Your planet is a member of an enormous cosmos; you belong to a well—nigh infinite family of worlds, but your sphere is just as precisely administered and just as lovingly fostered as if it were the only inhabited world in all existence. (p. 183, par. 1)
In the turbulent history of our planet, we have been blessed with five epochal revelations of truth as part of the celestial plan of evolution. A study of The URANTIA Book reveals to us the plans and strategies undertaken by the celestial supervisors for the implementation and management of each one of the epochal revelations.
I. The Planetary Prince and his staff of one hundred were intrusted with the task of implementing the first epochal revelation to our planet. Their plan was to improve the culture of mankind by attracting and then training the best minds in the culture of Dalamatia. We are told that Adjuster guidance led people to the Prince and his staff:
Each of the ten planetary commissions set about slowly and naturally to advance the interests intrusted to them. Their plan consisted in attracting the best minds of the surrounding tribes and, after training them, sending them back to their people as emissaries of social uplift. (p. 749, par. 6)
II. After Van and his volunteers had chosen the location for the Adamic bestowal, Adam and Eve and their progeny, were intrusted with the task of implementing the second epochal revelation and were given careful instructions by their superiors:
The instructions given Adam by the Melchizedeks implied that he was to establish racial, continental, and divisional headquarters to be in charge of his immediate sons and daughters, while he and Eve were to divide their time among these various world capitals as advisers and co—ordinators of the world—wide ministry of biologic uplift, intellectual advancement, and moral rehabilitation. (p. 827, par. 3)
III. Once the order of Melchizedeks were given permission by the Salvington authorities to embark on their plan for the third epochal revelation, human families, who embodied leadership potentials, were observed before Machiventa Melchizedek chose the place for his bestowal. He was personally intrusted to accomplish very specific tasks:
He came to achieve two tasks: to keep alive on earth the truth of the one God and to prepare the way for the subsequent mortal bestowal of a Paradise Son of that Universal Father. (p. 1018, par. 4)
IV. Michael of Nebadon, having decided that strife—torn Urantia was to be the stage for his seventh and final bestowal, had Gabriel choose Mary and Joseph of Nazareth to be his earthly parents. He was lovingly instructed by his brother, Immanuel, that his sole responsibility was to reveal the true nature and character of God to mankind.
"In your relations to the social order we advise that you confine your efforts largely to spiritual regeneration and intellectual emancipation. Avoid all entanglements with the economic structure and the political commitments of your day. More especially devote yourself to living the ideal religious life on Urantia." (p. 1329, par. 5)
V. And finally we have been blessed with the fifth epochal revelation to our world, The URANTIA Book. Although it is in a different form from previous revelations, we know that the revelators had a plan, gave instructions, and intrusted the management for the dissemination of the book and its teachings to a manmade institution, URANTIA Foundation. (Please see article in this issue, "Copyright Registration in The URANTIA Book" [2] for an excerpt from the Declaration of Trust Creating URANTIA Foundation.)
In the early 20th century, a small number of men and women in Chicago known as the Contact Commission was the human focus group for the materialization of the text of the URANTIA Papers. They were sworn not to disclose details about the transactions in order to preclude future generations from venerating the participants. It was considered important that no individual be exalted through his association with The URANTIA Book. Because of its revelatory nature, the book stands on its own merit, nature, and content.
After the URANTIA Papers were transcribed, they were read to a larger group which had been meeting regularly at the home of one of the Contact Commissioners. This was an informal discussion group that had been meeting to talk about popular subjects of the times. They were invited to study the Papers and ask questions. The answers to many questions appeared in expanded and final versions of the Papers—The URANTIA Book. These early readers formed the first core group of believers in the revelation and became committed to the mission of bringing the teachings of The URANTIA Book to all of mankind.
The Contact Commissioners were told that the book had been given to mankind long before the world was ready to receive its teachings. The plan was to allow enough time to "train leaders and teachers" and to form study groups throughout the world. Time was also needed to translate the book into the major languages of the world. To keep the text safe, while the readership grew and strengthened, the revelators stressed the importance of protecting the text to avoid distortion and misrepresentation. The Contact Commissioners were encouraged to secure international copyrights in the book to accomplish this protection.
After the completion of the Papers, the Contact Commissioners arranged for the establishment of URANTIA Foundation and presented it with the plates for the first printing of The URANTIA Book in 1955. URANTIA Foundation was established on January 11, 1950. Its purpose is to be the custodian of the inviolate text of The URANTIA Book and to ensure that the book's teachings are spread, with the help of readers and a fraternal organization, to all people. The Foundation is a non—profit organization and is headed by a five—member Board of Trustees who are appointed for life terms. The Trustees' duties and responsibilities are defined in the Declaration of Trust Creating URANTIA Foundation [3].