You wrote: I have read a lot about the ascended masters including Jesus whose new writings as seen in A Course in MIracles is consistent with the Urantia Book. How do Ascended Masters fit into Urantia as they work only to help humans achieve Ascension?

Thanks for your note to us here at TruthBook. If you are a reader of The Urantia Book, you’ll know that it does not teach us about “Ascended Masters.” Additionally, it never refers to Jesus as an ascended master. As for the Course in Miracles, it is quite an interesting read, isn’t it? I did read it some years back, and was pretty impressed at the time, although for me, it does not have the staying power of The Urantia Book.

When I hear Jesus associated with this term, “Ascended Masters,” I always feel as if Jesus is being lumped together with other enlightened beings, but that he’s nothing really that special – just one of many ascended masters. And actually, in this Wikipedia article, he is treated just that way. The article also reveals that the origins of these teachings are (at least partially) the Blavatsky school of Theosophy.

These kinds of teachings are a 19th century attempt to understand the mysteries of reality – the mysteries of divinity. I can’t fault anyone for studying these teachings. Back before I found The Urantia Book, I read Madame Blavatsky’s book The Secret Doctrine, along with several others written by the Theosophical Society. I feel that these books serve a good purpose for many. For me, they provided a sort of scaffolding that helped me to support my search for truth. But I knew even then, that there was more.

So when I found and tasted The Urantia Book, given to us in 1934 and purportedly authored by superhuman beings, I knew that it was the “more” that I was looking for and all of those earlier teachings easily came down; in their place, I was able to put real foundational truth – truth that could be lived – acted upon – and experienced in my inner life. That was something that I never experienced from Theosophical teachings. For one thing, I learned that we are ALL destined to be ascended beings – that salvation is real, and that it is a certainty for any who want it.

One of the greatest revelations in The Urantia Book is that of the person, nature, and mission of Jesus to our world. His true identity is revealed and is referenced numerous times in all of the parts of the book, but PART IV – the Life and Teachings of Jesus is all about him. Far from being just one among many “masters,” Jesus was, and is still, unique. He transcends all previous teachings about him, and through the revelation of The Urantia Book, takes his rightful place as the Planetary Prince of Urantia and Sovereign of this universe of his making. All other supposed “masters” are, and always will be, subordinate to Jesus. There are none beside him.

Jesus was different. While Jesus was a human being, he possessed a dual nature – that of humanity AND divinity. No other human being can claim that, because the bestowal of divinity into a human form does not happen more than once on a planet such as ours. Christ Michael of Nebadon (aka Jesus) was the sole revelation of God the Father to our creature eyes and this revelation, played out in his daily life, is the one that we can study and use to our best advantage, now and forevermore, as we ascend into eternal adventure with God.

Jesus came here with a two-fold purpose; a mission that involved his own determination to claim sovereignty in his universe, but he also came to effect the salvation and reclamation of this world. And he accomplished his mission. He defeated the archrebels who had led this world into sin and darkness and at the same time, he revealed to humanity the loving character and nature of the Heavenly Father through the life he led, and the gospel that he proclaimed. He established the Kingdom of Heaven in the hearts of mankind – a new and spiritual brotherhood of cosmic citizens and members of the family of God.

You ask: How do Ascended Masters fit into Urantia as they work only to help humans achieve Ascension?

The Urantia Book teaches us that ALL spiritual personalities and beings in the created universe exist for only one purpose: and that purpose IS for the support and fostering of ascension of mortals like us.

77:9.12 The entire organization of high spirits, angelic hosts, and midway fellows is enthusiastically devoted to the furtherance of the Paradise plan for the progressive ascension and perfection attainment of evolutionary mortals, one of the supernal businesses of the universe—the superb survival plan of bringing God down to man and then, by a sublime sort of partnership, carrying man up to God and on to eternity of service and divinity of attainment—alike for mortal and midwayer.

So, while holy men throughout the ages have pointed the way to enlightenment and divinity, they too, are earthly mortals who are themselves being helped towards their own ascension; they are our fellow sojourners and children of God. They may be further along the spiritual path and they may provide illumination and inspiration, but they can’t be compared to Jesus, spiritually speaking.

Thanks again for your question; I hope that this reply has been useful.