Progress

My friend says it again, “there can be no forgiveness without the shedding of blood. In the Old Testament the blood was shed by the sacrifice, in the New Testament Jesus shed the blood. Forgiveness comes from the shedding of blood.” She says this resolutely in her Greek accent. The number of times she has said this in my presence has risen into the double digits. And every time my skin crawls. No forgiveness without blood – sounds like a bad vampire movie. This is a three thousand+ year old concept and it is still alive and well in our modern/advanced American society. Just because it’s old doesn’t mean it’s good. Our loving/caring Father in heaven does not demand blood sacrifices of his children. What loving/caring parent would? Isn’t it time modern people put aside ancient beliefs that no longer express our highest and most spiritual aspirations?

Of course my friend is just stating what every evangelical Christian knows - Jesus had to shed his blood to make atonement for our sins. The Urantia Book rejects this idea out of hand (41.3). Ancient ideas served their purpose, communicating divinely inspired ideas to the people of the time period in ways that they could understand. And it is good to look back and learn from the past. But times have changed and the way we understand God has changed. The way we communicate the inspired teachings of God must change as well. Just as we grow and change over time from children into adults so does religious thinking need to grow-up. No longer should we remain chained to the ideas of the past. The people of our world need to embrace an ethic of progress for our intellectual, emotional, and spiritual selves. Our world is part of a universe which moves ever onward towards the Father of all.

Spiritual progress is a powerful theme in The Urantia Book. It is an idea that needs to make a significant impact in a world which embraces progress in the physical but resists it in the spiritual. The Urantia Book says that the providence of God, or God’s plan for us, is entirely focused upon our intellectual, emotional, spiritual progress (54.6). The interlocking activities of countless beings in the vast universe are designed to shepherd us towards greater understandings of God and ourselves (22.1). In fact, the whole universe is involved in the process of progress. Beings either aid or are being aided or both. We are part of a vast stream of individuals who are slowly and steadily striving to be perfect even as our Father in heaven is perfect. To seek God and to be like him.

Whether we realize it or not, everything we experience involves us in God’s plan to draw his children to Godself. As I said earlier we receive help from the spiritual forces and personalities that surround us (1204.3). An entire universe of beings are working to help us move forward, not remain where we are. The universe itself has been created for this purpose. Even disasters and difficulties ultimately help us to progress (115.8). But whether we progress or not is up to us. We need to engage in positive efforts to benefit from God’s providence (382.2). Prayer is indispensable for progress (999.8) and true prayer helps us to cooperate with the spiritual forces that are at our disposal. However, purposeful sin will prevent our progress (754.5). Iniquity creates resistance to God’s spirit and leads ultimately to destruction. Those who don’t progress eventually fall. But in everyone there is the desire to grow spiritually (1095.1) and the power of God has molded the universe to provide help to those who embrace this desire. The universe is truly a friendly place for those who seek God.

We are not content to remain static and unchanging here on earth. We upgrade our computers and TV’s – why should we cling to old ideas that are past their prime? Many of us are always seeking to change, to grow, to become more than we are. We seek to do this at work, or in a sport or hobby. Some people love to grow in knowledge of a particular subject. Why seek these things and not seek the progress and growth that lead to eternal life? Why be satisfied standing in one place? The universe doesn’t stand still. The cosmos is not content to see us stand still. We either move forward or backward.

The problem is people don’t want to do either. People resist changes in religious belief systems. Thousands of years of bureaucracy retard spiritual growth in many individuals. My friend’s story above is an example of an ancient idea still believed in the modern era by modern, progressive people. Ideas are powerful and live on for long periods of time. They adjust with the changing world. My friend would not drain the blood of an animal over an alter. But she absolutely believes that the blood that came from Jesus’ wounds during his torturous death was necessary for her sins to be forgiven. She takes great comfort in this. The idea is so powerful with her that I doubt that even Jesus himself could talk her out of it.

Our world needs a new theology based upon spiritual progress. A theology given to us in The Urantia Book. But in order to embrace it, people need to let go of cherished ancient beliefs. And they don’t want to let go. An important message we need to deliver to the people around us is the need for physical, emotional, and spiritual progress. To tell people about our need to grow. To tell people about God’s ever expanding future.

God Bless You,

William Whitehead