Episode:Evolutionary Religion—Later Evolution (Part 1)
Man possessed a religion of natural origin as a part of his evolutionary experience long before any systematic revelations were made on Urantia. But this religion of natural origin was, in itself, the product of man’s superanimal endowments of mind ministry and spirit ministry. And the co-ordinate functioning of such is quite sufficient to initiate and prosecute the growth of evolutionary religion.
Keywords: Urantia, Religion, Adjutant of Worship, Adjutant of Wisdom, Holy Spirit
Summary by Kermit
Commentary on the Review
We concluded our discussion about the physics of “mind over matter” with respect to treatment of man’s maladies. The interaction of mind with matter must be acknowledged as profoundly more complex and poorly understood than heretofore imagined. This is not to say that material or chemical remedies play no direct part in the amelioration of disease. Rather, we are encouraged to recognize that supermaterial realities can greatly influence the material realm. In considering so-called miracle cures we must also recognize that spirit is even more difficult to identify and understand. What are called divine interventions are more likely instances of mind over matter. With such uncertainty we are safer to ascribe miracle cures to the realm of mind rather than the action of spirit. Humility in such matters is a necessary condition for being cosmically grown.
Our wide ranging discussion touched on some of the implications for our religious life of being in the material comfort stage of civilization with its emphasis on outer life phenomena. Having been sailed out of the sheltered bays of established tradition, the adaptations required to successfully navigate the high seas of evolutionary destiny are to be found by scrutinizing our charts of morality and observing the compass of religious guidance—cultivating conformity with the cosmos in the inner life. The transition from childhood through adolescence to adulthood requires conscious personal purposing beyond our superconscious cosmic initiation by grace.
Paper 92. The Later Evolution of Religion
This paper’s preface is reiterated in the preface of Paper 103, The Reality of Religious Experience. Both places make clear that man’s religious evolution began long before any systematic revelations were brought to Urantia. Also, that religion’s origins are found in the natural, albeit superanimal mind endowments of the 6th and 7th adjutants of worship and wisdom respectively, plus the supermind bestowal of the Holy Spirit ministry. It is this Holy Spirit encircuitment by grace that renders the creature personality observable as an active and functional reality. We explored some of the details of the 6th adjutant’s sponsorship and the 7th adjutant’s censorship of the religious urge. These mind and spirit ministries of Mother Deity are sufficient to initiate and prosecute the growth of evolutionary religion. Note that the later appearing influences of Thought Adjusters, seraphim, and Spirit of Truth serve to augment and accelerate such religious development once begun. The discussion regarding Mother Deity’s role in supplying capacity and that which fills it is well worth reviewing. We explored a number of other aspects of these transactions and interactions in illuminating detail including the mysterious role of Father bestowed personality. Check out the archive of the broadcast. Also recall that the action and function of these divine influences are as one in creature experience.
92:1. The Evolutionary Nature of Religion
Our final section of the evening serves as a reprise of the material we have studied since beginning this arc. Lest we think of ourselves as anywhere close to an advanced stage of religious evolution we should not fail to note that in the eyes of the revelators we are only now approaching maturity and ripening for the appreciation of real religion, even a beginning of the revelation of truth itself. Two thousand years following Jesus’ revelation of the highest type of religious living, armed with the 5th ER can we now move beyond the evolutionary religions of fear no matter how fancy and consciously, courageously, and independently pursue real religion?
Notes by Brad
- This author's 3-alarm headache, treated without the usual ritual
- It lasted in some way for 15 hours, through the night
- A superstitious approach to making it go away might work ("the usual ritual")... in 15 minutes!
- It's a complex system of mind and matter. Appreciate that. Don't pick one extreme or the other (mind versus matter)
- Avoid falsely exalting mind to the level of spirit. It will apparently sate your appetite. We want to stay hungry and thirsty, my friends.
- Adolescence is innately difficult. For us. For civilization.
- You can't put the chicken back in the egg. You can't be 8 years old again
- But there is the true inner life. The bastion. The temple. The more you move forward, the more you need this.
- An inner sheltered bay. The famous quote from the Book ends with all of this: inner life charts and compasses. [99:1.3]
- A 3rd circler is grown. That isn't that initial, tentative, graceful connection we all get.
- We need on demand more of our God idea. Being healed? Parlor tricks? Demand more.
- There is natural in the animal sense, and natural in the superanimal (potential human) sense.
- Mind energy is not affected by the Holy Spirit. But mindal forms are affected by it--a formal influence.
- Forms are not figuration, they are CONfiguration.
- The mind conforms to forms, directed by spirit.
- The upper domain of the hourglass analogy of mind conforms to the Holy Spirits forms.
- But that's a different topic. Along with pattern.
- Concerning the seven adjutant mind-spirits: Note "the adjutant of worship/wisdom" instead of "the spirit of..." just to clarify their mind nature.
- And note the parallel construct to [103:0.1]. Sponsored (appearance in consciousness) and censored (direct to higher channels).
- It's a bit like the first paragraph of Paper 103 is expanded out to the entire preface of Paper 92.
- These are superanimal potentials.
- And note the parallel construct to [103:0.1]. Sponsored (appearance in consciousness) and censored (direct to higher channels).
- A capacity is created in our mind by the Holy Spirit. The volume of the upper domain of mind.
- Capacity is a high word--a transcendent fact.
- Bona fide... "good faith"
- [Paper 34] tells us about the co-ordinate functioning of all of these ministrations.
- We need a human definition of the word co-ordination. It isn't just holding project-management meetings at work.
- The "stuff" is from the mother. All else (e.g., Thought Adjusters, seraphim, Spirit of Truth) are catalytic agents--accelerants.
- Don't overplay this "age 6 Thought Adjuster" concept most readers recognize. It's an accelerant from the Father. The foundation is what the Mother gives you.
- Overplaying this is an immature thought. "No harm, no foul" in the big picture. But don't be satisfied with it. Aim higher!
- The old wineskin to end them all: "I will do this ritual just so to convince God to bestow something on me."
- All 6-year-olds will demonstrate some old-time religion, because ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny.
- Don't just glaze over a clause like "morontia value and spirit truth." It's tempting isn't it? Just feels pleasant to say, and vaguely feels correct.
- Be philosophic. Reflect on this. Why these adjective-noun pairings? Why here?
- There's remarkable richness in the text if you have a (philosophic) eye to see it.
- Magic or sorcery? White or black magic. All so-called, of course. There's no such thing as magic.
- And yet magic thinking permeates evolved religion.
- And it's all essentially religion of the mind. The outer life. False exaltation to the level of spirit.
- Real religion is above mind.
- Love is more than a feeling. There are quite a few higher levels of meaning than love as a feeling.
