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Tidings – March 2023

In This Issue

President’s Message – March 2023

Enrique Traver, Brazil

Dear Friends,

Enrique Traver More than ever, during these times of great world tension, I feel the urgency of our services to the Father and the brotherhood. By our services, I am not referring specifically to those of the Association’s legal entity, but to what it administers.

The fact that the Urantia Association International is a global organization can give people the impression that we are an institutional organization wanting to control their lives and dictate rules of behavior instead of being a welcoming center of harmony and unity, of help, support, and friendship.

I am a dedicated fan of the definition about who we are, as stated in the first paragraph of our website. See About Us – Who We Are.

Urantia Association International is a worldwide network of ordinary people who have found an extraordinary book—The Urantia Book. Students believe that the teachings of this book have the potential to rejuvenate spirituality in the world and enhance the comfort, happiness, and well-being of every person.

That is, we are a group of people who are passionate about The Urantia Book teachings, and we believe that these teachings can change the world, eventually bringing about a state of light and life. Thus, together, we decided to organize in order to accomplish a specific mission, which is:

To foster the study of The Urantia Book and to disseminate its teachings.

As a group of people who are enthusiastic and eager to change the world through this revelation, we yearn to expand our body and add new members to the group. The world is wide, with  lots of challenges to overcome to successfully fulfill our mission. So, we need more enthusiasts, more talented friends for this mission.

However, our goal is not to count new members or new associates. Instead, our goal is to enthrone God in the hearts of all people, to quench the spiritual hunger and thirst of all those who seek to know God.

He [Jesus] early taught his followers that the kingdom of heaven was a spiritual experience having to do with the enthronement of God in the hearts of men. [Paper 137:7.12, page 1535.5]

If new discoverers of the revelation are enthusiastic about the teachings and want to join our organization to help enlarge the group of dedicated volunteers serving our Father, brotherhood, and revelation, they are more than welcome. And they are really needed. But our mission is truly reached when they find God.

Our work and dedication, in my view, takes on a sense of urgency in the face of the troubling changes and clashes that are taking place in the world. We cannot be sure, but perhaps these ongoing changes may be those anticipated by the Publication Mandate:

The book belongs to the era immediately to follow the conclusion of the present ideological struggle. That will be the day when men will be willing to seek truth and righteousness. When the chaos of the present confusion has passed, it will be more readily possible to formulate the cosmos of a new and improved era of human relationships. And it is for this better order of affairs on earth that the book has been made ready [emphasis added]

So, the book is there! What about us? Are we ready? Is this anticipated era approaching us? Could the current situation of the world be the ideological struggle referred to in the mandate? It may not be and perhaps we still have plenty time to be prepared, but we really don`t know. We just feel things are happening and there is no doubt that we need to be ready. The world urgently needs to seek God. We can’t miss the time! As anticipated by the publication mandate, we can`t even imagine the importance of our job towards this mission:

(You) who have dedicated (your) lives to the service of the Book and the Brotherhood can little realize the import of (your) doings. (You) will doubtless live and die without fully realizing that (you) are participating in the birth of a new age of religion on this world.

We need to be ready; we need to be prepared.  We must do what we do best—to help others to connect to God by sharing the teachings of The Urantia Book.

To be ready, an important thing to accomplish in these turbulent times, is to achieve harmony and create a safe place for the souls who seek God.  Harmony requires UNITY, a convergence point free of conflicts.

Unity and harmony are two things people around the world have been unable to reach throughout the current ideological battles. In this scenario, the most effective way to reach a convergence of the ideas is through God; it is love and it is a place where we all can speak the same language and feel the same comfort. A place where we can feel as being ONE.

You do not have to see alike or feel alike or even think alike in order spiritually to be alike. Spiritual unity is derived from the consciousness that each of you is indwelt, and increasingly dominated, by the spirit gift of the heavenly Father. Your apostolic harmony must grow out of the fact that the spirit hope of each of you is identical in origin, nature, and destiny. [Paper 141:5.1, page 1591.6]

Carlos Rubinski
How can the Association attract to a safe kingdom of harmony and peace all those lost and afflicted souls who may emerge from the chaos that lies ahead? How can we accept the idea of being divided among ourselves? It is time to think, to reflect on the teachings that we know so well. God’s kingdom has no divisions; it is not separated. It is the unity that drives us to harmony. To accomplish this, we need to focus on service and revelation. We must have a plan, a strategy that leads us to exercise coordinated and harmonious actions guided by the teachings of The Urantia Book.

Many of us are talented individuals, but we cannot dismiss the unity needed to achieve our goals. We need to be guided by a plan that outlines necessary roles to fulfill so we can concentrate our joint efforts to serve and accomplish our mission.

Much has already been done over the past 68 years. We certainly have made great progress thanks to the dedication and efforts of talented and dedicated people. But now it's time to make course corrections.

We are presently focused on seeking unity and building a long-term plan. To do this, we need to act as a true team, where each one of us is aware of our individual responsibilities. We should assess what we are doing well, what needs to be improved, and how to help each other.

Let’s trust the path the Truth Spirit discloses, and let’s follow the guidance of our Thought Adjuster in order to walk this path. Let’s ensure we will be therethe day when men will be willing to seek truth and righteousness when the chaos of the present confusion has passed.”

Let’s do our Father’s will.

Enrique Traver

Latin American Continental Conference — Mexico

Antonio Schefer, Netherlands

The Fifth Revelation in the 21st Century

October 26—29, 2023

Come on and join us in Mexico!

Register now for the next Latin American Urantia Continental Conference! This will be the 3rd Latin American Conference and it is being organized by Asociación Urantia de Mexico (AUM).

We are inviting Urantia Book students from all over Latin America. The program will focus on the major themes of revelation, to inspire us to grow in our knowledge and understanding of the teachings. More information on the program of activities and presentations on the overall theme "The Fifth Revelation in the 21st Century" will be available soon.

This Urantia Conference will be held in Mexico, at the Hotel Quinto Sol, close to the interesting and historical pyramids of Teotihuacán.

Hotel Quinto Sol, just 45 minutes from Mexico City, is a refuge of tranquility, harmony, magic and mysticism, nestled in the Magical Town of San Juan Teotihuacán, where comfort, rest and hospitality are mixed, offering unique experiences, outdoor adventure activities, culinary delights, temazcal and holistic spa.

The language spoken during the conference will be Spanish, and presentations will be simultaneously translated into English and Portuguese.

See the promotional video.

What a joy it will be to see you all in-person together, after so many years of absence during the pandemic, and to study the theme the fifth epochal revelation in the 21st Century at this amazing place in Mexico.

A Special Youth Urantiathon

Jeannie Vasquez, Uruguay

The Fruits of the Spirit

The special Youth Urantiathon organized by the Urantia Association International with Urantia Young Adults International (UYAI) and Youth and Young Adults (YaYAs) Committees on December 10th, 2022, was beautiful and amazing. It offered presentations by young students of The Urantia Book from all over the world on the theme “The Fruits of the Spirit.”

The program featured four sections, one for each continent, with presentations given by young Urantia Book students from Europe, Africa, Latin America, and North America, all of whom shared their unique reflections about The Urantia Book and their personal experiences with the teachings.

The European section included two students, Genny from England, who offered a video about a Urantia study session titled “From a seed, to a Fruit,” and Moria Habte from the Netherlands, who presented an online interactive game with questions based on The Urantia Book’s teachings, with several options for the participants to choose the correct answer.

Our Continental African Coordinator, Collins Lomo, efficiently and wisely organized the African section. He skillfully overcame the technical challenges of lack of good connectivity in different African regions. The African presenters included students from Uganda, Nigeria, and Ghana.

Nakayizi Sharon from Uganda spoke about “Experiencing the Gifts of The Spirit of Truth in Our Lives.” She said, “Care for your own soul and spirit, avoiding stressing yourself by appreciating what’s within your means.”

Joy Kugonza from Uganda made a presentation about “Recognizing the Spirit of Truth in Us.” She said: “Meaning of the Spirit of Truth in my life: It is a source of ever-flowing encouragement when times are hard, and I am approached by fear. The divine presence lifts me up. It always equips me with wisdom to understand ideas and ideals. I wouldn’t be in a position to understand these very revelations of The Urantia Book had not the Spirit of Truth been dwelling in my heart.”

Maya Anazodo from Nigeria presented the theme “The Yardsticks for Spiritual Growth.” She said: “Love is the ultimate measure of the fruits of the spirit. You cannot bear the fruits of the spirit if you do not already have love within you; they cannot exist without love. You cannot be kind without love. Kindness without love is just pretense. You cannot traverse the psychic circles until you develop the capacity to love more.”

Jesse Kodua from Ghana presented the theme “The Law of the Kingdom.” He said: “The presence of a kingdom presupposes that there are citizens, that the kingdom has its laws and government, and the citizens have rights and responsibilities, and that there is a sovereign of the kingdom. Whose kingdom? It’s God’s kingdom. Therefore, God is the Sovereign of this kingdom, and citizens are called sons and daughters of God. It is a divine family and accordingly has no earthly, physical/mental segregations such as the rich vs. the poor, short people vs. tall people, slave vs. master, etc.”

The Latin-American section included students from Spain, Mexico and Brazil. They offered the following presentations:

Ismael Barba de la Cruz from Spain presented the theme “Leadership and Spirituality.” We included him in this section despite residing in Europe because he works closely with our Latin-American Community. Ismael said: "Our model leader is Jesus. Those who spread the teachings of The Urantia Book need to apply and embody these teachings because if we only read the book and share quotes, but we do not have the desire to be better persons, our leadership is not going to be spiritual; it is going to be an ego leadership. If we pay attention only to knowledge but do not incorporate that knowledge into our souls, what we are going to do is to draw people away from revelation instead of drawing them in. This does not mean that we should imitate everything that Jesus did; what we must do is inspire ourselves with his life, teachings, and his example of life. We should look mostly at the human part of Jesus' life, which is like a born of the spirit person dedicated to doing the will of the Father."

Irene Islas (Mexico) presentation was about “The Mother Spirit of the Local Universe.” Irene said: “Once we begin to understand these inspiring truths and have decided to follow our Heavenly Father, each of us consciousness of the spirit domination will manifest itself in these fruits of the spirit: resignation, gentleness, goodness, faith, humility, and temperance.”

Adriano Santos (Brazil) presented the theme "Courage and Faith!" Adriano said: “To us imperfect human beings in an imperfect world, without a reference to follow, we are left only with doubt and the path of trial and error. How do you know which path to follow? We humans can only have God, the creator of all things, as a reference of perfection. Primitive man tends to create his own gods, beliefs that are fruits of his imagination. That is why there is a revelation, which shows us a direction, gives us a reference, a north, a way forward, and provides us with the freedom to be better and more like God. As we know and understand the truth, it helps us to rebuild ourselves better, to be more like the true reference and to eliminate doubt, discovering faith and certainty based on values that we can discern as true, if we are sincere; divine values such as love, truth, goodness, beauty, ethics, respect, understanding, mercy, and fidelity.”

Alejandro Aran (Mexico) offered a presentation about “Enduring Peace.” He said: “One of the characteristics of today's society is anxiety, and anguish for the future, with what we have to fulfill on a daily basis. I believe that reducing the anxiety rates we may have in our everyday experience has to be linked to communication and communion with our Adjuster because, at the end of the day, he is the one who brings us the Father's will for us individually. If we notice that we have anxiety, impatience, or anguish about the future, we should observe how we approach the Father, with what attitude we seek to commune with him and improve how we relate to him. It is not enough to close your eyes and speak with the Father, according to the guidelines suggested by the revelators.

If in our life there is no lasting peace – and this does not mean that nothing affects us, or that in the face of the vicissitudes of life, we remain unperturbed – if we become disturbed or we are too sensitive to difficulties and lose control with anger, and our genuine desire is to do the Father's will, then we must work on developing our relationship with the Father, because it is in him that we can find a lasting peace that, regardless of what is happening, does not disappear.”

The YaYAs section offered a workshop titled "Spiritual Growth Conversations" and was facilitated by Aprilhelen (USA), Oluwatooni "Toni" Oyeyemi (Switzerland), and Juan Jaramillo (Canada). The workshop consisted of shared prayers, singing, communion, and reflections about the themes presented during the Urantiathon. The audience was divided by language in breakout rooms. In this way, the participants had more personal conversations in smaller groups and engaged in discussions about spiritual growth.

To see the Youth Urantiathon videos, please access the Urantia Association YouTube Channel Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist

2024 Urantia Association International Conference

Michael Zehr, USA

The Nature and Nurture of the Soul

28 to 31 March 2024
Maritime Conference Center, Baltimore, Maryland USA


Faith is to religion what sails are to a ship; it is an addition of power, not an added burden of life. (159:3.8)

The Urantia Association of the United States would like to invite you to attend the 12th Urantia Association International 2024 Conference, to be held from the afternoon of March 28th, until noon on March 31 in Baltimore, MD, USA. Full details can be found at: 2024 International Conference. Don't delay - early discount ends soon!

The program includes eight topics—four related to the nature of the soul and four related to nurturing our soul. Topics will be introduced by plenary speakers; group discussion and study will be facilitated by breakout leaders. In addition, there will be evening music, entertainment, and worship.

Attendees can stay afterwards at the conference center to enjoy the culture and attractions of Baltimore or visit nearby Washington DC during the Cherry Blossom festival.

Come set sail with us on March 28, 2024!

Love for the Father

Myra Hight, USA

Cannot Be Caged

The Prisoner Inquiry Response Team (PIRT) would like to share this beautiful art, an example of the value in fostering the study of The Urantia Book in prisons. The artist is Reinaldo Dennes and he is in a Texas prison. Reinaldo was introduced to The Urantia Book eight years ago by a fellow reader doing in-person prison ministry. Reinaldo remains a dedicated student whose heart is filled with love for God and the teachings.

If you would like to use Reinaldo’s art in your Urantia works, please Contact PIRT

My progressive spiritual growth
Jerusem
Fusion is what we all look forward to.

If a kindhearted man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, does he not immediately leave the ninety and nine and go out in search of the one that has gone astray? And if he is a good shepherd, will he not keep up his quest for the lost sheep until he finds it? And then, when the shepherd has found his lost sheep, he lays it over his shoulder and, going home rejoicing, calls to his friends and neighbors, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.' I declare that there is more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety and nine righteous persons who need no repentance. Even so, it is not the will of my Father in heaven that one of these little ones should go astray, much less that they should perish. [Paper 159:1.2, page 1762.4]

Focus on the Father

James Woodward, USA

Living in Grace

There are several things about Jesus that we are often reminded of in The Urantia Book. Chief of these is how he revealed the Father in every aspect of his living. He did this by acting as if the Father were present in himself as well as the men and women he came into contact with all his life. This behavior reflects the living of a truth that we know as fact: we are indwelt with a (pre)personal representative of our Paradise Father. When a human behaves in a manner consistent with the faith / understanding of this truth / fact, a remarkable trait of character invariably assumes dominance in that personality. Such folks are said to be full of grace.

We hear the word grace a lot, but what does it mean? Consider some definitions: elegance or attractiveness of form, movement, manner, or attitude; mercy, favor, good will; God’s unmerited mercy toward mankind; influence of God’s spirit; condition of one who enjoys God’s special favor; trait of moral excellence. How about graceful: displaying beauty in form, manner, movement, or expression. And gracious: showing or bestowing goodness, kindness, or mercy. We find all the words synonymous with grace to be exclusively positive and harmonious; beautiful, favorable, kindly, benevolent, courteous.

This small word, grace, and its relatives, graceful, grateful, gracious, congratulations, gratitude, gratified—all connote attitudes or behaviors that invade the sincere religionist commensurate with ever-increasing faith.

In all praying, remember that sonship is a gift. No child has aught to do with earning the status of son or daughter. The earth child comes into being by the will of its parents. Even so, the child of God comes into grace and the new life of the spirit by the will of the Father in heaven. Therefore must the kingdom of heaven—divine sonship—be received as by a little child. You earn righteousness—progressive character development–but you receive sonship by grace and through faith. [Paper 144:4.3, page 1621.2]

The transformations of grace are wrought in response to the living faith of those who are the beneficiaries. [Paper 150:9.2, page 1686.5]

These passages establish the source of grace, its cost (gratis!) as well as the technique for accessing it. “His last words that night were: ‘Grow in grace by means of that living faith that grasps that you are the sons of God while at the same time it recognizes every man as a brother’” [147:8]. Jesus gives the apostles a pure nugget of condensed truth: the spiritual summation of the fourth revelation is disclosed as comprehensible through sincere consecration, which opens the heart to accept God’s infinite mercy.

If you believe that grace is an elective in our personal growth, perhaps just a pleasant by-product of moral behavior, or maybe a virtue that you might come to possess someday, consider these statements from the Master:

Entrance into the Father’s kingdom is wholly free, but progress—growth in grace—is essential to continuance therein. [Paper 150:5, page 1682.4]

You cannot stand still in the affairs of the eternal kingdom. My Father requires all his children to grow in grace and in a knowledge of the truth. [Paper 176:3, page 1917.1]

Make sure that the truth abides in your lives, and that you daily grow in grace. [Paper 177:0, page 1920.1]

Life in the Father’s eternal creation is not an endless rest of idleness and glory. [Paper 181:1, page 1953.4]

And courtesy of the fallen apostle, we also have a negative example:

But his being an isolated type of personality would not, in and of itself, have wrought such mischief for Judas had it not been that he also failed to increase in love and grow in spiritual grace. [Paper 193:4, page 2056.0]

Everywhere we turn in our tutorial text we find grace positioned with truth, love, beauty, mercy, goodness, and faith. It truly merits our attention and meditation, as it did Brother Lawrence, a seventeenth century monk who noted, “The higher the perfection to which a soul aspires the more dependent it is upon grace.” The Christian author, Philip Yancey, attempts the difficult definition of grace in relation to God: “Grace means there is nothing we can do to make God love us more. And grace means there is nothing we can do to make God love us less.” A very worthy effort, but the best definition actually walked the dusty roads of Urantia two millenniums past.

Jesus spread good cheer wherever he went. He was full of grace and truth. His associates never ceased to wonder at the gracious words that proceeded out of his mouth. You can cultivate gracefulness, but graciousness is the aroma of friendliness which emanates from a love-saturated soul. [Paper 171:7, page 1874.4]



Progressive Divine Wisdom

Moustapha K. Ndiaye, Senegal

Senegal Group

School of Divine Wisdom

Introduction

This document is a compilation of the activities of the Progressive Divine Wisdom Group (PDWG) during 2022.

It is worth noting that the initiatives outlined in this progress report are a continuation of three meetings held as part of the Dakar summits of February 2018, February 2019 and February 2020. This report comes after the reports of 2020, 2021 and 2022, which have also been published.

The objective of these initiatives is to promote the Progressive Divine Wisdom method. This method, developed by Moussa Ndiaye, consists in facilitating the ownership of the truths of The Urantia Book through a teaching method based on an understanding and living experience as part of education and sharing. It is based on the model of the life and teachings of the Creator Son of our Local Universe, during his incarnation in the flesh.

Moussa and the DPWG of Dakar in 1981
Since receiving The Urantia Book from Jacques Weiss in the 1960s, Moussa created a question and answer group in 1973, which evolved into the Progressive Divine Wisdom Group. Five of Moussa's oldest students have decided to perpetuate the spirit and method of this educational approach for several years.

To this end, the founding members of this initiative have officially created the group called “Groupe de Sagesse Divine Progressive” (Progressive Divine Wisdom Group) in compliance with the Law of Senegal, in order to promote the method in a more professional way. This was done on the basis of experience acquired over forty years, the lessons learned from these teachings, and the requests of the students.

In the wake of this initiative, the Progressive Divine Wisdom Group initiated, with the goodwill of persons who support this approach, the creation of a website to inform and facilitate the training of students who wish to deepen their knowledge of this wisdom based on the truths of The Urantia Book and, eventually, to share it with future educators.

To date, students of the Progressive Divine Wisdom method are divided into different study groups or receive training individually, depending on the particular situation. The groups include:

GSDP Mamadou, Moustapha, Amsata, Khatabe and Assane
  • French and Canadian students, including truth seekers from Belgium, Reunion, Comoro and some from African countries. This group met every Friday in 2022 from January to the end of October.
  • French-speaking African students from Africa and the Diaspora. It is composed of a dozen members who have met every Saturday afternoon since mid-September 2021.
  • Haitian Students from the island of Haiti and the United States. It is composed of a dozen members who meet on Sunday every three weeks.

In addition to these group fellowship meetings, Progressive Divine Wisdom students receive training sessions from qualified educators. This is done in zoom sessions, adapted to specific situations. This training is given to a total number of over fifty people of sixteen nationalities, in sixteen countries on three continents.

Conclusions, Evaluations, and Perspectives

The following objectives, which were outlined in the 2022 activity report, have been achieved:

  1. Twelve students of the Progressive Divine Wisdom from ten different nationalities (Senegal, Congo, Ivory Coast, France, Canada, Guinea, Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Chad, Reunion, Comoro) are in the process of becoming future educators, and several others have confirmed their commitment to this effect.
  2. We created an online website (in French and in English) to promote the training method and the organization of the training itself. To date, several people are ready to start the training, based on the presentation made on the website at: https://sagessedivine.com.
  3. You can visit the website and send us your feedback to School of Progressive Divine Wisdom
  4. A total of 53 people from 16 countries and 3 continents, have been receiving the Progressive Divine Wisdom teachings on a regular basis in 2022. Of these, 12 are expected to share the teachings as future educators. Among this number of people who have received the training, there are 17 women and 36 men, a ratio of 32% women.
  5. The prospects for collaboration with associations involved in promoting the revelations of The Urantia Book are positive, as are those concerning a more active involvement of women and young people. One of our big challenges for 2023 is to organize a Conference in Dakar by the end of 2023.
  6. In total, more than 280 issues, topics, and themes were addressed in 2022, including training sessions by the African, European, American, and Haitian groups. This was done during 93 Zoom sessions held in 2022 (38 with the European Group, 46 with the African Group and 9 with the Haitian Group). This does not take into account the more specific sessions with students. Of these 280 topics, 116 were discussed with the African Group, 100 with the European Group and 64 with the Haitian Group.

The objectives for the year 2023 are as follows:

  1. Consolidating the achievements and optimizing the possibilities offered by the website to promote the method internationally.
  2. The reinforcement of ongoing initiatives, to further involve English-speaking readers in Africa and in the world on the Progressive Divine Wisdom method.
  3. Providing technical means to reinforce and ensure the sustainability of the Progressive Divine Wisdom training.
  4. The continuation of experience sharing with the groups of readers and associations affiliated with Urantia Association.
  5. The continuation of a wider and more lasting collaboration with individual readers, readers’ associations, study groups, and people of good will. This will enable us to develop and realize a more planetary, coordinated vision of our relationship with God, according to the revelations of The Urantia Book and the guidance of the Spirit of Truth.
  6. Awareness and training of younger people to sustain the gains and address the future challenges of sharing the truths of the fifth epochal revelation.
  7. Organization of a Conference in Dakar by the end of 2023 in order to share the method of the DPWG and to promote the truths and teachings of The Urantia Book.

Urantia Book Learning Centers

Admin

Join others in learning the teachings of The Urantia Book. Young or old, new or advanced, we can all learn something new. Take the opportunity to share ideas and to learn from others in your ongoing quest for deeper meanings and values.

Presently, classes are being offered at Urantia Book International School and Urantia University Institute. See their courses below.

Urantia Book International School

The Urantia Book International School (UBIS) is sponsored by the Urantia Foundation. The January trimester is now in session and all courses are full, but new courses will be offered in April. Enrollment opens on Monday, April 17. 

Courses are generally available in German, Polish, Hungarian, Portuguese, Spanish, French, and English. Course content can vary by language. See the UBIS website for more information. https://new.ubis.urantia.org/

The Spotlight Series

Exploring the Geology Papers - Is Your Foundation Rock Solid?
Instructor: Brad Garner
DATE: Saturday, March 18. TIME: 11 am Central Daylight Time

ZOOM LINK: https://urantia-org.zoom.us/j/88292383107
Please log in ten minutes before the scheduled time.

Urantia University Institute

The Urantia University Institute (UUI) offers a wide range of courses in English. See the upcoming classes listed below.

Life and Teachings of Jesus
Instructors: Geri Johnson and Rob Mastroianni
Accepting rolling registration

The Life and Teachings of Jesus course is a weekly guided discussion consisting of a sequential reading of Part IV of The Urantia Book. While this course started on February 23 with Paper 120, the course will accept registrations on a rolling basis due to the length of the course. Each class will be offered two separate times on Thursdays to better accommodate our international audience.

Fearlessly Foreword: A Brief Introduction
Instructor: Merritt Horn
Orientation Date: Monday, March 13
Start Date: Monday, March 20

In this course, we’ll look closely at the purpose and structure of the Foreword, as well as its content. Understanding a piece of writing is about more than memorizing the words and dissecting the sentences the author uses, even if that writing is a dictionary; we also are well-served by examining the author’s purpose for the work as a whole as well as for the various elements that comprise it. So as we seek to better understand the Foreword, we’ll continually be asking not only what is on the page, but why it’s there.

Self-Mastery and Circle Attainment

Instructor: Michael Hill
Orientation Date: Saturday, April 1
Start Date: Saturday, April 15

 This course is designed to refresh and renew the spiritual aspirations of Urantia Book readers who have by faith, entered the kingdom of God and therein set for themselves the achievement of the fullness of mortal life. Here, we will strive to address the enhancement of personal spiritual perception and the influence of such growth on daily life while sharing our spiritual life with others and recognizing the religious life of others.

To learn more about these classes, see this link.
https://www.urantiauniversity.org/all-courses

Kids Urantia Lessons Survey

Urantia University is developing a program of live Zoom lessons where kids can interact with each other while a grown-up guides their light-hearted discussions about the life and teachings of Jesus and any other Urantia-based topics that come up in the course of conversation.

Learn more about it here and, if this is something you might enroll your kids or grandkids in, please fill out our very short poll.

Great Britain & Ireland Annual Summer Retreat 2023

Christopher Moseley, England

Harnessing the Combined Ministry of Nature and Grace for Growth

15-17 September/ Arrive 15 September from 16.00

Venue: High Leigh Conference Centre
Lord Street, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire EN11 8SG
Telephone. 01992 463016     Email. highleigh@cct.org.uk

Cost: £266 for the weekend Deposit: £60 by 31 March 2023 to Chris Moseley

Contact: Christopher Moseley

Come and explore with us the possibilities of this elusive human philosophical counterpart of mota in these times of economic and financial uncertainty.

Few mortals ever dare to draw anything like the sum of personality credits established by the combined ministries of nature and grace. The majority of impoverished souls are truly rich, but they refuse to believe it. [Paper 48:7.6, page 556.6]

Program

Mealtimes may be subject to change.

Soul Evolution Study Aid

Hara Davis, England

My latest study aid, Soul Evolution: Deeper Delvings into Divinity, is a more visual representation of concepts from The Urantia Book which give us a clearer idea of what it takes to transform ourselves and attain self-mastery. How to co-create our souls together with our Thought Adjuster and become more Godlike. God has given us all we need to do this, but we have to develop the courage to explore these unknown realms. We need persistent effort to make this shift of consciousness. We must commit to letting go of old ways of behaving and thinking to see the world and other people in new ways. We are transferring our souls to new vehicles and gaining a cosmic perspective and an eternal purpose. It takes eternity to become perfect, but we can begin that divine process now. One of the main purposes of The Urantia Book is the salvation of human souls.

This study aid is a summary of many concepts in the book which concern our spiritual progress while on this planet. We often get imprisoned in our self-imposed limitations—stuck in the mire of our prejudices, inertia, and old habits. Most people are happy to live within the limits of their comfort zones. Spiritual progress requires courage, commitment, intent, perseverance, and sincerity plus a huge investment in faith. The goal is one worth working towards—eternal life with God as our partner.  

Some of the contents include God's Divine Plan, Personality, Mind, Belief and Faith, God-Seeking Decisions, Free Will, Morality, Adjuster Harmony and much much more. It is available on Amazon and all proceeds go to Urantia charities.

Few mortals ever dare to draw anything like the sum of personality credits established by the combined ministries of nature and grace. The majority of impoverished souls are truly rich, but they refuse to believe it. [Paper 48:7.6, page 556.6]   

Enjoy! Hara Davis

My Journeys with Jesus—Video

Gary Tonge and Team

My Journeys with Jesus—The Urantia Book is a five-minute video cleverly arranged by Gary Tonge and a team of writers, artists, and producers. Here is how it is described under the video in YouTube:

A young man, Ganid, reflects upon his time with Jesus when they toured the Mediterranean together with his father, Gonod. The details of this magnificent story of Jesus’ travels can be found in The Urantia Book and also in The Untold Story of Jesus: A Modern Biography from The Urantia Book (2019). Discover Jesus as never before, both as a divine Son and a human hero whose matchless life inspires, comforts, and transforms you.

Enjoy this beautiful video.

About Tidings Newsletter

The Tidings newsletter is a quarterly on-line publication that serves as Urantia Association International’s primary communication tool for reaching out to the Association’s membership, supporters, donors, volunteers, and general readership friends. It provides news and information on the many activities and events of the National or Affiliate Urantia Associations around the globe as well as information and announcements from Central Office, the International Service Board (ISB), and the Representative Council (RC). It serves to keep members in touch with one another and gives readers a sense of belonging—of being an integral part of a truly international movement that is designed to promote the Urantia revelation to all corners of the world.

Note: Tidings also occasionally provides news of other Urantia-related activities and events that may be of interest to our supporters and friends. Please note that any interpretations, opinions, conclusions, or artistic representations, whether stated or implied, are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of Urantia Association International, the National or Affiliate Urantia Associations, or the editorial team of the Association’s Tidings.


Grass Roots Level

The number of National or Affiliate Urantia Associations scattered throughout the world is steadily growing and collectively they undertake service activities that have the ability to inspire and motivate others; activities such as study conferences, regional gatherings, study groups, dissemination programs, educational programs, outreach projects, and the development of study aids and newsletters. These Associations are the lifeblood of Urantia Association International—they function at the grass roots level where effective service and dissemination of the revelation takes place.

Share Your Stories

There are thousands of readers with unique personal stories about how they found The Urantia Book and how it has changed their lives. There are hundreds of study groups all over the world that can share stories and encourage readers to either create a study group of their own or participate in one. These stories need to be told and Tidings provides an effective platform for the sharing of such activities.

If you would like to share your stories please submit your material to the Chief Editor. Topics may include:

  • How you found The Urantia Book
  • Special projects such as Book Fairs, Library Placement, Outreach
  • New or established study groups—how you got started—what keeps you going?
  • Your annual meetings, picnics, or other social gatherings
  • Send pictures

Tidings Team

  • Chief Editor: Myra Hight
  • Co-editors: Mark Blackham, James Woodward, Richard Jernigan
  • Online and hard-copy English newsletters: Mark Blackham
  • Spanish translator an online Spanish newsletter: Olga Lopez 
  • French translator: Alain Cyr and collaborators 
  • French online newsletter: Alain Cyr

Submissions:

Submit articles to the Chief Editor and please understand that they may be subject to revision. Please limit them to approximately 1 to 1½ pages (700 to 1400 words) plus one or two photos.