Copies to some people Bill’s memo went to

TO: John Hales, President of Urantia Brotherhood
Members of the executive Committee
Thomas A. Kendall, President, Urantia Foundation
Members of the Board of Trustees and Administrative Assistants

FROM: William M. Hales, General Councilor, Urantia Brotherhood

RE: The Slide-tape Presentation, “A History of the Urantia Movement”

DATE: November 18^th, 1980

This memorandum is being directed to the same people who received the April 18^th, 1980 memorandum from the Chairman of the Publications Committee.

The spirit in which this memo is written is to present another viewpoint on the rationale in regard to the slide-tape presentation, “A History of the Urantia Movement”.

Since I was unable to be at the June Midwest Conference, or at the August Workshops, my first opportunity to see it was at the First Urantia Society showing October 12^th.

Based on what this slide-tape’s aim is, I thought it was very good; my suggestion would be to not show the empty second floor meeting room at 533 and only show one slide of the 533 building.

Showing a slide of the empty second floor meeting room gives an aura of making it appear to be a shrine; the same is true somewhat in showing more than one slide of the building.

The slide of a head portrait of Jesus, I believe, should definitely be omitted, so as not to crystallize in the mind of the reader of The Urantia Book, an image of Jesus which the reader might have formed differently as the result of reading the Jesus papers.

I suppose if the authors of the Urantia manuscripts wanted illustrations in The Urantia Book, they would have had a way to accomplish it.

Using a traditional picture of Jesus could spoil a reader’s own concept from his reading.

The narration for the slides was very good; well done. However, I would like to suggest, if there were to be “A History of the Urantia Movement” it would not start earlier than the date of the creation of the Urantia Foundation, January 11^th, 1950, nor refer to anything previous to that date.

Quoting from the Declaration of Trust:

KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS, That Whereas, there has been written a manuscript of a book entitled “THE Urantia BOOK”, and there have been produced from this manuscript approximately two thousand two hundred (2,200) nickel-plated stereotype plates of patent base thickness for the printing and reproduction of such book; and…

Whereas, certain persons, hereinafter referred to as the “Contributors”, being desirous that a foundation be created for the objects herein expressed to be known as “Urantia FOUNDATION”, have contributed certain funds to that end, and said funds have been expended for the production of said plates for the printing and reproduction of THE Urantia BOOK; and…

Whereas, the Contributors, being desirous that their identity remain unknown in order that the creation of such foundation shall have no limitations by reason of its association with their names, coincident with the execution of this Declaration of Trust and with full knowledge and in consideration thereof, have caused their nominees to deliver and turn over to the undersigned the said plates for the printing and reproduction of THE Urantia BOOK, to be held in trust to make possible the accomplishment and fulfillment of such desires and to carry out and perpetuate the objects herein expressed; and…

The Urantia Brotherhood was founded January 21^st, 1955. The Constitution of the Urantia Brotherhood opens up with:

PREAMBLE TO CONSTITUTION OF THE Urantia BROTHERHOOD

Inasmuch as it is our most solemn conviction that the comfort, happiness, and well-being of Man will be enhanced by the creation of an organization devoted t the purposes hereinafter expressed, and inasmuch as it is our considered judgment that the purposes hereinafter expressed may best be accomplished through the mutual assistance and association of a body of people working together for a common cause, we do hereby unite together as a voluntary association and fellowship under the name of Urantia BROTHERHOOD, and we do hereby adopt and establish this CONSTITUTION OF Urantia BROTHERHOOD.”

“CONSTITUTION OF THE Urantia BEROTHERHOOD

ARTICLE I

NAME

The name of this Fellowship shall be Urantia BROTHERHOOD.

ARTICLE II

PURPOSES

The purpose of Urantia BROTHERHOOD are the study and dissemination of the teachings of the Urantia Book; the promotion, improvement, and expansion among the peoples of the world of the comprehension and understanding of Cosmology and the relation of the planet on which we live to the Universe, of the genesis and destiny of Man and his relation to God, and of the teachings of Jesus Christ; and the inculcation and encouragement of the realization and appreciation of the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man – in order to increase and enhance the comfort, happiness. And well-being of Man, as an individual and as a member of society, by fostering a religion, a philosophy, and a cosmology which are commensurate with Man’s intellectual and cultural development, through the medium of fraternal association, ever obedient and subservient to the laws of this country and all countries wherein Urantia BROTHERHOOD may extend.

ARTICLE III

COMPOSITION

Urantia BROTHERHOOD shall be composed of members associated together for the purposes expressed in this Constitution into local societies…The first President of the Urantia Brotherhood was one of the leaders of the Forum. He directed certain memoranda to the members of the Executive Committee for the first meetings of the Executive Committee of the Urantia Brotherhood. He captioned the memoranda as follows:

“COMPILED BY: Certain Members of the General Council of Urantia Brotherhood.

For: The files of the Executive Committee of the Urantia Brotherhood.”

“PRESENTED” (Here was the date of the meeting for which each memo was presented in 1955: March 7^th, April 4^th, one memo sent prior to the May meeting; and one for the May 2^nd meeting.)

Notice that these memos were “for the Executive Committee Files.” This means only for that committee and not to be used in any other way which would include not for a narrative in a slide presentation of “A History of the Urantia Movement”, which is intended to be widely shown down through the ages.

(In the Chairman of the Publications Committee’s memo of April 18^th, 1980, Pages 3 and 4, it is stated that extensive material is used from these memos.)

“3. The test of trust and confidence. Here I can speak only for myself. I have always had trust in this group. The past four months have given me a newly factual basis for confidence.

4. The test of trustworthiness. In considering the future challenge of the test of trustworthiness, I find that my heart is troubled by the frailties of human nature. This concern does not extend to the immediate group of those who are concerned with the furtherance of the Brotherhood. But it does extend to the more peripheral members of the Forum.

It is hard to keep a secret. It is so difficult to avoid the transient ego satisfaction of betraying the possession of esoteric information. Not all of those interested have proved trustworthy secret keepers in the past. I have no confidence that the future will be different from the past.

Let us then examine the several problems arising out of the probably untrustworthiness of some of our interested friends. Let us collectively consider how first to minimize and then to mitigate these indiscretions.

The Origin of the Book. As of this writing, it seems likely that those who are concerned with the origin of the Book will cause to be prepared a simple citation of the passages in the Book itself which comment on origin. It is my recommendation that we stand on these statements and go no further. It is my further recommendation that we blast as unfactual any other statements, which may be made by any person.

Discussions about the Forum. The papers are dated in the middle of the 1930’s. It would seem to me quite fitting and proper to disclose the existence of the past twenty years, during which we studied the papers and during which funds for their publication were accumulated. Any further discussions could well impinge on untrustworthiness.”

If there is no official history, we can ignore or “blast” any “unofficial” one as unfactual.

On Page 3 of the April 18^th, 1980 memo from the Chairman of the Publications Committee, item “4” under “Text” it is stated:

“This memo (April 4^th, 1955) provided all of the material found on Page 21, Par. 4 through Page 2…”

On Page 4 under “5) Re: The President’s Memo of May 2^nd, 1955: this memo provided all the material found on Page 9” (of the history narrative). “Some Considerations of Criticism of Urantia Book by Dr. S. drew upon this material and was distributed widely for many years.”

These memos “for the Executive Committee Files” were not, to my knowledge, distributed to the General Councilors, however, if so, the General Councilors should be governed by the same degree of confidentiality as the member of the Executive Committee.

In the President’s memo presented to the May 5^th, 1955 Executive Committee meeting is the following:

Our particular mission is to function effectively through this transitional period which is witnessing the materialization of the Book and which will lead to those future times when the social activities of Urantia believers will begin to function in the more formal organization of the Brotherhood. To do this effectively we must meet the test of trust and confidence.

Soon we are to encounter the test of trustworthiness. Do we have confidential capacity? Can we carry secrets, if necessary, to our graves? Again and again, when special experiences occurred in the work of Jesus and the twelve, he solemnly enjoined them, ‘See that you tell no man.’ This pertains especially to the question of the origin of the Book.

It is high time that we begin the rehearsal of our attitude as it is to be manifested at the time of the publication of the Book. We as individuals and as a group are concerned only with the teachings of the Book. The origin of the Book is the concern of others. We have been instructed to remain silent concerning aught we may chance to know about the origin of The Urantia Book throughout the remainder of our lives.

We can really forecast very little about the reaction of the present generation to the teachings of The Urantia Book. But on the negative side, we can greatly lessen our persecution and ridicule by a reasonable exercise of foresight and wisdom. Our troubles will be greatly lessened if we avoid all discussion of the origin of the Book. We should be determined to know but one thing – the soul-surviving message of the Book.”

Information about the Forum which some of the Forum members may have failed to keep in confidence, either orally or in publication, should not be circulated. Where perhaps the children of some of the Forum members have had access to Forum information in their parents’ files, it should be recognized that, in deference to the promise of confidentiality given by their parents, such confidentiality should be observed by their children as loving tribute to their parents.

It is presumed that where children have used such material, it is done so inadvertently, not realizing it was “confidential” to their parents.

Because material from the Executive Committee Files (which is only for the officers and members of the Executive Committee; or perhaps on request by a General Councilor in a confidential way) may have been used in the past, -- this does not justify it being included in a slide-type presentation, “A History of the Urantia Movement.”

The name of the leader of the Forum, or picture, should not be part of any history. The leader was not ever an officer of the Urantia Foundation nor of the Urantia Brotherhood. His identity should be kept, along with the origin, unpublished.

In three or four generations, no one will be interested in this period of the Forum.

Is a “history” necessary or important to the success of the movement?

The following is quoted from the President’s Triennial Report (1955-1957):

“I. INTRODUCTION; THE FIRST THREE YEARS

This is the first Triennial Report to be made by the chief executive officer of Urantia Brotherhood to the chief legislative body of Urantia Brotherhood.

This report will attempt to review the accomplishments of the Brotherhood from its beginnings, some three years and a few weeks ago, to date. This is an historic period of considerable moment in the evolution of religion on this planet. Never before has a group of human beings organized themselves by deliberate action into a social vehicle for the promotion of religious truth. Previous religio-social organizations – the churches – have come into being more or less gradually and unintentionally; they were not founded with founded with conscious intent and purposeful design. The churches came into being through the slow evolution of customs, precedents traditions, rituals, and observances. This type of growth is in sharp contrast to that of the Brotherhood, which suddenly came into existence when its Constitution was signed by thirty-six founders.

This Brotherhood was brought into being by a group of individuals who have (or should have) historic insight into the planetary significance of their actions. Because of this, the founders and administrators of the Brotherhood should be capable of showing a type of mature wisdom far surpassing, that which has characterized the actions of any of their predecessors in the field of religion. Our predecessors little understood what they were doing as their day-by-day actions culminated in the appearance of the historic churches of Urantia. But our knowledge of the past should give us a much greater degree of insight into the meaning of our day-by-day actions – actions which will eventually bring the Brotherhood into full being.”

Another quote from this report:

“II. COMPLETION OF ADMINISTRATIVE MACHINERY

Like the supreme seraphim of local universe service, the Brotherhood has evolved from the top downward. Here again, we are unlike any of our predecessor groups. We started out with a written Constitution, the signing of which brought the Brotherhood into being. This was done some ten months before the publication of the Book, and about a year and a half before the chartering of the first local society. Other religious groups have started with teachers and writings, and have grown from there to embrace congregations, which eventually possessed themselves of written constitutions, or the equivalent. In our caser, the process was reversed: We started out with a Constitution at the top of the organization and have proceeded from there to build the understructure.”

And further it says:

“VII. A BROTHERHOOD – NOT A CHURCH, OR A SECT

“What is the Urantia Brotherhood? Another sect?” This question has been put to the writer of this report more than once. To this question, a negative answer has always been given, ‘No, the Urantia Brotherhood is neither a church nor a sect. It is simply a social group which has a religious objective.”

Then:

“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:

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.

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.

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.”

These quotes suggest that we are different than existing institutions, which are “man made” and steeped in the traditional practices of such.

Therefore, do we need to emulate secular organizations; i.e. regarding having a history?

In regard to the sentence in the last quotation under:

“3. The Brotherhood is designed to promote the Book and the Book is designed to bring God and man closer to each other.”

Shouldn’t all of our energy, both as individuals and a group, as time goes on be concentrated on the present and the future, exclusively for the dissemination of the teachings of The Urantia Book?

Shouldn’t all our monetary resources also be so dedicated?”

Does a “history” contribute to the dissemination of the teachings of The Urantia Book, the Fifth Epochal Revelation?

There will never be enough funds to do, for these ends, what could be done.

The following is a quote from the first President’s memo, April 4^th, 1955, to the Executive Committee for its files:

“We must learn to possess our souls in patience. We are in association with a revelation of truth, which is a part of the natural evolution of religion on this world. Over-rapid growth would be suicidal. The Book is being given to those who are ready for it long before the day of its worldwide mission. Thousands of study groups must be brought into existence and the Book must be translated into many tongues. Thus will the Book be in readiness to comfort and enlighten the peoples of many languages, when the battle for man’s liberty is finally won, and the world is once more made safe for the religion of Jesus and the freedom of mankind.”

How long will it take to bring “thousands of study groups” into existence, and “the Book translated into many tongues”

In the meantime, wouldn’t more and more manpower and more and more money be expended to keep a “history” up-to-date, as well as to show it to many societies and conferences at far distance geographical location; travel expense, cost of duplicate copies, storage space required, etc? Wouldn’t this be a diversion of effort and expense?

As was stated at the beginning of this memorandum, the spirit of it is to express the concern of one who was a member of the Forum for 25 years, (1930 to 1955); I which such association the leaders of the Forum cautioned all to treat their experiences in secrecy and confidentiality.

I have been a General Councilor for over 25 years (1955 – currently), and was on the Executive Committee for 14 years (1955 – 1969). The make-up of the Urantia Brotherhood Officers, Executive Committee and General Councilors at the outset were all Forum members, and so the beginnings of such important service was a time of being aware of treating the knowledge of the origin as confidential information.

The opening paragraph of the Declaration sets forth the fact the “contributors” (which were the Forum members) identity was not to be revealed.

The leader of the Forum warned all of the potential and of the eventual attacks which would be made against The Urantia Book, and the Urantia Brotherhood and movement by those religions which felt their power threatened, i.e., the Catholic church and others. If there is no official history, and other unofficial one can be ignored and disowned.

There will be no targets (Forum people) for another religion (which feels threatened) to go all out to discredit the Urantia teachings in order to destroy or cause trouble to the Urantia movement.

Shouldn’t we avoid making any unnecessary waves, which may in the future rock the boat and cause more rough passage than necessary to attain the goals of The Urantia Book teachings?

William Hales
General Councilor
Urantia Brotherhood

A Service of
The Urantia Book Fellowship