Perspectives on Race in The Urantia Book RACE IN CONTEXT by Matthew Block his paper has been prepared in the belief that an in the earliest stages of the ascension career. In contrast Tenhanced understanding of The Urantia Book’s to these temporary, material-based identity factors, we teachings on race can be gained by becoming familiar are told that the more fundamental and permanent with two broader contexts: (1) the entire divine scheme components of our being derive from Paradise-origin of the creation, evolution, ascension and perfection of personalities. These latter components underlie and, as animal-origin will creatures, as it is portrayed in the the ascension career progresses, eventually override the Papers; and (2) the pre-existing literature in theology, Bible handicaps and advantages of material heredity. interpretation, the natural sciences and the social A study of the roles and functions of the sciences, from which the revelators apparently drew in superhuman personalities responsible for fostering the order to expound certain features of this scheme. evolution and perfection of mortal creatures and the An understanding of the first area requires knowledge civilizations of our native planets, suggests that a clear of: (1) the various personalities of the divine hierarchy distinction can be drawn between the agendas of the who are involved in creating, designing, and bestowing Paradise-origin personalities and those of the local- the components of our being, and (2) the importance and universe-origin personalities. Paradise-origin beings longevity of these various components—physical, endow humans with capacities for infinite spiritual intellectual, and spiritual—as we progress from the growth and, in their bestowals upon evolving planets, material to the morontial and spiritual levels in our seek to engender in us the realization of our ascension career. transcendent spiritual equality. The local-universe- Parts I and II of The Urantia Book—especially Papers origin beings, by contrast, work to advance a planet’s 1, 7, 8, 16, 21, 32, 34, 36, 40, 47, 49, 50, 51, 52, and civilization by maximizing the physical, intellectual 55—are the primary sources of information regarding the and spiritual calibre of its inhabitants. Paradise Sons divine scheme of mortal creation and evolution and how are concerned with our eternal essence and infinite it normally unfolds. Through some of these papers we destiny; local-universe-origin administrators focus on learn that the differentiation of a planet’s human stock our hereditary substance and the finite destiny of our into various colored races is one of several temporary native planets. Paradise-origin beings ignore such diversifications designed by the Life Carriers, an order material differentials as race; local-universe-origin of local-universe-origin celestial beings. Race is thus beings design these differentials and seek to manipulate an ephemeral factor of identity, and racial differences them in the most effective ways to advance a planet and normally exist only in the early history of a planet and its inhabitants towards the attainment of light and life. 81 The Urantia Book Fellowship—Wrightwood Series #2 Ordinarily, we are told, these differing agendas work amalgamation with the superevolutionary violet race, harmoniously. The progress of an inhabited planet in its we are left with a world population made up of various earlier epochs is directly fostered by administrators racial combinations, none of which represent the ideal from the local universe—a Planetary Prince and a pair blend originally planned for in the divine program. of Material Sons. These beings raise the planet’s Some people, according to The Urantia Book, contain peoples to high physical and intellectual levels through more favorable blends than others, and the revelators a program of selective reproduction and racial attribute the cultural achievements of the recent and amalgamation. ancient past to Eventually, a highly societies containing a ethical civilization Race is thus a temporary high proportion of emerges, which is “ individuals with these characterized by a factor of identity, and racial favorable blends. collective sense of differences normally exist only Since social and brotherhood realized on cultural progress partly both genetic and in the early history of a depends on the spiritual levels. A planet and in the earliest hereditary planet is then ripe for endowments of a periodic visitations by stages of the ascension career. society’s people, the Paradise Sons who ” writers of The Urantia come to further spiritualize the populace. Through Book warn of the dangers of large-scale intermarriage the combined efforts of the Paradise Sons and the local between individuals of the more-favored and less-favored universe Sons, a planet reaches the highest possible races, and decry the perpetuation of sociopaths and levels of civilization, thereby achieving its destiny of severely deficient individuals in all racial groups in each light and life. generation. We are told that while the Paradise Sons never fail Yet, despite the failures of our former world rulers to in their missions, the planetary rulers of local universe fulfill their missions, and despite the fact that we are largely origin are fallible and may derail the divine program of left to our own human devices to solve our biological, social, planetary evolution through the embrace of error and and cultural problems, the revelators are certain that the sin. Our former Planetary Prince and Material Sons divine scheme of creation, evolution, and perfection will succumbed respectively to rebellion and default, and not fail on our planet. Says a Mighty Messenger: our planet is suffering from a variety of biological, social and cultural ills as a consequence. Normally, a planet “The great handicap confronting Urantia in the which has hosted a Paradise bestowal Son is one in matter of attaining the high planetary destiny of light which “[t]here are no race or color problems; literally and life is embraced in the problems of disease, all nations and races are of one blood” (UB 594; degeneracy, war, multicolored races, and 52:4.1). Our planet’s postbestowal age, however, has multilingualism. been marked by the persistence of racial, national, “No evolutionary world can hope to progress cultural, ideological, religious and linguistic divisions. beyond the first stage of settledness in light until it Instead of having the advantage of experiencing our has achieved one language, one religion, and one spiritual equality and brotherhood as a racially and philosophy. Being of one race greatly facilitates such culturally unified world population, we are forced to achievement, but the many peoples of Urantia do not divide our consciousness into an awareness of our preclude the attainment of higher stages.” equal worth in the eyes of God and a recognition of UB 626; 53:5.14,15 vast differences among us in intelligence and other qualities which affect social and cultural And a Life Carrier states: performances. More problematically, The Urantia Book suggests “There are, of course, certain compensations that race is the first and primary determiner of a for tribulation, such as Michael’s bestowal on people’s collective potential for intellectual growth Urantia. But irrespective of all such considerations, and spiritual development, and that the original races the later celestial supervisors of this planet express were not equally endowed by the Life Carriers with complete confidence in the ultimate evolutionary these culture-producing abilities. In the wake of the triumph of the human race and in the eventual failure of our former world rulers to blend the races vindication of our original plans and life patterns.” and upstep our capacities by widespread UB 736; 65:5.4 82 Perspectives on Race in The Urantia Book THE URANTIA BOOK’S PRESENTATION of the but reflected the contemporary views and voices of divine scheme of finite creation, evolution, and recognized authorities or exponents in these fields. The perfection, with its detailed depictions of the persons, writers of The Urantia Book seem to have largely tailored agencies and processes involved in carrying it out, phase their account of cosmic, human, and social evolution to by phase, on a myriad of inhabited worlds and fit the knowledge base and reference frames of educated architectural spheres, is probably the most fascinating, and modern-minded Westerners of the early 20th century. ingenious, illuminating and, at certain points, bewildering Far from being ahead of its time, The Urantia Book’s portrayal of theistic evolution ever written. It is safe to portrayal of the evolutionary process would have been claim that no other book incorporates and interweaves more immediately accessible and acceptable to such such a rich and complex array of reconceptualized people than to us, since they were both more conversant Biblical motifs, modern (i.e. early 20th century) biological with the Bible and more comfortable with the racial view themes and details, and stunningly original theological, of history and civilization put forward in the book. Though angelological and cosmological constructs in its The Urantia Book would have been considered formulation of how God and his agents sponsor and foster remarkable even then for its simultaneous inclusion of the evolutionary process. extensive discussions of egalitarian religion and Indeed, the presentation of the spiritual and scientific inegalitarian