Fellowship Admin

Outreach Committee Report July 2007

 

Expo’s and Other Events:

 

Bringing our booth to the Expo's has proven to be a valuable means to share the book, and we will continue with this effort. Thousands of individuals have been introduced to the revelation thanks to the many volunteers who so tirelessly dedicate their time to this work.

 

This past year I have been exploring new ways to spread the revelation through the work of the Outreach Committee.  I ponder what would be possible if we found other new, and equally valuable, means of sharing the Urantia Book.

 

In addition to the Expo's in New York, Los Angeles and other cities, we sponsored a booth in Montreal Canada at the 32nd Annual Int’l Conference of the International Institute of Integral Human Sciences (IIIHS), a non-governmental organization affiliated with the United Nations Department of Public Information. Their mission is founded on the promotion of global inter-religious and inter-cultural understanding, and for the convergence of science, spirituality and universal human values. Many thanks to Diane Labrecque for manning the booth and sharing with so many at the conference. Her observation that many of the presenters, including Fred Allen Wolf, were readers of the UB was most encouraging. The revelational influences of the Urantia Book are making a difference on the planet and it is not going unnoticed.

 

We were accepted to speak at the Christian based, Women in Spirituality Conference in Mankato, Minnesota this October. Christina Seaborn and Jo Ann Wiedman will be presenting a talk entitled "Discovering the Universe Mother Spirit". It is encouraging to be invited to participate in new venues that we may have been excluded from in the past. For more information about the conference contact Christina at: seaborn@cloudnet.com

 

Campus Outreach Booth:

 

I met with Don Green and his dedicated volunteers in the Boulder area and visited the campus Urantia Book booth at Colorado State University. I enjoyed manning the booth with Don and spoke with many students about their spiritual lives. The booth is set up twice a week. Don also reported that he was invited by a professor to give a 2 hour talk to CSU philosophy students. Chris Halverson presented the talk and did such an impressive job that it looks like new doors may open up including speaking to the entire religious faculty at the university. Great work Don and Chris!

 

We have been discussing and are open to the possibility of replicating Don’s work on other campuses. We will help any interested person or group start a Campus Ministry at a college or university in their area.

 

The Study Group Directory:

 

This year Bobbie Drier worked with David Kantor to get the technical details of listing study groups simplified. Instead of a two step process, she can now enter the study group details for a new group, or make other changes, and they go "live" to the website. Be sure to visit the site if you haven’t already: http://urantiabook.org/study_groups/domestic_study_groups.htm   

 

Bobbie says: “I get an average of two requests a month for new groups, a few requests for updates to information, and a rare request to be unlisted.  Most requests are coming via our website, and my observation is that there is a renewal of interest among formerly disaffected readers. There are approximately 330 North American study groups listed. I have a few committee members who help me with canvassing the states to update the information, but the directory is not completely updated yet.”

 

The Study Group directory will also list other regular activities where the Urantia Book is presented such as a Cosmic Café discussion group.  Send your information to Bobbie at:  bdreier@earthlink.net

 

Again this year, Larry and Donna Whelan helped our outreach efforts with their Spiritual Vitamins. They are available to anyone who wants them for outreach. Spiritual Vitamins are an effective and fun way to get a conversation started or just plant a seed of truth. Please contact Larry at lwhelan@sbcglobal.net for more information.

 

The Cosmic Café continues to grow with an ever increasing interest. This venue provides an excellent opportunity for those who wish to gain experience in sharing the Revelation.  Thanks to Aurora Hill at aurora2810@aol.com  for supplying CC information packets.  

 

Anyone who has skills or an interest in assisting with any of the above projects please contact myself or another Outreach Committee member.

 

In Loving Service,

 

Thomas Orjala – Chair tomo@imbris.net

 

Jo Ann Wiedman – Secretary joawiedman@yahoo.com

Bobbie Dreier – Member bdreier@earthlink.net

Mary Jo Garascia – Member pilgrim_mj@yahoo.com

Aurora Hill – Adjunct  aurora2810@aol.com

Don Green – Adjunct  dsgreen@comcast.net