Paper 47 Overview: The Seven Mansion Worlds

Paper 47 identifies the function, purpose, and progressive nature of the seven mansion worlds. These are the specialized transitional spheres dedicated to the spiritual, intellectual, and social education of ascending mortals after physical death. As satellites of the first transition world of Jerusem, these worlds serve as the initial stages in the morontia life, systematically addressing mortal deficiencies, expanding cosmic consciousness, and gradually transforming material beings into morontia entities prepared for system citizenship. Each successive mansion world advances the ascender's development: from basic deficiency correction on the first, to intellectual harmonization on the second, metaphysical understanding on the third, social integration on the fourth, cosmic awareness on the fifth, administrative preparation on the sixth, and culminating in spiritual refinement on the seventh.

The mansion world experience represents the crucial bridge between material existence and higher spiritual realms, providing seven distinct stages of resurrection and transformation. Each resurrection endows the ascending mortal with an increasingly refined morontia body while simultaneously expanding mental capacity and spiritual receptivity. The curriculum is precisely tailored to individual developmental needs, allowing mortals to progress at rates commensurate with their personal evolution. This methodical approach ensures that by the time ascenders achieve Jerusem citizenship, they have shed all vestiges of purely animal nature, remediated any planetary or hereditary limitations, mastered fundamental cosmic concepts, and established a functional relationship with their indwelling Thought Adjusters.

During his bestowal on Urantia, Jesus referenced the "many mansions in the Father's universe," a concept that corresponds to the fifty-six encircling worlds of Jerusem devoted to the transitional culture of ascending mortals. While all these worlds contribute to mortal transition, the seven satellites of world number one are specifically designated as the mansion worlds. Transition world number one itself is exclusively dedicated to ascendant activities, serving as headquarters for more than one hundred thousand companies of finaliters, with each company comprising one thousand glorified beings who have completed the Paradise journey and returned to serve in time and space.

As a system evolves into the settled status of light and life, and the mansion worlds progressively cease functioning as mortal training stations, these spheres become increasingly populated by the expanding finaliter presence that accumulates in such perfected systems. The administrative oversight of the seven mansion worlds falls under the jurisdiction of the morontia supervisors and the Melchizedeks, with each world governed by an acting administrator directly responsible to the Jerusem rulers. Uversa conciliators maintain headquarters on each mansion world, while Technical Advisers establish local rendezvous adjacent to these centers. Reversion directors and celestial artisans operate group headquarters on each world, with spironga functioning from mansion world number two onward. All seven worlds, like the other transitional-culture planets and the headquarters world, receive abundant service from spornagia of standard creation.

Although only finaliters and certain groups of salvaged children with their caretakers permanently reside on transition world number one, comprehensive provisions exist for the . entertainment and education of all classes of spirit beings, transition mortals, and student visitors. The spornagia, who function as service beings throughout these worlds, provide hospitable assistance to all entities they can recognize, though they maintain only a vague feeling concerning finaliters, whom they cannot directly visualize. This limitation parallels the material beings' inability to perceive angels in their current physical state on Urantia. The finaliter world features a sphere of exquisite physical beauty and morontia embellishment, centered around the great spirit abode, the temple of the finaliters, which remains invisible to unaided material or early morontia vision, though energy transformers occasionally enable ascending mortals to perceive these realities during special class assemblies.

All survivors must satisfy the requirements of the parental commission from their native planets before progressing beyond the first mansion world. The current Urantia commission consists of twelve parental couples who have recently arrived, each having experienced rearing at least three children to pubescent age. Service on this commission typically rotates every ten years. Those who fail to satisfy these commissioners regarding their parental experience must undergo further qualification through service in the homes of the Material Sons on Jerusem or in the probationary nursery on the finaliters' world.

Regardless of previous parental experience, mansion world parents with growing children in the probation nursery receive every opportunity to collaborate with morontia custodians on their children's instruction and training. These parents may visit their children as frequently as four times annually, creating one of the most touchingly beautiful scenes of the ascending career to observe mansion world parents embrace their material offspring during periodic pilgrimages to the finaliter world. The revelators emphasize that no ascending mortal, regardless of gender, can evade the experience of child-rearing, either on material worlds or subsequently on the finaliter world or Jerusem.

The infant-receiving schools of Satania are situated on the finaliter world, the first of Jerusem's transition-culture spheres, providing specialized nurture and training for children of time who died on evolutionary worlds before acquiring individual status in universe records. When either or both parents of such a child survive, the guardian of destiny deputizes her associated cherubim as custodian of the child's potential identity, charging this cherubim with the responsibility of delivering the undeveloped soul to the Mansion World Teachers in the probationary nurseries of the morontia worlds. These same cherubim, serving as Mansion World Teachers under Melchizedek supervision, maintain extensive educational facilities for training these probationary wards of the finaliters. The wards are personalized with the exact physical status they possessed at death, except without reproductive potential, and this awakening occurs precisely at the moment of parental arrival on the first mansion world, allowing these children every opportunity to choose the heavenly path just as they would have on their worlds of origin had death not intervened.

On the nursery world, probationary creatures are grouped according to the presence or absence of Thought Adjusters, as these divine monitors come to indwell material children on the nursery world just as they do on evolutionary worlds. Children of pre-Adjuster ages receive care in families of five, ranging from under one year to approximately five years, when Adjusters typically arrive. Children who died with Adjusters but before making a Paradise career choice also undergo repersonalization on the finaliter world, growing up in Material Sons' families alongside those who arrived without Adjusters but who will receive them upon reaching the age of moral choice. Adjuster-indwelt children between six and fourteen years grow up in families grouped by age (six, eight, ten, twelve, and fourteen).

After sixteen, those making the final choice for Paradise translate to the first mansion world to begin their ascension, though relatively few children under sixteen make such choices. The guardian seraphim attend these youths in the probationary nursery, providing spiritual ministry, while spornagia attend to their physical necessities. If no choice for ascendant life is made, or if they definitively decide against the Havona adventure, death automatically terminates their probationary careers without adjudication—they simply cease to exist. Those choosing the Paradise path immediately transfer to the first mansion world, with many arriving in time to join their parents in the Havona ascent, though these souls, having missed the essential evolutionary experience on worlds of mortal nativity, are not mustered into the Corps of the Finality.

On the mansion worlds, resurrected mortal survivors resume their lives at precisely the point where they were interrupted by physical death. The transition from Urantia to the first mansion world represents a significant change, primarily because the physical body of flesh and blood remains behind on the world of nativity. However, individuals from more normal and progressive evolutionary spheres would scarcely notice the difference besides possessing a different form. The focal point of all first mansion world activities is the resurrection hall, an enormous temple of personality assembly that serves as the central rendezvous for seraphic destiny guardians, Thought Adjusters, and the archangels of resurrection. The Life Carriers also participate in this resurrection process alongside these celestial beings. The mechanics of resurrection involve the reunification of the mortal-mind transcripts and active creature-memory patterns (transformed from material to spiritual levels) possessed by the detached Thought Adjusters, with the creature mind-matrix and passive identity potentials preserved in the morontia soul entrusted to seraphic guardians. This reassembly of the morontia-soul trust and the spirit-mind trust reconstitutes creature personality and accomplishes the resurrection of a sleeping survivor.

Upon leaving the resurrection halls, newly awakened survivors proceed to the Melchizedek sector, where they receive permanent residences followed by ten days of personal liberty. This period allows them to explore their immediate surroundings, familiarize themselves with forthcoming programs, and consult the registry to contact loved ones and friends who preceded them to these worlds. After this period of leisure, survivors begin the second stage of their Paradise journey, as the mansion worlds function as actual training spheres rather than mere detention planets. Training resumes at precisely the intellectual and spiritual level where it was interrupted by death, as mortals gain nothing between physical death and mansion world resurrection except the experience of survival itself.

The primary focus on mansion world number one involves deficiency ministry: addressing the numerous character defects and experiential limitations inherited from physical life on evolutionary worlds. This sojourn aims to develop mortal survivors at least to the level of the post-Adamic dispensation on normal evolutionary worlds, though spiritually, mansion world students far exceed this level of mere human development. Those not requiring detention on the first mansion world enter the translation sleep after ten days and proceed to world number two, with similar ten-day advancement intervals continuing until they reach their assigned destination.

Upon the second mansion world, the formative patterns of morontia life begin to emerge as working groups and social organizations commence operations. Communities develop more formal proportions, and advancing mortals inaugurate new social orders and governmental arrangements that reflect their growing understanding of universe principles. Spirit-fused survivors occupy these mansion worlds alongside Adjuster-fused ascending mortals, demonstrating a harmony and fraternity entirely unlike the intolerance and discriminatory caste systems prevalent on evolutionary worlds. As you ascend the mansion worlds in sequence, they become increasingly populated with the morontia activities of advancing survivors, and you progressively recognize more features of Jerusem incorporated into the mansion worlds, including the appearance of the sea of glass on the second mansonia.

Each advancement from one mansion world to another entails acquiring a newly developed and appropriately adjusted morontia body. Ascenders enter the seraphic transport sleep and awaken in resurrection halls with new but undeveloped bodies, similar to their initial arrival on mansion world number one, except that the Thought Adjuster remains with them during these transitional sleeps between worlds, ensuring personality continuity. The Adjuster memory remains fully intact throughout morontia ascension, while mental associations that were purely animalistic or entirely material naturally perish with the physical brain. Everything of mental value with survival potential is counterparted by the Adjuster and retained as an element of personal memory throughout the ascendant career.

On the mansion worlds, ascenders continue to eat, drink, and rest, although they partake of the morontia order of sustenance, a form of living energy unknown on material spheres, which is fully utilized without producing residual waste. The second mansion world specifically focuses on removing intellectual conflicts and curing mental disharmony while continuing the study of morontia mota that began on the first world. The developmental status achieved on mansion world number two corresponds roughly to the intellectual condition of the post-Magisterial Son culture on ideal evolutionary worlds.

Mansonia number three serves as the administrative headquarters for the Mansion World Teachers. Though these instructors function across all seven mansion spheres, they maintain their primary group headquarters at the center of the educational circles on world number three. Millions of these advanced and glorified cherubim serve as morontia teachers throughout the mansion and higher morontia worlds, from the initial mansion world education through the final sphere of local universe ascendant training. These cherubim will be among the last to bid affectionate farewells when ascenders depart the local universe, at which time they enseraphim for transit to the receiving worlds of the minor sector of the superuniverse. Ascenders who reach mansion world number three receive permission to visit the third transition sphere, which houses the headquarters of the angelic orders and their system training schools. These visits to Jerusem from the third mansion world become increasingly beneficial and fascinating to the advancing mortals as they develop greater appreciation for the celestial beings they encounter.

Mansonia the third represents a world of significant personal and social achievement for all ascenders who have not attained equivalent cultural development prior to their release from physical life on their native worlds. On this sphere, more constructive educational work begins in earnest, as the training on the first two mansion worlds primarily addresses deficiency correction: the negative aspects of supplementing material life experiences. On this third world, survivors begin their progressive morontia culture in earnest, with the principal educational objective being to enhance understanding of the correlation between morontia mota and mortal logic, and the coordination of morontia mota with human philosophy. This represents the genuine introduction to the intelligent comprehension of cosmic meanings and universe interrelationships—true metaphysics. The cultural environment on mansion world three corresponds to conditions found in the post-bestowal Son age on normally developing inhabited planets, providing a significant advancement in spiritual understanding that builds upon the remedial work of the previous worlds.

Upon arrival at the fourth mansion world, ascending mortals have definitively entered the morontia career, having progressed significantly beyond their initial material existence. At this juncture, they receive permission to visit transition world number four, where they familiarize themselves with the headquarters and training schools of the superangels, including the Brilliant Evening Stars. Through the beneficent assistance of these superangels from the fourth transition world, morontia visitors can draw remarkably close to various orders of the Sons of God during their periodic visits to Jerusem, as new sectors of the system capital progressively open to advancing mortals with each return visit. The expanding minds of these ascenders continually experience new wonders as they make these repeated journeys to the headquarters world, with the universe revealing its mysteries in measured increments appropriate to their developmental status.

On the fourth mansion world, individual ascenders more appropriately find their place within group endeavors and class functions characteristic of morontia social organization. Ascenders develop enhanced appreciation for broadcasts and other facets of local universe culture and progress during this phase of their development. This period of training introduces ascending mortals to the authentic demands and delights of genuine social interaction among morontia creatures, establishing a revolutionary social order predicated not on personal aggrandizement or self-serving conquest, but founded upon mutual appreciation, unselfish love of mutual service, and the overmastering motivation of realizing a common and supreme destiny—the Paradise goal of worshipful and divine perfection. Ascenders progressively become self-conscious of God-knowing, God-revealing, God-seeking, and God-finding as their social awareness expands beyond material limitations. The intellectual and social culture of this fourth mansion world corresponds approximately to the mental and social conditions of the post-Teacher Son age on planets of normal evolutionary development, though the spiritual status far exceeds such a mortal dispensation.

Transport to the fifth mansion world represents a momentous forward stride in the life of a morontia progressor, offering a genuine foretaste of Jerusem life. On this sphere, ascenders begin to comprehend the high destiny awaiting loyal evolutionary worlds, as such planets may normally achieve this level of development during their natural planetary progression. The cultural environment of this mansion world generally corresponds to conditions found during the early era of light and life on planets of normal evolutionary advancement. This correlation explains why highly cultured and progressive beings who sometimes inhabit these advanced evolutionary worlds receive exemption from passing through one, several, or occasionally all of the mansion spheres, as they have already attained equivalent development through their planet's natural evolution.

Having mastered the local universe language before departing the fourth mansion world, ascenders now dedicate more time to perfecting the tongue of Uversa, striving for proficiency in both languages before acquiring residential status on Jerusem. All ascending mortals maintain bilingual capability from the system headquarters upward to Havona, with subsequent vocabulary expansions required for the superuniverse and, ultimately, Paradise residency. Upon arrival at mansonia number five, pilgrims receive authorization to visit the transition world of corresponding number, the Sons' headquarters, where they establish personal familiarity with the various groups of divine sonship after having previously encountered them on Jerusem. Additionally, on the fifth mansion world, ascenders commence learning about the constellation study worlds in preparation for their subsequent sojourn. This instruction continues on worlds six and seven, with final preparations provided in the ascending mortals' sector on Jerusem.

A profound birth of cosmic consciousness occurs on mansonia number five, as ascenders develop genuine universe-mindedness. This represents a pivotal expansional period, as the enlarging minds of ascending mortals begin to comprehend that a stupendous and magnificent, a supernal and divine destiny awaits all who complete the progressive Paradise ascension. At approximately this juncture, the average mortal ascender begins manifesting genuine experiential enthusiasm for the Havona ascent, with study becoming voluntary, unselfish service becoming natural, and worship becoming spontaneous, as a true morontia character emerges.

Sojourners on the sixth mansion sphere receive permission to visit transition world number six, where they acquire deeper knowledge about the high spirits of the superuniverse, though their perceptual limitations prevent them from visualizing many of these celestial beings. This world also marks the beginning of formal instruction in universe administration, as the assistant System Sovereign makes frequent visits to initiate these teachings. For ascending mortals, this period represents a brilliant epoch that often witnesses the perfect fusion of the human mind and divine Adjuster, though in potential, this fusion may have occurred previously, sometimes during residence on the fifth mansion world or even the sixth.

The union of the evolving immortal soul with the eternal and divine Adjuster is signalized by a ceremonial summoning, initiated by the supervising superangel for resurrected survivors or the archangel of record for those proceeding to judgment on the third day. In the presence of the survivor's morontia associates, these messengers of confirmation pronounce, "This is a beloved son in whom I am well pleased," a simple yet profound ritual that marks the entrance of an ascending mortal into the eternal career of Paradise service. Following Adjuster fusion confirmation, the newly recognized morontia being receives a formal introduction to peers under their new name and enters a forty-day period of spiritual retirement, withdrawing from routine activities to commune with themselves and select their preferred route to Havona and technique for Paradise attainment. Though these beings have progressed significantly, they remain somewhat material in nature, more like supermortals than true spirits in spiritual terms, still slightly lower than angels in their development. Nevertheless, they are becoming truly remarkable creatures.

During their sojourn on mansion world number six, students achieve a status comparable to the exalted development characteristic of evolutionary worlds that have progressed beyond the initial stage of light and life. As they ascend, the shadow of mortal nature diminishes incrementally, and these beings become increasingly adorable as they shed the coarse vestiges of their planetary animal origin. The revelators note that "coming up through great tribulation" serves to make glorified mortals exceptionally kind, understanding, sympathetic, and tolerant.

The experience on the seventh mansion world represents the crowning achievement of the immediate postmortal career. During this sojourn, ascenders receive instruction from numerous teachers, all collaborating to prepare them for Jerusem residence. Any distinguishable differences between mortals originating from isolated, developmentally retarded worlds and survivors from more advanced, enlightened spheres are virtually eliminated during the seventh mansion world sojourn. Here, ascenders undergo purification from all remnants of unfortunate heredity, unwholesome environmental influences, and unspiritual planetary tendencies, with the final vestiges of the "mark of the beast" thoroughly eradicated from their nature.

While on mansonia number seven, ascenders receive permission to visit transition world number seven, the world of the Universal Father. Here they initiate a new and more spiritually oriented worship of the unseen Father, a devotional practice they will increasingly cultivate throughout their long ascending career. Although they discover the Father's temple on this transitional culture world, they do not yet perceive the Father himself. During this period, classes form in preparation for graduation to Jerusem. Whereas ascenders have traveled from world to world as individuals up to this point, they now prepare for departure to Jerusem in groups, though individuals may elect to remain on the seventh mansion world temporarily to allow slower members of their earthly or mansion working group to catch up with them.

The personnel of the seventh mansonia gather at the sea of glass to witness the departure of graduates for Jerusem with residential status. Despite having visited Jerusem hundreds or thousands of times previously as guests, this marks their first journey toward the system capital in the company of fellow graduates bidding eternal farewell to their mansion world career as ascending mortals. They will soon receive formal welcome on the headquarters world's receiving field as newly recognized Jerusem citizens, having completed their transformative journey through the seven dematerializing worlds—truly demortalizing spheres that have progressively reduced their material nature while enhancing their spiritual capacities.

The reception of a new class of mansion world graduates serves as a signal for all Jerusem to assemble as a welcoming committee, with even the spornagia—the humble service beings of the system—participating in the celebration as these triumphant ascenders complete their evolutionary journey and mansion world progression. The absence of physical controllers and Morontia Power Supervisors represents the only exception to this universal gathering. John the Revelator witnessed a vision of such an arrival of advancing mortals from the seventh mansion world to their first heaven, the glories of Jerusem, recording: "And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire; and those who had gained the victory over the beast that was originally in them and over the image that persisted through the mansion worlds and finally over the last mark and trace, standing on the sea of glass, having the harps of God, and singing the song of deliverance from mortal fear and death." The revelator explains that the "harp of God" refers to a morontia contrivance that compensates for ascenders' inability to directly adjust their immature morontia sensory mechanisms to receive space communications.

After attaining residence on the system headquarters, ascending mortals experience no further literal resurrections. The morontia form granted upon completion of the mansion world career suffices to sustain them through the remainder of their local universe experience, though it undergoes modifications as needed. Seven times do the mortals who complete the entire mansion world sequence experience the adjustment sleep and resurrection awakening, but the final resurrection hall, the terminal awakening chamber, remains behind on the seventh mansion world, as no subsequent form-change necessitates either consciousness lapse or memory discontinuity.

The mortal personality, initiated on evolutionary worlds and housed in flesh, indwelt by Mystery Monitors and invested by the Spirit of Truth, achieves full mobilization, realization, and unification only upon receiving clearance for Edentia and official recognition as a true member of the morontia corps of Nebadon. At this juncture, the ascending mortal has attained a new status as an immortal survivor of Adjuster association, a Paradise ascender, a personality of morontia status, and a true child of the Most Highs. Mortal death thus represents merely a technique for escaping material life in the flesh, while the mansion world experience provides a progressive introduction to the morontia career—the transitional life between the evolutionary material existence and the higher spirit attainment of ascenders of time who will ultimately achieve the portals of eternity.