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WE
HAVE A NEW COVER!
Congratulations to
Gary Tonge for submitting the winning entry in
the The Uversa Press Committee's
cover contest. Our fourth
printing of The Urantia Book, projected to be
available in Summer 2012, will feature the
Standard Reference
Text and Tonge's beautifully inspiring
cover art. A special thank you to John
Hay, Chair
of Uversa
Press and his committee, Paula Thompson, and Don
Greene, for seeing this project to
fruition.
click here to see a
larger image |
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President
Treasurer
Secretary
General
Judicial Chair
Membership
Chair
Interfaith
Chair
Outreach Chair
Finance Chair
General
Council
Lara Amyx
Andrea Barnes
Larry
Bowman
Robert Bruyn
Robert Burns
Avi Dogim
Stephen Dreier
Janet Falbo
Tony Finstad
Cece Forrester
Janet Graham
Tim Hobbs
Merritt Horn
Jack Kane
Al Lockett
Charlene Morrow
Dolores Nice
Charles Olivea
Thomas Orjala
Phillip Taylor
Jo Ann Wiedman
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Click
Here to Link to "Friends of the
Urantia Book Fellowship" Facebook
Page.
Join
Us for Daily Discussions.
![Like us on Facebook]( "Like us on Facebook")
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![Michelle Klimesh]()
And then Jesus said: "Be not
constantly overanxious about your common needs.
Be not apprehensive concerning the problems of
your earthly existence, but in all these things
by prayer and supplication, with the spirit of
sincere thanksgiving, let your needs be spread
out before your Father who is in heaven." Then
he quoted from the Scriptures: "I will praise
the name of God with a song and will magnify him
with thanksgiving. And this will please the Lord
better than the sacrifice of an ox or bullock
with horns and hoofs."
Dear Friends,
This week I am mindful of the
gratitude I feel for the experience of being
involved with the Fellowship: such a dynamic,
spirit-led group of struggling mortals! The
relationships we share as we labor together for
the kingdom shore me up daily. Your prayers
sustain me. I am thankful for all of you, for
the time we spend together, and for the work we
share. Especially, I give thanks to Father for
seeing fit to create me, to Mother for her
constant encouragement, and to our beloved
Brother Michael for his heroic personal efforts
on our behalf. Praise be to God, the source of
all joy!
Wishing each one of you a warm and
wonderful Thanksgiving,
Michelle Klimesh
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Feature
Article:
Urantia Book
Etymology and Human
Languages
by
Jon Greer
Courtesy of the Brotherhood of
Man Library![]()
Like
its cosmology, the Urantia Book's etymology of
proper names and terminologies is not inspired,
and early accommodation of this truth may help
forestall disillusionment from a linguistic
inquiry of its pages. Names and all language are
metaphors -- symbolic designations of realities,
couched in greater or lesser efficiencies at
making the realities at which they aim more
accessible. Names and languages are not the
designated realities themselves, but are images
thereof, mere representations, scaffolding. It's
not inappropriately that names are often called
handles. They are handles, not the reality they
handle.
And so does the Urantia Book freely
use such biblically-familiar terms as "Lucifer",
"Satan", "Melchizedek", "Michael", and so on as
personal names; thus obvious Latinisms and
Hebraisms are used as a matter of course to
apply to beings at universe levels far beyond
the purview of such lingual provincialities. ...
To read the rest, click here:
Etymology
in The Urantia Book
For
more on Urantia etymology, including the
etymology of place names like Urantia, Satania
and Edentia, etc., click here: More Urantia Book
Etymology |
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Online Study
Groups
by Robert Aponte
OK,
gang I had an "Epiphany" the other day while in
"meditation". We can increase our
readership's access to study groups through the
use of Skype! We have at our fingertips a
basic form of "reflectivity"! We all have
access to a computer otherwise we would not be
on reading this now.
![Skype]()
Since
we are "Quarantined" from the Inter-Planetary
broadcasts, it doesn't mean we have to be
isolated any more from "Intra-Planetary"
communication. If someone is too far,
distance-wise, from a study group, they merely
have to "Skype" into a study group that's
happening. Skype study group hosts make
the same commitment to "being there" that any
host would make.
If
you are interested in beginning a new study
group using this medium please contact us at robertapontehb@gmail.com. It's
not really that difficult and there are many
members who can help with the "technicals." So,
we'd appreciate "opinions" on this and then
let's "roll up our sleeves" and get to work
making this happen!
Various
Online Study Groups:
Friday
Evening Study with Chris Halvorson,
7:30 - 9:30pm MST. Call 720-457-3606 or search
Skype name "perfectinghorizons". Please call in
5-10 minutes early so you are all set up before
the start of class....we are unable to log
anyone on after the start of class. This is not
an interactive call so PLEASE MUTE your phone or
computer...just listen and enjoy.
Skype
Tuesday Afternoon Study Group at 12pm
EST at: "patobanton123"
Tuesday
evening 9:00 EDT; 8:00 CDT; 7:00 MDT; 6:00
PDT
Each
Tuesday, a broadcast focused on science,
religion, and philosophy, based on the unifying
concepts of The Urantia Book. Broadcasts begin
9:00 PM Eastern Time at (www.blogtalkradio.com/symmetryofsoul).
All are invited to interact with us and/or ask
questions via the chat room as well as phone.
(817.366.3300
Voice/Text) |
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Bringing J.J. Benitez to
the English-speaking
World
By Byron Belitsos
Trojan
Horse: Jerusalem, by renowned Spanish
author J. J. Benitez--the first title in a
historical fiction series of eight volumes on
the life and teachings of Jesus--may soon come
to our shores. First introduced in 1984 by
Planeta (a large Spanish publisher), this
lengthy novel--a religious thriller--launched a
publishing phenomenon in the Spanish-speaking
world that has continued to this day with the
recent release of the eighth installment.
Sometimes compared to Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code,
the first volume narrates, almost hour-by-hour,
the last eleven days of Jesus's life.
![]() The narration is built around the
purported eyewitness accounts from the year 1973
of two American time-travelers who are working
under the auspices of the U.S. intelligence
services. But unknown to the reader, the plot,
characters, and the structure of the story are
actually drawn directly from Part IV of the
Urantia revelation. The story is offered up in a
robust, hyper-realistic journalistic style
combined with a science fiction
twist.
Many
Urantia Book readers in the U.S. are well aware
that the Benitez series of international
bestselling books has been the key source of a
rising wave of interest in The Urantia
Book.
Benitez himself had long
alluded to a mysterious "source" of the Trojan
Horse story in numerous press interviews and has
recently openly admitted the true
source.
The
other piece of good news is that this
significant piece of contemporary world
literature has now been translated into English.
As a book publisher and editor, I was privileged
in 2008-2009 to be the copy editor of the
translation by the eminent Margaret Sayers
Peden, a professor of Spanish literature at the
University of Missouri; as you read through this
demanding and richly textured novel, you will
soon see that her product is a considerable
accomplishment.
Much has happened
since then with this translation--including two
rounds of pitches to large New York publishing
houses. More recently, the literary agent that I
later recruited on behalf of Benitez and his
translator has indicated that Benitez is
interested in a bid from the Urantia community
to publish the book through my own publishing
house, Origin Press (OriginPress.org.)
We at Origin Press now have an exclusive option
on this, and so far we have raised about a third
of the funds needed to provide a suitable bid.
Purchasing the rights to this
blockbuster will be expensive. And thus, I am
seeking readers to assist me in presenting this
opportunity to potential investors in the
Urantia community. The investment could be
lucrative, and even if not, the very act of
publishing the book would be an amazing service
to English-speaking readers worldwide, just as
the original version has long been for the
Spanish-speaking world. Notably, we are also
requesting that Benitez allow Origin Press to
indicate in the back of the book, and in our
marketing material, what the "mysterious source"
of the novel is!
If
you have any level of interest, a good start
would be to read the publishing proposal for
this book, and the manuscript itself, which I
can forward to any interested party as "PDF"
files. I especially invite you to dip in to the
translation and see what you think. It's quite
amazing. And again, if you the spirit moves you
to invest in this publishing enterprise, I'd
like to speak with you.
Byron Belitsos
* 415/720-6508
*email: byron@originpress.com
website:
http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=mjk8e5cab&et=1108452931373&s=1755&e=001_PQ_8vhs3Sa68k7ox2Z_XllowfbbilayPDRTmIZYYXUtigBfxbHsV-WkFK2-TF-cq9I-b5zQoeNErPytRA_0VIglsm39v8ynFjhcXGixeRk=
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Urantian Youth
and Young Adult
News
by Tony
Finstad
As
chair person of the Fellowship's newly formed
Youth and Young Adult Committee, I'm excited to
share with you our most recent activity.
We
hosted our second 'YaYA Invitational' this month
in Los Angeles, more specifically in
Pasadena. Nineteen young
people registered and participated in this
three day event. We had a couple of teens,
most of our readers were in their 20's, with a
few 'older folks' that were in their 30's.
The majority of those who attended were from
California, four had never attended a Urantia
gathering before.
Our
program was actively balanced with outdoor
gatherings in local parks and indoor study
sessions at our hotel. We had a lovely
picnic lunch on Saturday that was hosted by the
Urantia Book Los Angeles Society. There was a
meaningful 'circle of sharing' after our
meal. These regional gatherings are
designed to mix the younger readers with the
host Urantia Societies to foster new
relationships with the potential of infusing
some youthful energy into established local
study groups. We had a nice exchange of
the different generations and created a contact
list containing who we are, what we do, and how
the UBLA community might be able to assist the
young adults in their current careers, spiritual
development, and with their yet to be realized
life goals.
![yayas]()
The
Saturday afternoon break-out sessions (YaYA
participants only) were designed to look at
personal strengths and areas they desire to make
improvements -- looking at the Apostle
personalities as an example. Discussion included
how we can each contribute in helping build a
community that is supportive, socially
attractive, service minded, study focused, and
seeking ways to engage in outreach both through
direct book promotion and through living the
teachings found within the Urantia Papers.
We talked about the differences between direct
book outreach and creative dissemination and the
comfort level of where each person is with both.
Encouragement was made to participate on our
interactive website http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=mjk8e5cab&et=1108452931373&s=1755&e=001_PQ_8vhs3SZt_aJGqKd2-T4qR8j06KCwpUOy8HJwQ5NWq_T3nBQ2H7VEcbWU09K_8lwQkI1uuzmyac19-6aZl03Wjo0acg5GM05nVUpxtbxHzHOIDHAiMA==.
Priority projects were given to college campus
book booths as well as upcoming events within
The Urantia Book Fellowship. One of our
goals is to have a stronger showing of younger
workshop presenters at the Fellowship's summer
conference, Summer Study Session 2012, i.e.,
what does 'progressive planetary
civilization' look like to a 25 year old?
We
had an wonderful Saturday evening meal together
where we continued to bond and talk well into
the night.
On
Sunday we journeyed to the Huntington Library,
Art, and Gardens (morontia prelude). It
was very inspiring! We concluded our time
together with a study group meeting under a
Japanese open air structure. We read about
the Spirit of Truth at Pentecost and closed with
a group prayer.
Many
thanks for the continued support of the
Fellowship's Outreach committee (since we're
still under their 2011 financial umbrella) and
to The Urantia Book Fellowship for making YaYA a
central part of our organization. We are
attracting younger readers! We are finding
new and creative ways of connecting with second
(and third) generation family members. Please
take a moment to read a few of the thank-you
emails that we received (listed
below).
Contact
me and let's make this happen with your local
Urantia Society or group! Our goal is to
host two of these regional gatherings each
year.
Tony Finstad - Chair
Youth and Young Adult
committee
Committee
members:
- Angie
Thurston
- Teuvo
Orjala
- Mae
Thompson
- Liz
Craig
Adjunct
members:
- Janet
Graham [Family Life]
- Michael
MacIsaac [Advisory Council]
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URANTIA BOOK
CONFIRMATIONS
The Start of
Bethlehem by Paul Herrick
In
the book "Astronomical Enigmas" (Mark Kidger,
2005) the author refers to a 1976 work by
British astronomer David Hughes looking for
something to explain the "Star of
Bethlehem". "In 7 BC, a triple conjunction
of Jupiter and Saturn took place in Pisces, a
constellation traditionally associated with the
Jews.-----On May 29, September 29, and December
4 of 7 BC, Jupiter and Saturn approached to
within twice the diameter of the Moon before
separating again. Hughes further suggests that
the Nativity occurred on September 15, 7
BC."
The
Urantia Book (copyright 1955) says this:
![star]()
1352:3 122:8.7 These
wise men saw no star to guide them to Bethlehem.
The beautiful legend of the star of Bethlehem
originated in this way: Jesus was born August 21
at noon, 7 B.C. On May 29, 7 B.C., there
occurred an extraordinary conjunction of Jupiter
and Saturn in the constellation of Pisces. And
it is a remarkable astronomic fact that similar
conjunctions occurred on September 29 and
December 5 of the same year. Upon the basis of
these extraordinary but wholly natural events
the well-meaning zealots of the succeeding
generation constructed the appealing legend of
the star of Bethlehem and the adoring Magi led
thereby to the manger, where they beheld and
worshiped the newborn babe. Oriental and
near-Oriental minds delight in fairy stories,
and they are continually spinning such beautiful
myths about the lives of their religious leaders
and political heroes. In the absence of
printing, when most human knowledge was passed
by word of mouth from one generation to another,
it was very easy for myths to become traditions
and for traditions eventually to become accepted
as facts.
Happy
Holidays! |
![]()
Following the
Spirit Within: The Way of Spiritual
Growth
A God-Centered
Retreat
Warmest
Greetings, everyone!
For
those who will fly to Albuquerque, you will be
able to take a shuttle which runs three times a
day and stops at the front door of the retreat
center at the cost of $45 each way or you may be
able to arrange to get a ride from/to the
airport with a participant driving to the
retreat.
Please let us know if you would like
to propose a specific topic or exercise that you
would like to share with the group for the
betterment of all in the renewal of our spirit
with Jesus Christ Michael.
Warmest wishes to you and Happy
Thanksgiving!
At Your Service,
Diane
Labrecque |
Reaching Urantia Now!
(RUN)
Last year a grant was
awarded to RUN (Reaching Urantia Now) for a
proposal to the Strategic Visioning Committee of
the Urantia Fellowship.
The RUN team was
devoted to public outreach, creating media that
supported the look and feel of literature we'd
be proud to give away, and encouraging the
involvement of readers in all regions in various
outreach activities. We set
out to build a network of readers devoted to
strengthening and growing the outreach movement
for the Urantia Fellowship. ![RUN]()
At the IC'11 conference we hosted
a series of presentations outlining what we had
done and what we would like to do.
Many participants in those presentations
took these ideas home with them.
They've been giving out free book cards,
helping out at expo booths, utilizing new
methods of introducing the book, they are active
in existing study groups and they are helping
start up new study groups.
They have taken advantage of
tools and techniques for outreach that we
have found effective through experience on the
road and at expos.
The Urantia
Fellowship has received over 100 requests for
books from the 'free book card' project this
year which is largely due to the efforts of
readers who have participated in RUN
events. We are proud of the
efforts of everyone involved!
RUN, working with the Outreach
Committee has sold/gifted nearly 500 books this
year through these events.
If you're one of those people who helped
sell books at a booth, or gave a free book card
to someone, you share in the joy of introducing
someone to the Urantia Book.
We have had good results using 'meetup.com' to
advertise an introductory meeting to help people
discover the book, to invite newcomers to study
groups and to encourage attendance at public
discussion groups such as Cosmic Cafe.
Does any of this sound like something you would
like to get involved with?
Would you like to seed books in your
community? Expos, libraries,
free book cards, campuses and public
introductions are all great places to start.
The RUN team is prepared to
support your outreach efforts and ideas through
coaching calls, providing training and sharing
guidelines for renting, setting up and operating
Expo booths. We can provide a banner, books, and
hand out materials for your use. Go
to www.urantiabook.org/outreach
to see the cards, banners, handouts, and other
resources available for outreach.
If you live in a region where
there are readers interested in coming together
for fun, fellowship, teaching and learning,
contact us and we'll help you plan and host a
local gathering that can accomplish all of this
in one weekend. It's time we came back
together as a family and moved in the direction
of our dreams for this planet! The network of
readers we're building is helping those dreams
unfold.
Andrea Barnes, Aurora Hill, Thomas Orjala and
the RUN Team of participants...
YOU! |
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God's
GPS
by Denis
Neumann
In 2007, I bought a used
Toyota that had a factory installed GPS.
Several days aft ![]( "0.5244444444444445") erward,
I spent some frustrating hours trying to remove
the addresses that the previous owner had
entered and put in some of my own. I
managed to get my home address in and then gave
up. Sometime later, going home
after dark and watching the GPS screen, I was
thinking about the similarity of the GPS'
purpose and our Thought Adjuster's
purpose. I had an immediate, very strong
physical flash of understanding that gave me
shivers and goose bumps all over! Nearly
every time I've thought about this since then,
I've had a milder version of this physical
reaction. I interpret this as a major
understanding in my spiritual quest.
GPS
I bought a car with a GPS
and
programmed it with my own address.
I gave up
trying to enter the rest!
Driving
home in the dark of night,
not sure of my
location (or of my life)
I thought to test
my GPS.
"Take me home!" I
said out loud.
Directions to my house
were readily found,
but it offered no
direction to God's home of
perfection.
My
Guardian Angel is ever ready
to guard me,
guide me and protect me.
My life's path
beckons, if only I will pay
attention.
If I miss my turn, can I
still return?
The GPS can correct the
earthly route I take,
but my spiritual
journey is mine to make.
(Denis is
a long time UB student in Northern
CA.) |
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We would like to hear
from you!
We
welcome your contributions to this online
publication. We accept articles no more
than 10 paragraphs long that deal with
Urantia Book related events, ideas, outreach,
gatherings, or reminders.
Articles
should be submitted to volunteer@urantiabook.org
before the 22nd of every month.
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Quotes:
"First they
ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they
fight you, then you win."
Ghandi
"When I
despair, I remember that all through history the
way of truth and love has always
won!
There have
been tyrants and murderers and for a time they
can seem invinsible. But in the end they always
fail. Think of it, always.
Whenever you
are in doubt that that is God's way, the way the
world is meant to be, think of that, and try to
do it His way." Ghandi
"And no matter
what blunders your fellow men make in their
world management of today, in an age to come the
gospel which I declare to you will rule this
very world."
(UB
143:1.4)
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REMINDERS
TURKISH
TRANSLATION UPDATE
UBSGNY
is happy to announce that the first 17 papers of
The Urantia Book have been translated into
Turkish! Our translator is able to do about
three papers a month at a cost of $500 for each
paper. The UBSGNY is intent on keeping funds
flowing for this important work and can use your
support. Your tax deductible contribution will
be most welcome. Please help us if you can.
Remember, every little bit helps. To donate, you
can use Paypal or a credit card by going to the
New York Society's website (http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=mjk8e5cab&et=1108452931373&s=1755&e=001_PQ_8vhs3Sa7skE0WiI7rDsOfzzTy9r17MT1bYbFznAb86V1_cOTM5jdMLdnsqLiWRMUXEGXHbh4NOknAr9ChQ9dH9JEPnzf7KQf00aP9z36JKkGtwGGtA==
) and clicking on "Turkish Translation."
Alternatively you can write a check payable to
SGNY Translation Fund and mail it to: Turkish
Translation, c/o Clark, 4 Horizon Rd. Apt. 1202,
Ft. Lee, NJ 07024. We thank you for your
interest and generosity.
__________________________________
The
International Conference 2011 plenary sessions
are now online. To view images
from the Conference click this link: http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=mjk8e5cab&et=1108452931373&s=1755&e=001_PQ_8vhs3SaG_LI-hfAV9Z441K4nfaezBwtTaIMx91aFOgU7h13-bZJC-gbtz1YvaGX-xXZNG9T44zHsK2xueXLqk4gFuyoMyOzFYuI1cgQ=
To
order
a copy of the Conference videos click here =>
videos
__________________________________
Some
of the projects in the queue for 2012
include campus outreach, the launch of the new
Youth and Young Adult standing committee, online
audio translations, Uversa Press's newest
edition of The Urantia Book with standard
reference text and the new cover, regional
Interfaith conferences, the Pipeline of Light,
the Summer Study Session at Techny Towers, the
continuation of the RUN project, connections
with the emergent Christian movement, and a
complete overhaul of our IT systems including
the websites, database, and online storefront.
If you are interested in helping our
hard-working volunteers fulfill big dreams,
please contact our office at 877 288-3772 or
http://urantiabook.org/support.htm
to donate to the cause.
An
anonymous Fellowship member has offered to
donate matching funds for contributions made to
the renovation of Foundation headquarters at 533
West Diversey Parkway. The kitchen and bathrooms
have been refurbished, but more preservation is
needed. If you would like to help with this
effort, please contact our office at 877 288-3772 or
Fellowship@urantiabook.org
and mention the 533 Renovation matching
fund.
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![Logo]( "0.8939393939393939")
FROM THE
MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE
Are
you a member of The Urantia Book
Fellowship? Maybe you're not sure?
If not please contact us and we'll let you
know. Email
Lenny Cowles at: lighting@wispertel.net
If
you would like to become a member
please click on this link and fill out the easy
online membership form. Your credentials
will be sent to the Membership Committee for
consideration.
Please join us! - click here for the
online form.
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