[tmtranscripts] 02/09/03 Rio Rancho NM TeaM

[ZooidODell at aol.com]

Date:                February 9, 2003
Location:       Rio Rancho, NM, USA
Teachers:       Tomas and Anatolia
Topics:     Which quality of Jesus' do you hold most dear?
        Could it be God's will to go to the game?
        Finding real value in everyday living
        Spending a minute in the Eternal Now
T/R's:    Gerdean (forTomas) and Matthew (forAnatolia)
Music:  Dorenda(Elena) Pianist - "Jesus, Thou Joy of Loving Heart"

Prayer:  Let's place ourselves in the presence of  Jesus, the Christ.

Master Teacher,
We come to you with open hearts and minds as students of your teaching, but 
more importantly, students of your Love. To simply recite, or to parrot, that 
which you have said, and has been quoted and rewritten many times, is not the 
point, but rather to have taken the illustration, the example, and your 
representation of God as if He were here within our midst and to take that 
into our hearts and our minds, to know the character, the value and the 
relationship that God and man have, as a result of your presence among us. We 
choose to accept that as the message and not anything else that could be 
impressed and has been impressed on us, (such) as the suffering Jesus on the 
cross. Although we regret, and wish to sacrifice that image as something that 
has died and has risen, which is the message.

We stand with you for all eternity in the relationship that you helped 
establish in us as we go on to accomplish the will of the Father in our time, 
and well beyond into eternity, to be all that you have made us to be.

We wish to accept the teachings of the teachers who are made present today 
and to open our hearts and our minds to allow us to be better creatures of 
Love and to be that example here, now and always.

And for all of the thoughts, needs, and concerns of all of those present and 
(those) not able to be here, and for all humanity, that those be known and  
addressed here, now and for eternity.  Amen

TOMAS:  Good afternoon, loyal flock. I am Tomas, your teacher, friend and 
companion, and host in this configuration which once again gathers around for 
the purpose of partaking of the presence of the Master and learning from him 
how to live the life of Sonship.

Yes, the Master is with us. The prayer you pray that brings you into His 
presence is a mere ritual which effectively brings you into the focus of that 
reality which you are never far from.  His presence is constant, but you are 
not constantly aware of this. However, in these gatherings we are aware of 
him and the memory of our relationship floods in upon us as a greater reality 
in which we bathe and frolic.  

This afternoon, I note, we have a range of subjects which have been presented 
in your sharing time. A full range of human concerns, even as they infringe 
upon your spiritual training and focus. But I have in mind an exercise, if 
you will, since we have the opportunity.  Let's investigate further, this man 
Jesus.

I will take you off the hook in the beginning by acknowledging that His 
efforts at self-mastery was a process, as yours is and has been. Thus, it 
will be superfluous to say that you have not attained what the Master has. 
For you, too, are men among men, women among women, and you, too, have your 
'I AM' capacities, your Christ-consciousness. You, too, have your values.  
And these are related to and identified with, that value which you hold up 
and one worthy of emulating, that which we know to have been the qualities of 
the perfected man, Jesus, who walked upon Urantia as you do.

I would like to hear from you today, individually.  I would like for you to 
take a moment now, each of you, to focus on one facet of Jesus' life, one 
quality of his that you hold dear and that you admire, or that you choose to 
emulate in your own life.  It is a way of becoming closer to the Master, you 
see.  It is a way of identifying yourself with him in your soulful quality.

I know you all well. I know you have many of the Master's qualities, even 
while you enforce a humility upon your bearing.  Let us cast that aside now 
and rejoice in our relationship with our brother, Jesus of Nazareth.  Be 
fellows with Him here.  And, rather than putting him on the pedestal of 
Divinity as the Risen Christ, embrace him as the human Jesus and tell me what 
you admire about your brother.  Who would like to go first?

Menopah:  I will.
TOMAS:  I am eager to hear from you.

Menopah:  He didn't discriminate against anyone.  There were certain taboos 
in his time, I suppose, just as there are in our time, and he sat down and 
talked to the Samaritan women -- although He didn't care too much for the 
scribes and the Pharisees, but that was about the only discriminatory act he 
ever did; I suppose he was trying to straighten them out or help them to see 
the error of their ways. He loved the poor and the down-trodden.

TOMAS:  He did, indeed.  He loved the sinners.

Menopah:  He didn't really care what shape or what kind of form they came in.

TOMAS:  He also visited in the home of Claudius, a wealthy man, and enjoyed 
himself.

Anatolia, I encourage you, if you find yourself prompted, to contribute to 
the reinforcement of these values in our students. Join me in confirming how 
it is that our students are also like the Man of Galilee, and the Scribe of 
Damascus, for I see Menopah has no discrimination in him either.  He dines 
with the publicans and sinners and may well have a former prostitute in his 
associates. Having the ability to love unconditionally, to step outside of 
the boundaries of race, gender and economics, is indeed a quality the Master 
has and which you share. Thus, you reveal the Master in your life.  What 
others?

Esmarelda:  One of the things I found very human about Jesus as he was living 
his life as a human, was how he always honored his mother and his father.  
And when his father died, Jesus, being the oldest child, assumed the 
responsibility of taking care of the rest of the family and he made sure they 
were taken care of -- his mother, brothers and sisters -- before he went on 
his long journey of learning and teaching.  That's one of the things that 
impressed me.

Matthew:  One of the best ways (for me) to understand Jesus was in the 
Urantia Book. Before that I always identified with the Old Testament and I 
didn't have much of anything to base a relationship on, even from the New 
Testament, other than the worship value, etc.  But according to the Urantia 
Book there were some great stories - for instance there was the time that 
Jesus was 'corrected' at Temple school because he had done an artwork piece.  
The chief Rabbi called his parents in and told them that the school could NOT 
accept any creating of artwork since Law against creating 'graven images' was 
intact.  At home Joseph and Jesus discussed this and yet Jesus could not 
convince Joseph that artwork was alright and said he would comply with 
Joseph's wishes but that he didn't agree with this Law that artwork was 
wrong.  

Then not too shortly thereafter Jesus had the opportunity to open Joseph's 
mind by saying that many of the written Laws had outlived their usefulness.  
Joseph asked how that could be and Jesus pointed to the ritual of touching 
the piece of leather on the doorway every time you go through the door and 
wondered what good that Law was.  Joseph said we have always done it. It is 
tradition. Jesus told Joseph it was a nonsensical thing to do because the 
practice of touching that leather did nothing, changed nothing, it was 
meaningless.  And Joseph had to recognize that.  

So, even as a child, Jesus seemed to see through and rise above what the 
written Law was saying. His whole life demonstrated that and I find it 
extraordinary. 

TOMAS:  You both have brought up invaluable points about the Master Teacher 
as a fellow human being.

Esmarelda's point of loyalty to family, child rearing, home making and those 
values, are so readily over-looked by those of you who seek to do His will. 
As if  by going to work and providing for your family, or overseeing their 
homework or their many, many various needs and interests, you are somehow 
EVADING your Spiritual work.  This is totally erroneous, for those of you who 
are devoted to your families are like Jesus, devoted to the values which 
create the Home which is the 'cradle of civilization.'  This is valuable 
work, indeed, work for God and for his children.  

Those who are not blessed with these family 'constraints and confinements' 
may well be doing more artistic or unconventional acts on behalf of the 
Kingdom, but they are no less worthy. The lamenting that you yourself have 
done, Esmarelda, about not being active enough in ministry, brings a wry 
smile to my countenance, for your devotion to your daughters and their 
families, as well as the family of humanity to which you have attached 
yourself, is a constant and caring commitment coming from you, as you, 
Matthew, are the voice of sanity and clarity in revealing the truth of the 
moment, not unmindful of the cultural conditioning that has gone into the 
moment, but even more aware of and sensitive to the true meaning of the 
moment that is revealed.

But isn't it a marvel that the Master did bring to the awareness of the day 
in which he lived, the merits of art and of sports -- those are two realms of 
value which have come to flower, at least somewhat and in some cultures. But 
what drudgery life might be without the diversion, distraction and delights 
of competitive sports as well as artistic expression.  At the risk of 
sounding entirely mortal, it could be said then, that by going to see your 
favorite team play, you are doing the Father's will. And that is not without 
truth, for you are participating in the sport in good faith of a battle for 
victory that, in the ideal, does not draw blood.  

Paula:  The story about the leather on the door reminds me of when I was 
young and the family that lived across the street from us were ardent 
Catholics and Democrats. Our family was Republican and Protestant. The family 
across the street had a metal figure of Christ on the Cross that was attached 
to the wall at the foot of the staircase and every time you went up the 
stairs you were supposed to kiss it.  When I was over there to play I didn't 
kiss it, and they thought I was awful, and the worst thing they could say 
about me was that I was 'a dirty little Protestant Republican.'  (group 
laughter throughout this story- especially right there)   

TOMAS:  And so, what about this story indicates what it is about Jesus that 
you love so much?

Paula:  That I love?

TOMAS:  Yes.

Paula:  Stories….bible stories.  I used to have a beautiful little book that 
told all kinds of stories that I learned more from than anything I ever 
learned in Sunday School.  

TOMAS:  Did you get this book from those 'loathsome Catholic Democrats?' 
(group laughter)

Paula:  No, I received that from my parents and I had it for years. It got 
lost, over the years, in the shuffle but I did buy a book that was similar 
for my children.

TOMAS:  You are my child, and I love you.

Are there other references?

Elena:  One of the things that I admire so much and find it amazing that he 
could do, was dealing with the myriad people that he did and yet he could 
listen to each one and appreciate their individual stories. I really admire 
that because I find that very difficult to do … without becoming impatient or 
anything like that. I have to believe that was hard to do.

TOMAS:  It would not be apparent to your friends, my dear.  Perhaps you would 
suggest to yourself that you could better relate to your enemies, even though 
we fully well know there are no real enemies - only friends you haven't met 
yet.

What do you think, Thoroah? What quality of the Master is one you admire?

Thoroah:  I've learned a lot about Jesus' humanity in the last half of my 
life, such as the fact that he didn't always know who he was and had to 
discover who he was -- that he was, like us, going through a process of 
self-discovery, and that he was a very human, human.  It wasn't magic for 
him. He had to learn it - discover it.  He experienced everything from the 
pain of hitting his thumb with a hammer to the pain of disappointments. He 
learned to master that.  

As Dorenda said, he had the patience and the perception to not get caught up 
in the emotional things … with the ability to identify with the emotions of 
others without getting emotional himself, and effectively deal with others on 
a very, very personal level.  That's a skill - a Mastery.  It wasn't magic. 
As a human he learned how to do that. It was important for me to understand 
that.

Menopah:  To take this aspect of being non-discriminatory a bit further - we 
have a hard time dealing with our enemies and He prayed for his.

TOMAS:  That, then, is a quality you would do well to develop. Ascertain who 
they may be and focus positive energy on them. Embrace them in the spirit of 
fellowship. Assuage their fears. Introduce to them, through your attitude, a 
reflection of the Prince of Peace.

Indeed, he attained these things, Thoroah, by and through his communion with 
our Father, and these same human qualities can be mastered, and are being 
mastered everyday, by opened-eyed individuals such as yourself, such as 
yourselves, who are aware of imperfection and seek to turn imperfection into 
a relative perfection that would better reveal the values reflecting the 
nature of God, such as Jesus did, and does now, in your lives and through 
you.

Gerdean, you have not contributed. What would you say is an admirable trait 
of the Master?

Gerdean:  I liked his comfort. I like the fact of his comforting presence.  I 
think too much and I get rattled too much and I'm too impressionable -- with 
the emotional strains and the intellectual thoughts and dysfunctions. I get 
too confused. I like the comfort of the Master. It's perhaps like a drug that 
anesthetizes me against the pain.

TOMAS:  Perhaps he does, child. But you will learn how to grow beyond 
allowing these disturbances to impact you so greatly. This is not to say that 
you will become 'thick skinned,' as they say, but you will be able to see 
through his eyes, how, in the course of time, this too shall pass.  There is 
much suffering that cannot be overlooked … not in an imperfect world like 
Urantia … but it does not have to be your primary focus.

I revisit our session last week, wherein the theme was Joy, the Underlying 
Joy of Sonship that allows you to withstand the temporary vicissitudes of a 
changing world and an evolving soul.  But certainly you are right to run to 
the Master as the Comforter, which he is, and to be a Comforter to others as 
you pass, by is allowing him another avenue of service, in and through 
yourself.

Our Master was a sublime human being.  But, as Elena pointed out, he was able 
to be original and unique to and with each individual he encountered -- 
personal to them -- and thus he was able to give himself completely to the 
unfolding reality of that instant. And the many, many conflicts and concerns 
of a world in change, in disarray, in turbulence, did not affect his ability 
to minister to each individual he encountered in his personal ministry with 
humanity.

I would ask you this week to ponder on these things and when you encounter 
the many subjects that capture your interest, the many concerns worth praying 
for, the many topics worthy of study, the many systems requiring your energy, 
that you counsel with your elder brother and ask his guidance in how you may 
be most effective, where you might just be spinning your wheels, and where 
you might be of value, to yourself and to the ministry of humanity.

There is no simple or unimportant effort. EVERY effort on your part, as a 
conscious son or daughter of God, is a reflection of the Almighty. Do not 
take yourself too lightly, or your work indifferently.  It is how the Kingdom 
is advanced.

Anatolia, would you like to speak to the group today?

ANATOLIA:    Welcome, all, to our next session of meeting ourselves in The 
Moment. And for The Moment all is provided.

There is a lesson to be held in the sanctity of The Moment and this Moment I 
speak of is the one that is most important, because each and every time you 
have occasion to rise to the top of the bottle, as cream rises to the top of 
whole milk, these are Moments in which you bring yourself in consciousness, 
in one with the sanctity of God himself.  

For God himself was made manifest in the body and spirit and personality of 
the one you call The Master Teacher, or Jesus of Nazareth, or the host of 
appropriate titles that were and are given this Son of God made present. 
Whenever you have occasion to rise to the level of oneness or fellowship with 
He who was sent to be your Voice of reason, your Place within the realm of 
oneness with your heavenly Father, and the one who was The Bridge from human 
consciousness to Sonship, you know within yourselves, in that Moment of 
awareness, that, that is why he went through the time, the trial, and the 
effort to bring this message to you.

Had it not been for His loving presence here in your midst, and had someone 
else fulfilled the prophecy and made themselves present as a 'heavenly 
visitor,' while it could have been in a similar way, it still would not have 
been the same for God to have given his very Son, a Creator Son at that, as a 
Manifest Destiny of humanity.  This, and only this, has made all of the 
difference.  For anyone else could have shown the way, as the prophets had 
done for years prior, but only the Creator Son of your world and your 
universe could have made all of the difference.  

And this difference is yours yet today to behold and to be at one with, for 
no one truly expects perfection of your limited world-based, animal-natured 
physical presences within your realm, for this is of the earth and enables 
you to be at one with it.  But your Spiritual Presence - your consciousness 
of being - is what is expected to be perfect in your realm as your Father is 
in his.  It is this consciousness of oneness of being that is your link to 
the past, present and future. It is this consciousness that your Master 
Teacher awakens within you that allows you to be at one with Him and with All 
Else That Is, as if the heavenly Father were present, as Jesus is present.

So let not anything discourage you from your attempts at becoming perfect, 
even as your Father in heaven is perfect, for it is the Spirit that always 
rises above that which your physical being cannot enable. It is the Spirit 
that heals. It is the Spirit that resurrects. And it is the Spirit, which is 
everlasting and part of the Eternal Plan, which you currently experience.

So, in a real sense, this is the Eternal Moment that enables you to be aware 
and to be conscious of that which is in your relationship on an ongoing 
basis. For you to maintain this is difficult but, at a Moment such as this we 
speak of, you are called to encounter it as a living experience and to 
cherish it as a reminder of that which is yet to be experienced in greater 
depth, breadth and full extent.  

So let that which prevails within your Father's realm, prevail within your 
heart and your mind, in your limited physical countenance and in your 
Spiritual awareness that enables you to be God-Man present. For as Jesus had 
said, greater things are yet expected of you. So do not doubt that which 
Spirit has created and enables you to be as a manifest presence of our 
heavenly Father. Nothing short of experiencing the Father directly can keep 
you from recognizing that which Jesus brings to your attention. As the 
presence of the Father himself and as that relationship expands within your 
life's work and consciousness today.

So peace be with you in every way and every realm as you attempt in your 
encounters with this Spirit Consciousness to be the best that you can be, 
both here, now and forevermore.  For it is this consciousness which is 
brought to the heights as your physical nature enables you to experience that 
which Spirit alone would be limited from experiencing.  In this way your 
physical life and your spiritual life enhance one another. The physical is 
not less than and less desirable. It is as if humankind itself presents the 
opportunity for perfection to know imperfection and for imperfection to know 
perfection for it is this interweaving, as the infinity symbol indicates, 
that is the union of God and man, the ongoing and outreaching eternal symbol 
which is forever one.

Peace pervade and provide all that you need, both here and now, and let the 
loving presence of our Master Teacher and heavenly Father preside within you 
always.  Peace be with you and have a Christ-centered week and life ahead. 
Peace be with you.

TOMAS:  We draw to a close our sacred circle of association and look ahead to 
the upcoming week, the adventures afoot, the travels ahead, the challenges at 
hand and the opportunities arising, and give thanks for the indescribable Joy 
of life, of living, of knowing this Moment, this Reality, this Eternal 
Adventure.  Thank you, for conjoining with us once more. 

In the days ahead be mindful of our attendance as you go about your affairs. 
We are with you and heavenly helpers are integrating themselves into your 
purpose so as to reveal the qualities of the Perfect Design.  

Until we meet again, be of good cheer and ask questions on behalf of your 
fellows. Amen and farewell.
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