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Issue
8
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Are You Looking? Greg MacIsaac |
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Issue
8
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Are You Looking? Greg MacIsaac |
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by Greg MacIsaac When I was 20 years old, 28 years ago, I finally disassociated the dogma about God from my own concept of God. Until then I had been on a roller coaster of believing in God, only to crash to the depths of doubt, over and over. I had prayed and prayed for years for God to let me know that He was really there. I studied the Bible and became more confused. Did believing in God mean believing in the Bible? Finally I realized that the bible could be completely in error and that God could still exist. The only things from the Bible which I could accept as true at that time were the direct quotes from Jesus. There was something about them that I could not dismiss. I kept praying for God to reveal Himself to me, and eventually I realized that my fear was holding back my faith. I wanted to believe, but I had so many questions, and so many doubts. I was looking for an experience of the presence of God, so I would know for sure. At the time I was in college living in a small apartment with a kerosene space heater. I began experiencing looking at myself from other perspectives, from above looking down, as a diffuse group of atoms mostly comprised of space, etc. I was listening to the Moody Blues "In Search of the Lost Chord" a lot at that time, which has a picture of a person meditating on the front, with a small astral like body escaping from the highest chakra into the spiritual dimension. I began to experience something like this astral projection, while maintaining an awareness that I was at the same time in my body. It was like I had all my awareness focused on this little image of myself which I could project where I wanted and look back from that perspective. So here I was in my dilemma of faith and one day while laying down on the floor I went into that state of awareness and fell into my doubt, and I really began to fall, in my mind, loosing control of where I was going, falling faster and faster, plunging into a whirling abyss. It started to get really scary. I started to feel like I might not be coming out of this. Where was I going? I had been trying to conceptualize a reality without a God, in my doubt. The darkness got darker and darker, and I was falling faster and faster, out of control. Then I began thinking "what am I afraid of? If this is reality without God, what could possibly be worse? Why am I so afraid to really believe, to let go of my doubts?" Then I realized that the choice was mine. I realized that I had to make a conscious choice to believe. I also realized that I was hurtling headlong into the alternative, from which I might not return. Then it happened. In a split second I made the leap of faith. In an instant I began rocketing upwards, faster and faster and suddenly I burst out of the darkness and found myself spinning around and casting off a weight (like throwing a discus). It was like I was standing on a cloud, and as I turned around and looked up at what at first seemed to be a giant cliff face above me, I saw a beaming image I can only describe as a smiling majestic countenance looking down at me with such love, and I realized that I was standing in His hand. The reality and the intensity of this experience was incredible. In that instant the chimney of the space heater exploded and I leapt to my feet. The room was filled with thick black smoke, and as I rushed around the apartment opening the windows I was shivering with a peaceful joy. I really did come close to not returning from that plunge! My choice to believe may have literally saved my life! And from that day I have never had another doubt about the existence of God. The Spirit of the Master had literally plucked me right out of the abyss. God had answered my prayers, and given me this remarkable experience which I will never forget! After this things began to get more and more interesting. I would meditate and get to these incredible states of awareness. Once I went into what I can only describe as white light. It was like I was taken to the center of all things, and looking back I realized I was just a small point on the outside of an immense sphere of light. It was such an intense and vivid experience, but when I tried to write down what I had learned all I could record was "All is One and One is All". I began trying to write down these experiences so I could remember them. I began to become extremely curious about the nature of God, Reality, Cosmology. I realized that all human religions contained some truth, but that all were limited by our circumscribed human point of view. I really wanted to know what was beyond the veil of death. I thought that if I studied all of the world religions, maybe by using each as a lens on the spiritual reality beyond, by putting them all together and standing back and looking through them all at once, maybe I could catch a glimpse of the reality beyond. I began to wonder why God didn’t dispel all this confusion and just set us straight, and reveal to us what this was all about. I was looking for the answers to all the big questions. I was talking with a friend one day about what I had been thinking, and he told me that he had seen this book once, "The Urantia Book, which claims to have been written by superhuman beings, and claims to be the most recent revelation of truth since the life of Christ". He did not have one and knew nothing else about it, except he knew that I could get one at Samuel Weiser's book shop in New York. Well that gave me something to think about. New York was a two hour plus drive away, and I had no plans to go there. But I began to think what if? What if this book was just another jumbled automatic writing of the akashik records? What would be lost if this turned out to be a wild goose chase? On the other hand, what if I didn’t go out of my way and get this book? What if this book was really what it claimed to be. What if this book was what I had been looking for all along? What would my loss be if I never pursued this, and it turned out to be The Revelation? Well I knew then I had to go to New York. By now I had forgotten the name of the book, but my friend had not. Soon we were in Samuel Weiser’s, and I was flipping through The URANTIA Book, trying to decide if it was worth the $15 price. I realized I was actually trying to decide if it was true, and that I was spending an entire day coming here to get it, and that I had better just get it, and take it home and read it, which I did. For the first seven years I had The URANTIA Book I never met another reader, except those who I had introduced to the book. As I read The URANTIA Book, my visions from my meditations came back into focus in my mind, and I was amazed as the UB explained the reality which I had experienced and tried to record in my oversimplified and inadequate way. I had made that essential leap of faith, and gone out of my way to seek The Revelation, and these two decisions forever changed my life. Without my faith and the guidance of our Father, and without the intellectual clarity and wisdom from The URANTIA Book, who knows where I would be now. The URANTIA Book has met and far exceeded all my expectations as to providing the answers to my questions. After studying the Book these past 28 years I am more convinced than ever that it is the Revelation that it claims to be and that the authors of the papers are actually the celestial personalities identified therein.
by Liz Engstrom This theory I’ve been formulating for the last year, about countering all conflict with acceptance and cruising through life in the slipstream of God’s will, took an interesting turn last week. First, let me mention that the man who I believe the gods pointed out to me when I was seven, and for whom I’ve had a "thing" ever since, has just serendipitiously come back into my life after a thirty year absence. We have grown up, survived our trials and are now engaged in the life of my fondest romantic fantasies. Last week, in preparation for a visit to the old hometown, we discussed looking up an old friend, and what it would take to find her. We decided it was perhaps too much trouble, as we no longer knew her last name, or where she worked, or even if she was in the same area after all these years. THE VERY NEXT DAY, he ran into her at an out-of-the-way McDonald’s forty miles from his home. I called her, we reconnected in a wonderful way, and I’ll see her when I’m there next week. Last summer, a friend and I were talking about these "coincidences" and how I didn’t believe in coincidences. Instead, I believe that doing God’s will is the default mode and we are all instruments of his will unless we choose not to be. She disagreed. "Those guardian angels have more important things to do than to micro-manage your life," she said. And I disagree with that. Something sent Al to McDonald’s at 10:30 a.m. last Wednesday, and that same force sent Karen there at the same exact time. He was behind her in line! I don’t know if these theories that are beginning to take shape in my mind are beginning to look like fatalism, but I’m really starting to wonder just exactly how much control I have over anything in my life. If I’m choosing to do the Father’s will, then all I really have control over is my attitude, and that MUST be one of acceptance, because conflict has only negative reverberations. If I find myself at McDonald’s at 10:30 some morning, it’s because that’s where I was supposed to be. If I achieve success after a long struggle of believing in myself, it’s because my time for success has come, not because I had a brilliant marketing idea, or I’ve "claimed" my prosperity, or I’ve recited three trillion affirmations. I just do what’s put before me to do today. It isn’t in me to sit on the couch and watch TV and wait for a miracle. Life is, after all, but a day’s work. I try to do it well. But I am beginning to believe that the plan God has for our lives is all-encompassing, and we make our own turmoil or our own peace. Concentrate on the attitude, not the action. IUA Study Conference in Helsinki--7 through 10 August 1998 Dear Friends: In the course of the 1996 IUA Study Conference a decision was reached to the effect that the IUA Conferences will henceforth be held every second year, with the Finnish URANTIA Association hosting the first Conference to be celebrated outside the United States. Consequently, we have been working on this project, the IUA Study Conference 1998, ever since. We are making every effort to ensure that both the domestic attendees and the foreign participants in the 1998 Conference will feel welcome and have an opportunity of enjoying a meaningful and worthwhile meeting and gathering of fellow readers of The URANTIA Book. The 1998 conference site will be The Unitas Congress Center, which is situated within the boundaries of the City of Helsinki, right on the waterfront, some 15 kilometers (10 miles) away from the downtown area, and at an equal distance from Helsinki-Vantaa Airport. The Unitas Congress Center can offer hotel standard accommodation, a spacious and pleasant auditorium and the necessary meeting rooms and restaurants, all under the same roof. We cannot, as yet, give you the exact figures for the all-inclusive participation charge (accommodation, meals, program), but the charge will be around FIM 1,800C2,000 (at the August 1997 exchange rate roughly USD 350). We shall provide you with more detailed information in near future when we shall also be mailing the sign-up forms for the 1998 Conference. We hope that this advance information will be helpful in your decision-making enabling you to make a positive choice to come over and celebrate a Conference with us. We are surmising that at least some of our overseas guests will arrive a day early, viz. on Thursday 6 August so to be well-rested and fresh for the actual program the next morning, Friday 7 August. The conference is scheduled to be adjourned by noon on Monday 10 August, but The Unitas Congress Center can provide accommodation also for the night thereafter for those whose return flight will take off only on 11 August, or who are going to participate in a post-conference excursion either to St. Petersburg, Russia, or to attend another conference in Tallinn, Estonia. The congress participation charge will not cover this optional extra hotel night. When we were putting together the conference schedule for the 1998 Conference, our idea was to avail ourselves of the accrued experiences of the many well-organized Nashville Conferences. The program includes quite a few items which are not indicated on the schedule, viz. activities for children, silk printing (all through Saturday), and the necessary formal meetings. Since we, in line with the Nashville organizers, feel that any IUA Conference is preferably a rewarding study conference, we have construed a program which, we hope, will be serving this objective. The over-all theme of the 1998 IUA Study Conference will be Facts, Meanings, and Values, which will provide an opportunity for a perusal of a great variety of items. Facts, meanings, and values will be studied in talks and discourses given before conference assemblies as well as in study group discussions. The conference languages will be English and Finnish, but a discourse can be given also in other languages, and discussion groups will be formed with respect to the needs of the participants; right now we expect Finnish and English groups, but Spanish, Russian, French, etc. are all equally welcome and possible. Because it will be impossible for us to provide simultaneous translation at the conference, all discourses and talks will be translated in advance, and a written rendering into Finnish, or respectively, into English will then be passed out to the audience. The entire Governing Board of our Association is in charge of this what we consider our major undertaking for many years to come. Apart from the Board, we have also set apart a number of special task-forces and appointed persons with specific assignments having to do with the conference. In all your communications with us, be it requests for more information, special services, or whatever, you are always welcome to seek our help and put yourselves in contact with us. Let us all make the 1998 IUA Study Conference an indelible experience. Looking forward to meeting you personally in Helsinki on August 1998. We remain most truly yours,
Matthew Block to Speak in Portland Nov 15 by Joy Brandt Matthew Block, a long-time reader of The URANTIA Book from Chicago, will be in Portland, Oregon November 15 to 16 to present his research on some of the "purely human sources" (pg. 1343) of The URANTIA Book. Block cites over 75 books which he believes contain a few of the "more than one thousand human concepts" (pg. 17), or are authored by some of the "more than two thousand human beings" (pg. 1343) which were utilized in the inditement of the Urantia Papers. Block will show where The URANTIA Book closely parallels or directly quotes human sources. He will also analyze how the revelators creatively reinterpret and enhance these human concepts with higher, revealed truths. "I feel that an examination of the human sources and how they were used in the Papers will do much towards demystifying The URANTIA Book, while at the same time supporting its revelatory authenticity," Block says. "We’ll see that the revelators were very much engaged in responding to and enhancing the thought trends of the early twentieth century..." All readers interested in hearing Matthew discuss his findings are invited to gather on Saturday, November 15, from 15 p.m. at St. Philips Catholic Church, SE Division and 19th Avenue, in Portland. Afterwards the group will dine and socialize at a nearby restaurant. A potluck brunch on Sunday, November 16 at the home of Laureen Oskochil is also scheduled. Anyone planning to attend should RSVP by November 1 to David Glass at (503) 643-8311, or to Laureen Oskochil at (503) 652-9498. Free or low-cost accommodations can be arranged in Portland readers’ homes or at a nearby motel or youth hostel for travelers. by Janet Nilsen Over forty people attended NUA’s family picnic held at Oregon’s beautiful Cascadia State Park on July 20. We were blessed with a warm and perfect sunny day. Signs with azure circles led guests to our picnic site among towering fir trees next to the delightful South South Santiam River. Announcements had been sent to all known readers of The URANTIA Book in the Northwest. A wonderful group of readers (some from as far as Utah) and their families converged at noon, and throughout the afternoon. After initial hellos, and a delicious potluck lunch, we settled into fascinating conversations with each other. Even though our picnic committee had volleyball and other activities planned, our guests were so interested in getting to know each other that by the end of the afternoon, the volleyball net still stood unused. Long lost study group members were reunited, others, who had been reading alone were suddenly surrounded by understanding friends. Even a pair of cousins, almost unacquainted due to an old family tiff, rediscovered each other. It was truly a day of joyful reunion. It was also a good day for the Prison Project. Our collection jar was enriched by $95, ennabling 19 copies of The URANTIA Book to be placed in various prisons. If you wish to make donations to the Prison Project. Feedback on the picnic has been very positive, so we hope to have another family get-together next summer. If interest is strong, we could perhaps host a two-day affair at one of the park’s group camp sites. If you wish to help behind the scenes for the next picnic, contact: Janet Nilsen, 1-541-451-5030 (business message phone). Board members met before the picnic, at 10:30 a.m. for a quick business meeting, but no issues needing a quorum present were passed upon. Our fond thanks to the office staff of URANTA Foundation for their help in mailing the picnic announcements! by Laura Lackey It is time for Urantians to take charge of this revelation. It is time to instill our religious beliefs and values to the next generation. I’ve been a believer in The URANTIA Book for many years, my husband since birth. We now have three children to raise with the values that Jesus stood for and believed in. However, doing that in the Urantia community is very difficult. We have no support for this, we have no teaching infrastructure. Many Urantians believe themselves to be on a higher level than most, insisting that if you find this book, well, you are a lucky chosen one. If you don’t find this revelation, it simply wasn’t meant for you. I’ve heard this over and over again. How arrogant, how pretentious. When did Jesus say, "If you find this way of truth, how lucky you are, and if not, oh well."? Urantians have an obligation to bring this knowledge to everybody, especially our young. Since the Eugene study group is so small, and I am the only one with small children, I am looking elsewhere to instill the life and teachings of Jesus in my children. We have looked at several churches and seem to be settling with a Methodist church here in town. The minister is aware of our religious beliefs and they feel all who recognize Jesus are welcome. At least my children will be around others who love and believe in Jesus—I can teach my children about the specifics of The URANTIA Book at home. I wish that we had a more social way to disseminate the teachings of The URANTIA Book to our children. I wish that my children had a school solely geared to The URANTIA Book. I can only pray. Urantia Book class to be held at local community college "The Reality of Revealed Religion" is the title of a class that Liz Engstrom will teach winter term at Lane Community College, Eugene, Oregon, through its continuing education program. "I haven’t set down a course syllabus yet," Engstrom said. "And frankly, the thought of it scares me half to death. I plan to cover several sources that I believe to be revelatory in nature, and then, of course, introduce The URANTIA Book as the fifth epochal planetary revelation. The URANTIA Book will be a required text and I will assign selected readings in an attempt to provide an overview." The class description, approved first by the NUA governing board, then the Foundation and finally by the college, will appear in the winter term catalog. Thirteen students must register for it to take place. Engstrom hopes the whole Eugene study group will sign up in support and as backup information sources, as the class will take place on six consecutive Monday nights, the normal study group night. "If this class is successful, then I plan to continue to offer it. After a couple of terms I’ll have a better idea of what works and what doesn’t. Then I’ll write up a lesson plan and publish it widely for any URANTIA Book reader anywhere to propose and offer a class like it in community colleges everywhere. This was done in the Denver area quite some time ago, but this is the first time it has ever been approved by the college. Perhaps its time has come." Engstrom welcomes all suggestions for the course, including reference material, resources, study aids or introductory topics for discussion. You can contact Liz Engstrom at (541) 484-1682. The class begins February 9, 1998. " Near Death Experience and the UB by John H. Robbins Gilles Brien asks if any in our group is interested in the Near Death Experience. I am very interested in the subject. I had such an experience over 20 years ago and it remains vivid in my life today. I wrote about it some months back on this forum within the context of having religious experiences directly in one’s life. I am reading a very good book on the subject now titled, Parting Visions by Melvin Morse, M.D. He writes about pre-death experiences and post death visions by survivors. Coming from the rational scientific rigor of medical training, Dr. Morse keeps his feet firmly planted on the ground and makes a plea to the medical community to awaken to the value such experiences have for bringing greater peace of mind to all who are involved the passing of someone across the threshold of death. He points out that over 30% of total medical costs in the US are spent doing very invasive procedures at great expense and discomfort to the patient, all to keep someone alive for a few more days. Death is seen as the enemy to be resisted at all costs. Many in the medical community develop techniques to avoid even acknowledging that experiences being recalled are anything more than figments of a weak mind. Dr. Morse believes these visions occur in the right temporal lobe. He makes a comparison of this area to that of an antenna which can be tuned to become more sensitive to the detection of another level of communication. Perhaps, thru meditation and prayer, we can exercise and strengthen this facility to enhance the capability to tune into some new channels that don't come with the cable TV service. While my own experience was fleeting, ALL my previous faith was confirmed. I realized my immortality. I was embraced by the most incredible feeling of comfort, love, and light. All fears and guilt I had about my rocky life dissolved into unconditional acceptance by the most wonderful "Presence" I have ever experienced. I never saw anything, time was too short. But once I entered this "domain", time was irrelevant as a cascade of emotions swept over me as I instantaneously considered the summation of my life and the future portended by the rapture I was in during this moment. The waking world we live in is really a dream constructed out of our thoughts and actions. In my NDE I felt as if I was awakening to the REAL world. And, one of the most interesting things about this experience is that what I was experiencing was very familiar, like a déjà vu. I was disappointed by the outcome, I was ready to go. It felt very GOOD! While I had never been very attached to possessions, I certainly became less attached after this experience. I hope I shall never lose sight of this vision. It is absolutely clear to me that what awaits me on the other side of death is my home. Life is very temporary in the earthly sense of the word. It is all over in a flash. We should not be too hard on ourselves. Each of us is our own worst critic. Relax and enjoy as much of the beauty as possible, there is an abundance for the eyes and heart to find! See and treat the land, vegetation, animals and people with reverence...many thousands of generations await their turn to flash through Urantia reality. When in doubt about feelings towards others, reach out and try to bridge the gap. Life is more enjoyable without a lot of enemies. But, be willing to persevere to see an injustice corrected. Every individual merits the opportunity to unfold their emerging soul with out the tyranny of others blocking the way. There is enough for all if we will just learn to share with one another. Some of the thoughts of a rambling mind recalling some lessons learned
when blessed with a glimmer of the light that awaits us when we pass through
the vortex of death. Thanks Gilles, for bringing it up! by Pat Murnin It’s hard to believe that 1997 is almost over, but here we are with summer behind us and a new year coming soon. Time seems to slip by so fast that we never have enough of it to do the things we would like to. However, in the last year, the NUA has been able to achieve some impressive accomplishments. First of all, thanks to the efforts of all of you who have contributed articles, our newsletter continues to be top notch. Also, the first annual NUA Summer Picnic was a great success, bringing together readers from all over the Northwest, for an afternoon of unity and fellowship. I feel that this tradition will grow very well for many years. It was a seed well planted, and off to a great start. Through the efforts of NUA President Liz Engstrom, The Prison Project has placed over 250 copies of the UB in 238 prisons in the United States and Canada. The URANTIA Foundation has a donor who has offered to match any donation made to the translation fund, dollar for dollar. The NUA has made a one hundred-dollar donation to the fund. Translating The URANTIA Book for the people all over the planet is a big, expensive job. Here is the chance to double our donation for this very important cause. The NUA also made a $100 donation to the United States Urantia Association. The USUA will be holding the National Conference again at Glen Ivy around the weekend of June 27, 1998. The Summer Picnic cost the NUA $81.80. Before the printing of this newsletter we have a balance of $187.00. There are still some members that have not paid their dues for 1997. This may be due to some confusion as to when the dues are due. At the last meeting that was held in the morning before the picnic, it was decided that because the NUA was chartered in May, that the fiscal year for our association should be from May 1st to April 30th the following year. Dues are $40 per person or $60 per couple. We have some people interested in becoming members of the NUA and I think that our numbers will be increasing soon. I’m looking forward to seeing you all at the next meeting on October 19, 1997. The NUA is experiencing steady growth and accomplishing good things. Keep up the good work. URANTIA Foundation announced that on May 4, 1997, the first International URANTIA Association to be formed in South America was established in Bogota, Colombia. Three months later, on August 18, the second IUA in South America was established in Araquipa, Peru. Rosendo and Maria De Aguilera, Tonia Baney, and Bob Solone assisted in the installation of the URANTIA Association of Colombia and got to know the wonderful readers of El libro de URANTIA who formed this group. There are over 18 study groups in the city of Bogota alone. It came as no surprise that Colombia formed the first IUA in South America. Marlene and Georges Michelson-Dupont and Richard Keeler assisted in the installation of the Andes URANTIA Association in Peru and got to know the thirty-two wonderful readers of El Libro de URANTIA who formed this group. The ceremony included the signing of the Chartering Agreement and the Licensing Agreement, which allows the International URANTIA Associations to use the registered trademarks of URANTIA Foundation. The officers of the URANTIA Association of Colombia are:
In addition committees were formed with the following committee chairpersons:
The group can be contacted at the following address:
In Peru the officers of Andes URANTIA Association are:
In addition committees were formed with the following committee chairpersons:
The Peru group can be contacted at the following address:
Quebec Establishes Third Association in Canada On Sunday, July 20, 1997 the l'Association du Quebecbecame the 23rd Association licensed by the Coordinating Committee of the International URANTIA Association. The meeting was held in Montreal, Quebec, in Canada and was hosted by Louis Laporte. Catherine Jones, Chairperson, represented the Coordinating Committee and Georges Dupont, Trustee, represented the URANTIA Foundation Board of Trustees. The meeting place was ideal for the many people attending. A spirit of love and brotherhood prevailed. The following Board of Directors was elected:
The Foundation congratulates these URANTIA Book readers who have organized for the purpose of giving service and to live and disseminate the teachings of The URANTIA Book. This is the third Association in Canada. The first two were established in Ontario (The Northern Light URANTIA Association) and in British Columbia (URANTIA Association of the Cascades). Both were also licensed in 1997. Plans are being made to form a National Association in Canada to be represented at the International URANTIA Association meeting in Finland in 1998. Finland formed the very first IUA, even before any came into being in the United States, which currently has 14 local and a national association, the USUA. Three more scheduled to be chartered before 1997 ends are: Kentucky, NewYork-Pennsylvania, and Oklahoma.
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