Of all the Satania worlds which became isolated because of participation in the Lucifer rebellion, this planet has experienced a history most like that of Urantia. The similarity of the two spheres undoubtedly explains why permission to make this extraordinary presentation was granted, for it is most unusual for the system rulers to consent to the narration on one planet of the affairs of another.
72:0.2 (808.2)
The neighbors are a step or two ahead of us. This unusual revelation, when information about life on another planet was given, was motivated by the support of our civilization. Although this time it will turn out that there is still a long way to go, the papers we will be talking about do not condemn sinful humanity. Neighbors are not saints themselves. And even if it is sad that this “step or two” is almost utopian for us, The Urantia Book does not tell us to blindly follow our neighbors. Rather, I see a space for inspiration there; also a kind of light at the end of the tunnel — no matter how bad it may be, it will only get better.
The truth is out there
The title of the post can be a bit misleading. The planet in question, is a part of the Satania system like the earth, but is not in our immediate vicinity. And since I did not find its name in the papers, I allowed myself to simplify it, just for convenience.
In another material I have already mentioned, as if by the way, the rules prevailing there regarding marriage, divorce and family life. Today, the topic of our neighbors will be the main one, but I will not repeat that information. If you are interested in their family life, I encourage you to read the linked text. The paper 72 of The Urantia Book on which this text is based can be found here: Government on a Neighboring Planet.
Remember, The Urantia Book was published in 1955, and its content was delivered even earlier. Since then, a lot has happened on the planets of the great universe. Some of the facts quoted may therefore already be outdated; of course, we do not know. This has no influence on the historical facts themselves, but it is worth bearing in mind. Therefore, but also for the sake of easier reception of time, I add 50 years to the periods given in the papers (I do not interfere with the quoted fragments of the Book in this way).
Development
Neighbors, like us, suffer the consequences of the disloyalty of the Planetary Prince and of the Adamic default. That is why we have so much in common. But the evolution of the earth is unique in connection with the completion of this last bestowal of the Creator Michael. Not only from the perspective of the system which we share with our neighbors, but also from the scale of the entire universe of Nebadon. The inherent outpouring of the Spirit of Truth after this bestowal has given us a kick for the momentum they have not yet received. They also did not have the opportunity to read The Urantia Book. On the other hand however, it seems that their civilization is slightly older than ours, and thus the consequences of the Lucifer rebellion did not affect them at such an early stage of development.
Although the Messages call the civilization of the planet in question “highly advanced”, just like ours, not all of it is developing at an even pace. The quality of society, and therefore of the government of one of these countries, in many aspects exceeds what we see in developed countries. The governments of the others are “definitely of a lower rank” than ours. The standard of living on the continent inhabited by the discussed nation outclasses the standards of living of all other countries of that planet. So the advantage they have achieved seems colossal, so the cultural barriers must also be enormous, far greater than those that divide people on Earth.
This is due, among others, to the geographical structure of the planet. Their neighbors live on one of eleven isolated continents (about the size of Australia, with a population of about 140 million) and are completely self-sufficient. Their continent is rich in natural resources, so they can do without imports; science helps them to compensate for any shortfalls.
The human species of that land, like ours, arose from the amalgamation of many races, most of them blue and yellow. But this mixture contains a greater admixture of the violet (Adamic race) than our white race is at the present time the best blended. The merging of races has not yet been fully completed there, but the relations between their representatives are very positive. Life expectancy is 15% higher than that of other countries on the planet. It was 90 years at the time the papers were shared.
Regime
This continental nation, in general, followed the evolutionary trend of the planet: The development from the tribal stage to the appearance of strong rulers and kings occupied thousands of years. The unconditional monarchs were succeeded by many different orders of government—abortive republics, communal states, and dictators came and went in endless profusion. This growth continued until about five hundred years ago when, during a politically fermenting period, one of the nation’s powerful dictator-triumvirs had a change of heart. He volunteered to abdicate upon condition that one of the other rulers, the baser of the remaining two, also vacate his dictatorship. Thus was the sovereignty of the continent placed in the hands of one ruler. The unified state progressed under strong monarchial rule for over one hundred years, during which there evolved a masterful charter of liberty.
72:1.4 (808.7)
After the introduction of the Charter of Freedom, it was all downhill. The subsequent transition, from monarchy to representative form of government, was gradual, however. The kings eventually became mere sentimental symbols of power (this reminds me of the current political situation in Britain), and when the male line of offspring expired, they disappeared. The current republic has existed for about 250 years. During this period, the neighbors were constantly and consistently developing. Many of the political and industrial achievements that I will talk about in a moment were made in a decade (some sixty years ago).
A good start and difficult crossings
A continent inhabited by its neighbors also brings them other advantages, thanks to its very topography. In the very center of the country there are high mountains, where it rains 8 out of 10 months of the year. This terrain has allowed them to use hydropower efficiently and facilitates irrigation in other, drier parts of the continent.
erhaps it is because of this good start, therefore self-sufficiency, perhaps because of more dynamic development, or perhaps for other reasons, but the fact is that the other, backward countries of the planet are rather hostile to our neighbors. This forces them to maintain a sizable army at all times. Over the last 250 years, they have waged as many as 9 defensive wars! Three of them were fought against a strong confederation of other powers. Foreign exchange with other countries is therefore negligible. The fleet of Neighbors is now only used for defense, because they themselves, despite their superiority in this area, have not waged an offensive war for 150 years. Since the creation of the united continental state, they have not fought civil wars either. Neighbors are developing more and more peacefully, and instead of wars, they devote most attention to the teaching of philosophers, scientists, and statesmen.
In peacetime, military service is voluntary, and defense equipment is almost entirely used in industry, commerce, and recreation. At the moment of declaring war, the entire nation is mobilized, and funds for the army are taken from all areas of the economy. Neighbors consistently and firmly defend their own civilization, but they do not succumb to the temptation to use this force to attack other nations.
Now their government will likely try to establish contact with some of the less developed countries (such an undertaking was planned at the time of the preparation of the papers), and the religious leader recommended sending missionaries. I would compare it with priestly missionary activity when representatives of our cults convert backward African countries. In this case, unfortunately, the similarity will not be a reason to be satisfied. According to the authors of the book, imposing a higher culture and religion on others is a mistake. You should do just the opposite. Instead of delegating teachers, one should accept volunteers from outside and educate them at home and after being educated, sent them back as some kind of emissary. Not only will their competences be higher, because they will embed the acquired knowledge in their native culture, but it is also easier to trust their own. This type of support brings more benefit to less developed cultures than a pack of cola, a rosary and a smartphone; and most importantly, it is more durable. Such treatments were effectively used in our country, for example, in the times of Eden.
Education
The educational system of this nation is compulsory and coeducational in the precollege schools that the student attends from the ages of five to eighteen. These schools are vastly different from those of Urantia. There are no classrooms, only one study is pursued at a time, and after the first three years all pupils become assistant teachers, instructing those below them. Books are used only to secure information that will assist in solving the problems arising in the school shops and on the school farms. Much of the furniture used on the continent and the many mechanical contrivances—this is a great age of invention and mechanization—are produced in these shops. Adjacent to each shop is a working library where the student may consult the necessary reference books. Agriculture and horticulture are also taught throughout the entire educational period on the extensive farms adjoining every local school.
72:4.1 (812.3)
Thanks to such an organization of education, every eighteen-year-old graduating from the primary school system is a qualified craftsman. Everyone. Then they have the opportunity to continue his education at specialist universities. Only then do students gain knowledge from books. The most talented ones will receive funds and time to implement projects of their own idea. While we standardize the youngest, the overriding goal of the education system implemented in our neighbors is the proper education of individuals, as to make every student a self-sufficient citizen.
A quarter of school classes are devoted to sports and physical activities. Children and young people are eager to compete with each other in various types of competitions, starting from local, to state and regional, then to national championships. The situation is similar in musical, oratorical, philosophical or scientific competitions – students compete, from school tests to high national dignities.
The mentally limited learn only farming and agriculture. They are assigned, according to gender, to care colonies, where they will spend their entire lives. They have not had the right to have children for the last 125 years.
Pre-college schools operate for 9 months in the year of ten, so each year children have a month of vacation. Neighbors like to spend them traveling. These, by the way, are part of a lifelong educational program for adults. Funds for these needs are secured using the same methods as means of living in old age. For nearly eight months of the year, continental climatic conditions are conducive to travel, so such opportunities are used to the maximum there.
Sex education takes place at home; as do religion lessons. These are the responsibilities of parents (or legal guardians). Religion itself is a very family affair. Religious teachings are conducted in public only in the temples of philosophy, but there are no churches or other places of this type intended exclusively for religious meetings. Religious organizations have not developed there, although there are spiritual advisors and examiners operating under the supervision of the “Foundation for Spiritual Development” (previously working under government supervision). These teachers periodically visit families and examine children to verify that they are being taught correctly. The Foundation’s maintenance depends on voluntary donations. “Moral teachings” are carried out during periods of rest from school classes. Politically, the state and religion are completely separate.
The philosophical understanding of the religion of our neighbors is based on a personal striving to get to know God, and it is revealed through service to our fellow believers. It seems to have a lot to do with real religion.
Specialized schools
Primary education is compulsory, and those who want to can continue their education in specialized schools:
- Schools of statesmanship, in three categories: national schools, district schools and state schools. These universities prepare future officials, judges and politicians for work;
- Schools of philosophy, associated with temples of philosophy. They concern (more or less) religion as a social activity;
- Technical schools, more related to industry than to the education system;
- 12 schools of professional preparation providing technical training for previously learned professions.
Military and naval schools located near military centers. Only young people are recruited there – between the ages of 18 and 30 (parental consent is required to apply for admission before the age of 25).
Today I am a grandfather myself…
This nation is making a determined effort to replace the self respect destroying type of charity by dignified government-insurance guarantees of security in old age. This nation provides every child an education and every man a job; therefore can it successfully carry out such an insurance scheme for the protection of the infirm and aged.
72:6.1 (814.3)
According to the law, Neighbors can only work until the age of 65. The exceptions are government officials and philosophers. Although anyone can apply for a longer job, after obtaining such a permit, they finally retire at the age of 70. Physically disabled people and disabled people, by court decisions, can be placed on the list of pensioners (in our understanding annuitant) of any age.
Funds for pensions come from four sources:
- Pension contributions. The federal government exerts from each citizen (and according to the records of The Urantia Book in that country every one works) monthly the equivalent of one day’s wages and uses the entire sum to contribute to the pension fund.
- Wages of forced laborers. Workers in forced mining work not only have to support themselves and save money for their own pensions, but the entire surplus profits from their work is transferred to the pension fun.
- Income from natural resources. All the continent’s natural resources are treated as social property in the hands of the government. All income from them is therefore used for social purposes (preventive health care, education of outstanding individuals, and expenditure on promising students schools of statesmen) — half for the pension fund.
- Wealthy citizens often use their inheritances for this purpose.
Particular attention is paid to the fair administration of funds allocated for pensions. Higher penalties than for embezzlement of public money are imposed only for murder and high treason. This type of disloyalty to one’s fellows is seen as the most heinous of all crimes.
Industry and work
Labor is becoming more honorable on this continent, and all able-bodied citizens over eighteen work either at home or on farms, at some recognized industry, on the public works where the temporarily unemployed are absorbed, or else in the corps of compulsory laborers in the mines.
72:5.11 (814.1)
The industrial situation of the country is far from ideal. Neighbors are still struggling with difficulties at the interface between capital and labor, but both employers and employees are gradually adapting to the plan of reliable cooperation. Employees of industrial concerns become their shareholders. Gradually, social differences decrease and good will begins to prevail; New methods of regulating misunderstandings are being introduced (violence was used before, but I don’t know what it looked like in practice). Economic problems (including those related to earnings and profits), although not strictly regulated, are under the control of industry legislators. Disputes in the economy are settled by employee courts, which have been operating for less than 100 years. In addition to the principles of fair salary for work, employee courts introduce by law, among others the amount of wages for specialists and the interest rate on invested capital.
Every 10 years, the district executive bodies announce adjusted, statutory working hours. At the time of the revelation of the Papers, the neighboring economy was functioning on the basis of a five-day week, four of which were working days. They worked six hours a day, nine out of ten months of the year.
Just like on Earth, technology is playing an increasingly important role in work. After gaining political freedom and economic freedom, people increasingly appreciate the busy free time they devote to deeper self-fulfillment.
The people there develop what The Urantia Book calls loathing idleness and unearned wealth. 250 years ago their economy was wholly dominated by the profit motive. Now it is consistently replaced by “higher motivational factors”. This nation has competition in its blood, but from the desire to get rich, it has been shifted towards entertainment, skill, intellectual achievement and scientific success. The most active competition is in social service and, I find it hard to imagine, in loyalty to government. The work of an official, that is, according to his idea, for the benefit of citizens, becomes the main ambition of these people. The richest work in the offices of their companies, and after a day’s work, they study in the schools of statesmen, because this is the only way they can qualify for a state office.
Slavery
In the early stages of the development of human species, the phenomenon of slavery is widespread. It was no different with our Neighbors. Of course, this is a thing of the past. Slavery was abolished more than 150 years ago, gradually freeing 2% of slaves per year. The freed were allowed to pass the tests — moral, mental, and physical — and those who passed them were granted citizenship. The rest were deported. This process lasted about 50 years.
Politics and law
This continental nation now has a representative government with a centrally located national capital. The central government consists of a strong federation of one hundred comparatively free states. These states elect their governors and legislators for ten years, and none are eligible for re-election. State judges are appointed for life by the governors and confirmed by their legislatures, which consist of one representative for each one hundred thousand citizens.
72:2.1 (809.2)
The state offices of the neighbors are divided into four departments, and each official and politician is a qualified specialist.
The first section, “public trust department”, primarily concerns state administration. Its employees graduated from two schools of statesmanship, one for the district and one for the national school. Politicians of the district administration and state governments, both elected and appointed, belong to the second division. All of them are graduates of one of the ten regional schools of statesmen. The third division includes state duties. Officials employed in it must have graduated from state schools of statesmanship. The last, fourth department, consists of lower positions of assistants or secretaries, who, although they are trained professionals, do
not have to have diplomas from statesmanship schools.
The chief federal administrator (in our understanding of the president) is elected by the Neighbors every six years, by universal territorial vote. An incumbent administrator may not run for another term unless requested by at least 75 state legislative assemblies and with the approval of the governors of those states. The second term is always the last. The administrator is supported by an advisory cabinet to which all his surviving predecessors belong.
The federal government consists of three coordinated branches: legislative, executive, and judicial.
Legislative body
The legislative department of the government consists of three chambers. All citizens of unblemished reputation vote in elections to the first two houses of representatives. However, depending on whether the election concerns the upper or lower house, they are grouped differently.
- An upper house, whose members are elected by professional groups voting according to their economic function,
- The lower house is elected by social, political and philosophical groups,
- The third chamber, also called the chamber of elder statesmen, consists of 100 distinguished citizens. Candidates for this chamber can be proposed by the presidents of the other two chambers and the heads of district authorities, as well as by the president of the highest federal court and the chief administrator himself. The seaters are elected internally, by a majority of the votes of the senior statesmen. Membership is lifetime. The Third Chamber has purely advisory functions, but due to the fact that it acts on behalf of public opinion, it exerts a strong influence on all branches of government.
Executive body
The executive functions, but also much of the federal administrative work, are performed by the regional authorities; in the papers also referred to as subfederal. Each subfederal branch brings together 10 states, so there are also 10 such authorities. The directors who govern the districts are appointed by the chief administrator, but their appointments must be approved by the highest federal court. The terms of office of directors coincide with the six-year term of office of the chief administrator and, like him, cannot serve another one. Each outgoing district director becomes an advisor and assistant to his successor.
Judicial body
The judicial apparatus consists of two main systems: socio-economic courts and legal courts.
Socio-economic courts operate in three groups:
- Parental courts, which are made up of the legislative and executive branches of the family and social system,
- Courts of Education, connected to the state and regional school systems. They are linked to the executive and legislative branches of the Administrative Educational Mechanism,
- Employee courts, which resolve all commercial disputes.
With one exception, all decisions of parental, educational and employee courts are final.
The courts of law operate at three levels:
- Lower courts — municipal and local. Their decisions may be appealed to the higher state tribunals;
- The state’s highest courts, which render final decisions on all matters not involving the federal government and not threatening civil rights and liberties. District directors can bring cases directly before the federal supreme court;
- Federal Supreme Court – A high court that adjudicates on disputes at the national level and on appeals from state courts.
Twelve people adjudicate in federal court, over the age of 40 but under 75. Previously, each of them had sat in one of the state courts for at least two years. They are appointed by the chief administrator, with the approval of the majority of his Advisory Cabinet and the House of Elder Statesmen. All decisions of the federal court are made by a majority of at least two-thirds of the votes. It is the highest judicial body, although it does not settle socio-economic disputes. An exception is made for cases brought by a resolution supported by three-fourths of the votes of the House of Elders of Statesmen. This also shows what impact law enforcement, and consequently on the management of the entire country, can have ordinary citizens.
Judges also need to be properly educated. Those adjudicating in the socio-economic courts are graduates of district schools of statesmen; those of the lower and state courts—the state schools of statesmanship. Federal Supreme Court justices hold degrees from all three schools of statesmanship.
Cities
Local governance is divided into five types of administration, depending on the size of the city. Interestingly, the population of any city cannot exceed one million inhabitants.
City (sometimes district) boards deal with matters of everyday life: transport, building regulations, and thus also media, health and recreation. Social assistance is also the responsibility of the city authorities (the federal government, in addition to disposing of the pension fund, participates only in the promotion of the work of outstanding individuals). Local fire brigades are maintained by dedicated foundations and insurance companies. For more than 125 years, all buildings have been fireproof.
Cities don’t impose taxes —that’s the responsibility of the state; and they can’t go into debt. They receive an allocation of funds from the state coffers calculated on the basis of the number of residents. They supplement their budgets with income from their own social projects and from the licenses granted for commercial activities.
Like religion, the issue of health is similar to the issue of religion – although Neighbors put health first, the health of an individual is an individual matter. The government interferes less and less in purely personal matters.
Taxes and budget
Due to the fact that the economic conditions of individual parts of the country are very different, the tax rules of the states are not uniform. Nevertheless, each state adheres to ten basic constitutional clauses. These clauses are permanent and can only be modified with the approval of the federal Supreme Court. The Urantia Book gives an example of one of these constitutional articles, and it prevents the imposition of an annual tax of more than 1% of the value of any property. Residential houses are completely exempt from taxation.
Committee on Budgets
The amount of tax charges (except for war funds imposed by the National Defence Council) is determined by the upper legislative chamber. These rules must be approved by the lower house and then by the principal administrator. Tax law is ultimately validated by a hundred-member federal budget commission.
The members of the commission, nominated by the state governors, are elected by the state legislatures. Their term of office lasts 24 years, with elections taking place every 6 years, when a quarter of the commission changes. Also, every 6 years, by a three-fourths majority, the commission elects one of its members to the position of director-controller of the Federal Treasury.
Budget
Simply the federal government cannot go into debt. For the state to borrow, a referendum with the support of three-quarters of the votes is needed. The exception is wartime. In this case, the National Defense Council is authorized to take money from the estates (including people and materials, if needed). However, no debt can exist for more than 25 years.
The federal government’s budget is financed from five sources:
- Customs duties set by industrial courts.
- Royalties. The federal government promotes invention and original creation. It supports artists, authors, farmers and scientists, and protects patents. In return, however, it takes half of their profits.
- Inheritance taxes, ranging from 1% to 50%, depending on the circumstances, such as the size of your assets.
- Fees for military and naval equipment rented for recreational and commercial use.
- Natural resources. Revenues from natural resources first fund the purposes specified in the federal statute, but any surplus becomes the property of the state treasury.
Election
Only graduates of statesmen’s schools can apply for state positions. Isn’t it a brilliant solution in its simplicity when a person without proper preparation – taken from the street, cannot even run in the elections? The voting system, modified about 100 years ago, looks equally interesting.
Neighbors have abandoned the method of territorial voting in favor of an economic or functional system. Every citizen over the age of 20 is obliged to take part in elections (penalties are imposed for evading voting), but before that, they become members of the already mentioned electoral groups. In the first group according to its economic function — industrial, professional, agricultural or commercial; in the second one, according to their political, philosophical and social beliefs. The electorate is therefore made up of solid, united collectives that elect only their best representatives. Membership in individual groups can be changed once every 12 years, so such decisions are unlikely to be made hastily.
This is where another intriguing solution appears. Under the right circumstances (through nominations of state governors, district governments, and supreme regional councils), distinguished scientists, inventors, teachers, philosophers, religious leaders, and ordinary citizens can receive extra ballots! An additional vote may be given to a voter no more than once every five years. Such civic privileges are granted by the states and regional supreme councils. In addition, the law provides for five consecutive electoral brackets, which reflect the amount of average tax fees over the last five years. Voters who pay the highest taxes can have as many as 5 additional votes. However, regardless of the source of additional votes, no one can have more than 10 votes.
An exception to these rules is the election of the chief federal administrator. They are not affected by either the functional groups or the additional votes.
Interestingly, for the duration of their service, all officials supported by taxes are deprived of the right to vote; convicted persons also do not participate in elections. The schools of statesmanship may, moreover, propose the deprivation of the right to vote of any narrow-minded, lazy, indifferent, or criminal individual. The Urantia Book holds, that when half of the eligible voters are backward or underdeveloped, a nation is doomed. Neighbors know that the dominance of mediocrity means decline.
Crime
The maintenance of all law enforcement services is the responsibility of the state governments. Many states impose a bachelor tax, and serving in the police exempts you from these fees. Therefore, unmarried men, aged 25 to 50, are mainly admitted to the police.
A few decades ago, neighbors began a plan to reduce criminal and degenerate groups. Ordinary criminals, but also the mentally handicapped, are placed, each sex separately, in agricultural colonies and they are self-sufficient there. Serious criminals, repeat offenders and the terminally mentally ill are sentenced to death by the courts in gas chambers. The death penalty is punishable, among others for murder, but also for example, for high treason.
Neighbors are moving from the era of fighting crime to the era of prevention. Such prevention boils down to punishing those who can potentially become murderers or serious criminals. It sounds drastic, more so that such suspicious people are sentenced to detention camps for life! If they can show that they have become “more normal”, they can be conditionally released or pardoned.
Although we would call it inhumane, probably thanks to such a consistent policy, the number of police forces has decreased by 90% over the last hundred years. Compared to other countries, the homicide rate on that continent is 1%.
There are no hospitals or prisons for the mentally ill — they are treated equally with criminals. This is to limit the proliferation of both criminals and the crippled. I am not able to say how to discover the limit of mental health, although thanks to such uncompromising treatments, the number of mentally handicapped people on the continent in question is 90% lower than in our planet.
Alien
The papers do not tell us whether our neighbors are caricatured green Martians or other grays; like from fairy tales and movies. Because it doesn’t matter what people look like, but who they are and who they become. Gas chambers or prison sentences can be shocking in this case. However, it seems, if only because of the quality of their politics or education, that those people are much more mature than we are. Perhaps it is precisely because of this social maturity and through the sense of brotherhood in the face of one God that the amount of possible abuse in their systems will not be as huge as it may seem? Maybe we should not judge them by our own yardstick?
On the one hand, the Neighbors attach great importance to the individual development of the person, but on the other hand, they do not forget about the quality of the entire species and the national strength. On Earth, due to the still fresh historical accretions, eugenics has only negative overtones, and freedom and equality, although mainly in theory, are considered sacred. However, hearing reports about pedophiles who start looking for new victims the day after being released from prison, about bandits who will not even try to live an honest life, so they return to prison again and again, or even mentally ill people who will never understand the consequences of their actions, I wonder if every shade of social selection has to be bad? Does the opinion of an eternally unemployed liquor bum have the same value as the voice of an honestly working, educated citizen?
The Neighbors are undoubtedly a step or two ahead of us. After reading the material that The Urantia Book provides us, I doubt that we would be ready for such steps. However, it is worth asking yourself: “What about our future?”