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The 5th Epochal Revelation
-The Urantia Papers
PAPER 55
THE SPHERES OF LIGHT AND LIFE
55:0.1
THE age of light and life is the final evolutionary
attainment of a world of time and space. From the early
times of primitive man, such an inhabited world has
passed through the successive planetary ages -- the pre-
and the post-Planetary Prince ages, the post-Adamic age,
the post-Magisterial Son age, and the postbestowal Son
age. And then is such a world made ready for the
culminating evolutionary attainment, the settled status
of light and life, by the ministry of the successive
planetary missions of the Trinity Teacher Sons with
their ever-advancing revelations of divine truth and
cosmic wisdom. In these endeavors the Teacher Sons enjoy
the assistance of the Brilliant Evening Stars always,
and the Melchizedeks sometimes, in establishing the
final planetary age.
55:0.2
This era of light and life, inaugurated by the Teacher
Sons at the conclusion of their final planetary mission,
continues indefinitely on the inhabited worlds. Each
advancing stage of settled status may be segregated by
the judicial actions of the Magisterial Sons into a
succession of dispensations; but all such judicial
actions are purely technical, in no way modifying the
course of planetary events.
55:0.3
Only those planets which attain existence in the main
circuits of the superuniverse are assured of continuous
survival, but as far as we know, these worlds settled in
light and life are destined to go on throughout the
eternal ages of all future time.
55:0.4
There are seven stages in the unfoldment of the era of
light and life on an evolutionary world, and in this
connection it should be noted that the worlds of the
Spirit-fused mortals evolve along lines identical with
those of the Adjuster-fusion series. These seven stages
of light and life are:
1. The first or planetary stage.
2. The second or system stage.
3. The third or constellation stage.
4. The fourth or local universe stage.
5. The fifth or minor sector stage.
6. The sixth or major sector stage.
7. The seventh or superuniverse stage.
55:0.5
At the conclusion of this narrative these stages of
advancing development are described as they relate to
the universe organization, but the planetary values of
any stage may be attained by any world quite independent
of the development of other worlds or of the
superplanetary levels of universe administration.
1. THE MORONTIA TEMPLE
55:1.1
The presence of a morontia temple at the capital of an
inhabited world is the certificate of the admission of
such a sphere to the settled ages of light and life.
Before the Teacher Sons leave a world at the conclusion
of their terminal mission, they inaugurate this final
epoch of evolutionary attainment; they preside on that
day when the "holy temple comes down upon earth." This
event, signalizing the dawn of the era of light and
life, is always honored by the personal presence of the
Paradise bestowal Son of that planet, who comes to
witness this great day. There in this temple of
unparalleled beauty, this bestowal Son of Paradise
proclaims the long-time Planetary Prince as the new
Planetary Sovereign and invests such a faithful
Lanonandek Son with new powers and extended authority
over planetary affairs. The System Sovereign is also
present and speaks in confirmation of these
pronouncements.
55:1.2
A morontia temple has three parts: Centermost is the
sanctuary of the Paradise bestowal Son. On the right is
the seat of the former Planetary Prince, now Planetary
Sovereign; and when present in the temple, this
Lanonandek Son is visible to the more spiritual
individuals of the realm. On the left is the seat of the
acting chief of finaliters attached to the planet.
55:1.3
Although the planetary temples have been spoken of as
"coming down from heaven," in reality no actual material
is transported from the system headquarters. The
architecture of each is worked out in miniature on the
system capital, and the Morontia Power Supervisors
subsequently bring these approved plans to the planet.
Here, in association with the Master Physical
Controllers, they proceed to build the morontia temple
according to specifications.
55:1.4
The average morontia temple seats about three hundred
thousand spectators. These edifices are not used for
worship, play, or for receiving broadcasts; they are
devoted to the special ceremonies of the planet, such
as: communications with the System Sovereign or with the
Most Highs, special visualization ceremonies designed to
reveal the personality presence of spirit beings, and
silent cosmic contemplation. The schools of cosmic
philosophy here conduct their graduation exercises, and
here also do the mortals of the realm receive planetary
recognition for achievements of high social service and
for other outstanding attainments.
55:1.5
Such a morontia temple also serves as the place of
assembly for witnessing the translation of living
mortals to the morontia existence. It is because the
translation temple is composed of morontia material that
it is not destroyed by the blazing glory of the
consuming fire which so completely obliterates the
physical bodies of those mortals who therein experience
final fusion with their divine Adjusters. On a large
world these departure flares are almost continuous, and
as the number of translations increases, subsidiary
morontia life shrines are provided in different areas of
the planet. Not long since I sojourned on a world in the
far north whereon twenty-five morontia shrines were
functioning.
55:1.6
On presettled worlds, planets without morontia temples,
these fusion flashes many times occur in the planetary
atmosphere, where the material body of a translation
candidate is elevated by the midway creatures and the
physical controllers.
2. DEATH AND TRANSLATION
55:2.1
Natural, physical death is not a mortal inevitability.
The majority of advanced evolutionary beings, citizens
on worlds existing in the final era of light and life,
do not die; they are translated directly from the life
in the flesh to the morontia existence.
55:2.2
This experience of translation from the material life to
the morontia state -- fusion of the immortal soul with
the indwelling Adjuster -- increases in frequency
commensurate with the evolutionary progress of the
planet. At first only a few mortals in each age attain
translation levels of spiritual progress, but with the
onset of the successive ages of the Teacher Sons, more
and more Adjuster fusions occur before the termination
of the lengthening lives of these progressing mortals;
and by the time of the terminal mission of the Teacher
Sons, approximately one quarter of these superb mortals
are exempt from natural death.
55:2.3
Farther along in the era of light and life the midway
creatures or their associates sense the approaching
status of probable soul-Adjuster union and signify this
to the destiny guardians, who in turn communicate these
matters to the finaliter group under whose jurisdiction
this mortal may be functioning; then there is issued the
summons of the Planetary Sovereign for such a mortal to
resign all planetary duties, bid farewell to the world
of his origin, and repair to the inner temple of the
Planetary Sovereign, there to await morontia transit,
the translation flash, from the material domain of
evolution to the morontia level of prespirit
progression.
55:2.4
When the family, friends, and working group of such a
fusion candidate have forgathered in the morontia
temple, they are distributed around the central stage
whereon the fusion candidates are resting, meantime
freely conversing with their assembled friends. A circle
of intervening celestial personalities is arranged to
protect the material mortals from the action of the
energies manifest at the instant of the "life flash"
which delivers the ascension candidate from the bonds of
material flesh, thereby doing for such an evolutionary
mortal everything that natural death does for those who
are thereby delivered from the flesh.
55:2.5
Many fusion candidates may be assembled in the spacious
temple at the same time. And what a beautiful occasion
when mortals thus forgather to witness the ascension of
their loved ones in spiritual flames, and what a
contrast to those earlier ages when mortals must commit
their dead to the embrace of the terrestrial elements!
The scenes of weeping and wailing characteristic of
earlier epochs of human evolution are now replaced by
ecstatic joy and the sublimest enthusiasm as these
God-knowing mortals bid their loved ones a transient
farewell as they are removed from their material
associations by the spiritual fires of consuming
grandeur and ascending glory. On worlds settled in light
and life, "funerals" are occasions of supreme joy,
profound satisfaction, and inexpressible hope.
55:2.6
The souls of these progressing mortals are increasingly
filled with faith, hope, and assurance. The spirit
permeating those gathered around the translation shrine
resembles that of the joyful friends and relatives who
might assemble at a graduating exercise for one of their
group, or who might come together to witness the
conferring of some great honor upon one of their number.
And it would be decidedly helpful if less advanced
mortals could only learn to view natural death with
something of this same cheerfulness and
lightheartedness.
55:2.7
Mortal observers can see nothing of their translated
associates subsequent to the fusion flash. Such
translated souls proceed by Adjuster transit direct to
the resurrection hall of the appropriate
morontia-training world. These transactions concerned
with the translation of living human beings to the
morontia world are supervised by an archangel who was
assigned to such a world on the day when it was first
settled in light and life.
55:2.8
By the time a world attains the fourth stage of light
and life, more than half the mortals leave the planet by
translation from among the living. Such diminishment of
death continues on and on, but I know of no system whose
inhabited worlds, even though long settled in life, are
entirely free from natural death as the technique of
escape from the bonds of flesh. And until such a high
state of planetary evolution is uniformly attained, the
morontia-training worlds of the local universe must
continue in service as educational and cultural spheres
for the evolving morontia progressors. The elimination
of death is theoretically possible, but it has not yet
occurred according to my observation. Perhaps such a
status may be attained during the faraway stretches of
the succeeding epochs of the seventh stage of settled
planetary life.
55:2.9
The translated souls of the flowering ages of the
settled spheres do not pass through the mansion worlds.
Neither do they sojourn, as students, on the morontia
worlds of the system or constellation. They do not pass
through any of the earlier phases of morontia life. They
are the only ascending mortals who so nearly escape the
morontia transition from material existence to
semispirit status. The initial experience of such
Son-seized
mortals in the ascension career is in the services of
the progression worlds of the universe headquarters. And
from these study worlds of Salvington they go back as
teachers to the very worlds they passed by, subsequently
going on inward to Paradise by the established route of
mortal ascension.
55:2.10
Could you but visit a planet in an advanced stage of
development, you would quickly grasp the reasons for
providing for the differential reception of ascending
mortals on the mansion and higher morontia worlds. You
would readily understand that beings passing on from
such highly evolved spheres are prepared to resume their
Paradise ascent far in advance of the average mortal
arriving from a disordered and backward world like
Urantia.
55:2.11
No matter from what level of planetary attainment human
beings may ascend to the morontia worlds, the seven
mansion spheres afford them ample opportunity to gain in
experience as teacher-students all of everything which
they failed to pass through because of the advanced
status of their native planets.
55:2.12
The universe is unfailing in the application of these
equalizing techniques designed to insure that no
ascender shall be deprived of aught which is essential
to his ascension experience.
3. THE GOLDEN AGES
55:3.1
During this age of light and life the world increasingly
prospers under the fatherly rule of the Planetary
Sovereign. By this time the worlds are progressing under
the momentum of one language, one religion, and, on
normal spheres, one race. But this age is not perfect.
These worlds still have well-appointed hospitals, homes
for the care of the sick. There still remain the
problems of caring for accidental injuries and the
inescapable infirmities attendant upon the decrepitude
of old age and the disorders of senility. Disease has
not been entirely vanquished, neither have the earth
animals been subdued in perfection; but such worlds are
like Paradise in comparison with the early times of
primitive man during the pre-Planetary Prince age. You
would instinctively describe such a realm -- could you
be suddenly transported to a planet in this stage of
development -- as heaven on earth.
55:3.2
Human government in the conduct of material affairs
continues to function throughout this age of relative
progress and perfection. The public activities of a
world in the first stage of light and life which I
recently visited were financed by the tithing technique.
Every adult worker -- and all able-bodied citizens
worked at something -- paid ten per cent of his income
or increase to the public treasury, and it was disbursed
as follows:
55:3.3
1. Three per cent was expended in the promotion of truth
-- science, education, and philosophy.
55:3.4
2. Three per cent was devoted to beauty -- play, social
leisure, and art.
55:3.5
3. Three per cent was dedicated to goodness -- social
service, altruism, and religion.
55:3.6
4. One per cent was assigned to the insurance reserves
against the risk of incapacity for labor resultant from
accident, disease, old age, or unpreventable disasters.
55:3.7
The natural resources of this planet were administered
as social possessions, community property.
55:3.8
On this world the highest honor conferred upon a citizen
was the order of "supreme service," being the only
degree of recognition ever to be granted in the morontia
temple. This recognition was bestowed upon those who had
long distinguished themselves in some phase of
supermaterial discovery or planetary social service.
55:3.9
The majority of social and administrative posts were
held jointly by men and women. Most of the teaching was
also done jointly; likewise all judicial trusts were
discharged by similar associated couples.
55:3.10
On these superb worlds the childbearing period is not
greatly prolonged. It is not best for too many years to
intervene between the ages of a family of children. When
close together in age, children are able to contribute
much more to their mutual training. And on these worlds
they are magnificently trained by the competitive
systems of keen striving in the advanced domains and
divisions of diverse achievement in the mastery of
truth, beauty, and goodness. Never fear but that even
such glorified spheres present plenty of evil, real and
potential, which is stimulative of the choosing between
truth and error, good and evil, sin and righteousness.
55:3.11
Nevertheless, there is a certain, inevitable penalty
attaching to mortal existence on such advanced
evolutionary planets. When a settled world progresses
beyond the third stage of light and life, all ascenders
are destined, before attaining the minor sector, to
receive some sort of transient assignment on a planet
passing through the earlier stages of evolution.
55:3.12
Each of these successive ages represents advancing
achievements in all phases of planetary attainment. In
the initial age of light the revelation of truth was
enlarged to embrace the workings of the universe of
universes, while the Deity study of the second age is
the attempt to master the protean concept of the nature,
mission, ministry, associations, origin, and destiny of
the Creator Sons, the first level of God the Sevenfold.
55:3.13
A planet the size of Urantia, when fairly well settled,
would have about one hundred subadministrative centers.
These subordinate centers would be presided over by one
of the following groups of qualified administrators:
1. Young Material Sons and Daughters brought from the
system headquarters to act as assistants to the ruling
Adam and Eve.
2. The progeny of the semimortal staff of the Planetary
Prince who were procreated on certain worlds for this
and other similar responsibilities.
3. The direct planetary progeny of Adam and Eve.
4. Materialized and humanized midway creatures.
5. Mortals of Adjuster-fusion status who, upon their own
petition, are temporarily exempted from translation by
the order of the Personalized Adjuster of universe
chieftainship in order that they may continue on the
planet in certain important administrative posts.
6. Specially trained mortals of the planetary schools of
administration who have also received the order of
supreme service of the morontia temple.
7. Certain elective commissions of three properly
qualified citizens who are sometimes chosen by the
citizenry by direction of the Planetary Sovereign in
accordance with their special ability to accomplish some
definite task which is needful in that particular
planetary sector.
55:3.14
The great handicap confronting Urantia in the matter of
attaining the high planetary destiny of light and life
is embraced in the problems of disease, degeneracy, war,
multicolored races, and multilingualism.
55:3.15
No evolutionary world can hope to progress beyond the
first stage of settledness in light until it has
achieved one language, one religion, and one philosophy.
Being of one race greatly facilitates such achievement,
but the many peoples of Urantia do not preclude the
attainment of higher stages.
4. ADMINISTRATIVE READJUSTMENTS
55:4.1
In the successive stages of settled existence the
inhabited worlds make marvelous progress under the wise
and sympathetic administration of the volunteer Corps of
the Finality, ascenders of Paradise attainment who have
come back to minister to their brethren in the flesh.
These finaliters are active in co-operation with the
Trinity Teacher Sons, but they do not begin their real
participation in world affairs until the morontia temple
appears on earth.
55:4.2
Upon the formal inauguration of the planetary ministry
of the Corps of the Finality, the majority of the
celestial hosts withdraw. But the seraphic guardians of
destiny continue their personal ministry to the
progressing mortals in light; indeed such angels come in
ever-increasing numbers throughout the settled ages
since larger and larger groups of human beings reach the
third cosmic circle of co-ordinate mortal attainment
during the planetary life span.
55:4.3
This is merely the first of the successive
administrative adjustments which attend the unfolding of
the successive ages of increasingly brilliant attainment
on the inhabited worlds as they pass from the first to
the seventh stage of settled existence.
55:4.4
1. The first
stage of light and life. A world in this initial
settled stage is being administered by three rulers:
a. The Planetary Sovereign, presently to be advised by a
counseling Trinity Teacher Son, in all probability the
chief of the terminal corps of such Sons to function on
the planet.
b. The chief of the planetary corps of finaliters.
c. Adam and Eve, who function jointly as the unifiers of
the dual leadership of the Prince-Sovereign and the
chief of finaliters.
55:4.5
Acting as interpreters for the seraphic guardians and
the finaliters are the exalted and liberated midway
creatures. One of the last acts of the Trinity Teacher
Sons on their terminal mission is to liberate the
midwayers of the realm and to promote (or restore) them
to advanced planetary status, assigning them to
responsible places in the new administration of the
settled sphere. Such changes have already been made in
the range of human vision as enable mortals to recognize
these heretofore invisible cousins of the early Adamic
regime. This is made possible by the final discoveries
of physical science in liaison with the enlarged
planetary functions of the Master Physical Controllers.
55:4.6
The System Sovereign has authority to release midway
creatures any time after the first settled stage so that
they may humanize in the morontia by the aid of the Life
Carriers and the physical controllers and, after
receiving Thought Adjusters, start out on their Paradise
ascension.
55:4.7
In the third and subsequent stages, some of the
midwayers are still functioning, chiefly as contact
personalities for the finaliters, but as each stage of
light and life is entered, new orders of liaison
ministers largely replace the midwayers; very few of
them ever remain beyond the fourth stage of light. The
seventh stage will witness the coming of the first
absonite ministers from Paradise to serve in the places
of certain universe creatures.
55:4.8
2. The second
stage of light and life. This epoch is signalized on
the worlds by the arrival of a Life Carrier who becomes
the volunteer adviser of the planetary rulers regarding
the further efforts to purify and stabilize the mortal
race. Thus do the Life Carriers actively participate in
the further evolution of the human race -- physically,
socially, and economically. And then they extend their
supervision to the further purification of the mortal
stock by the drastic elimination of the retarded and
persisting remnants of inferior potential of an
intellectual, philosophic, cosmic, and spiritual nature.
Those who design and plant life on an inhabited world
are fully competent to advise the Material Sons and
Daughters, who have full and unquestioned authority to
purge the evolving race of all detrimental influences.
55:4.9
From the second stage on throughout the career of a
settled planet the Teacher Sons serve as counselors to
the finaliters. During such missions they serve as
volunteers and not by assignment; and they serve
exclusively with the finaliter corps except that, upon
the consent of the System Sovereign, they may be had as
advisers to the Planetary Adam and Eve.
55:4.10
3. The third
stage of light and life. During this epoch the
inhabited worlds arrive at a new appreciation of the
Ancients of Days, the second phase of God the Sevenfold,
and the representatives of these superuniverse rulers
enter into new relationships with the planetary
administration.
55:4.11
In each succeeding age of settled existence the
finaliters function in ever-increasing capacities. There
exists a close working connection between the
finaliters, the Evening Stars (the superangels), and the
Trinity Teacher Sons.
55:4.12
During this or the following age a Teacher Son, assisted
by the ministering-spirit quartette, becomes attached to
the elective mortal chief executive, who now becomes
associated with the Planetary Sovereign as joint
administrator of world affairs. These mortal chief
executives serve for twenty-five years of planetary
time, and it is this new development that makes it easy
for the Planetary Adam and Eve to secure release from
their world of long-time assignment during the following
ages.
55:4.13
The ministering-spirit quartettes consist of: the
seraphic chief of the sphere, the superuniverse
secoraphic counselor, the archangel of translations, and
the omniaphim who functions as the personal
representative of the Assigned Sentinel stationed on the
system headquarters. But these advisers never proffer
counsel unless it is asked for.
55:4.14
4. The fourth
stage of light and life. On the worlds the Trinity
Teacher Sons appear in new roles. Assisted by the
creature-trinitized sons so long associated with their
order, they now come to the worlds as volunteer
counselors and advisers to the Planetary Sovereign and
his associates. Such couples --
Paradise-Havona-trinitized sons and ascender-trinitized
sons -- represent differing universe viewpoints and
diverse personal experiences which are highly
serviceable to the planetary rulers.
55:4.15
At any time after this age the Planetary Adam and Eve
can petition the Sovereign Creator Son for release from
planetary duties in order to begin their Paradise
ascent; or they can remain on the planet as directors of
the newly appearing order of increasingly spiritual
society composed of advanced mortals striving to
comprehend the philosophic teachings of the finaliters
portrayed by the Brilliant Evening Stars, who are now
assigned to these worlds to collaborate in pairs with
the seconaphim from the headquarters of the
superuniverse.
55:4.16
The finaliters are chiefly engaged in initiating the new
and supermaterial activities of society -- social,
cultural, philosophic, cosmic, and spiritual. As far as
we can discern, they will continue this ministry far
into the seventh epoch of evolutionary stability, when,
possibly, they may go forth to minister in outer space;
whereupon we conjecture their places may be taken by
absonite beings from Paradise.
55:4.17
5. The fifth
stage of light and life. The readjustments of this
stage of settled existence pertain almost entirely to
the physical domains and are of primary concern to the
Master Physical Controllers.
55:4.18
6. The sixth
stage of light and life witnesses the development of
new functions of the mind circuits of the realm. Cosmic
wisdom seems to become constitutive in the universe
ministry of mind.
55:4.19
7. The seventh
stage of light and life. Early in the seventh epoch
the Trinity Teacher counselor of the Planetary Sovereign
is joined by a volunteer adviser sent by the Ancients of
Days, and later on they will be augmented by a third
counselor coming from the superuniverse Supreme
Executive.
55:4.20
During this epoch, if not before, Adam and Eve are
always relieved of planetary duties. If there is a
Material Son in the finaliter corps, he may become
associated with the mortal chief executive, and
sometimes it is a Melchizedek who volunteers to function
in this capacity. If a midwayer is among the finaliters,
all of that order remaining on the planet are
immediately released.
55:4.21
Upon obtaining release from their agelong assignment, a
Planetary Adam and Eve may select careers as follows:
55:4.22
1. They can secure planetary release and from the
universe headquarters start out immediately on the
Paradise career, receiving Thought Adjusters at the
conclusion of the morontia experience.
55:4.23
2. Very often a Planetary Adam and Eve will receive
Adjusters while yet serving on a world settled in light
concomitant with the receiving of Adjusters by some of
their imported pure-line children who have volunteered
for a term of planetary service. Subsequently they may
all go to universe headquarters and there begin the
Paradise career.
55:4.24
3. A Planetary Adam and Eve may elect -- as do Material
Sons and Daughters from the system capital -- to go
direct to the midsonite world for a brief sojourn, there
to receive their Adjusters.
55:4.25
4. They may decide to return to the system headquarters,
there for a time to occupy seats on the supreme court,
after which service they will receive Adjusters and
begin the Paradise ascent.
55:4.26
5. They may choose to go from their administrative
duties back to their native world to serve as teachers
for a season and to become Adjuster indwelt at the time
of transfer to the universe headquarters.
55:4.27
Throughout all of these epochs the imported assisting
Material Sons and Daughters exert a tremendous influence
on the progressing social and economic orders. They are
potentially immortal, at least until such time as they
elect to humanize, receive Adjusters, and start for
Paradise.
55:4.28
On the evolutionary worlds a being must humanize to
receive a Thought Adjuster. All ascendant members of the
Mortal Corps of Finaliters have been Adjuster indwelt
and fused except seraphim, and they are Father indwelt
by another type of spirit at the time of being mustered
into this corps.
5. THE ACME OF MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT
55:5.1
Mortal creatures living on a sin-stricken,
evil-dominated, self-seeking, isolated world, such as
Urantia, can hardly conceive of the physical perfection,
the intellectual attainment, and the spiritual
development which characterize these advanced epochs of
evolution on a sinless sphere.
55:5.2
The advanced stages of a world settled in light and life
represent the acme of evolutionary material development.
On these cultured worlds, gone are the idleness and
friction of the earlier primitive ages. Poverty and
social inequality have all but vanished, degeneracy has
disappeared, and delinquency is rarely observed.
Insanity has practically ceased to exist, and
feeble-mindedness is a rarity.
55:5.3
The economic, social, and administrative status of these
worlds is of a high and perfected order. Science, art,
and industry flourish, and society is a smoothly working
mechanism of high material, intellectual, and cultural
achievement. Industry has been largely diverted to
serving the higher aims of such a superb civilization.
The economic life of such a world has become ethical.
55:5.4
War has become a matter of history, and there are no
more armies or police forces. Government is gradually
disappearing. Self-control is slowly rendering laws of
human enactment obsolete. The extent of civil government
and statutory regulation, in an intermediate state of
advancing civilization, is in inverse proportion to the
morality and spirituality of the citizenship.
55:5.5
Schools are vastly improved and are devoted to the
training of mind and the expansion of soul. The art
centers are exquisite and the musical organizations
superb. The temples of worship with their associated
schools of philosophy and experiential religion are
creations of beauty and grandeur. The open-air arenas of
worship assembly are equally sublime in the simplicity
of their artistic appointment.
55:5.6
The provisions for competitive play, humor, and other
phases of personal and group achievement are ample and
appropriate. A special feature of the competitive
activities on such a highly cultured world concerns the
efforts of individuals and groups to excel in the
sciences and philosophies of cosmology. Literature and
oratory flourish, and language is so improved as to be
symbolic of concepts as well as to be expressive of
ideas. Life is refreshingly simple; man has at last
co-ordinated a high state of mechanical development with
an inspiring intellectual attainment and has
overshadowed both with an exquisite spiritual
achievement. The pursuit of happiness is an experience
of joy and satisfaction.
6. THE INDIVIDUAL MORTAL
55:6.1
As worlds advance in the settled status of light and
life, society becomes increasingly peaceful. The
individual, while no less independent and devoted to his
family, has become more altruistic and fraternal.
55:6.2
On Urantia, and as you are, you can have little
appreciation of the advanced status and progressive
nature of the enlightened races of these perfected
worlds. These people are the flowering of the
evolutionary races. But such beings are still mortal;
they continue to breathe, eat, sleep, and drink. This
great evolution is not heaven, but it is a sublime
foreshadowing of the divine worlds of the Paradise
ascent.
55:6.3
On a normal world the biologic fitness of the mortal
race was long since brought up to a high level during
the post-Adamic epochs; and now, from age to age
throughout the settled eras the physical evolution of
man continues. Both vision and hearing are extended. By
now the population has become stationary in numbers.
Reproduction is regulated in accordance with planetary
requirements and innate hereditary endowments: The
mortals on a planet during this age are divided into
from five to ten groups, and the lower groups are
permitted to produce only one half as many children as
the higher. The continued improvement of such a
magnificent race throughout the era of light and life is
largely a matter of the selective reproduction of those
racial strains which exhibit superior qualities of a
social, philosophic, cosmic, and spiritual nature.
55:6.4
The Adjusters continue to come as in former evolutionary
eras, and as the epochs pass, these mortals are
increasingly able to commune with the indwelling Father
fragment. During the embryonic and prespiritual stages
of development the adjutant mind-spirits are still
functioning. The Holy Spirit and the ministry of angels
are even more effective as the successive epochs of
settled life are experienced. In the fourth stage of
light and life the advanced mortals seem to experience
considerable conscious contact with the spirit presence
of the Master Spirit of superuniverse jurisdiction,
while the philosophy of such a world is focused upon the
attempt to comprehend the new revelations of God the
Supreme. More than one half of the human inhabitants on
planets of this advanced status experience translation
to the morontia state from among the living. Even so,
"old things are passing away; behold, all things are
becoming new."
55:6.5
We conceive that physical evolution will have attained
its full development by the end of the fifth epoch of
the light-and-life era. We observe that the upper limits
of spiritual development associated with evolving human
mind are determined by the Adjuster-fusion level of
conjoint morontia values and cosmic meanings. But
concerning wisdom: While we do not really know, we
conjecture that there can never be a limit to
intellectual evolution and the attainment of wisdom. On
a seventh-stage world, wisdom can exhaust the material
potentials, enter upon mota insight, and eventually even
taste of absonite grandeur.
55:6.6
We observe that on these highly evolved and long
seventh-stage worlds human beings fully learn the local
universe language before they are translated; and I have
visited a few very old planets where abandonters were
teaching the older mortals the tongue of the
superuniverse. And on these worlds I have observed the
technique whereby the absonite personalities reveal the
presence of the finaliters in the morontia temple.
55:6.7
This is the story of the magnificent goal of mortal
striving on the evolutionary worlds; and it all takes
place even before human beings enter upon their morontia
careers; all of this splendid development is attainable
by material mortals on the inhabited worlds, the very
first stage of that endless and incomprehensible career
of Paradise ascension and divinity attainment.
55:6.8
But can you possibly imagine what sort of evolutionary
mortals are now coming up from worlds long existing in
the seventh epoch of settled light and life? It is such
as these who go on to the morontia worlds of the local
universe capital to begin their ascension careers.
55:6.9
If the mortals of distraught Urantia could only view one
of these more advanced worlds long settled in light and
life, they would nevermore question the wisdom of the
evolutionary scheme of creation. Were there no future of
eternal creature progression, still the superb
evolutionary attainments of the mortal races on such
settled worlds of perfected achievement would amply
justify man's creation on the worlds of time and space.
55:6.10
We often ponder: If the grand universe should be settled
in light and life, would the ascending exquisite mortals
still be destined to the Corps of the Finality? But we
do not know.
7. THE FIRST OR PLANETARY STAGE
55:7.1
This epoch extends from the appearance of the morontia
temple at the new planetary headquarters to the time of
the settling of the entire system in light and life.
This age is inaugurated by the Trinity Teacher Sons at
the close of their successive world missions when the
Planetary Prince is elevated to the status of Planetary
Sovereign by the mandate and personal presence of the
Paradise bestowal Son of that sphere. Concomitant
therewith the finaliters inaugurate their active
participation in planetary affairs.
55:7.2
To outward and visible appearances the actual rulers, or
directors, of such a world settled in light and life are
the Material Son and Daughter, the Planetary Adam and
Eve. The finaliters are invisible, as also is the
Prince-Sovereign except when in the morontia temple. The
actual and literal heads of the planetary regime are
therefore the Material Son and Daughter. It is the
knowledge of these arrangements that has given prestige
to the idea of kings and queens throughout the universe
realms. And kings and queens are a great success under
these ideal circumstances, when a world can command such
high personalities to act in behalf of still higher but
invisible rulers.
55:7.3
When such an era is attained on your world, no doubt
Machiventa Melchizedek, now the vicegerent Planetary
Prince of Urantia, will occupy the seat of the Planetary
Sovereign; and it has long been conjectured on Jerusem
that he will be accompanied by a son and daughter of the
Urantia Adam and Eve who are now held on Edentia as
wards of the Most Highs of Norlatiadek. These children
of Adam might so serve on Urantia in association with
the Melchizedek-Sovereign since they were deprived of
procreative powers almost 37,000 years ago at the time
they gave up their material bodies on Urantia in
preparation for transit to Edentia.
55:7.4
This settled age continues on and on until every
inhabited planet in the system attains the era of
stabilization; and then, when the youngest world -- the
last to achieve light and life -- has experienced such
settledness for one millennium of system time, the
entire system enters the stabilized status, and the
individual worlds are ushered into the system epoch of
the era of light and life.
8. THE SECOND OR SYSTEM STAGE
55:8.1
When an entire system becomes settled in life, a new
order of government is inaugurated. The Planetary
Sovereigns become members of the system conclave, and
this new administrative body, subject to the veto of the
Constellation Fathers, is supreme in authority. Such a
system of inhabited worlds becomes virtually
self-governing. The system legislative assembly is
constituted on the headquarters world, and each planet
sends its ten representatives thereto. Courts are now
established on the system capitals, and only appeals are
taken to the universe headquarters.
55:8.2
With the settling of the system the Assigned Sentinel,
representative of the superuniverse Supreme Executive,
becomes the volunteer adviser to the system supreme
court and actual presiding officer of the new
legislative assembly.
55:8.3
After the settling of an entire system in light and life
the System Sovereigns will no more come and go. Such a
sovereign remains perpetually at the head of his system.
The assistant sovereigns continue to change as in former
ages.
55:8.4
During this epoch of stabilization, for the first time
midsoniters come from the universe headquarters worlds
of their sojourn to act as counselors to the legislative
assemblies and advisers to the adjudicational tribunals.
These midsoniters also carry on certain efforts to
inculcate new mota meanings of supreme value into the
teaching enterprises which they sponsor jointly with the
finaliters. What the Material Sons did for the mortal
races biologically, the midsonite creatures now do for
these unified and glorified humans in the ever-advancing
realms of philosophy and spiritualized thinking.
55:8.5
On the inhabited worlds the Teacher Sons become
voluntary collaborators with the finaliters, and these
same Teacher Sons also accompany the finaliters to the
mansion worlds when those spheres are no longer to be
utilized as differential receiving worlds after an
entire system is settled in light and life; at least
this is true by the time the entire constellation has
thus evolved. But there are no groups that far advanced
in Nebadon.
55:8.6
We are not permitted to reveal the nature of the work of
the finaliters who will supervise such rededicated
mansion worlds. You have, however, been informed that
there are throughout the universes various types of
intelligent creatures who have not been portrayed in
these narratives.
55:8.7
And now, as the systems one by one become settled in
light by virtue of the progress of their component
worlds, the time comes when the last system in a given
constellation attains stabilization, and the universe
administrators -- the Master Son, the Union of Days, and
the Bright and Morning Star -- arrive on the capital of
the constellation to proclaim the Most Highs the
unqualified rulers of the newly perfected family of one
hundred settled systems of inhabited worlds.
9. THE THIRD OR CONSTELLATION STAGE
55:9.1
The unification of a whole constellation of settled
systems is attended by new distributions of executive
authority and additional readjustments of universe
administration. This epoch witnesses advanced attainment
on every inhabited world but is particularly
characterized by readjustments on the constellation
headquarters, with marked modification of relationships
with both the system supervision and the local universe
government. During this age many constellation and
universe activities are transferred to the system
capitals, and the representatives of the superuniverse
assume new and more intimate relations with the
planetary, system, and universe rulers. Concomitant with
these new associations, certain superuniverse
administrators establish themselves on the constellation
capitals as volunteer advisers to the Most High Fathers.
55:9.2
When a constellation is thus settled in light, the
legislative function ceases, and the house of System
Sovereigns, presided over by the Most Highs, functions
instead. Now, for the first time, such administrative
groups deal directly with the superuniverse government
in matters pertaining to Havona and Paradise
relationships. Otherwise the constellation remains
related to the local universe as before. From stage to
stage in the settled life the univitatia continue to
administer the constellation morontia worlds.
55:9.3
As the ages pass, the Constellation Fathers take over
more and more of the detailed administrative or
supervising functions which were formerly centered on
the universe headquarters. By the attainment of the
sixth stage of stabilization these unified
constellations will have reached the position of
well-nigh complete autonomy. Entrance upon the seventh
stage of settledness will no doubt witness the
exaltation of these rulers to the true dignity signified
by their names, the Most Highs. To all intents and
purposes the constellations will then deal directly with
the superuniverse rulers, while the local universe
government will expand to grasp the responsibilities of
new grand universe obligations.
10. THE FOURTH OR LOCAL UNIVERSE STAGE
55:10.1
When a universe becomes settled in light and life, it
soon swings into the established superuniverse circuits,
and the Ancients of Days proclaim the establishment of
the supreme
council of unlimited authority. This new governing
body consists of the one hundred Faithfuls of Days,
presided over by the Union of Days, and the first act of
this supreme council is to acknowledge the continued
sovereignty of the Master Creator Son.
55:10.2
The universe administration, as far as concerns Gabriel
and the Father Melchizedek, is quite unchanged. This
council of unlimited authority is chiefly concerned with
the new problems and the new conditions arising out of
the advanced status of light and life.
55:10.3
The Associate Inspector now mobilizes all Assigned
Sentinels to constitute the
stabilization
corps of the local universe and asks the Father
Melchizedek to share its supervision with him. And now,
for the first time, a corps of the Inspired Trinity
Spirits are assigned to the service of the Union of
Days.
55:10.4
The settling of an entire local universe in light and
life inaugurates profound readjustments in the entire
scheme of administration, from the individual inhabited
worlds to the universe headquarters. New relationships
extend down to the constellations and systems. The local
universe Mother Spirit experiences new liaison relations
with the Master Spirit of the superuniverse, and Gabriel
establishes direct contact with the Ancients of Days to
be effective when and as the Master Son may be absent
from the headquarters world.
55:10.5
During this and subsequent ages the Magisterial Sons
continue to function as dispensational adjudicators,
while one hundred of these Avonal Sons of Paradise
constitute the new high council of the Bright and
Morning Star on the universe capital. Later on, and as
requested by the System Sovereigns, one of these
Magisterial Sons will become the supreme counselor
stationed on the headquarters world of each local system
until the seventh stage of unity is attained.
55:10.6
During this epoch the Trinity Teacher Sons are volunteer
advisers, not only to the Planetary Sovereigns, but in
groups of three they similarly serve the Constellation
Fathers. And at last these Sons find their place in the
local universe, for at this time they are removed from
the jurisdiction of the local creation and are assigned
to the service of the supreme council of unlimited
authority.
55:10.7
The finaliter corps now, for the first time,
acknowledges the jurisdiction of an extra-Paradise
authority, the supreme council. Heretofore the
finaliters have recognized no supervision this side of
Paradise.
55:10.8
The Creator Sons of such settled universes spend much of
their time on Paradise and its associated worlds and in
counseling the numerous finaliter groups serving
throughout the local creation. In this way the man of
Michael will find a fuller fraternity of association
with the glorified finaliter mortals.
55:10.9
Speculation concerning the function of these Creator
Sons in connection with the outer universes now in
process of preliminary assembly is wholly futile. But we
all engage in such postulations from time to time. On
attaining this fourth stage of development the Creator
Son becomes administratively free; the Divine Minister
is progressively blending her ministry with that of the
superuniverse Master Spirit and the Infinite Spirit.
There seems to be evolving a new and sublime
relationship between the Creator Son, the Creative
Spirit, the Evening Stars, the Teacher Sons, and the
ever-increasing finaliter corps.
55:10.10
If Michael should ever leave Nebadon, Gabriel would
undoubtedly become chief administrator with the Father
Melchizedek as his associate. At the same time new
status would be imparted to all orders of permanent
citizenship, such as Material Sons, univitatia,
midsoniters, susatia, and Spirit-fused mortals. But as
long as evolution continues, the seraphim and the
archangels will be required in universe administration.
55:10.11
We are, however, satisfied regarding two features of our
speculations: If the Creator Sons are destined to the
outer universes, the Divine Ministers will undoubtedly
accompany them. We are equally sure that the
Melchizedeks are to remain with the universes of their
origin. We hold that the Melchizedeks are destined to
play ever-increasingly responsible parts in local
universe government and administration.
11. THE MINOR AND MAJOR SECTOR STAGES
55:11.1
Minor and major sectors of the superuniverse do not
figure directly in the plan of being settled in light
and life. Such an evolutionary progression pertains
primarily to the local universe as a unit and concerns
only the components of a local universe. A superuniverse
is settled in light and life when all of its component
local universes are thus perfected. But not one of the
seven superuniverses has attained a level of progression
even approaching this.
55:11.2
The minor sector
age. As far as observations can penetrate, the fifth
or minor sector stage of stabilization has exclusively
to do with physical status and with the co-ordinate
settling of the one hundred associated local universes
in the established circuits of the superuniverse.
Apparently none but the power centers and their
associates are concerned in these realignments of the
material creation.
55:11.3
The major sector
age. Concerning the sixth stage, or major sector
stabilization, we can only conjecture since none of us
have witnessed such an event. Nevertheless, we can
postulate much concerning the administrative and other
readjustments which would probably accompany such an
advanced status of inhabited worlds and their universe
groupings.
55:11.4
Since the minor sector status has to do with co-ordinate
physical equilibrium, we infer that major sector
unification will be concerned with certain new
intellectual levels of attainment, possibly some
advanced achievements in the supreme realization of
cosmic wisdom.
55:11.5
We arrive at conclusions regarding the readjustments
which would probably attend the realization of hitherto
unattained levels of evolutionary progress by observing
the results of such achievements on the individual
worlds and in the experiences of individual mortals
living on these older and highly developed spheres.
55:11.6
Let it be made clear that the administrative mechanisms
and governmental techniques of a universe or a
superuniverse cannot in any manner limit or retard the
evolutionary development or spiritual progress of an
individual inhabited planet or of any individual mortal
on such a sphere.
55:11.7
In some of the older universes we find worlds settled in
the fifth and the sixth stages of light and life -- even
far extended into the seventh epoch -- whose local
systems are not yet settled in light. Younger planets
may delay system unification, but this does not in the
least handicap the progress of an older and advanced
world. Neither can environmental limitations, even on an
isolated world, thwart the personal attainment of the
individual mortal; Jesus of Nazareth, as a man among
men, personally achieved the status of light and life
over nineteen hundred years ago on Urantia.
55:11.8
It is by observing what takes place on long-settled
worlds that we arrive at fairly reliable conclusions as
to what will happen when a whole superuniverse is
settled in light, even if we cannot safely postulate the
event of the stabilization of the seven superuniverses.
12. THE SEVENTH OR SUPERUNIVERSE STAGE
55:12.1
We cannot positively forecast what would occur when a
superuniverse became settled in light because such an
event has never factualized. From the teachings of the
Melchizedeks, which have never been contradicted, we
infer that sweeping changes would be made in the entire
organization and administration of every unit of the
creations of time and space extending from the inhabited
worlds to the superuniverse headquarters.
55:12.2
It is generally believed that large numbers of the
otherwise unattached creature-trinitized sons are to be
assembled on the headquarters and divisional capitals of
the settled superuniverses. This may be in anticipation
of the sometime arrival of outer-spacers on their way in
to Havona and Paradise; but we really do not know.
55:12.3
If and when a superuniverse should be settled in light
and life, we believe that the now advisory Unqualified
Supervisors of the Supreme would become the high
administrative body on the headquarters world of the
superuniverse. These are the personalities who are able
to contact directly with the absonite administrators,
who will forthwith become active in the settled
superuniverse. Although these Unqualified Supervisors
have long functioned as advisers and counselors in
advanced evolutionary units of creation, they do not
assume administrative responsibilities until the
authority of the Supreme Being becomes sovereign.
55:12.4
The Unqualified Supervisors of the Supreme, who function
more extensively during this epoch, are not finite,
absonite, ultimate, or infinite; they are supremacy and
only represent God the Supreme. They are the
personalization of time-space supremacy and therefore do
not function in Havona. They function only as supreme
unifiers. They may possibly be involved in the technique
of universe reflectivity, but we are not certain.
55:12.5
None of us entertain a satisfactory concept of what will
happen when the grand universe (the seven superuniverses
as dependent on Havona) becomes entirely settled in
light and life. That event will undoubtedly be the most
profound occurrence in the annals of eternity since the
appearance of the central universe. There are those who
hold that the Supreme Being himself will emerge from the
Havona mystery enshrouding his spirit person and will
become residential on the headquarters of the seventh
superuniverse as the almighty and experiential sovereign
of the perfected creations of time and space. But we
really do not know.
55:12.6
Presented by a Mighty Messenger temporarily assigned to
the Archangel Council on Urantia.
*
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