[tmtranscripts] Unmarried Women [12-16-97.BUT] Tomas

[Gerdean]

Please replace the existing two transcripts on TMArchives from December 16, 1997, entitled: Value Judgments Part I and Value Judgments Part II (formerly displayed on-line as Tomas on Sex I and II) with the one attached.   -- G/

DATE: December 16, 1997
LOCATION: Butler, PA, USA
T/R: Gerdean

URANTIA BOOK STUDY:
Paper 109: #1. Development of Adjusters;
#2. Self-Acting Adjusters
#3. Relation of Adjusters to Mortal Types
Paper 110: #6. The Seven Psychic Circles

SHARING: Extensive follow-up discussion on a recent question concerning real and imagined value judgments imposed on unmarried women.

TEACHER SESSION: 

TOPICS: Honoring Mother Spirit. Self-Acting Adjusters. The Fact of Sexuality. Lust Redefined. The Sensual Nature. Constraints of Traditional Morality.

NEBADONIA: Yes, I am, Nebadonia, your mother. I am here to hold your hands, daughters, and to offer a word to Our Father in Paradise on behalf of you and your Adjusters who are ascending back to the Father.

"Our Father in Paradise, our Source of all being, I am your daughter Nebadonia and I bring my daughters here to you. We bow before you, Father in Heaven. We devote ourselves to you. We bestow our lives in preparation for you, in praise of you, because of you. Eternal Father, Paradise Mother, we thank you for the gift of life and your creation of us, we who are your daughters, we who would be pleasing to your eyes. 

"Give us all grace to manifest Your goodness, Your beauty, Your divine order. Give us the vitality of life, of the Conjoint Actor, to bring vitality to our arena, to our own paradise of activity. Give the divine sanction to our energies and our lives that we may bring Your pattern of perfection, Your divine order, Your mercy, Your love into Your universe.

"We thank you, Father; we praise You, Mother; we adore you, Eternal Son, for the life of our Creator Son, our Creator, our Helper, our Beloved, Sovereign, Michael of Nebadon, Our Lord, in whose name we pray:

"Our Father, Who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory forever. Amen."

My daughters, I leave you in the companionship of your teachers and the sanction of your Father / Brother Michael who smiles upon you. My children, I comfort you, I nurture you, I love you. I'll see you later.

MERIUM: I am Merium. How wonderful it feels to be in the presence of Our Mother. Her love extends into this room and graces it, bringing praise and serenity and charm. How lovely of Her to pray a prayer you know so well, to bring to you your own comprehension of prayer, in an acceptance of your worship.

It is She that I aspire to be like. She is my model. And I have visited with Her many times. She is perhaps the role model for all feminine facets throughout Nebadon, the feminine, the goddess, the half of the whole, the Mother, the sister, the daughter, the gift, the identification with that which is of us. 

Have you stood apart and honored your direct descendency from Nebadonia? >From the Mother Spirit? I know that your culture and your religion is male dominated. Historically and culturally you have always had to consider the male first, and in many ways you have always had to consider your offspring first. Nebadonia would consider you first, as an individual, as a believer, as her daughter.

It is interesting to see yourself as a daughter in your own right, with your own feet on the ground of your own firm foundation of faith, that your ascension is dependent not upon your spouse, not upon your children, not upon your folks or your career or your role, but upon your decision, your personal commitment to ascend to the Mother, to the Father, to your own aspiration of perfection, to be whole in and of yourself, to be perfect in and of yourself.

Ponder this, my daughters, my sisters. Recognize your own strength. Recognize your own value, that which is of the Mother, without which there is no life. 

In deep affection for all concerned I will step aside and honor our brother and teacher Tomas who yearns to greet you.

Group: Thank you.

TOMAS: Greetings, my lovely daughters. How well you comport yourself. How wonderful it is to be in your presence, having been washed with the presence and loving care of Our Mother, Nebadonia. 

It has been our supreme pleasure this evening to perceive your efforts at soul growth and comprehension of your soul reality, your relationship with your indwelling Adjuster. Your Adjusters themselves are quite thrilled with your progress this evening. 

Divinington is their home. Divinington is that part of the Isle of Paradise that is enshrouded in Seven Sacred Spheres of the Father, and so they are a Mystery. They are a Mystery. Have you mysteries in your minds this evening, little ones? Have you questions? Good evening, Leah.

Leah: Good evening. Probably a lot, but I don't know where to begin, so it could be edited, but when we were reading about the Thought Adjusters, we were trying to ascertain that one sentence about [pg. 1196. 2. SELF-ACTING ADJUSTERS, "6. Has served in a time of crisis in the experience of some human being who was the material complement of a spirit personality entrusted with the enactment of some cosmic achievement essential to the spiritual economy of the planet."]. We were trying to think of an example of what that particular sentence was about, having to do with cosmic achievement. I think the rest of the descriptions there were something that we could comprehend at some level, but what was that one about? I don't think any of us know what that was about. Can you clarify any of that for us?

TOMAS: I will say that Gerdean has a good handle on it. Indeed it is possible that you, too, can find an example in your experience, Leah, wherein you were acting as a compliment to a spiritual reality. You have represented the Creator on a number of occasions. You have represented the midwayers and the angelic orders. 

Whenever you stand for truth in a realistic way that enables your Adjuster to firmly and clearly lead you as an operative, you have functioned as a transmitter of truth by the Self-Acting Adjuster. Indeed, when you have heard truth ring out with clarity and conviction, you have beheld the work of a Self-Acting Adjuster through the mortal. The mortal, then, is the counterpart that it references.

Leah: I envision, possibly, a time that perhaps something came out of my mouth that seemed judicious and I kind of heard my mortal ego say, "I have no idea where that came from!" Is that the type of thing you were referring to?

TOMAS: That is the type of thing, yes.

Leah: Okay. I understand that a little better. Also, I was feeling that the celestials listen in, so I was wondering ... I don't even know how to ask this question ... if there's some -- the lengthiness of the discussion we had at the beginning of this evening, starting in the bookstore, about sexuality vs spirituality and if you would care to offer any input into the things that we discussed. I just keep on hearing that, obviously, we are of human and divine nature, so we're going to have to deal with both aspects of these.

TOMAS: Indeed, it is not wise to ignore either. As you also read, you need to grow in all facets. If you remain completely ignorant in such a significant realm as your sexuality or your spirituality, you are creating a deficit in your own reality. 

I will say that you must remember that all things material are shadows of that which is real and eternal, and speaking along those lines, although sexuality is, of course, for procreation, it is also an extension of your greater reality. Not only does sexuality include certain genetic factors but personality factors. 

You recall that you are bi-sexual, two sexes, male and female, and even within the gender there are variations of strength of component parts. There are very, shall we say, masculine females and very feminine males. This is part of the composite human being. 

Now, the fact of sexuality is inherent in your animal origin, yes. It is, of course, a basic function of procreating species, but it is also a pleasurable organism and to deny that sex is pleasurable would be foolish. It was created as a pleasurable experience. It is the reproductive urge that assures procreation of the race; it is pleasure that allows the procreation and the recreation to be a pleasant facet of humanness. 

It is a method of communicating between male and female or between males or between females. 

It is a method of communicating, and it does not always have to be specifically sexually; that is, it does not have to be a form of coitus, but there are many, many ways of manifesting your sexuality, your genderness, your femaleness or your maleness in your social arena, in your many, many, many kinds of intercourse -- social, spiritual and otherwise.

It is not wise to deny such an important aspect of the personality. It is so fundamental as to be absurd, and yet you have, as mortals, dealt with it in such a way as to try to rise above it and this is part of your evolution, part of your process of erecting yourself and your society, your civilization, your mores and so forth. In elevating yourself you have overcome your baser, more selfish nature, in some ways, and have therefore relegated basic animalistic behaviors to a status of undesirable, unacceptable. 

Your evolution is by and large appropriate. It is necessary, in order to maintain civilization, that a home come into being where children can be raised, where culture can be passed on from one generation to the next, where art and music and learning and science and poetry and decorum and logic and so forth can be fostered. The disciplines, the values of civilization are necessary and desirable. "The backbone of society" indeed! 

But there is no shame, in and of itself, in an animal nature. Indeed, an animal is a fine creation. Any of Michael's animals are fine creations, as are the insects and the flowers. Miracles! Absolute miracles of creation, perfect and flawless in their execution. It is the mind, you see, it is the mind that enters in to determine how the animal will behave, how it will treat its fellow animals. 

And here it is, "the mind arena of choice," for you can decide for truth, beauty and goodness. You can decide, even in the material realm, the animal realm, to be truthful, beautiful, and good. It is not automatic that sexuality is base or crude, no; it is the mind that makes it so, in observation or in performance.

Remember that, in the ultimate, God is love and love is the desire to do good to others, and if it brings pleasure to an individual to receive love, why should you withhold love? If love comes in the form of a service that is freely given, that is freely received, this is a fruit of the spirit. Shall we call this fruit a flower? Shall we call it a friendship? We can call it anything we like. If it is done in love, it is done in the Father's name, and this is a decision, an avenue of the mind.

I don't know if I have helped, or even contributed to your understanding of some of your thought processes, but I will tell you, we have done some active listening.

Leah: I feel that your answer was exceedingly beautiful. We were wondering about the appropriateness of lust, but not flagrant lust. I mean, I suppose it's like the appetizer or something.

TOMAS: You may find this amusing, but I discussed lust many years ago and I have not changed my opinion. Lust is one of those words that has a negative connotation when that is not necessarily necessary. You have heard of a lust for life. You have heard of a lust for food or drink or dancing. A lust is a deep hunger. Can you not equate having lust to having a deep hunger and thirst for righteousness? 

Indeed, in removing your prejudice from the word lust, can you not conceive that the greatest lust of all is the lust to know the Father? That it surpasses all other desires? That it is the passion that drives you? Day by day, to know the Father and to do His will? The most supreme of all lusts? Now, this is a goal, not a current condition, perhaps, but even in terms of your understanding of lust, it is possible to experience a lust for beauty, a lust for intimacy, a lust for togetherness. Lust is not, in and of itself, a negative. 

It has been given negative overtones, however, because it is regarded historically as one of those seven deadly sins that at one time stood in the way of righteousness for it has been known to rule men and women completely, blinding them to higher values and greater callings. And so in terms of evolution, it has been necessary to curtail rampant lust, certainly, so that one can take a look at what it is and gain self-mastery. 

Love is the most important emotion and feeling and expression, and when you have given yourself to love, to the Father in love, when He has given Himself to you, in love, and perhaps through another individual, in love, as you love, you may love lustily. Love is the greatest. It is a matter of having your priorities in order, perhaps.

I hope I have not offended any minds by my study of the human vocabulary.

Leah: I don't know whether you have or not, but your answer makes the human condition a lot more understandable.

TOMAS: It is very important that you understand the human condition -- not just your human condition, and not just your human condition today, but [that you] have a full and thorough-going understanding of the evolution of the human being, from its origin and through its growth into its current state and even anticipating its destiny. It is indeed one of the wonderful facets of the textbook, The Urantia Book, that you are given a full sweep of your evolution so far. 

The growth of the human being is nothing short of spectacular, from the inception of life through the auspices of the Life Carriers in the touch of the Mother millions of years ago, up to and including December 16, 1997, and so yes, it is good to have the entire perspective. Not just today; not just one lifetime; not even just one generation or one civilization, but the full spectrum of evolution, and you understand more about how it is that you can allow yourselves, from your advanced state, to appreciate and enjoy pleasure, food, travel, companionship. These are the results of your long upward struggle.

Leah: I think, in a way, our discussion was: are we not spiritizing if we lean towards or consider the sensual aspects of life, or possibly are we ungodly if we speculate on them, or-- I don't know! It just seemed to be an awful lot of soul-searching going on here in relation to ....

TOMAS: You are very conscientious, my daughters. Recall that not long ago I spoke at length regarding the Everglades of the emotions, and part of this realm is the sensual. It is part of the emotional and physical facet of being a human being. You can wander around in the sensual realms as readily as you can wander around in the emotional realms, and there is nothing wrong with the senses in and of themselves, as there is nothing wrong with the emotions in and of themselves. It is when you become stuck in them, or lost in them, when they begin to destroy you or others that they become a detriment and a problem. 

And so as you keep your spiritual Core intact, as you keep your alignment appropriate, as I am inclined to want to say "your ducks in a row," you can visit the emotional realms, you can visit the sensual realms without guilt and without shame. Do you not enjoy in your culture occasionally a steak? Or, for those of you who are vegetarian, a spinach salad or artichoke? Some sensual delight? Do you not enjoy your Mozart and your Bach? Or even your Beatles? And are they not, in their own right, a sensual delight? 

Do you not enjoy the feeling of a fresh mountain stream trickling over your toes on a hot summer day? Do you not enjoy, by the same token, the feeling of a hot mineral spring bubbling up to warm your marrow in your bones on a cold winter day? These are sensual facets that are entirely open to your indulgence, your nurturance, your enjoyment, your total delight. 

The warmth of the sun on your back on a day in spring when you have been enclosed in winter doldrums is sensual. The wind in your hair, blowing it across your neck, is sensual. These are wonderful experiences of the human animal. They remind you of life. The smell of the rose is a sensual experience, and these are not a shame to experience. These are wonderful experiences, senses, for your pleasure. Part of life. So many, so many wonderful things to enjoy.

Leah: So would you say that our discussion earlier this evening and our difficulty with it has a lot to do with the cultural taboo of discussing sex?

TOMAS: Unequivocally. There are cultures, incidentally, that have no bar against discussing it. There are cultures, even advanced cultures that are much more natural about it. There are other cultures even on other worlds that handle it in an infinite variety of ways, and so the way that you have been taught is the way that you will perceive it to be. But that is not necessarily The Way. It is a cultural conditioning, having developed out of need and as a value, as any evolutionary thing will.

Leah: Well, I thank you for your answers. I know it talks in the Urantia Book about sex being like adult play at times, but ... maybe it's just the shame thing or something that ... I think that sex definitely can be a very spiritual experience, but I think that the general population would be appalled at a statement like that.

TOMAS: I am not going to be an agitator here on purpose, but I will to some extent allow this equation of the taboo against the sexual nature being paralleled somewhat to the traditions of your evolved religions, i.e., structured. 

I am reminded that the only place that Jesus did not go was to the public baths where there was pronounced promiscuity. He, of course, did not discuss the mores, for they change from generation to generation, but he did stand up to those traditions and beliefs that were counter to the reality of the relationship between man or woman and his or her God. And so he would renounce tradition of the Church, of the Sanhedrin, on occasion. And whereas you also can and will and do step out of the constraints of traditional religion into the freedom of a personal relationship with the living God, you are also free to step out of the constraints of traditional morality into the relationship with the Father through his sons and daughters. 

As I indicated earlier, the sexual realm, in an evolved and enlightened being, is a shadow of the spiritual realm, and it is entirely possible for the morontia bodies to play in the fields of the Lord in the physical realms as well as the spiritual realms. I am not inviting you to digress, boys and girls. I am inviting you to release the shackles that constrain your flight into self-esteem, self-respect and freedom of you as an individual. 

Throw off the guilt and shame of the past ages and walk free as an enlightened child of God in guidance of His way for you. He provides all things. All things.

I have a sense that the hour grows late and that perhaps we have extended far enough into this field of strange fruit. I will allow you to savor the taste of your senses in this context, and trust that you will not venture off into some inappropriate lusty venture without taking wisdom with you. Are there any other questions before we close for the evening?

I would like to stay and visit until the wee hours of the morning, and I know that there is a part of you that also enjoys our trysts. However, it is important, as Nebadonia indicated, that you take care of yourselves, and I, as your elder brother, as your doting Uncle Tomas, will tell you, my little nieces, my little daughters, little sisters, it is time for you to get some rest, for tomorrow is another day, a busy day in the life, filled with opportunities and decisions and delights of all sorts.

Be at peace in your minds, children. Be at peace in your hearts and in your souls. Good night.

Group: Thank you, Tomas. Good night.
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