Spiritual Advice and Guidance Blog: Urantia Book

Q: I dearly love my wonderful pets. Can I ultimately have them back in the future life? Perhaps recreated for me?

A: Where would we be without our pets or without animals in general who give us such appreciation, happiness and joy, attention, love and affection? Unlike other people, animals can give us attention and show us affection when we want it. Pets are like visible ministering angels; they can help the mentally and physically sick heal faster, give love to the unloved, and help us feel the joyous sense of being alive. They offer us the opportunity to take responsibility for a thinking and feeling creature other than ourselves. Their majesty, beauty, power, delicacy brings us a sense of humility and awe and often mirrors back to us like no other encounter can. Surely we are blessed to have the variety of animals living here with us that we do; we're all the better because of them in their infinite variety.

From The Urantia Book we learn that our deep appreciation for animals is natural since human origins are from animal ancestry although now there are a number of traits that elevate us above the animals, one being our moral and religious natures and the other being personality. Humans can learn not only through experience but by thinking ahead and drawing conclusions, looking before we leap, whereas animals ordinarily learn only by leaping. They achieve goals based on accumulated experience; we can examine the goal and judge its value, can discriminate between ends as well as between means, can know what we are doing, why we are doing it, where we are going, and how we will get there without ever having to have the actual experience.

One of the challenging concepts of The Urantia Book is that animals do not possess personality whereas humans do, and that it is personality that survives physical death; this means that we continue on in our existences once our lives here on earth are through but that our beloved pets don't. And any pet owner will readily say their cat or dog definitely does have a personality so obviously The Urantia Book is wrong. The difficulty lies in what we commonly define as personality and the Urantia book definition. In Urantia book terms, personality is the unique gift of the Father in heaven bestowed upon free-will creatures. Human beings are the lowest order of free-will creatures in creation. Animals, being lower on the scale of life than human beings, are not free-will creatures and do not have personality bestowed upon them. The personality we recognize in our animals is the result of the interaction between animal and human and the accumulated experiences of the animal; we associate their interaction with us as being their unique personality.

The love and association we experience through our pets enriches our lives, makes us better people, enlarges us emotionally, all of which is to the benefit of the development our our soul, the vehicle that carries personality on into the spirit world. And there we will again encounter lower life forms that will be like our animals were here, where we will receive love and recognition and have the opportunity to express them to lower forms just as we have here.

We may think it unreasonable or unjust that we're not reunited with our earthly pets when we depart here but consider that many people and some religions believe/teach that when we die it is all over, that nothing survives death, that despite the example Jesus provided we live, we die, and that's it for the human personality. In light of such nihlistic thought the understanding that it's our pets that don't survive takes on a different significance. Which would make more logical sense, that your life as a human being is of no ultimate value and ceases when you die, or that animal life, unblessed by free-will and divine personality does not survive?

When our beloved pets die their life energy returns to whence it came; they survive in our memories. When we die we will be blessed with associations of other life forms like the animals left behind. Think of the love and attachment you felt for the first pet you had and how, when it died you thought there would never be another to replace it. Then eventually you had another pet that you loved as much as the first -- you remembered the first as fondly as you cherished the next. You couldn't have the first back but you found something that substituted so well you were equally delighted with the second. So it will be in the life to come.

Yours is a good question and we've added it to our discussion board so that you can have the benefit of the thoughtful responses of our online Urantia Book reader community. You can visit this board and see these responses by clicking here: http://forums.truthbook.com/viewforum.php?f=11. and going to the forum titled "Questions & Answers."

May I also recommend that if you're not already signed up that you consider subscribing to the Quote of the Day. It's a free service that offers a daily quote from the incomparable teachings of this marvelous book along with a beautiful and inspiring image, a great way to start one's day as well as to begin to understand the teachings of the book. To subscribe go to the upper right corner of our home page, click on Quote of the Day and follow the instructions.

Thank you for your question.

Larry Watkins
Truthbook.com

Labels: animals, free will, humans, Jesus, Larry Watkins, memory, personality, pets, The Urantia Book

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Wednesday, December 14, 2005

Why is there so much injustice towards all animals in this world? Why are we, humans, so cruel to our animals?

Q: Why is there so much injustice towards all animals in this world? Why are we, humans, so cruel to our animals?

A: Perhaps the easiest answer is that, as sophisticated as we are, we humans are not so far removed from being animals ourselves. Our ascent from an animal origin to becoming fully realized and spiritual is a long one, particularly here on earth. The human species evolved from the animal kingdom about one million years ago, which is a very short time in evolutionary terms. Many of us still respond to the primitive emotions of ghost fear, superstition, magic because as a species we haven't evolved beyond those primitive influences â€“ our brains are still wired to be receptive to them so to speak. Injustice is still a part of our makeup â€“ not just to animals but to our fellow humans as well. After a million years of evolutionary progress we're just on the verge of giving up on slavery; women are finding equality with men; governments are responding to the will of the people. These are positive steps, but injustice still prevails. Here is a quote from The Urantia Book that speaks to this:

The whole idea of primitive justice was not so much to be fair as to dispose of the contest and thus prevent public disorder and private violence. But primitive man did not so much resent what would now be regarded as an injustice; it was taken for granted that those who had power would use it selfishly. Nevertheless, the status of any civilization may be very accurately determined by the thoroughness and equity of its courts and by the integrity of its judges. (70:11.10)

If we exhibit injustice towards one another certainly injustice will also be exhibited towards animals. However, animals and humans don't have the same rights. We are stewards of the planet meaning that the animals come under our care and supervision. Whether they're to be used as food or for labor or simply to give us pleasure it's our duty to treat them with love and respect â€“ since we don't treat one another that way yet it's too much to expect that we will do so with the animals under our care. But, in my estimation, animals are usually treated better than we treat one another. So, wherever you confront injustice it is valuable to speak out to try to change the condition.

Labels: animals, cruelty, humans, injustice, respect, The Urantia Book

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Saturday, October 08, 2005

Changing your inner self

You asked how you can change your inner self and I submit to you that the fact that you desire such a change is an indication that it is already happening.

Each human being is absolutely unique. The Urantia Book says it this way;

The love of the Father absolutely individualizes each personality as a unique child of the Universal Father, a child without duplicate in infinity, a will creature irreplaceable in all eternity.

Ponder that for a moment and really let it sink in. You are a child without duplicate in infinity, irreplaceable in all eternity! Now, ponder the fact that a piece of the Father's ultimate perfection lives in you. It only makes sense then that all significant personal change occurs from the inside out and this process is greatly facilitated if we do not resist it but accept and even embrace it.

You expressed some regret about the mistakes that you have made.

I can assure you, there will come a time when you realize that your mistakes and experiences have been your greatest teachers. Our patient and loving Heavenly Father expects us to make mistakes. In fact, he set that scenario up. He wants us to strive for perfection, but he knows (better than anyone) how far away from that lofty goal we are. His desire is only that our intentions are turned toward that goal and that we are mindful of it and working on it. The pain you feel about your mistakes is good because it suggests that you are conscious and moral.

These comforting words of Jesus always help me through a dark night in my soul:

"Do not become discouraged by the discovery that you are human. Human nature may tend toward evil, but it is not inherently sinful. Be not downcast by your failure wholly to forget some of your regrettable experiences. The mistakes which you fail to forget in time will be forgotten in eternity. Lighten your burdens of soul by speedily acquiring a long-distance view of your destiny, a universe expansion of your career."

You asked what you can do to make your mistakes right.

A Native American friend of mine says, "When you make a wrong turn you must make two right turns. One to correct the wrong turn and one just for growth."

I love this simple kind of wisdom.

You wondered "where exactly" you are going.

You are headed into eternity to become perfect as your Father in Heaven is perfect.

It's a journey that he has prepared for you, but it is your choice whether or not to take it. He has provided all you will need for the journey and even more, he has given you a piece of himself to live in your heart and mind and act as your personal guide. All this, to ensure your safe arrival home to Him where he actually dwells at the Paradise center and source of all that is. This is your eternal destination but getting there will also be sublime.

Jesus once told a Chinese merchant, "...we shall meet again in the worlds of light where the Father of spirit souls has provided many delightful stopping-places for those who are Paradise-bound."

Quoting the book again:

Love of adventure, curiosity, and dread of monotony--these traits inherent in evolving human nature--were not put there just to aggravate and annoy you during your short sojourn on earth, but rather to suggest to you that death is only the beginning of an endless career of adventure, an everlasting life of anticipation, an eternal voyage of discovery.

Quoting from Jesus again:

"You may be surrounded with small enemies and be retarded by many obstacles, but the big things and the real things of this world and the universe are on your side. The sun rises every morning to salute you just as it does the most powerful and prosperous man on earth."

My thoughts and prayers are with you. May the golden white light of Christ enfold you in healing and peace.

Blessings always.....Paula

Labels: God, humans, inner life, Jesus, mistakes, Paula, regret, The Urantia Book