DATE: July 1, 11997
TO: Triennial Delegates and Alternates, and General Councilors
From: Carolyn Kendall, Delegate, First Society, Chicago
Re: Report of Education Committee to 1997 TDA and General Council
I found several points in the report concerning the history of the Urantia Brotherhood School that beg for clarification or correction, First, it should be pointed out that not just "the original Brotherhood constitution" but also the present Fellowship consitution charges the Education Committee to "find, prepare, and qualify teachers of The Urantia Book."1) In the committee report, the "teaching materials prepared by these early enthusiasts" which were used to train teachers are viewed as "shockingly provincial." It was impressed upon the early students that The Urantia Book is a complex, structured, many-faceted system of revelatory truth and evolutionary fact. It has been likened to a symphany, a gigantic puzzle, or a multi-layered social, intellectual and spiritual enterprise.
Rather than "examining paragraphs" which the teacher or students would then "summarize...in one's own words," special care was taken NOT to establish official interpretations. The intent was to draw attention to the basic and unique concepts of The Urantia Book, as well as to its doctrines and theology, by stating a concept as a "proposition" and supporting it with appropriate quotations.
2) The faculty of the school was trained for two years, at the end of which time they were presented with the title of Ordained Teacher. Seven of these 10 long-time students were professional educators. Five out-of-town long-time students were also bestowed with honorary Ordained Teacher Status.
The report understates the number of persons who graduated from the School, saying "at least two readers eventually graduated." The school began with 71 students and auditors in 1955 on Wednesday evenings, and continued with an average of 30 students and 20 auditors each year. At the end of a three-year course one received a Certified Leader award. At least 20 persons were certified. As many as 10, and possibly 13, went on to complete the Ordained Teacher program.
The courses were tough. One was expected to attend all classes, study, do research, pass written examinatiions and assume teaching responsibilites in one's local study group. Courses included educational psychology and public speaking. By the early 1970s, they ran out of people who could devote themselves to the rigorous program, and the School ceased to exist in that format. It continued for a few more years as a ncn-credit Wednesday evening program.
3) The Lake Michigan beachfront property mentioned in the report had been purchased by the Sadlers in Beverly Shores, Indiana with the intent of becoming a teacher training facility, It was soon realized that the only people who could devote sufficient time would be teachers on summer vacation, the retired, or the unemployed. They hosted many summer picnics at the lodge, but it was never used by the Brotherhood School, nor for any study sessions.
4) The "Speakers' Bureau" cited in the report was an outline devised bv the Fraternal Relations Committee to guide anyone who might in the future be invited to a group to speak about The Urantia Book.