Paper 34 Overview: The Local Universe Mother Spirit

The Local Universe Mother Spirit represents a unique individualization of the Infinite Spirit that accompanies a Creator Son in the establishment and administration of a local universe. Initially functioning as a creative focal point during the physical organization of the universe, she undergoes a profound personalization transformation at the initiation of life creation, becoming the Divine Minister. This personal representative of the Third Source and Center works in perfect harmony with the Creator Son, complementing his abilities and compensating for his inherent limitations regarding time and space through her widespread spiritual presence and ministry.

Through three distinct spiritual circuits, the Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit, and the adjutant mind-spirits, the Divine Minister exerts profound influence upon evolving worlds and their inhabitants. Her ministry extends from the endowment of primitive life forms with the spark of vitality through the progressive spiritual enlightenment of will creatures. Working in concert with the Creator Son's Spirit of Truth and the Universal Father's indwelling Thought Adjusters, she provides a comprehensive spiritual ministry that enables mortal beings to transcend their material limitations and progress toward divine perfection despite the inherent conflicts between spirit and flesh, which are particularly pronounced on Urantia due to its troubled evolutionary history.

When a Creator Son is personalized by the Universal Father and the Eternal Son, the Infinite Spirit individualizes a new and unique representation of himself to accompany this Creator Son to the realms of space. This Creative Spirit becomes the Creator Son's companion, first in the physical organization of a universe and, subsequently, in creation and ministry to the creatures of the newly projected universe. Their complementary natures enable them to function as coordinated associates in the administration of a local universe of time and space, with both beings responsive to physical and spiritual realities.

These Daughter Spirits embody the essence of the Infinite Spirit but cannot simultaneously engage in physical creation and spiritual ministry. In the process of physical creation, the Universe Son provides the pattern while the Universe Spirit initiates the materialization of physical realities. The Son operates in the realm of power designs, while the Spirit transforms these energy creations into physical substances. Although it remains challenging to conceptualize this early universe presence of the Infinite Spirit as a personal entity, to the Creator Son, the Spirit associate has always functioned as a distinct individual with whom he can maintain a personal relationship throughout their collaborative work of universe building and administration.

Following the completion of physical organization of a starry and planetary cluster and the establishment of energy circuits by the superuniverse power centers, the Michael Son declares his intention to project life into the newly organized universe. This proclamation receives recognition from Paradise, precipitating a reaction of approval within the Paradise Trinity, followed by the temporary disappearance of the Master Spirit in whose superuniverse this creation is organizing. A "primary eruption," a tremendous spiritual flash discernible from the headquarters of the concerned superuniverse, accompanies this Trinity manifestation, coinciding with a marked transformation in the creative spirit presence of the Infinite Spirit resident in that local universe.

In immediate response to these Paradise phenomena, a new personal representation of the Infinite Spirit materializes in the presence of the Creator Son—the Divine Minister, who becomes his personal creative associate and the local universe Mother Spirit. From this personal segregation of the Conjoint Creator flow established currents and ordained circuits of spirit power destined to pervade all worlds and beings of that local universe. This new personalized presence represents a transformation of the pre-existent and less personal associate who participated in the earlier work of physical universe organization. The process itself remains instantaneous, inscrutable, and incomprehensible, with its technique and procedure preserved as a secret within the Paradise Trinity.

What is certain is that following the reappearance of the supervising Master Spirit and the spiritual energy flash, the local universe manifestation of the Infinite Spirit completely changes to embody the personal likeness of that Master Spirit, thus acquiring a personal nature tinged by the characteristics of the Master Spirit of the superuniverse having astronomical jurisdiction. This localization and personalization of the Third Source and Center is recognized and regarded as a divine individual, a spirit person, by the Creator Son, through whom it was truly said, "All power in heaven and on earth has been intrusted to him."

Having undergone this profound personality metamorphosis at the moment of life creation, the Divine Minister functions thereafter as a fully realized person, collaborating intimately with the Creator Son in planning and managing the extensive affairs of their local creation. For many universe types of beings, this representation of the Infinite Spirit may not appear wholly personal during the ages preceding the final Michael bestowal. However, subsequent to the Creator Son's elevation to sovereign authority as a Master Son, the Creative Mother Spirit becomes so augmented in personal qualities that she is unmistakably recognized as a person by all who encounter her, establishing a more comprehensive relationship with the beings of her universe.

From her earliest association with the Creator Son, the Universe Spirit possesses all the physical-control attributes of the Infinite Spirit, including the full endowment of antigravity. Upon attaining personal status, she exercises complete control of mind gravity within the local universe, equivalent to what the Infinite Spirit would exert if personally present. Each Divine Minister functions according to the inherent characteristics of the Infinite Spirit as embodied in one of the Seven Master Spirits of Paradise. While there exists a fundamental uniformity of character among all Universe Spirits, their functional methodologies differ based on their derivation from one of the Seven Master Spirits, accounting for the diverse techniques employed by local universe Mother Spirits across different superuniverses.

Nevertheless, in all essential spiritual attributes, these Spirits remain identical, equally spiritual and wholly divine, irrespective of superuniverse differentiation or other distinguishing characteristics. The Creative Spirit is coresponsible with the Creator Son in producing and sustaining the creatures of the worlds, ministering and maintaining life through her agency. In the creation of a universe of intelligent creatures, the Creative Mother Spirit first functions in the sphere of universe perfection, collaborating with the Son in producing the Bright and Morning Star, then progressively approaching the order of created beings on the planets as the Sons grade downward toward the mortals of the realms.

Neither the Eternal Son nor the Infinite Spirit is constrained by the limitations of time or space, yet the majority of their offspring must contend with these conditions to varying degrees. The Infinite Spirit pervades all space and indwells the circle of eternity, but when interacting with the children of time, the personalities of the Infinite Spirit must often reckon with temporal elements, though less frequently with spatial constraints. Numerous mind ministries can operate independently of space but experience time lags when attempting to coordinate diverse levels of universe reality. Even a Solitary Messenger, while virtually independent of spatial limitations, requires time to travel between locations, as do similar entities unknown to Urantia mortals.

A Creative Spirit possesses complete independence from space in her personal prerogatives but remains subject to the constraints of time. No specialized personal presence of such a Universe Spirit exists at constellation or system headquarters; rather, she maintains an equal and diffuse presence throughout her entire local universe, making her just as literally and personally present on one world as on any other. The Creative Spirit experiences temporal limitations in her universe ministrations except when she consciously avails herself of the personal prerogatives of the Universe Son. In pure-spirit functions, she can act independently of time, particularly when collaborating with the mysterious function of universe reflectivity.

When the Creator Son and Creative Spirit operate in administrative union, they achieve relative independence from both time and space within their local creation, each providing the other with the necessary liberation from these constraints, enabling them to function with remarkable efficiency throughout their universe domain. Only absolute beings are truly independent of time and space in the absolute sense, while most subordinate persons of both the Eternal Son and Infinite Spirit remain subject to these universal conditions. When a Creative Spirit becomes "space conscious," she prepares to recognize a circumscribed "space domain" as her realm of freedom, distinct from all other space by which she would be conditioned.

Three distinct spirit circuits operate within the local universe of Nebadon: the bestowal spirit of the Creator Son, known as the Comforter or Spirit of Truth; the spirit circuit of the Divine Minister, identified as the Holy Spirit; and the intelligence-ministry circuit, encompassing the more or less unified activities but diverse functioning of the seven adjutant mind-spirits. Creator Sons possess a spirit of universe presence analogous to the Seven Master Spirits of Paradise, the Spirit of Truth, which is poured out upon a world when a bestowal Son receives spiritual title to that sphere. This bestowed Comforter functions as the spiritual force that draws all truth seekers toward the personification of truth in the local universe, emerging from the divine nature of the Creator Son just as the master circuits of the grand universe derive from the personality presences of the Paradise Deities.

The Creator Son may traverse the universe or be elsewhere, yet the Spirit of Truth operates uninterruptedly because this divine presence, while originating from the personality of the Creator Son, becomes functionally centered in the person of the Divine Minister. Conversely, the Universe Mother Spirit never departs from the local universe headquarters world; were her personal presence removed from Salvington, the Holy Spirit would cease to function throughout the universe. The Universe Mother Spirit acts as the universal focus and center of the Spirit of Truth as well as her own personal influence, the Holy Spirit, maintaining the stability of these spiritual presences regardless of the Creator Son's whereabouts.

The Creator Father-Son and Creative Mother Spirit contribute variously to the mind endowment of their local universe children, though the Creative Spirit only bestows mind after receiving personal prerogatives. The superevolutionary orders of personality receive the local universe type of the superuniverse pattern of mind, while human and subhuman orders of evolutionary life are endowed with the adjutant spirit types of mind ministration. The seven adjutant mind-spirits—wisdom, worship, counsel, knowledge, courage, understanding, and intuition—are the Divine Minister's creation, similar in character but diverse in power, all partaking of her nature though not considered separate personalities from their creator.

The Divine Minister collaborates with the Creator Son in the formulation of life and the creation of new orders of beings up to his seventh bestowal and, following his elevation to full sovereignty of the universe, continues this partnership in world ministry and planetary progression. On inhabited worlds, the Spirit initiates the evolutionary progression, beginning with lifeless material and successively endowing vegetable life, animal organisms, and the first orders of human existence. Each impartation contributes to the further unfolding of planetary evolutionary potential from primitive stages to the emergence of will creatures capable of spiritual receptivity and development. This labor is largely accomplished through the seven adjutants, the spirits of promise, which unitedly guide evolving races toward higher ideals and spiritual aspirations.

Mortal beings first experience the Spirit's ministry when their purely animal minds develop receptivity to the adjutants of worship and wisdom, signifying the crossing of the threshold into potential spiritual ministry. Minds functioning at this level are immediately incorporated into the spiritual circuits of the Divine Minister. When thus endowed with Holy Spirit ministry, mortal mind gains the capacity to consciously or unconsciously choose the spiritual presence of the Universal Father, the Thought Adjuster. Once a bestowal Son liberates the Spirit of Truth for planetary ministry to all mortals, normal minds become automatically prepared for Thought Adjuster reception. This Spirit of Truth operates in concert with the presence of the Divine Minister's spirit, hovering over worlds to teach truth, spiritually enlighten mortal minds, inspire the souls of ascending races, and guide evolutionary peoples toward their Paradise destiny of divine perfection attainment.

Though the Spirit of Truth is poured out upon all flesh, its function is largely determined by individual reception of the bestowal Son's mission. The Holy Spirit operates with partial independence from human attitude while also being conditionally influenced by human decisions and cooperation. Nevertheless, the Holy Spirit's ministry becomes increasingly effective in the sanctification and spiritualization of the inner life of those mortals who more fully obey the divine leadings. Unlike the Mystery Monitors (Thought Adjusters), which indwell the thinking centers of individual minds, the Creator Father-Son and Creative Mother Spirit do not contact or indwell mortal mind in the same personalized manner. The combined spiritual presence of the Creator Son's Spirit of Truth, the Creative Spirit's Holy Spirit, and the Father's Adjuster-spirit in a mortal establishes symmetry of spiritual endowment, qualifying that individual to consciously realize the faith-fact of divine sonship.

As an inhabited planet advances evolutionarily and its inhabitants undergo progressive spiritualization, mature personalities become capable of receiving additional spiritual influences that increasingly coordinate in function and blend with the overministry of the Paradise Trinity. Although Divinity may manifest in plurality, in human experience Deity functions as a singular presence; spiritual ministry likewise presents itself as a unified force regardless of its multiple origins. As creatures develop greater appreciation for and receptivity to this unifying ministry of the spirit, it evolves in their experience into the comprehensive ministry of God the Supreme, representing a synthesis of finite spiritual influences.

From the sublime heights of eternal glory, the divine Spirit descends through a prolonged series of steps to meet mortal beings precisely where they exist spiritually. Through a partnership of faith, the Spirit lovingly embraces the soul of mortal origin and embarks upon the certain retracement of those steps of condescension, never ceasing until the evolutionary soul achieves safe exaltation to the very heights of bliss from which the divine Spirit initially emanated. Spiritual forces inevitably seek and attain their original levels; having proceeded from the Eternal, they invariably return there, bringing along all those children of time and space who have embraced the Adjuster's guidance and been truly "born of the Spirit." The divine Spirit serves as the source of continual ministry and encouragement to the children of men, with power and achievement occurring "according to his mercy, through the renewing of the Spirit."

Spiritual life, like physical energy, requires constant renewal as it is consumed through use; spiritual effort results in relative spiritual exhaustion. The dead theory of even the highest religious doctrines remains powerless to transform human character or control mortal behavior without the quickening power of the Spirit. What the contemporary world needs is the truth declared by Jesus: "Not in word only but also in power and in the Holy Spirit." Those who have received and recognized God's indwelling have been born of the Spirit, becoming temples where God dwells. The divine Spirit must dominate and control every phase of human experience to effect true spiritual transformation.

The inherent nature derived from animal-origin races does not naturally manifest the fruits of the divine Spirit. When mortal nature has been enhanced through the addition of the Material Sons' genetic contribution, as the Urantia races were partially advanced by the Adamic bestowal, the potential for spirit-truth receptivity significantly improves. This enhancement prepares the way for the Spirit of Truth to work more effectively with the indwelling Adjuster in bringing forth the spiritual harvest. If one does not reject this spirit influence, it will ultimately guide the individual into all truth, though eternity itself may be required to fulfill this commission in its entirety. Evolutionary mortals inhabiting normal worlds of spiritual progress do not experience the acute conflicts between spirit and flesh that characterize the current Urantia races with their troubled evolutionary history.

The mortals of a normal world face the necessity of ascending from animal levels of existence to higher planes of spiritual living, but this ascent more closely resembles an educational training process compared to the intense conflicts experienced by Urantia mortals. The peoples of Urantia suffer from a dual deprivation in their struggle for progressive spiritual attainment: the Caligastia rebellion precipitated worldwide confusion and deprived subsequent generations of the moral assistance that a well-ordered society would have provided, while the Adamic default further disadvantaged the races by denying them the superior physical nature that would have been more naturally responsive to spiritual aspirations. The divine plan intended for Urantia mortals to possess physical natures more naturally receptive to spiritual impulses, but this was compromised by these planetary misfortunes.

Despite this double disaster afflicting both human nature and environment, present-day mortals could experience significantly less apparent warfare between flesh and spirit by entering wholeheartedly into the spirit kingdom through faith. Jesus demonstrated to humanity a new paradigm of mortal living whereby individuals can largely escape the dire consequences of the Caligastic rebellion and effectively compensate for the deprivations resulting from the Adamic default. Those who have truly been born of the Spirit experience no more conflict with their mortal natures than do inhabitants of the most normal worlds, planets untainted by sin or rebellion, because they function on intellectual levels and live on spiritual planes far above the conflicts produced by unrestrained physical desires. Having embarked on the path of life everlasting, having accepted the assignment and received orders to advance, the Spirit of Truth will always speak at every crossroad in the forward struggle, saying, "This is the way."