By David Neufer, Pennsylvania, United States
Before I found The Urantia Book, it meant nothing at all to me, just as it means nothing to most people on the planet today. Pre-Urantia Book, I did a lot of reading to find the best explanation of reality. My first God concept came from the Catholic Church. They taught me the reality of God. I don’t know how I would be if I hadn’t started out in a God-believing family.
I never doubted that there was a Jesus, but his nature was hard to discern from the bits and pieces of ancient writings that had been shattered by time. Stories about his life did give me a good feeling about him. The church’s rituals didn’t sit well with me, nor did its emphasis on death. Though I couldn’t fully embrace the Catholic ways, it was not a bad beginning. It could have been worse. Yet, I was fervently up for knowing the real deal about who I am, why I’m here, and where I’m going. I found a void. I had some seeking to do.
Some philosophies repelled me. Others attracted me. Books by P. D. Ouspensky, Hermann Hesse, Ram Dass, and Buckminster Fuller had some pull. Bucky remains a personal hero—a beautifully minded, God-knowing mortal.
I tried astrology and biorhythms—fun but not truly gripping. I learned I Ching with its beautiful observations. The Rosicrucians and Eckankar had some appealing ads in science magazines, but as a kid, I really didn’t have the cash to get very far with these.
Once, I even announced my plan to join the Hare Krishnas. However, before signing up, I had a change of mind. I did, however, get a glimpse of how I would have looked in their hairstyle when I joined the navy and they shaved my head.
At radioman school in San Diego, I stopped being unaware of The Urantia Book. I borrowed the book from the base library, and it has been with me ever since. (Not that particular book. I grudgingly returned that one.)
Initially, I jumped around in the pages. The first papers to grab me were about Adam and Eve. The Bible version raised a lot of questions, but here was an extended version presented in a rational narrative. I didn’t understand some of the terminology, but I was getting the picture and wanted to read more.
I was really ripe for revelation. At first I was questioning, using my built-in truth detector, looking for inconsistencies like the ones I found in similar works. After some further seeking, I came to realize that there are no similar works. None!
The Urantia Book is substantially more than just a book. It is a cosmic education. This revelation revealed everything I wanted to know about reality—more than I’d think to ask about the nature of things and beings in the universe of universes. It’s a revelation where the ones who know whereof they speak readily say when they don’t know. What they say and how they say it entices me to keep returning.
When I was a new reader, my mind was a mix of prior beliefs and the new Urantia ones. I hung on to the concept of reincarnation for a while because of a book I’d read, and because I sometimes had dreams in historical settings. But this concept and some others slowly faded. It seems that the revelation garden can crowd out invasive, erroneous beliefs.
Forty years later, the Urantia Revelation remains illuminating and compelling. There is always something to learn or to add to what was learned before. When I open up the book, or show it on a screen, or press play and listen, it’s like I’m entering a friendly and familiar school. I feel safe in the midst of the truth inside. A friend asked me if I believed The Urantia Book. I said, “Yes.” I’ve found no better way of thinking. It gives my mind structure. It feels right.
I can’t foresee a time here when I won’t be studying The Urantia Book. Some day we’ll be moving on to the schools of the next worlds. We Urantia Book students may be grouped together as revelation-minded agondonters. I think learning will proceed but not so much with books. We’ll find out what morontia mota is and practice new study techniques. We’ll pass along our knowledge to others who come after us.
Thanks to the ones who made this source of truth we revel in! The Urantia Papers will forever be a revelation of personal significance.
In the meantime, while we’re still here, here’s a tip on how to study. The revelators frequently distribute related data throughout various papers and sections, sometimes in sections where you wouldn’t think to look. Using a quality search tool may be the only way to adequately learn certain topics.
Try this Urantia Book Search [2] adapted for the revelation by Troy Bishop. The design of this study site is ideal for learning concepts through word and phrase searches. You see results sequentially in paper order. You see them in full paragraphs for good context. And when you click the reference, you see the entire paper starting at your search phrase for even better context. And all this happens without losing your search results—they stay listed to the side. Do yourself a favor. Learn the search modes, and see if studying this way works for you.
Lastly, I’ve been compiling charts and lists from information presented in The Urantia Book. You can find these online in the Master Universe Almanac [3].
Enjoy your studies of the revelation, and cherish your labors of love.