Paper 138 Paper 140
From: The Forum, and How Dr. Sadler Changed from Skeptic to Believer
Indeed, Dr. Lena Sadler was evidently a strong believer in the Papers long before William. She apparently urged him to continue the process when his interest began to flag. Unfortunately, Lena died of cancer in 1939 at the age of 64, more than fifteen years before the Urantia Papers became The Urantia Book.
“So one Sunday,” continued Dr. Sadler, “I made a speech to the group about the importance of maintaining a tough, critical and objective approach to the material. To my astonishment, the response I got was almost like a testimonial meeting! The essence of the reaction was: ‘We don’t care who wrote these Papers, they simply make more sense than anything else we have ever read along this line.’”
“Now, I believed that my own professional reputation was at stake. I had often declared in public that there were no genuine mediumistic phenomena, and I wasn’t going to let one baffling case change my mind. I felt that in time I would discover a natural explanation for this remarkable case.
“However, as years went by I became more and more impressed with the quality and the consistency of the material that was being received. I became satisfied in my own mind that the subject involved in the materializations could not have authored the Papers we were receiving. He simply did not have the qualifications nor the abilities to do so. I finally became satisfied that I was not dealing with some hoax or trick, but some kind of an authentic phenomenon.
“Finally, in the mid-thirties — over twenty years after I had first encountered this case — I carefully studied a Paper evaluating the personalities of the apostles of Jesus. It was at that point that I threw in the intellectual towel. I am a psychiatrist, and I believe I know my business. But this Paper was a real blow to my pride. I believe that if I assembled a half dozen of the world’s best psychiatrists and had years to prepare it, we could not collectively fabricate a paper with this ring of genuineness and insight. So I said to myself: ‘I don’t know what this is, but I do know it is the highest quality of philosophical-religious material I have ever read.’”
See Topical Study: Genetic Introductions, Mutations, and Evolution: a Urantia Book perspective, and subtopic: “Were the Alpheus twins subnormal?“.
See Etymology of Coined Terminology.
Introduction
Section 1: Andrew, the First Chosen
p8: the affairs of the kingdom phrase is used ten times: (139.1.8), (139:5.5), (140:8.1), (144.6.7), (156:5.18), (157:3.2), (161:2.12), (174:5.4), (176:2.3), (191:0.3). When the Alpheus twins receive their final instructions from Jesus, the outward affairs of the kingdom phrase is used: (181:2.19).
p10: insincere is used once and with regard to Lucifer. insincerity is used six times. See Topical Study: Insincere/Insincerity.
Section 2: Simon Peter
Section 3: James Zebedee
Section 4: John Zebedee
p3: two See cross-reference study: Two or (three/more), plus.
p4: See Cross-reference study: Age 16, Child Mind, Childlike, Little Child, and Childish.
p14: Book of Revelations only appears in this paragraph. John the Revelator is used twice: 45:4.1 and 47:10.2. The other two instances of revelator are found at 112:5.11, in connection to those involved with the preparation of this epochal revelation, and at 119:8.7, regarding Michael’s role as a revelator of the Supreme. Revelators is used at 23:2.9,24 in describing revelators of truth, a role performed by Mighty Messengers, and at 101:4.2, where the direct knowledge of the revelators in preparing these Papers is contrasted with the inspired revelations.
Section 5: Philip the Curious
p5: the affairs of the kingdom phrase is used ten times: (139.1.8), (139:5.5), (140:8.1), (144.6.7), (156:5.18), (157:3.2), (161:2.12), (174:5.4), (176:2.3), (191:0.3). When the Alpheus twins receive their final instructions from Jesus, the outward affairs of the kingdom phrase is used: (181:2.19).
Section 6: Honest Nathaniel
p9: See 2013 post by New Testament Scholarship Worldwide: “St. Bartholomew the Apostle and the Indian Christians.”
Section 7: Matthew Levi
Section 8: Thomas Didymus
Section 9 and 10: James and Judas Alpheus
p4: common people See subtopic: “Were the Alpheus twins subnormal?” For the larger context into which this study falls, see the Topical Study: Genetic Introductions, Mutations, and Evolution: a Urantia Book perspective.
p9: no respecter of persons See Topical Study page: No respecter of persons.
Section 11: Simon the Zealot
Section 12: Judas Iscariot
p1: Kerioth: In Hebrew ת????אִישׁ־קְרִיּ ish-keriyoth means “a man of Kerioth,” hence the surname “Iscariot.”
p12: shame See cross-reference study: Shame(ful(ly)) Lax.
Additional notes:
See comparison to Biblical account of the twelve Apostles.
Matthew Block suggests that the following authors were influential in writing of this Paper and has prepared a parallel chart:
(1) Charles Fiske and Burton Scott Easton, The Real Jesus: What He Taught: What He Did: Who He Was (New York and London, Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1929)
(2) Charles Reynolds Brown, These Twelve: A Study in Temperament (New York: The Century Co., 1926) Wikipedia page: Brown.
(3) George A. Barton, Ph.D., LL.D., Jesus of Nazareth: A Biography (New York, The Macmillan Company, 1922)
(4) “Peter,” in Dr. William Smith’s Dictionary of the Bible, Volume 3, Marriage to Regem, Revised and Edited by Professor H. B. Hackett, D.D., et al. (Boston: Houghlin, Mifflin and Co., 1870)
(5) “Andrew,” by David Smith, in Hastings’ Dictionary of the Bible, edited by James Hastings, D.D. (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1909) Hathi Trust Digital Library copy.
(6) Bernard C. Clausen, D.D., Pen-Portraits of the Twelve (New York: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1924)
(7) Robert E. Speer, Studies of the Man Christ Jesus (New York: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1896) Hathi Trust Digital Library copy. Wikipedia page: Speer.
(8) Edward Augustus George, The Twelve: Apostolic Types of Christian Men (New York: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1916) Hathi Trust Digital Library copy.
(9) “Andrew, St.,” in Dr. William Smith’s Dictionary of the Bible, Volume 1, A to Gennesaret, Land of, Revised and Edited by Professor H. B. Hackett, D.D. et al. (Boston: Houghlin, Mifflin and Co., 1870) Hathi Trust Digital Library copy.
(10) “Peter.—Simon,” by David Smith, in Hastings’ Dictionary of the Bible, edited by James Hastings, D.D. (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1909)
(11) J. Middleton Murry, Jesus—Man of Genius (New York: Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1926)
(12) “James,” by David Smith, in Hastings’ Dictionary of the Bible, edited by James Hastings, D.D. (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1909)
(13) “John the Apostle,” by W. T. Davison, in Hastings’ Dictionary of the Bible, edited by James Hastings, D.D. (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1909)
(14) Ernest F. Scott, The Kingdom of God in the New Testament (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1931)
(15) “Philip (NT),” by David Smith, in Hastings’ Dictionary of the Bible, edited by James Hastings, D.D. et al. (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1909)
(16) “Philip the Apostle,” in Dr. William Smith’s Dictionary of the Bible, Volume 3, Marriage to Regem, Revised and Edited by Professor H. B. Hackett, D.D., et al. (Boston: Houghlin, Mifflin and Co., 1870)
(17) “Nathanael,” in Dr. William Smith’s Dictionary of the Bible, Volume 4, Regem-Melech to Zuzims, Revised and Edited by Professor H. B. Hackett, D.D. et al. (Boston: Houghlin, Mifflin and Co., 1870)
(18) “Thomas,” by David Smith, in Hastings’ Dictionary of the Bible, edited by James Hastings, D.D. et al. (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1909) Hathi Trust Digital Library copy.
(19) “Thomas,” in Dr. William Smith’s Dictionary of the Bible, Volume 4, Regem-Melech to Zuzims, Revised and Edited by Professor H. B. Hackett, D.D. et al. (Boston: Houghlin, Mifflin and Co., 1870) Hathi Trust Digital Library copy.
(20) “Simon,” in Dr. William Smith’s Dictionary of the Bible, Volume 4, Regem-Melech to Zuzims, Revised and Edited by Professor H. B. Hackett, D.D. et al. (Boston: Houghlin, Mifflin and Co., 1870) Hathi Trust Digital Library copy.
(21) “Judas Iscariot,” by David Smith, in Hastings’ Dictionary of the Bible, edited by James Hastings, D.D. et al. (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1909)