Historic Timeline of Events in the Urantia Community
Index to historic documents according to date
Compiled from varied sources by David Kantor
This document is the work of the author and should not be mistaken for an "official" history. Neither should any views expressed herein be mistaken for those of any organization or individual other than the author.
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See also:
- The
Sherman Diaries
- Compiled and edited by Saskia Praamsma and Matthew Block
- A History of the Urantia Papers
- by Larry Mullins
This timeline shows a wide range of events, many of which have been a source of embarrassment to sincere readers. Many readers wonder why we have not been more successful in manifesting the high ideals contained in the teachings of The Urantia Book in our social affairs.
I would like to offer the view that what this history shows is a dynamic, growing, vital readership which has boldly experimented with multiple approaches to introducing the Urantia Book to a distracted world. In addition, this readership has repeatedly resisted the spin-off of cults, generally recognized and steered clear of charismatic individuals and charlatans who see the readership as an unled flock just waiting for the appearance of a shepherd, kept from slipping into an overly-conservative, dogmatic doctrinaire position relative to the text, successfully resisted the efforts of organizations which have spent millions of dollars trying to shape this emerging religious movement after their own designs -- these are indicators of extreme vigor amongst the readership. If you know anything about the evolution of religious movements, this colorful history should not surprise you. It is not likely that something as psychologically, spiritually, and socially powerful as The Urantia Book could be dropped into the planetary thought-stream without creating a lot of turbulence. If it didn't, I don't suppose it would be worth much more than its weight in paper at the recycling center.
This timeline of the events related to the appearance of The Urantia Book in 1955 must be considered a work in progress. Corrections and additions are actively solicited. The objective is to some day have a timeline in which each entry is linked to a supporting document. These documents are presently being actively sought, acquired and digitized. The student of this history should also be aware that there appear to be serious discrepancies between the stories which characterize this "history" and current research being done on the sources of The Urantia Book. For further information on this see Some Human Sources for Materials Contained in The Urantia Book, Matthew Block, 1994; See also, examples of source materials.
There are many apocryphal stories surrounding the development and publication of the text, many of which appear to be much more related to metaphysical fantasy than to reality. I have therefore not included items for which no basis can be found outside of rumor and conjecture. Additional difficulty in determining the sequence and timing of events results from the secrecy required of the Forum during the years the Papers were being received and reviewed.
This timeline attempts to depict known events. It is drawn from many sources. Events which have no source other than the personal recollections of individuals are color-coded dark green. I have included only those events for which multiple anecdotal sources are in relative agreement. These stories often have different dates for their purported occurence; every attempt continues to be made to properly fit these puzzle pieces together.
Editorial comments appear in burgundy and are to be taken as interpretations and opinions of the author.
Please send all corrections, additions and copies of supporting documentation to sysop@urantia-book.org. Items noted herein as speculative will not be changed unless documentation is provided. Any additions must also be accompanied by appropriate documentation.
For a quick overview see
"How the Urantia Book Came Into
Existence" by Bill Sadler
There is also a short document titled, "A
History of The Urantia Movement" consisting
of notes regarded as written by Dr. William S. Sadler.
Sources:
1. Handwritten notes in margins of
Marian Rowley's "Official History" of 1960
2. Notes for a history of The Urantia
Movement believed to be written by Dr. Sadler
3. Misc. documents and correspondence
on file, author's personal notes -- additional verification is being sought
for some of these items
4. Copy of signed, notarized document
on file
5. Newsletters of Urantia Brotherhood
6. Newsletters of Urantia Foundation
7. Martin Gardner, "Urantia:
The Great Cult Mystery"
8. Dan Massey, "Synopsis of Adventist
Connections," unpublished manuscript
9. Dr. William S. Sadler, "The
Mind at Mischief"
10. Correspondence with Emma L. Christensen
11. Program from Memorial Service
12. Personal correspondence with founder
13. Personal correspondence with manager
of BOM library
14. An assessment made on the basis
of reviewing a substantial volume of email and readership correspondence during
the period.
15. Server logs, University of Arkansas
16. Legal documents on file
17. Server logs, Ubook.org
18. Copy of book review on file
19. Executive Committee correspondence
and meeting minutes on file
20. Promotional materials from the
Chautauqua Managers Association
21. Documents related to sealed depositions
on file
22. From a video tape of the meeting
23. Personal interview with Bud Kagan
24. Urantia Foundation's Special Report
of April 1990
25. Memoirs of Carolyn Kendall
26. John Lange interview with Bill
and Mary Lou Hales, 1992
27. Urantia Foundation's supplemental
answers to interogatories, October 1994
28. Notes from the historical archive
of the First Urantia Society of Oklahoma
29. Tom and Carolyn Kendall's response
to Urantia Foundation's 1990 Special Report
30. The research of Ernest Moyer
31. Notes of Ken Raveill
32. "The Kelloggs in the New World"