The Urantia Book Fellowship
Annual Report of the Education Committee
July 2003
As a whole, the Education Committee was quiet for much of 2002, although a great deal of the educational labor for The Urantia Book Fellowship was superbly handled by the special committee and designated presenters who created the outstanding International Conference in Estes Park. Throughout the past year, however, many of the individual Education Committee members performed services in a variety of ways: they contributed to The Fellowship’s publications, The Mighty Messenger and The Herald; helped produce retreats for their local Societies; and presented at regional conferences--such as at the “Joyous Living” weekend last month in Los Angeles (sponsored by The School for Meanings and Values). Our Committee members have also been collaborating with The Fellowship’s Public Relations-Book Marketing Team, which will have a significant presence at this year’s Summer Study Session.
In 2003, despite limited funding, an effort to revitalize the Wrightwood Seminar has begun. The current Wrightwood group’s goal is to develop a program on the subject of “family”. The outcome of this study will be to produce a Urantia Book-based interfaith, public-outreach presentation that embraces the ideals and values of family in the broadest context. The product could then be a centerpiece for Summer Study 2004, especially if we select an interfaith-friendly environment. This will allow The Fellowship another public venue for presenting key common teachings from TUB and the life of Jesus. After all, what could be more universally appealing than the ideals and values of family?
This summer, The Education Committee, primarily at my urging, has tackled a challenging and perplexing subject for this year’s Summer Study Session. Under the general heading of “Revelation and the Religionist”, we will focus on exploring the distinctions between socialized (even institutionalized) religions that evolve from sacred texts (or divine mandates) and the challenges that each of us as individual, truth-seeking religionists must face when belief encounters incongruent facts, and faith confronts doubt.
Jesus tells us: “There is but one struggle for those who enter the kingdom, and that is to fight the good fight of faith. The believer has only one battle, and that is against doubt -- unbelief.” 159:3.8
At this time, it appears to me that there are a number of relevant issues:
1. Recent discoveries of significant “human source” authors along with their source documents;
2. Recognition that some of the “facts” stated in The Urantia Papers (“which constitute the most recent presentation of truth to the mortals of Urantia”) may be “in need of revision”;
3. Public promotion of The Urantia Book by various groups and organizations, which seek to gain a wider audience and foster social acceptance of the book and its teachings;
4. Preparations by reader-believers to handle potentially greater and more critical social, academic, secular and theological scrutiny of the book; and
5. Controversy within the Urantia “movement” about unity and organizational purposes.
Will these factors coincide to meaningfully challenge Urantia Book reader-believers? Could The Urantia Book “movement” be soon facing something akin to a “Crisis at Capernaum”?
Should this be the case, regarding The Urantia Book, can we rely on the following statement from Jesus’ Epochal Sermon?
153:2.11 …“Let us be patient; the truth never suffers from honest examination. I am all that you say but more.”
One of the desired outcomes of this summer’s study session is to evaluate and put the human source information in perspective, such that dedicated Urantian religionists may go forward with interfaith efforts and public outreach presentations with a deeper understanding of the evolutionary underpinnings of The Urantia Book, rather than naively portray it as a totally divine and perfect document.
Jesus, in speaking with Nathaniel about the veracity of any sacred scripture stated:
159:4.8 “Mark you well my words, Nathaniel, nothing which human nature has touched can be regarded as infallible. Through the mind of man divine truth may indeed shine forth, but always of relative purity and partial divinity. The creature may crave infallibility, but only the Creators possess it.”
The Summer Study Session in 2004 will focus more on “taking it to the streets”, therefore we are planning to have the next Session in a favorable interfaith-oriented community, such as Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Your thoughts on this report and on any other ideas related to education are positively welcomed. My email address is: smith606@pacbell.net
Sincerely,
Lee Smith
Education Committee Chairperson