By Tamara Strumfeld, Urantia Foundation, Illinois, United States
The trustees and staff of Urantia Foundation are always thinking of new and inventive approaches to further the mission of seeding The Urantia Book and its teachings globally. A large part of this involves book distribution.
The challenges of book distribution have been waxing for several years. The book market is changing. Competition for shelf space in bookstores is always on the rise. Backlisted books (all books published prior to the current year) must make way for incoming new titles. Imagine the difficulty of keeping a backlisted book from 1955 on the shelves!
To remain relevant in today’s book industry, Urantia Foundation must use new techniques to accomplish its mission while adhering to the principle objects of its trust “…to perpetually preserve inviolate the text of The Urantia Book and to disseminate the principles, teachings, and doctrines of The Urantia Book.”
One such technique involves the publication of quality secondary works that aid the Foundation in sharing the teachings. However, Urantia Foundation has a policy not to interpret the teachings.
So how does the Foundation adhere to its principles, follow its policies, and yet remain relevant by producing secondary works if it does not interpret the teachings?
Urantia Foundation is pleased to announce Urantia Press—a publisher that publishes only those works that support the teachings of The Urantia Book. The views and opinions expressed in Urantia Press publications will be solely those of the original authors and other contributors.
It is the goal of Urantia Foundation to disseminate the teachings with wisdom while being realistic concerning the publishing industry. Urantia Press will assist us in accomplishing this.
The first publication of Urantia Press will be The Parables of Jesus―Complete Teachings from The Urantia Book. It is a beautifully illustrated book containing Jesus’ parables as given to us in The Urantia Book. What a lovely avenue this book will be for bringing the teachings to the individual!
Information on where to pre-order copies will be forthcoming in late August.
The Parables of Jesus: Complete Teachings from The Urantia Book - Illustrated