The DIRECTOR'S PERSPECTIVE

Responses to Frequently Asked Questions

Personalities and Leadership

In a world where religious organizations are often headed by domineering individuals with personal agendas, it is wise to be somewhat cautious when exploring "unknown" spiritual texts. For this reason you might like to know that none of the three major texts suggested by the Center are headed by a "spiritual leader." Rather, these texts are studied by individuals who are either not associated with a related spiritual organization, or, are part of an reader-based organization headed by democratically-elected representatives. Or, in the case of the Teaching Mission, are part of a loose-knit group that functions with spontaneous leadership that arises naturally when required.

The books and transcripts recommended by the Center all paint a picture of a world of in which freedom is a preeminent force. The vision they offer is one of a unified world in which individuals act responsibly and harmoniously in a spirit of self-led brotherhood, a world in which LEADERSHIP is found within each individual, a world that seeks to eliminate cult-like activity and the separation that it requires.
 

Authenticity

Most religious leaders have yet to read even one of the three texts recommended by the Center. Because of this situation, spiritual explorers are left to make their own evaluations. But in any case, do you really want to let someone else determine the channels through which God is able to speak to you? Of course, decisions like this can be difficult, and this is why many people prefer to let someone else decide.

Considering that the spiritual texts recommended by the Center have yet to be embraced by a majority of religious leaders--the planet's spiritual professionals--it is good to question their authenticity. It is always wise to be somewhat skeptical when exploring a subject as important as spiritual guidance. But keep in mind that we live in an excessively skeptical world. Excessive skepticism has become habitual, and in many individuals has become an unconscious barrier to truth. Since too much skepticism tends to unnecessarily delay our progress, unless we have a good reason to do otherwise, it is usually a good policy to start from a position of neutrality, of balance.

Why do many people view these texts as authentic?

When readers of The Urantia Book are asked this question perhaps the most common answer is this: when one considers the scope and depth of the book, its extensive scientific detail covering a wide range of subjects, and its philosophic unity, most agree no one human could possibly have written such a complex and extensive work. When readers of A COURSE IN MIRACLES are asked a similar question the answer typically goes something like this, "Studying the Course has produced miracles in my life."

In questioning the authenticity of these books, those with a Christian background might benefit from reminding themselves of the response of the clergy of 2000 years ago to the new ideas brought to them by Jesus. As we are often reminded, human behavior has not changed much over the centuries. When the established view of truth is challenged by new perspectives on truth, people often feel threatened. if you were a spiritual leader, would you be willing to risk your reputation, job and security to go out on a limb and embrace modern works such as A Course In Miracles or The Urantia Book knowing that your peers were not only skeptical of modern works, but extremely fearful as well? And likewise your congregation? Very few were willing to do so in Jesus' time. Very few are willing today.

But beyond logic--and we must go beyond logic to arrive at the heart of truth--each of us must decide for ourselves. As a spiritual explorer grounded in the Christian tradition, the director of the Center employs the well-known guide to discernment offered by Jesus as recorded in Matthew 7:16 "By their fruits you shall know them." (The same idea is recorded in Luke 6:43-44.) Seekers from other religious traditions will no doubt have their own scriptural guides. We all have a personal internal living guide. Within each of us is God's voice. It usually takes time, effort and concentration to recognize, but it is there. The ideal solution, it seems, is to rediscover that voice and let IT guide us to the truth.
 

Origins: Channeling

God speaks to us in many ways. Among them, God speaks directly to us through an internal voice employing words. God's messages also come to us through intuition, thoughts, feelings, visual images and other means. All of us receive these communications, but recognition of them as celestial messages varies widely depending on our willingness to accept them (to accept that God actually communicates with us), on inherent natural abilities, and on the effort we exert to make use of our abilities.

Because so many of us do not trust our Inner Voice or have not yet learned to distinguish it from the ego's voice (and therefore do not trust our ability to recognize this Voice), God also speaks to us indirectly. In this case God speaks through a third party who consciously or unconsciously acts as a communications channel. A prime example of the fruits of this process is the world's Holy Books. Although followers typically use the term "inspired" rather than "channeled" to describe the process of manifestation, the word "channeling" as defined in most dictionaries clearly describes the process through which the world's Holy Books have been created: A spiritually inspired (celestial) message is received by a spiritually attuned individual, written down and then shared with (channeled to) others. In addition, God's messages are channeled to us through novels, friends and strangers. We don't normally think of these sources as channels, but when a message is transmitted from the spiritual world to an individual or group through the services of a third party the process is basically one of channeling--whether we recognize it as such or not.

As with any human process, channeling is subject to variation. A common misperception is that channeling occurs only when the individual–-the medium-–is in an unconscious trance state (and thus is unable to know what she is saying or who is delivering the message--a less than ideal situation). Although the trance state is probably the state most often associated with channeling, it certainly is not the only state through which channeled messages are received and transmitted.

Most people associated with the Teaching Mission are conscious during the "channeling" process. For this reason, and perhaps as a way to distance themselves and their love-based service from the channeling-for-entertainment industry, individuals in the Teaching Mission have chosen another set of terms to describe themselves and the process they use. They refer to those who channel consciously as "TRs" and the process as "TRing" (pronounced "T-R-ing"). Thus, when reading Teaching Mission transcripts one will occasionally encounter references to "TRing."

When using an third-party channel one must also cope with that timeless human condition: variation in ethics. There are people, and apparently a significant number of them, who have not yet learned to recognize the Voice, but "channel" anyway--as a way of obtaining money or gaining power over people. Fortunately, so far, this problem seems to have eluded the teaching mission. The Center Director knows most of the individuals producing transcripts and considers them to be individuals dedicated to the truth and to the service of humanity. Nevertheless, one should always remain reasonably cautious (without giving into fear) as a matter of practice.

Variation also exists within individuals who are dedicated to ethical responsibility. Natural variations in human physical and mental design parameters mean that some channels (or TRs) are naturally clearer (more exacting) than others. Some individuals are better equipped than others to block off their ego perceptions and allow celestial perceptions to flow through with a minimum of personal "coloration." Simply put: some individuals are naturally more talented and thus better able to accurately translate or articulate the messages conveyed to them.

Considering the importance associated with obtaining the truth (and the pain of dealing with false information), all of this variation in perfection naturally scares people. How does one know who to trust? Perhaps the most common human response to this situation is the easy way out: to stay with the familiar and take no action--ignore books like A COURSE IN MIRACLES that openly acknowledge their source and channel. However, once we recognize and accept that all holy books are the product of this process, that all have been filtered through the human mind, we basically find the playing field leveled, and modern texts can no longer be discriminated against based on their process of manifestation. This brings us back to our question, who do we trust? The safest approach, the wisest approach, is the holistic approach-to read all of them.

Needless to say, direct communication--God to us--is the preferred process. This eliminates the middle man and his or her biases. Unfortunately, this is not a perfect solution either as it does nothing to eliminate personal biases--which can be just as misleading and problematic as third-party biases, if not worse. Worse? Well, personal biases not only work to distort the quality of the messages we receive directly from celestial sources, they also tend to add distortion to indirect (third party) messages--those coming from our holy books, clergy, heros and wise friends.

We are told in A COURSE IN MIRACLES that we must acknowledge our fears before we can be rid of them. Ultimately, each individual must determine what those fears are because they vary from individual to individual. As examples of common fearful reactions that prevent people from making use of modern texts, consider the following: One of the fears commonly associated with channeling involves a fear of the unknown; channeling is a process that is largely unknown to most people. Fear also arises because of the deception that is so often a part of channeling for profit. (This is not to suggest that those who provide a genuine service should not be compensated in order to help maintain that service. Like anyone else, spiritual channels have bills to pay.) And finally, because those interested in channeling are so few and far between, and traditional spiritual leadership is normally unwilling to even discuss the issue, spiritual explorers are often left relatively alone to sort out the truth, with no experience and few guidelines. This creates another support for fear.

So how should we approach channeled materials? The same way we approach non-channeled material: with open minds and open eyes (and a bit of skepticism--but keep it in balance).

Basically, we have two choices (or some combination thereof):

We can examine channeled works with an open mind, carefully exploring our thoughts and feelings regarding them. Then accept what rings true and ignore the rest. (And remember that the decision to accept or reject can often be delayed indefinitely. While there are probably exceptions, in most cases it seems that God gives us all the time we need. Typically, the greatest pressure to decide comes from our own impatience and the impatience of friends.)

Or, we can let someone else, some celebrity/expert/guru/friend choose for us (or influence our choice). In this case we, in effect, abdicate our responsibility to ourselves as well as those who rely on us for guidance (such as our children).

In concluding this brief look at channeling the Center would like to point out that many readers of The Urantia Book take the position that it was not channeled in the usual sense of the word. (And no doubt there will be some who feel that way about other holy books.) By referring to The Urantia Book as a channeled work the Center does not dispute that position. There are reasons to believe that some highly unusual processes were involved in bringing The Urantia Book into existance, processes that might not have involved a human channel. However, since no one seems to know for certain the nature of the process or have a name for it, and lacking a better term to describe the process through which the book was delivered, the Center (like many others, including some long-time Urantia Book readers) has adopted the inclusive term "channeling." We pray that our use of this term does not offend Urantia Book readers or the readers of any of the world's holy texts.

C.M. Olson, Director