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TARKAS

Transcript of 6-18-93 Transmitted through: Jim Cleveland

Including . ...

• Reassessment for group

• Practicing religion, dedication to the stillness

• Celestial nudgings

• Urantia and other texts, complexity, feeling

• Sharing the Urantia revelation

(Pray opens meeting.)

TARKAS: Thank you, Father. This is Tarkas, and it is indeed a pleasure to be back with you this evening. I look forward to these times together, as I hope you do.

I can sense that this is a reassessment time for the group, but I do sense that you are pulling together very strongly after what was, for many of us, a disappointment in Chicago. But truly, with faith, we realize that these things do work for the best, and do not question problems that may crop up along the way. For truly, this group is beginning to pull together, and I still believe great work can come from each of you. I truly love all of you. I am pleased to be your teacher. And it is my fond wish to give you information that will be useful to you in developing your spiritual essence.

I know that my answers have not always pleased everyone, but there is much that cannot be revealed, as has been said. There is much knowledge in the universe that simply takes time to unfold in all of our minds. What we have been teaching is the carefully prescribed curriculum of the Melchizedeks, who have truly developed these lessons under the guidance of Christ Michael, and I hope that they have been helpful.

It is not our ambition to solve all your problems, or tell you the many ways that you should lead your life, or to make decisions for you which, in truth, you should feel very fortunate and very blessed to be able to make yourself. For the free will the Father has granted you is indeed a great gift, one to be cherished, one to be used. The problems can be dealt with, and can be dealt with very expediently and efficiently if you truly turn your heart to God.

You must practice what was asked from the very start if you wish to progress spiritually. And these are the four things that we ask you to do every day. To the extent that you practice these things, you will be rewarded, for they are not obligations or burdens for you, or lessons even, or homework. They are truly gifts, for you will find that you will be blessed according to what you put into this mission. And the more you put in, truly the more love you will feel in your heart, the more confidence you will have in the veracity of what we teach, and the more self-assurance, and the more trust and the more faith.

These things build according to your faith. Faith is the catalyst to begin all of these motions, to start all of these energies working for you. Faith is the most important thing that you must practice . .. must develop within your hearts.

Each of you can talk to me as you wish only by calling my name. Practice the stillness, the quiet. Begin with worshipful recognition of the Heavenly Father. Simply tell him that you love him, appreciate the life that he’s given you. Thank Christ Michael. Speak to your Thought Adjuster. As you learn the stillness, the quietness, you will be able to communicate with me daily as you wish.

I sense that perhaps this group would like to have some discussion tonight which relates to where you are in this particular stage of the mission, where you’ve been and where we have yet to go. For truly we have a long way to go. We have barely touched upon many of the lessons of the Melchizedeks, as you know from reading the transcripts of the other teachers.

We have had a lesson of faith, and we have talked about these things. And you have begun to read the text in greater detail. I believe this will be helpful in understanding some of the concepts we will talk about in the mission.

Would someone like to ask a question or make a comment about where we should proceed tonight? Would you like a lesson or have an open discussion and ask more questions.

QUESTION: You said something . .. that you would explain where we’ve been and where we’re going. Is that correct?

TARKAS: Yes. I was referring to the group, since we have been meeting these number of months. And I think perhaps it would be time to assess this, and see if you truly feel we are making progress in the mission, or some other direction might be dictated. Does anyone have any thoughts on this?

HUMAN: Tarkas, this is _____. I can realize this in my own way of dealing with the mission that I have changed in my perception of it. In the beginning, I couldn’t get enough of the transcripts. I read and read and read. I would read, like, two hours every morning, and I would love it. And then I would have to do normal things, like get dressed and all kinds of things. I couldn’t get enough of the reading.

And then I just started assimilating what I had read. And that has been as fulfilling for me as the readings have been. I haven’t been too far off the mark with regard to the transcripts, but having validation has really meant a lot, kind of like jarring your memory when things pop up, situations. Rather than going blindly about it and going in the right direction by accident, I’ve got a better feeling that, gosh, I know this is going in the right direction, and that’s validation.

So I’ve gotten away from reading and I’ve been assimilating what I’ve been doing more. And that has really, really, for me, been a nice kind of growth. That kind of validation and assimilating that I’ve been doing . ..... What I need to do now is perhaps keep doing what I’m doing, but I have gaps in my faith where I think that . ... I grew up a little different, I think, that God is somehow like my parents or my significant others that were too busy, you know, a little rough around the edges, and things of that sort. And those are things I need to work on.

The way I could do that is by seeking the stillness more, and doing that. My mind is just so busy, though, I can’t seem to turn it off. But I think the only thing I can do better is just to practice. And I’ve done that. And when I was new to all this . ... my mother was an atheist and there was no religion allowed in the house at all, and so I would have to kind of like practice by saying ‟God does love me” and invest in my own self-talk that other people just grew up with. So I’m going to try, in my quiet time, to get back to some of that self talk. And I think that would be a good idea for me personally. Do you have any suggestions?

TARKAS: This is very true what you have said. You are making very significant progress.

You have covered much ground in what you have said. It is true that the assimilation of what you’ve learned is more important than actually coming here and listening, or reading the Urantia Book, or the Bible. For it is true that it is in action rather than strictly learning knowledge that the glory of God is served, and you begin reaping the blessings of his love by actually doing rather than knowing.

For it is true, we have had the teachings of Jesus, and even before that the knowledge of a supreme being with love and benevolence for us. And yet the condition of the world would indicate that this knowledge has not been practiced fully. And that certainly is an understatement of all of your problems.

So it is actually the practicing. This is what I wanted to remind you of from the very first lesson -- that the four things we discussed first are truly the keys to your growth. Practicing this daily with people you come into contact with, seeing the love of God in each one of them.

And I trust that you all have a strong reservoir of knowledge, and that now, truly, the thing that you must do is continue to practice. Indeed, it was perseverance on the part of Jim which allowed him to do this. And it was no small task for awhile, for his confidence kept breaking down and he was not able to carry forward. But truly staying with it daily with honesty deep within your heart will pay dividends.

Q -- Tarkas, you mention practice. What do you mean by practice?

TARKAS: Practice the stillness, which carries you very close to the love of God. The quiet times, which, I know, are very difficult to find.

As _____ mentioned, there are many things to do. With your knowledge, you can do these things in a joyous and relaxed way much of the time, for you know that behind all of this magnificent plan is God’s love, and truly you face an everlasting life of joyous service to God, in this lifetime and in the Mansion Worlds. This should give you a great amount of confidence as you go about your daily activities to realize that this short mortal life in the flesh, while very important from many standpoints, is only the beginning. There is much more which you will experience, and a great, great future.

So take these distractions in good humor. Take them in stride as best you can. When you fall and you stumble, and you allow anger and resentments to enter your heart, just brush them aside as best you can. Because you have a strong, firm foundation of knowledge that will bolster your faith and develop it, you are truly on the right track in your development. And I even believe that some of the lessons which are prescribed on such matters as trust and faith and tolerance are somewhat well-ingrained in each of your minds and each of your hearts at the present time.

Which is why I thought this discussion would be advisable as to the direction of this group. For the curriculum is not set in concrete, but is truly flexible. We measure activities by achievements rather than strict timetables or strict adherence to a particular lesson plan, for truly your understanding is key, your practice of the lesson beyond that, rather than simply going through a prescribed program of lessons.

I’m not implying that your group is nearly as advanced as many of the others, and truly you should work on doing this if it is your wish to become involved in the mission. But I think that this group is well versed already on a number of concepts, and I am somewhat pleased that there is a re-dedication to reading the text, which is quite helpful. I highly recommend to you a re-reading of the section on Machiventa Melchizedek, for it truly puts in perspective in a document written many years ago what is actually happening now on Urantia in the spirit mission. I think these words will be inspiring to you.

Are there any other comments on the direction of the group?

Q -- Yes, I would like to say something, Tarkas. You know, I’ve been reading the text for some 17 years. The authenticity, the genuineness, to me is in the fact that it can be lived. I can always do it. I can always live it. And it has given me great joy and happiness because I can actually do it.

And this has also been true of all the transmissions I have ever heard or read. These are things that can actually be practiced, and lived, and put to practice in our daily lives. And I think that’s the final proof that we’re on the right track and the mission is very important for us, and that each one of us continue from where we’re at, in our own spiritual lives. (lost words) . ... the fact of love for all of those around us, our associates, anybody we meet, will be contacted in some way.

I think this is especially true today, on this day, which is a feast of our Lord’s love for us. It’s very appropriate that we have met here with you today, in God’s presence, that we, each of us, continue on beyond where God has brought us so far, and very importantly keep on studying and practicing what we have learned. So maybe you can tell us something more about love, and about how we have the privilege, like Jesus had, of sharing our Father’s love with other people.

TARKAS: Yes, and is it not amazing that all these truths that we now teach with such intensity in the 1990s have been with us for so very long? And yet the practicing of these truths, practicing what we know, has been somewhat slack in many individuals. But these are not things to concentrate on. It is the positive things which are happening. For truly things will accelerate much faster as the mission takes hold on Urantia, with the Melchizedeks here personally directing affairs. We are still in a sorting and regrouping mode, for we too were disappointed in Chicago. But our faith, of course, is not shaken in the mission, for this decision was a sound decision at the time, when considering all the factors involved.

Indeed, it is difficult to practice love everyday when one is barraged by so much that is so distracting. I speak of newscasts, and the constant barrage of entertainment, the over-reliance on technology to seemingly fill our ears and our minds constantly throughout the day. These, of course, are legitimate diversions which are, in themselves, not bad. But there must be time for your spiritual development as well. A time for quietness to rekindle your energies, rekindle your spirits, rekindle the love in your heart, which is there, but perhaps dormant if your time is spent watching television, or listening to the radio and traveling in your automobiles, and going to ball games. And all of these many things.

But there must be a time during the day, if it’s only five minutes a day, to speak to the Heavenly Father. Tell him of your love, speak with Christ Michael, dedicate that few minutes to somewhat recharge your batteries, so to speak, to get through the remainder of the day. Does that seem to be clear to you?

Q -- That’s clear. I really feel . .. part of me feels anxious. I know there’s something greater, something bigger, something more that wants to surface, and I’m so impatient. And I get . .. I look at that Urantia Book and, at the last meeting I threw it on the floor. And I get aggravated, like all of these words . ... it is so mental for me, you know, and to me, reading the book is such a mental process. I don’t know why I read it. I don’t know why I’ve come to these meetings for three years. I don’t know even know why. I am so honestly frustrated with the book.

And now I pick up this book, which was given to me, called the Book of Enoch. It’s about the (?) of Enoch. And now when I read that book, it just vibrates in my soul. I feel the light. I feel the book. And my soul reads the book. I don’t know if I’m reading intellectually, but my soul is reading that book. And I feel that book. I can (?) that book. And I guess the frustration is that I don’t feel the same way about the Urantia Book when I read it.

Like I don’t understand it. Would someone explain it to me? It’s such a mental thing. There’s this crazy desire inside me to want to follow the will of God . ... into the light by my soul and my heart. And there is something else that is connecting here, and I have met Eric from Boston. It’s kind of interesting how we met. When I went to Chicago for the materialization and it so happens that we were in this third energy circle, and I feel there’s something that maybe we’ve come together to do. I don’t know what that is, or in what way that is, or . ....could that be true? I mean, Eric is here now, and we are here.

TARKAS: Some of the things which you mention as coincidences are a bit more than that, for there are many on our side. I refer to your guardian angels, or even your Thought Adjusters, who may nudge you in one direction or another, and make certain connections that may seem opportune to you, not interfering, of course, with your free will to make decisions at that time regarding that supposed coincidence. And so it is true that collaborative effort on your part and personality may affect the coincidence.

I sense that you have something very strong to share, and that your relationship will be beneficial to you. Also, I would comment about your concerns regarding the Urantia text. For, indeed, much of it is very complex for you. It is true that many books and some other books may strike closer to your heart, your emotions, than do parts of the Urantia text. For those books would be authored by personalities much closer to you, humans, who are truly inspired. And they, in many ways, have the power to affect and influence you more so than personalities such as myself, for they truly understand your lives, your trials and tribulations, your joys and heartbreaks, and they are experiencing it even as you are. So they have the power to touch your hearts.

As with these books or any book, it is the spirit of truth inside you that makes the decision whether to subscribe wholeheartedly to what the book says, or to do this in part, or not at all. There are truly many fine books that you can read which will inspire you, and lead you closer to God.

The Urantia text in some places, of course, is very complex, and seems to deal only on the intellectual plane. I would say that, should you read the life of Christ you would find many touching examples of the love and compassion, and Christ Michael’s supreme devotion to your race. I think you would find this much more inspiring than some of the complex material regarding the administration of the universe. This will truly be a blessing to your people in time for the book has truly been here only a short time. It will serve you well for a long, long time to come.

Another matter regarding the book is that it is truly an intellectual exercise in large measure because it endeavors to explain to you the entire cosmology that you can grasp at this time. And therefore the intent is primarily informational rather than inspirational. And for inspirational texts, of course, the Course in Miracles and others may truly be closer to your heart than these cosmological explanations of vast universes which are quite complex to understand.

Truly, the book was never intended to be the only step in the Fifth Epochal Revelation, but only the first step. And other steps are being taken, the spirit mission being one, and perhaps others in the future of which even I have not been apprised. But we move forward in faith, confident that the revelation will be fulfilled in time, and you will feel the glories of it, even though you may not be here on Urantia when the full fruition takes place. But I assure you, you will see this from on high, and you will actually feel the ultimate triumph of the people of your world asin the era of light and life they come in closer contact daily with the Heavenly Father

Though this will take many years, it is true that things will begin to accelerate very rapidly as more and more people are inspired, and as the churches begin to work from within to cleanse themselves, to purify themselves and work to the greater glory of God. They have been bastions for so long. The Bible has served you well for so long. Now with this new age dawning, you will have even more and more that you can look forward to. You should be glorious if you have faith and trust in this future, as indeed you have.

I know you are sometimes frustrated by what you consider to be a slow pace. But the pace depends on your concept of time and how it moves. From our standpoint, things are happening as they should, methodically, fully-informed, progressively day by day. And in a manner which should not bring you anxiety, and I would urge you to not be overanxious, but to be patient, for we truly have eternity to work out these things.

God’s only wish for you is joy, and he wants you to experience this daily. Your frustrations day by day can be put aside. Feel good about yourself constantly, for you are truly a child of God. And the mistakes you make, and errors you make are truly of no matter ultimately.

Q -- Tarkas, I have an experience to reference to it in my life and the beginning of this mission. I have felt a great amount of peace that I did not have before . .. a greater level of confidence in myself. I truly enjoy interacting with people now. Last week, I had what I describe as a love and run situation where I enjoy meeting people on a very short term basis, sharing a smile or getting into a little story, or so on and so forth.

What I am a little bit unsure about is the extent to which I can teach what I know about the Urantia Book. On a certain level, it’s easy for me to share God’s love individually with people, but I have an urge to go to, for instance, my Sunday School class and talk to people to whom I am very close specifically about the Urantia Book. And I think that, in the past, people have sometimes warned that you can move too fast and share too much and try to push too hard. And I haven’t found a real comfortable level here.

I want to go to my Sunday School class and slip in all this good information from the Urantia Book. And, in a sense, I feel a real urgency to do that, and in another sense, I wonder if I’m doing the right thing. I feel very insecure about it. Can you comment about how the Urantia Book should, could, or can be disseminated so that the seeds find good earth to grow in. Am I, in any way, connecting with you here?

TARKAS: Yes. And your concerns are, of course, legitimately shared by many. One of the objectives of the Teaching Mission is to help you find that very level of teaching and the dissemination of these teachings. For it is true that strange new knowledge, especially among those who have already embraced one of the religions, can be very disconcerting, or feel very threatening to them, and this can be very counterproductive to a meaningful and productive dialogue. So indeed, the differences should not be stressed in many cases.

These are decisions, of course, which you must make, but we must continue to develop in the teaching mission to find that very level, that very balance that is required. This is usually on a smaller basis, rather than a group, to one or two people, perhaps a family. And it is best initiated in a very gentle, confirming way to people you already know, and certainly in a way that does not seem to threaten what they already believe.

They may inevitably be jarred by assertions in the book that are in contradiction to what they already believe. But these should be minimized and the stress should be on things which are common to you and them -- the presence of the Heavenly Father and his love for all mankind, the fact that we are all brothers and sisters, that we should love one another, these basic truths of the heart that are truly universal and not related specifically to the Urantia Book.

Perhaps the Urantia Book will come later, for truly the great mission is saving souls, bringing the people of your world to a closeness to God so that they feel his love everyday, and truly make an effort to care for his brothers and sisters and nurture them.

The Urantia Book is somewhat secondary to this, although that may sound a contradiction because the Urantia Book certainly embodies the highest level of knowledge on your world. But what I’m saying is that it’s critical that the introduction should be gentle and loving, and that people you seek to talk to are brought into differences in a minimal way, for the differences are truly not what matters the most, but the commonalities. [END OF TAPE]