationships. Housing patterns, traffic patterns, work place locations, and school problems can all be traced back to racial disharmony. Social patterns and interactions are determined in the main by race. In the United States the primary race conflict is between white and black, though other minorities such as Hispanics and Asiatics are contributing to the problem of racial disharmony. The primary social assumption is that the races are not equal. Until recently the races were separated by legal mechanisms. Now, as a result of legislation, they are largely separated by economic, cultural, and social factors. There are exceptions: those minorities who are qualified intellectually, socially and economically are gradually being integrated into the social organism at all levels. This is the status of the present race problem in the U.S. Every thoughtful person knows that we have a race problem in this country. For the most part, we have no information concerning the origin of this problem or the destiny of its solution. The Urantia Book supplies the missing origin as well as the missing destiny of the solution of the problem. Even in the study of man's biologic evolution on Urantia, there are grave objections to the exclusive historic approach to his present?day status and his current problems. The true perspective of any reality problem-human or divine, terrestrial or cosmic-can be had only by the full and unprejudiced study and correlation of three phases of universe reality: origin, history, and destiny. The proper understanding of these three experiential realities affords the basis for a wise estimate of the current status [215:3]. It would also afford an enduring solution, since it will have exhausted the source of wisdom and experience that is available to the problem solver. The person who finds The Urantia Book of interest is likely to either be seeking for a higher religious and spiritual enlightenment, or is fascinated by the intellectual beauty of the book. Aside from the religious and spiritual assertions, The Urantia Book is beautiful literature, and the sheer beauty of the language is intellectually satisfying. The person who seeks and finds The Urantia Book for religious and spiritual reasons is looking for answers to unanswered religious and spiritual questions. He is aware of the problems in the world and how they affect the future of the world. He usually believes in a God of Love. Imagine his surprise when he reads that celestial beings have created six races and that some of them are inferior to others. Especially must he be concerned when he reads that the Indigo race of which the current black race is descended (it has received some mixture in slight amounts from the other races), is inferior to the other five. Having being taught that God is love and that God loves all of his children the same, he must begin to question in earnest whether or not this is in fact a divine revelation even though The Urantia Book tells him that God loves all of his children.
So how is one to reconcile his ideals of the Heavenly Father with presented facts that supposedly originated with beings that represent Him? Well, for one thing, to just focus on the fact of the inequalities of the races would be erroneous, for we are instructed in The Urantia Book: Philosophers commit their gravest error when they are misled into the fallacy of abstraction, the practice of focusing the attention upon one aspect of reality and then of pronouncing such an isolated aspect to be the whole truth. The wise philosopher will always look for the creative design which is behind, and pre?existent to, all universe phenomena. The creator thought invariably precedes creative action [42:6]. In trying to understand the seemingly contradictory attitudes in The Urantia Book, it is very helpful to read and study the book from the beginning to the end. While studying single topics of interest may satisfy the current intellectual curiosity, it will never give insight to the disturbing questions that are sure to be raised. For example: The human mind would ordinarily crave to approach the cosmic philosophy portrayed in these revelations by proceeding from the simple and the finite to the complex and the infinite, from human origins to divine destinies. But that path does not lead to spiritual wisdom. Such a procedure is the easiest path to a certain form of genetic knowledge, but at best it can only reveal man's origin; it reveals little or nothing about his divine destiny [215:2]. If one is thoughtful he will acknowledge the existence, though he may not be willing to admit this publicly, of intellectual and spiritual variations within his own family, social group, and race. If such variations exist within a race, it is not unreasonable to expect that these same variations will exist between races. Even Jesus acknowledged the inequalities of man when he said, "Although you cannot escape the recognition of differential human abilities and endowments in matters intellectual, social, and moral, you should make no such distinctions in the spiritual brotherhood of men when assembled for worship in the presence of God" [1468:3]. But the variety of differences within and between the races is a good thing, as will be pointed out in the reasons below, for having six evolutionary races of varying intellectual and spiritual receptivity. The evolution of mankind requires this variation to successfully reach the stage of light and life. A genius would hardly enjoy working on an assembly line, but would find delight in solving difficult intellectual problems that all benefit from. I am not blind to the horrors that racism has caused and continue to cause in the world, but evolution is still in the process of unfolding; and remember, what divine revelation can not accomplish, evolution will. Evolution will eventually vindicate the Father's divine plan. It will just take longer from the time/space perspective. The Heavenly Father is the Father of the individual, not the group. The individual has a different destiny than the group. The rules governing the individual are personal while the rules governing the group are non-personal. The individual is destined for Paradise and the Corps of the Finality, while the group from which he hails is destined to remain on the planet as a perfected race. The individual evolves vertically, that is, he ascends, while the group evolves horizontally. The relationship with the Heavenly Father is characterized by love and mercy. We read: There is in the mind of God a plan which embraces every creature of all his vast domains, and this plan is an eternal purpose of boundless opportunity, unlimited progress, and endless life. And the infinite treasures of such a matchless career are yours for the striving! [365:3] No such qualities can be applied to a group as such, though admittedly individual members of the group can share in the sonship experience. It is helpful to remember that it is the soul that enjoys sonship status and not the mortal body, and the soul is indestructible at least for all those who entrust its safekeeping to the Heavenly Father. In reading and studying The Urantia Book it is important to remember that all of the information on a given topic is not located in the same area. The Urantia Book states that it presents cosmic data in such a manner as to illuminate the spiritual teachings contained in the accompanying revelation [1110:3]. Concerning the present problem of the races with regard to the terms "inferior" and "superior", we must keep in mind that these words are relative terms. The universe is filled with relative realities, including personality realities. For example, the six evolutionary races, including the Indigo race, were superior to the Andonites, the race from which they sprang, while the Adamites and Nodites were all superior to the six evolutionary races, including the red, blue, and yellow races. In the evolutionary universes of time and space we cannot escape relativities. That which is superior to that below is inferior to that above. There are differences in the brains and minds of mortals in the universe. [T]here are three basic organizations of the brain mechanism: the one-, the two-, and the three-brained types. Urantians are of the two-brained type, somewhat more imaginative, adventurous, and philosophical than the one-brained mortals but somewhat less spiritual, ethical, and worshipful than the three-brained orders [566:1]. There are three groups of mind design as related to spirit affairs. This classification does not refer to the one-, two-, and three-brained orders of mortals; it refers primarily to gland chemistry, more particularly to the organization of certain glands comparable to the pituitary bodies. The races on some worlds have one gland, on others two, as do Urantians, while on still other spheres the races have three of these unique bodies. The inherent imagination and spiritual receptivity is definitely influenced by this differential chemical endowment [566:7]. Mortals with two glands are more spiritually receptive than those with one gland, while being less receptive than those with three glands. Differences also exist among celestial beings.
Also on page 726:
In trying to understand the present problems of the races today and in understanding the Urantia statement about the evolutionary races, particularly the Indigo race, we must always bear in mind that the results we are left with are not what the divine plan ordained. If the divine plan had been followed, we would all marvel at the wisdom of God in evolving man. If the mortals of distraught Urantia could only view one of these more advanced worlds long settled in light and life, they would nevermore question the wisdom of the evolutionary scheme of creation. Were there no future of eternal creature progression, still the superb evolutionary attainments of the mortal races on such settled worlds of perfected achievement would amply justify man's creation on the worlds of time and space [631:5]. Today we would have one race, a perfect race with all of the necessary physical, intellectual, and spiritual attributes, instead of having fragmented attributes in the separate races. You would instinctively describe such a realm—could you be suddenly transported to a planet in this stage of development—as heaven on earth [625:0]. [I]t should be remembered that these secondary races had many desirable traits which would have considerably enhanced the primary peoples if their better strains could have been absorbed [919:8]. Biologically considered, the secondary Sangiks were in some respects superior to the primary races [920:8]. Remember, the revelators are reciting what happened, and we must always bear in mind what should have happened and what the results would have been if the divine plan had been followed. In summary, the divine plan called for the evolution of mortal man from animals; secondly, after the arrival of mortal man, it called for extraplanetary personalities to guide and direct the evolving humans, to organize society along moral and ethical lines, and to rid the races of the debased human stock that occurred as a result of human mating with their animal cousins before the ability to reproduce with them ended. This part of the divine plan was derailed when Caligastia, the Planetary Prince, joined the Lucifer Rebellion. Secondly, the biological plan of uplifting the races was also prematurely ended when Adam and Eve degraded themselves to mortal status after subsequently defaulting on their divine trust, thus diluting the continuous stream of superior life plasm that was designed to upstep the races. This compounded the plight of the evolutionary races, not withstanding that some gains were made to uplift the races. The blue race received most of this infusion of superior life plasm which eventually produced the white race and the dominant culture on the planet. As the races continued to evolve, we eventually arrived at the stage where we are today. Though the Spirit of Truth, as a result of Michael's bestowal, allows for the escape of individuals from the double default spiritually, the races must now proceed using largely human methods for race improvement. If we view the narration of the six evolutionary races without the context of the planetary rebellion and the Adamic default, it certainly appears that The Urantia Book is racist and is designed only for the white culture. However, careful study of the revelation yields that insight which shows that this is not the case. Is The Urantia Book racist? No! But the races are, no doubt due to the lack of adequate spirituality and subsequent lack of brotherly love. The revelators are forced to tell the story as it happened, not as it should have happened. Even so, they tell what the destiny of the race problem is. The races will eventually blend, and there will only be one race. In the meantime, we should pay attention to the reasons given for the evolution of different races having differing potentials for intellectual and spiritual receptivity. We are told in The Urantia Book that [r]evelation is evolutionary but always progressive. Down through the ages of a world's history, the revelations of religion are ever?expanding and successively more enlightening. It is the mission of revelation to sort and censor the successive religions of evolution. But if revelation is to exalt and upstep the religions of evolution, then must such divine visitations portray teachings which are not too far removed from the thought and reactions of the age in which they are presented. Thus must and does revelation always keep in touch with evolution. Always must the religion of revelation be limited by man's capacity of receptivity [1007:1]. But even with this being the case, it is not surprising that not all people who pick up this book and browse through or read it are prepared to assimilate its teachings. The test of spiritual readiness is the ability to comprehend and assimilate. In the final analysis, The Urantia Book as a divine
revelation must ultimately be validated by the faith of the individual.
While it is true that many historical facts can be verified from our own
records, there are many more that cannot, since these events occurred
before historical times, that is, before written records were in use.
I suppose a lot of the questions and doubts that we have concerning certain
aspects of the fifth epochal revelation are the unsuccessful worthy efforts
of the material mind to bypass the faith test. Like the concept of the
friendly universe, the creation of the six evolutionary races with varying
intellectual and spiritual capacities requires spiritual insight to discern
the loving hand of the Father at work.
Lately I've noticed that in this fast-paced minute-mind era of civilization it's easy to get carried away in the constant flow of senseless verbalizations. Thoughts and ideas constantly pinball around our brains, in search of bonus points and a direct hit to the oral cavity. And, if the lights happen to be flashing on contact, brilliance may occur. If, however, one's flappers are not in sync with ever-present opportunity, the mesh that ensues is, in effect, just that. But I've found if one searches for the perfect subconscious endeavor the chances of it being found in preponderance are greatly increased. And when this happens we move forward—in every direction. Let's hope that direction will now lead me to the topic of this article, and that is The Quality of Thought. Now some of you might think that thought—quality thought—is a strange subject, or even a difficult subject to discuss, but in reality, quality thinking is pretty simple. In The Urantia Book we read, 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 [910:1]. Although it may be the coming earthly goal, I think we should start working on it as soon as possible, and thank goodness, so do a few other individuals. Dr. Candace Pert and Dr. William Donaldson have recently built upon the combined research of a vast group of dedicated individuals. This list includes Jacques Monod who received the 1965 Nobel Prize in Physiology for his discoveries concerning molecular genetic mechanisms inside body cells; David Bohm, best known for his proofs of the interconnectivity of all matter, a condition he labeled the "implicate order"; and Neils Bohr, who believed that when atoms confront one another in some chemical exchange, they exchange electrons. (Dewey, 2001, http://www.eckerd.edu/ aspec/dewey.html) Through Pert's and Donaldson's research they have discovered something that is as important to modern man as the discovery of fire was to primitive man. I'm referring to the discovery of a way to photograph the tracks of a thought in three dimensions. This is known as "positron emission tomography". Our bodies are three-dimensional physical pictures of what we are thinking. The body knows what is happening to it, not just through the brain but in every one of the thirty to fifty trillion cells and neuro-transmitters which make up the human body. Neuro-transmitters are not thoughts, but they move with thought. In Max Planck's quantum theory of light, light can be considered as waves or as material particles known as photons. Light cannot be a wave and a particle at the same time. How a non-material wave becomes a material photon is still unknown, but it is called a quantum leap. "Thought" is non-material, but it can create material molecules, neuro-transmitters and neuro-peptides by a similar leap. Thought creates these neuro-transmitters and neuro-peptides. Now thought, mind, intelligence is non-material, yet it has found a way to work in partnership with these material molecules. The association is so close that the mind cannot project itself into the body without these messenger molecules. With every thought the DNA in the cells of the brain moves atoms of hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, and other elements to form neuro-transmitters—peptides. (Donaldson, 1991, http:// www.autogenic-therapy.org.uk/News003.pdf) What are these peptides? Molecules! Everything we see and touch is made up of molecules. So, simply: Thoughts create energy, energy creates mass, and mass creates reality. And in everything that is, there is divine energy, the spark of our inception from its source—divinity. From divinity there is creation: from thought alone. This is the image in which we are cast.
The road to spiritual idealism starts with quality thinking, but quality thinking usually starts with a simple question, such as "why?" Why this? or why that? And in the natural progression for thought it creatively expands to "what if"—and those "what ifs" are the building blocks of civilization. As civilization advances, those thoughts and ideas become ideals, and ideals are the true nourishment of quality thinking. Ideals are essential to the advancement of any civilized society. Now if we follow the outworking of creative thought, we will understand the outworking of quality thought, and how the sculptor must first see the completed form in the slab of marble before it is carved. He must visualize it in his mind before he begins to sculpt. And the architect who designed the building you sit in visualized it in his mind before it could be constructed. We too must follow this path of thought and deduce that this is the normal process of man's ability to create. We must first engage quality thought—creative thought—in order to conceive an idea before it can be put into form or action. The simplicity is baffling. All of man's reality, the reality witnessed by mind, must have been conceived by ultimate mind. Contained in that conception is the world of forms which Plato saw so clearly. The pattern of everything that could be is just waiting for our recognition and actualization of it. This is part of the grand scheme, and the impetus to dare us to conceive the recognition of form, and ultimately the source of all form. And it is only through quality thinking that this is possible. Now Zig Ziglar, or Tony Robbins for you younger readers, will charge you hundreds of dollars to tell you what I'm about to tell you for a lot less. And that is this: it all begins with the power of positive thinking. As you focus your thoughts and as you imbue them with the energy of good, the energy of God, those peptides or molecules become charged, or focused. Once charged they begin attracting other molecules of like frequency and the more you charge them with focus, the more the drawing power they have and just like magnets they begin pull together more similarly charged molecules and start to manifest in your visible reality. This is how you become a co-creator of your life experience. And as you think and do what ever it is you do, you are creating energy, and your energy signal is unique. You are the one who will experience the outpouring of that energy, be it negative or positive. So not only do your thoughts and actions create energy, so do your reactions. And it's all in your personal frequency. We've known about this for centuries, and refer to it as Karma—what goes around comes around. Herein lies the "positive thinking embryo": you create what you want; you find what you seek. The ultimate search is for our relation to God, and the consummation of, or the inception of, co-creation through free will: to choose to do the will of God. Another stepping-stone of quality thinking emerges in the recognition or understanding of our cosmic citizenship, the awareness and belief that we are potentially immortal. And it is our thoughts that construct the bridge that leads us to the immortality of cosmic citizenship. And like any bridge that carries us over an abyss, we hope experts made that bridge of the highest quality of materials. If not it may come crashing down from the weight of our vehicle. Our personal thoughts comprise those materials needed to build our daily bridges to spiritual immortality and quality thinking. We must try to remember that the highest quality of thinking is about the divine plan. Because most human thought is imperfect, we have a paradise partner to help adjust our thinking with that of perfect thought, God's thought, which always advances evolution. The Urantia Book says, The mind of man can attain high levels of spiritual insight and corresponding spheres of divinity of values because it is not wholly material. There is a spirit nucleus in the mind of man—the Adjuster of the divine presence [2094:5]. This is why all advancement begins with thought. We also think in patterns. Some patterns are of animal origin.
Animal origin thoughts preserve us so that we might survive and create
a soul. Our soul enables us to discover eternal thoughts and this in turn
leads us to spirit liberation, and true worship—the goal of quality
thinking. From self-consciousness to God-consciousness...what a concept! It says in The Urantia Book: Too often, all too often, you mar your minds by insincerity and sear them with unrighteousness; you subject them to animal fear and distort them by useless anxiety [103:5]. This is not quality thinking. The book clearly tells us: It is the motivating thought, the spiritual content, that validates the mortal supplication. Words are valueless [85:1]. This is what leads me to believe the spiritual content of thought emerges with the acceptance of our cosmic citizenship. I've also noticed that the building blocks of thought are a simple reflection of the Trinity. Father, Son, Spirit, equate to Thesis, Antithesis, Synthesis.
The formula of creative thought was set in motion at that moment: thesis, antithesis, synthesis. Where ideas or thoughts fail we discover that we didn't think it all the way through; we didn't consider the full swing or scope of our creation. This can be quite fun. To use an analogy, we have to finally accept that we are flying the plane of our thought; we choose whether to actually take off on what I refer to as a "speculation holiday". It is a speculation holiday of thesis, because once we take off, we have to fly it all the way to antithesis. Antithesis is where we have to refuel because its a long way back to synthesis. If you fail to make it to antithesis you may get stranded on a vacation from reality. You know those people. Quality thinking advances not only us personally, but also mankind as a whole. The Urantia Book says: The expansion of material knowledge permits a greater intellectual appreciation of the meanings of ideas and the values of ideals. A human being can find truth in his inner experience, but he needs a clear knowledge of facts to apply his personal discovery of truth to the ruthlessly practical demands of everyday life [1222:6]. In the end it is true that quality of thought can help us discover truth, the all-pervasive truth in one's development of quality of thinking. I had to ask myself to define my understanding of truth so I could recognize it. I asked God: Where is the truth we each seek to find, in the deeds of others or the deeds of the mind? Is knowledge the beginning or the end of the plane? Is each question the answer, each answer the door to a world of questions all answered before? Or is truth not a word or explanation, per se, but an extension of Deity that each man must weigh? If so, acceptance exerted oppresses fear, and the boundaries of infinity become increasingly near, as is all of nature, all of man, all possibility, all time in one span. It is with this personal understanding that I try to qualify my daily thoughts and attempt to highlight the ideals encased in those thoughts, and then work to put them to use in my everyday life. I can only I hope and pray that the situations I encounter and the decisions I make on the road to cosmic citizenship will always be weighed by the scales of The Quality of Thought. © 2002 Suzanne M. Kelly. Used by permission.
Enter the CONSTRUCTION ZONE OF THE SOUL, where hard hats are not necessary. The risk of falling debris is not a concern here. Indeed, we are called to open ourselves to the descending grace of Paradise. Here amidst the noise and confusion a still, small voice urges us to accept an offer of truth and mercy, to welcome deliveries of the highest grade building material in the universe. Progress on this personal project requires devotion to the choice of divine love. Paper 100, Religion in Human Experience, focuses on the experience of dynamic religious living [1094:1]. With concise language unheard prior to the gift of these revelations, it inspires us to break ground on the upright work of [s]piritual growth [1094:2]. When we devote reflective attention to these seven sublime sections, a sacred philosophy of living coalesces, stretching words beyond their role as intellectual transmitters: these teachings reveal practical techniques for perfection attainment. As we unfold this paper we find the blueprint for the construction of an eternal soul. Our draftsman, a wise Melchizedek, understands that we are brand new beings, and Section One discusses children and various project obstacles. Included is a pointed comment about being too busy to grow [1094:4], and an admonition: The chief inhibitors of growth are prejudice and ignorance [1094:4]. This cautionary advice targets negative thought patterns that limit soul expansion and threaten to disrupt construction. We are reminded early on that [g]rowth is not truly indicated by mere products but rather by progress [1094:5]. A building permit is freely granted, but progressive improvement in thought, word, and action assures job momentum. When less than supreme values [1094:5] trespass, we have recourse to our Project Manager, the Thought Adjuster, who may provide guidance if we sincerely pledge to live loyally today [1094:6] and cultivate the soil essential [1094:7] to our foundation. A normal consciousness of smallness, humility [1094:7] is a mandatory worksite attitude, along with self-criticism—conscience [1095:0]. Our parcel of land must first be cleared and leveled, surveyed for imperfections, and prepared for immortal improvements. The [r]eligious habits [1095:3] we need in our tool belt are listed in an inspiring inventory of ideal human behavior, capped by the keystone to doing the Father's will: living as in the presence of God [1095:3]. The First Source and Supervisor is on site, twenty-four-seven. The illustration continues in Section Two with a teaching directed to a soul builder's heart: Spiritual progress is predicated on intellectual recognition of spiritual poverty coupled with the self-consciousness of perfection-hunger, the desire to know God and be like him, the wholehearted purpose to do the will of the Father in heaven [1095:5]. In this we hear an echo of the truth embedded in the Beatitude, "Happy are the poor in spirit, the humble, for theirs are the treasures of the kingdom of heaven" [1570:4]. So as we prepare to pour the foundation, humility is addressed again—we must admit that we are spiritually ignorant, and disclose both willingness and desire to evolve. As Rodan said, Are we willing to be born again? to be remade? Are we willing to be subject to this terrible and testing process of self-destruction and soul reconstruction? [1782:1] The miracle of a sincere expression of smallness is that it signals an awakening to needs [1095:6], thus opening the soul's gate to awaiting grace. It also aids in our discernment of meanings [1095:6], and our discovery of values [1095:6]. The attentive Architect of Nebadon has drafted a plan that nurtures true spiritual development [1095:6], with circuitry that helps us become motivated by love, activated by unselfish ministry, and dominated by the wholehearted worship of the perfection ideals of divinity [1095:6]. These plans affirm that our goal of human self-realization should be spiritual, not material [1096:3]. And the eternal foundations upon which to build the immortal personality [1096:3] are clearly outlined, so we may adjust our space [1096:3] and time [1096:3] attitude to this perfection project. Jesus issues a profound surety [1096:4] bond which insures against the flood tides of human adversity, selfishness, cruelty, hate, malice, and jealousy [1096:4]. Of course, job safety is a concern, but spiritual attainment [1096:5] helps to overcome inevitable accidents as fondest ambitions perish [1096:5], and keenest hopes crash [1096:5]. Even cataclysms which wreck one's temporal creations [1096:5] come to be seen as minor scheduling setbacks. Section Three further charts our preliminary groundwork, laying in the useful utilities of meanings and values. These crucial intellectual concepts forge the decisions which determine progress. Our drive to meet deadlines, often given to emotional frustration [1096:7], must be balanced by quality control in our approach to labor, which is value [1096:8], and material, which has value [1096:8]. We must pursue growth of values, progress in meanings [1097:3], to ensure that an immortal soul is evolving [1097:3]. The last sentence of this section delivers a key construction component: Living faith [1097:4] is revealed as our sole contribution to growth [1097:4]. Faith is our crane, lifting us from material to spirit, the vertical bridge between intuitive longings and the eternal realities that lie beyond our senses. Mankind can never discover divinity except through the avenue of religious experience and by the exercise of true faith [1116:5]. The desire for growth must be coupled with the wholehearted faith that an unseen dimension of spirit is ever drawing toward us. It's the intellect granting that the heart can ultimately embrace more than the mind, the assurance of a child that the parent will lovingly guide it to maturity. Sections Four and Five outline more setbacks certain to be encountered: the schedule conflicts, the material shortcomings and labor disputes. It is useful here to recall that [a]ll forms of soul conflict consist in the lack of harmony between the moral, or spiritual, self-consciousness and the purely intellectual self-consciousness [1478:5]. As the foreman, we are given the task of unifying the soul powers of the personality [1097:7] (all systems, the sub-contractors of soul construction), through the dominance of LOVE [1097:7], which ensures [h]ealth, mental efficiency and happiness [1097:7]. This task demands all the management skills we can muster. The unselfish love of man [1098:1] effectively balances our egoistic motives and promotes cooperation with other workers—you understand your neighbor [1098:1], practicing tolerance [1098:1] and friendship [1098:1]. This recognition of true values, along with a broader perspective regarding perceived danger, aids us as we confront threats to progress. The benign virus of love [1098:3] is the perfect prescription for achieving full production, both on the job and with our global crew. We are further informed that although some projects may be fast-tracked via a sudden and spectacular conversion [1099:1], most of us will have to show up every day, obedient journeymen guided by spiritual meditation [1100:1] augmented by reflective worship and in the prayer of thanksgiving [1100:1]. The plan is coming together in Sections Six and Seven as we are shown the progress charts and architectural details: unquestioning loyalty and wholehearted devotion to supreme values [1100:3], which eventuate in nobility and grandeur [1100:5]. And a certain sign of soul maturity shows up in a key structural notation: The self has surrendered [1100:6]-we can dismantle the ego's safety scaffolding! As a builder, we have learned that evolving from raw material to perfected living requires character traits such as increasing patience, forbearance, fortitude, and tolerance [1100:6]. We are passing inspections as we exhibit sublime peace [1101:1] and cosmic poise [1101:1], attain spiritual stability [1101:1], and become immune to disappointment [1101:1]. We've actively acquired security, associated with the realization of triumphing glory [1101:2]. Our new loyalties of enlarged spiritual vision [1101:3] are leading directly to new levels of love and devotion, of service and fellowship [1101:3] and an enlarged consciousness of the Fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man [1101:3]. It's becoming clear that due to increased bestowals of divine wisdom and cosmic insight [1101:4], the construction of the soul is nearing completion. Finally we are shown the Acme, the exquisite rendering of the material creation, the mortal personification of deity, the rarest of the rare: a divine human. Although these plans include a gentle disclaimer regarding the limitations of the flesh, we are encouraged to begin developing a strong and unified personality along the perfected lines [1101:5] of the Master Blueprint. The striking aspect of this fully detailed vision of the consummate creation is not its holiness, but its high degree of humanness. Jesus displayed kindness [1101:6], strength of character [1101:6]; he was sincere [1101:6], genuine [1101:6]; he lived the truth [1101:6]; he was so reasonable [1101:7], practical [1101:7]; he had common sense [1101:7]; he exhibited discrimination [1101:7]; he was well-poised [1102:1]; expressed enthusiasm [1102:1]; he was emotionally active [1102:1], imaginative [1102:1], courageous [1102:1], prudent [1102:1], sympathetic [1102:1], pious [1102:1]; he displayed originality [1102:2] and confidence [1102:1]; "[h]e trusted God" [1102:4]; he had faith [1102:4], and he loved [1102:5]; he was cheerful [1102:6], considerate [1102:6], generous [1102:7], candid [1102:8], friendly [1102:8], fair [1102:8], dedicated [1102:9]; he shared his optimism [1102:9]; he was gladsome [1103:1]; he showed patience [1103:2], composure [1103:2], bravery [1103:3], discretion [1103:3], reason [1103:3], reverence [1103:4]; he was respectful [1103:4], great [1103:5], good [1103:5], gentle and unassuming [1103:5]. It's a long list of quality attributes, but they are, every one, human attributes. We cannot aspire in this life to Jesus' divine characteristics, but the astonishing achievement of his perfectly unified personality [1103:6] was that he so fully embodied such high levels of these purely human qualities. And if any sincere soul developer will ask, [H]e enters the human mind to elevate, transform, and transfigure it [1103:6]. The plans reveal that a kingdom construction worker can actually absorb his Architect and thus render a new creature [1103:6]. The keen eye of a contemplative craftsman will wisely note
that Jesus was also indignant at evil, intolerant
of sin [1103:2]. Such decisional blemishes are depicted as the
rotting timbers by the incarnate carpenter in an unusually straightforward
parable concerning our personal project: "Let
every man make sure that the intellectual and moral foundations of character
are such as will adequately support the superstructure of the enlarging
and ennobling spiritual nature, which is thus to transform the mortal
mind and then, in association with that re-created mind, is to achieve
the evolvement of the soul of immortal destiny" [1738:1].
It's clear that honest self-assessment is a required phase in this process,
while adjuster-guided choices, moral judgment, and evaluation serve to
promote spiritual insight (2094:9-2095:1). There are subtle influences,
both within and without, tempting us to deviate from the approved plans
and utilize sub-standard methods.
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