Q: I seem to recall reading that “evil” spirits / demons, etc. can no longer affect mortals — ever since Jesus / Michael poured out the Spirit of Truth upon us, at the end of his earth bestowal. Can you point me to those passages of the UB that discuss this? And are there other UB references to evil spirits, e.g, spirits that can actually torment us or cause us harm?  Are there passages of the UB that explain how we can protect ourselves from this?

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In Jesus’ time, rebel spirits were on the loose, but even so, there were relatively few of these cases of possession mentioned in The Urantia Book; and many of those suspected of demon-possession were cases of epilepsy or other disease. But here is a pretty clear statement about how things are today:

 77:7.7 Even prior to Pentecost no rebel spirit could dominate a normal human mind, and since that day even the weak minds of inferior mortals are free from such possibilities. The supposed casting out of devils since the arrival of the Spirit of Truth has been a matter of confounding a belief in demoniacal possession with hysteria, insanity, and feeble-mindedness. But just because Michael’s bestowal has forever liberated all human minds on Urantia from the possibility of demoniacal possession, do not imagine that such was not a reality in former ages.

Here is one of the true cases of possession. I only add it because of the bolded section (my edit) about these rebels being impotent:

153:4.1 (1713.3) In the midst of the discussions of this after meeting, one of the Pharisees from Jerusalem brought to Jesus a distraught youth who was possessed of an unruly and rebellious spirit. Leading this demented lad up to Jesus, he said: “What can you do for such affliction as this? Can you cast out devils?” And when the Master looked upon the youth, he was moved with compassion and, beckoning for the lad to come to him, took him by the hand and said: “You know who I am; come out of him; and I charge one of your loyal fellows to see that you do not return.” And immediately the lad was normal and in his right mind. And this is the first case where Jesus really cast an “evil spirit” out of a human being. All of the previous cases were only supposed possession of the devil; but this was a genuine case of demoniac possession, even such as sometimes occurred in those days and right up to the day of Pentecost, when the Master’s spirit was poured out upon all flesh, making it forever impossible for these few celestial rebels to take such advantage of certain unstable types of human beings.

And here’s one that was not demon-possession, but suspected to be, again with a bolded section (my edit).

145:2.13 (1631.1) This young man was not possessed of an unclean spirit or demon; he was a victim of ordinary epilepsy. But he had been taught that his affliction was due to possession by an evil spirit. He believed this teaching and behaved accordingly in all that he thought or said concerning his ailment. The people all believed that such phenomena were directly caused by the presence of unclean spirits. Accordingly they believed that Jesus had cast a demon out of this man. But Jesus did not at that time cure his epilepsy. Not until later on that day, after sundown, was this man really healed. Long after the day of Pentecost the Apostle John, who was the last to write of Jesus’ doings, avoided all reference to these so-called acts of “casting out devils,” and this he did in view of the fact that such cases of demon possession never occurred after Pentecost.

And there may be more instances of cases like this in Jesus’ lifetime, but as you can see from the information in these passages, since Pentecost, demon-possession is no longer possible. I know that there is still a fear of this possibility though. We have not lost our fear of demons. But with the information in The Urantia Book, we can all breathe easier about that subject. The devil has been defeated. And with that defeat, all the rebels associated with him are also defeated – and gone from our world.

Jesus said: “…the Prince of this world I have cast down; and all men shall become free by the light of the spirit which I will pour out upon all flesh after I have ascended to my Father in heaven.”

As far as I know, there are no teachings in The Urantia Book that tell us how to avoid evil spirits that mean us harm, simply because there are no such spirits here. We have been set free from them. The only truly evil spirit that I know of still here on Urantia is Caligastia, our onetime planetary prince who The Urantia Book actually calls “the devil.”  But even here, there is good news:

 53:8.6 Caligastia, your apostate Planetary Prince, is still free on Urantia to prosecute his nefarious designs, but he has absolutely no power to enter the minds of men, neither can he draw near to their souls to tempt or corrupt them unless they really desire to be cursed with his wicked presence.

You might like to have a look at our topical study on Calgastia HERE. There are a number of passages in there that reinforce the truth that such spirits are not to be feared, as they are “servile before the divine majesty of the Paradise Thought Adjusters and the protective Spirit of Truth, the spirit of Michael, which has been poured out upon all flesh.”

One way to rise above such fears of evil spirits is to acknowledge the presence of God in our minds in the form of the Thought Adjuster. Also, to acknowledge the presence of the Spirit of Truth and the Holy Spirit who work in our minds with our Adjuster. I sometimes think of these three beneficent influences as being my heavenly family who are there to protect and guide me through life. And they do this by elevating my thinking. And they are there for you in the same way.

Keeping our focus on these good spiritual influences can really help because we know that they want only our good. Activating our faith in God and seeking for his holy will in our lives is a protective habit that can be cultivated as the result of our own choosing. And when fears press on us, we can turn to our unseen spiritual influences to set our minds on truth, goodness, and beauty instead.

And let’s not forget our constant companions – the angels – who are there day and night, working for us, all unseen.

I want to thank you again for your inquiry. I hope that my reply has been helpful.