Meredith Sprunger's Synopsis of The Urantia Book
Synopsis of Paper 36
THE LIFE CARRIERS
1. The Life Carriers are the offspring of three pre‑existent personalities: the Creator Son, the Universe Mother Spirit, and by designation, one of the three Ancients of Days presiding over the destinies of the superuniverse concerned... They are directed by the life‑determining trio, consisting of Gabriel, the Father Melchizedek, and Nambia, the original arid first‑born Life Carrier of Nebadon. But in all phases of their divisional administration they are self‑governing.
2. When an evolutionary planet is finally settled in light and life, the Life Carriers are organized into the higher deliberative bodies of advisory capacity to assist in the further administration and. development of the world and its glorified beings. In the later and settled ages of an evolutionary universe these Life Carrier are intrusted with many new duties.
3. The number ten—the decimal system—is inherent in the physical universe but not in the spiritual. The domain of life is characterized by three, seven, and twelve or by multiples and combinations of these basic numbers...The Orvonton life patterns are configured as twelve inheritance carriers. The differing orders of will creatures are configured as 12, 24, 48, 96, 192, 384, and. 768. On Urantia there are forty eight units of pattern control—trait determiners —in the sex cells of human reproduction.
4. There are over one million fundamental or cosmic chemical formulas which constitute the parent patterns and the numerous basic functional variations of life manifestations...the Life Carriers and all their associates collaborate with the Melchizedeks in the effort to modify and. possibly improve the life designed for implantation on the decimal planets of Nebadon…Urantia is a decimal planet, a life‑experiment world. On one world in each ten a greater variance in the standard life designs is permitted than on the other (nonexperimental) worlds.
5. On planets such as yours the highest form of life is reproduced by a life‑carrying bundle which possesses twenty‑four pattern units. (And since the intellectual life grows out of, and upon the foundation of, the physical, there come into existence the four and twenty basic orders of psychic organization.)
6. The manifold by‑products of biologic evolution are all essential to the final and full function of the higher intelligent forms of life, notwithstanding that great outward disharmony may prevail from time to time in the long upward struggle of the higher creatures to effect the mastery of the lower forms of life, many of which are sometimes so antagonistic to the peace and comfort of the evolving will creatures.
7. The capacity of material creatures to effect spirit response is entirely dependent on the associated mind endowment, which, in turn, has direct ionized the course of the biologic evolution of these same mortal creatures.
8. Life does not spontaneously appear in the universes; the Life Carriers must initiate it on the barren planets. They are the carriers, disseminators, and guardians of life as it appears on the evolutionary worlds of space...The Life Carriers often carry actual life plasm to a new world, but not always. They sometimes organize the life patterns after arriving on the planet of assignment in accordance with formulas previously approved for a new adventure in life establishment. Such was the origin of the planetary life of Urantia.
9. The vital spark—the mystery of life—is bestowed through the Life Carriers, not by them ...From the Creative Daughter of the Infinite Spirit comes that energy spark which enlivens the body and presages the mind.
10. The Life Carriers of a planetary corps are given a certain period in which to establish life on a new world, approximately one‑half million years of the time of that planet. At the termination of this period, indicated by certain developmental attainments of the planetary life, they cease implantation efforts, and they may not subsequently add any thing new or supplemental to the life of that planet.
11. During the ages intervening between life establishment and the emergence of human creatures of moral status, the Life Carriers are permitted to manipulate the life environment and otherwise favorably direct ionize the course of biologic evolution. And this they do for long periods of time.
12. When the Life Carriers operating on a new world have once succeeded in producing a being with will, with the power of moral decision and spiritual choice, then and there their work terminates—they are through; they may manipulate the evolving life no further.
13. Upon the arrival of a Planetary Prince they prepare to leave, though two of the senior carriers and twelve custodians may volunteer, by taking temporary renunciation vows, to remain indefinitely on the planet as advisers in the matter of the further development and conservation of the life plasm. Two such Sons and their twelve associates are now serving on Urantia.
14. In every local system of inhabited worlds throughout Nebadon there is a single sphere whereon the Melchizedeks have functioned as life carriers. These abodes are known as the system midsonite worlds...The progeny of a Melchizedek life carrier and a Material Daughter are known as midsoniters...The midsonite creatures live and function as reproducing beings on their magnificent worlds until they are one thousand standard years of age; whereupon they are translated by seraphic transport. Midsoniters...are domiciled on the seventh world of the finaliters, the Salvington midsonite sphere...The purpose of the midsonite creatures is not at present known...It is the belief of the Melchizedek life carriers that their midsonite children will some day be endowed with the transcendental and eternal spirit of absonity by God the Ultimate.
15. It is the presence of the seven adjutant mind‑spirits on the primitive worlds that condition the course of organic evolution; that explains why evolution is purposeful and not accidental ...The seven adjutant mind‑spirits are called by names which are the equivalents of the following designations: intuition, understanding, courage, knowledge, counsel, worship, and wisdom. These mind‑spirits send forth their influence into all the inhabited worlds as a differential urge, each seeking receptivity capacity for manifestation quite apart from the degree to which its fellows may find reception and opportunity for function.
16. This animal relationship makes the adjutants more practically effective as human mind; hence animals are to a certain extent indispensable to man's intellectual as well as to his physical evolution.
17. Living mind, prior to the appearance of capacity to learn from experience, is the ministering domain of the Master Physical Controllers. Creature mind, before acquiring the ability to recognize divinity and worship Deity, is the exclusive domain of the adjutant spirits. With the appearance of the spiritual response of the creature intellect, such created minds at once become superminded, being instantly encircuited in the spirit cycles of the local universe Mother Spirit.
18. Life is both mechanistic and vitalistic—material and spiritual. Ever will Urantia physicists and chemists progress in their understanding of the proto‑plasmic forms of vegetable and animal life, but never will they be able to produce living organisms. Life is something different from all energy manifestations; even the material life of physical creatures is not inherent in matter.
19. When the life formulas and the vital patterns are correctly assembled and properly organized, the presence of a Life Carrier is sufficient to initiate life, but all such living organisms are lacking in two essential attributes—mind endowment and reproductive powers...The Sons of God can construct the forms of life, but it is the Spirit of God. who really contributes the vital spark.
20. The life bestowed upon plants and animals by the Life Carriers does not ... survive death ...The survival of mortal creatures is wholly predicated on the evolvement of an immortal soul within the mortal mind.
21. There are some things connected with the elaboration of life on the evolutionary planets which are not altogether clear to us...we do not wholly understand the nature and source of the life‑activation spark. We know that life flows from the Father through the Son and by the Spirit ...but otherwise we know little more than Urantia mortals—simply that concept is inherent in the Father, expression in the Son, and life realization in the Spirit.
Discussion Questions
1. Why was one of the Superuniverse Ancients of Days involved in the creation of Life Carriers?
2. Since there are 46 chromosomes in human cells, why does the author of this Synopsis of Paper say there are 48 trait determiners?
3. Are the elaborate scientific life formulations of the Life Carriers a disillusionment of the common human view of divine fiat creation?
4. What is the significance of the Universe Mother Spirit providing the spark of life rather than the Creator Son?
5. What do you suppose the two senior Life Carriers and the twelve custodians are doing on our world now?
6. How might the Melchizedek Life Carriers be modified and what type of Material Daughter is
selected to produce midsoniters?
7. How are the adjutant mind-spirits related to the Holy Spirit and the Spirit of Truth in human experience?
A Service of
The Urantia Book Fellowship