Paper 8 Overview: The Infinite Spirit

Paper 8 details the nature, origin, and cosmic functions of the Infinite Spirit, the Third Person of Deity who emerges from the perfect union of the Universal Father and Eternal Son. The paper reveals how this divine personalization completes the existential Trinity and initiates the actuality of the grand universe. The Infinite Spirit functions as the God of Action, the executive agency that transforms the divine thought-plans of the Father-Son partnership into cosmic reality, beginning with the instantaneous creation of the perfect central universe of Havona.

The multifaceted nature of the Third Source and Center is explored through his relationships with the other Paradise Deities, his administration of spiritual realities, and his omnipresent ministry throughout all creation. Despite the vast distribution of his presence and influence across the universes, the Infinite Spirit maintains absolute personality integrity as the divine equal of the Father and Son. The paper examines how this Spirit of Divine Ministry serves as the universal manifestation of the combined love and mercy of the Father and Son, functioning as the initial point of contact for all ascending creatures who seek to attain Paradise perfection through the progressive discovery of the divine nature.

In the unfathomable reaches of eternity past, when the Universal Father's "first" infinite and absolute thought found perfect and adequate expression in the Eternal Son, there arose within these two divine beings a supreme desire for a universal and infinite agent of mutual expression and combined action. This profound moment marks not a temporal beginning but an eternally existential relationship, wherein the Thought-God and the Word-God recognized their interdependence and absolute oneness, leading them to enter into an infinite and everlasting covenant of divine partnership for the execution of their united concepts throughout the circle of eternity.

At the precise metaphysical instant when the Father and Son conjointly conceived an identical and infinite action, the Infinite Spirit sprang full-fledgedly into existence as the Third Person of Deity. This sequential recitation of the origin of the Deities serves merely as a conceptual framework for finite minds, as in reality, all three divine personalities—God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit—are existential, without beginning or ending of days. They exist eternally as three distinctly individualized yet eternally associated persons, forming the foundation of all reality in the universe of universes, co-ordinate in nature, supreme in potential, ultimate in action, absolute in self-awareness, and infinite in attributes.

The personalization of the Infinite Spirit in the eternity of the past represents the perfection and completion of the divine personality cycle, establishing the God of Action as the executive agency for the stupendous drama of creation: the universal adventure that unfolds across the panorama of the eternal ages. The first conscious act of the newly personalized Infinite Spirit was to comprehensively inspect and recognize his divine parents, unqualifiedly identifying both the Father-Father and Mother-Son in their separate personalities and infinite attributes, as well as in their combined nature and united function. With transcendent willingness and inspiring spontaneity, the Third Person then voluntarily pledged eternal loyalty to the Father and acknowledged everlasting dependence upon the Son, establishing the eternal pattern of the Paradise Trinity's inter-relationships.

This momentous transaction established the cycle of eternity and set the stage for the creative unfolding of the Universal Father's purpose through the personality of the Eternal Son by means of the executive action of the Infinite Spirit. With the Infinite Spirit functioning as the God of Action, the "dead vaults of space" stirred into life as one billion perfect spheres—the eternal central universe of Havona—flashed into instantaneous existence. Simultaneously, the previously potential space-energies inherent in Paradise became actualized, with sufficient physical gravity emerging to hold these newly formed worlds in the everlasting grasp of Paradise, while the outflowing spirit energy was immediately grasped by the spiritual gravity of the Eternal Son. The soil of life was thus prepared for the consciousness of mind made manifest in the associated intelligence circuits of the Infinite Spirit, with the presence of the Paradise Deities filling all organized space and effectively drawing all things and beings Paradiseward.

The Infinite Spirit's testimony regarding these transcendent events is limited but profound; he verifies that the central universe and all that pertains to it eternalized simultaneously with his attainment of personality and conscious existence. Beyond this cosmic eruption of creative energy and administrative wisdom lies the unsearchable transactions of eternity and the depths of infinity, realms of absolute mystery that transcend the comprehension of finite minds. The sequential portrayal of the Spirit's origin serves as an interpretative condescension to time-bound and space-conditioned mortal creatures, who require a conceptual starting point for visualizing universe history.

The Conjoint Creator exists from eternity as wholly and unqualifiedly one with the Universal Father and the Eternal Son, perfectly reflecting the nature of both Paradise Deities in a unified yet distinct divine personality. The Third Source and Center is known throughout the universes by numerous appellations that reflect different facets of his infinite being: the Universal Spirit, the Supreme Guide, the Conjoint Creator, the Divine Executive, the Infinite Mind, the Spirit of Spirits, the Paradise Mother Spirit, the Conjoint Actor, the Final Co-ordinator, the Omnipresent Spirit, the Absolute Intelligence, and the Divine Action. This multiplicity of designations indicates the comprehensive scope of his functions in the cosmos, though on Urantia, he is sometimes confused with the cosmic mind, which is but one aspect of his universal operations.

For material creatures who tend to view matter as basic reality and mind together with spirit as postulates rooted in matter, it might be more comprehensible to denominate the Third Person as the Infinite Reality, the Universal Organizer, or the Personality Co-ordinator. The Infinite Spirit is utterly beyond human comprehension in his absoluteness, yet he most strikingly discloses the infinity of the Father among all aspects of the divine nature. Even if the master universe should eventually expand to infinity, the spirit presence, energy control, and mind potential of the Conjoint Actor would remain adequate to meet the demands of such a limitless creation, demonstrating the boundless capacity inherent in the Third Person of Deity.

While sharing all the perfection, righteousness, and love of the Universal Father, the Infinite Spirit inclines toward the mercy attributes of the Eternal Son, functioning as the mercy minister of the Paradise Deities to the grand universe. The Spirit depicts the mercy of God just as the divine Sons reveal the love of God, making the Father's faithfulness and the Son's constancy comprehensible to both spirit beings and material creatures through loving ministry and ceaseless service. The Conjoint Creator inherits all the Father's beauty of thought and character of truth, coordinating these sublime traits of divinity in the near-supreme levels of the cosmic mind, yet always in subordination to the infinite and eternal wisdom of his own unconditioned and limitless mind.

The Conjoint Actor emerges as the perfect execution of the "first" completed creative concept for combined action formulated by the Father-Son personality partnership, which exists as an absolute thought-word union. The Third Source and Center comes into being simultaneously with the central or fiat creation of Havona, which stands alone as the only eternal universe among all cosmic realms. Following the personalization of the Infinite Spirit, the Universal Father no longer personally participates in universe creation, delegating everything possible to the Eternal Son, who in turn bestows all possible authority and power upon the Conjoint Creator, establishing a divine division of labor in cosmic administration.

In subsequent creation beyond Havona, the Eternal Son and Conjoint Creator function as partners, planning and fashioning every post-Havona universe through their coordinate personalities. The Spirit maintains with the Son the same personal relationship in these later creations that the Son holds with the Father in the first and central creation. This cosmic pattern manifests locally through Creator Sons of the Eternal Son and Creative Spirits of the Infinite Spirit, who together create and sustain local universes while the Universal Father faithfully upholds what they organize. The Infinite Spirit functions as the conjoint administrator for the Father and Son in executing their united purpose of drawing all truth-loving souls throughout time and space toward the divine heights of Paradise perfection.

The Infinite Spirit serves as a complete, exclusive, and universal revelation of both the Universal Father and the Eternal Son, providing the only pathway to knowledge of the Father-Son partnership. For ascending beings of time, the Infinite Spirit is the first of the Paradise Deities to be attained during the universal pilgrimage. Only through the patient ministry of the Spirit can ascending mortals discover the Eternal Son, who then provides the means to approach the Universal Father. This sequence establishes the fundamental pattern for the spiritual ascension of all will creatures, with the Third Person functioning as the initial point of contact with the Paradise Deities during the progressive journey from the material realms toward the spiritual center of all creation.

Paralleling the physical universe wherein Paradise gravity maintains cosmic cohesion, there exists a spiritual universe where the word of the Son interprets the thought of God and, when incarnated, demonstrates the loving mercy of the combined nature of the associated Creators. Throughout this vast material and spiritual creation, the Infinite Spirit and his spirit offspring operate on an expansive stage, displaying the combined mercy, patience, and everlasting affection of the divine parents toward the intelligent children of their cooperative devising. The essence of the Spirit's divine character manifests as everlasting ministry to mind, with all his spirit progeny sharing this desire to minister and this divine urge to service throughout the cosmos.

If God the Father embodies love and the Eternal Son personifies mercy, then the Infinite Spirit represents ministry—the active application of divine love and endless mercy to all intelligent creation. The Spirit functionally personifies the combined love of the Father and the Son, applying it practically to the creature creation in ways that make divine affection accessible and comprehensible to beings of all levels. In the central universe of Havona, the Spirit's ministry establishes the exemplary pattern for each of his coordinate Spirits and subordinate personalities who serve created beings throughout the worlds of time and space. The Infinite Spirit participated in the transcendental appearances of the Eternal Son in Havona and collaborated with the original Michael Son in his seven bestowals upon the Havona circuits, becoming the sympathetic and understanding spirit minister to every time pilgrim traversing these perfect celestial spheres.

When Creator Sons accept responsibility for projected local universes, the personalities of the Infinite Spirit pledge themselves as tireless ministers to these Michael Sons in their creative adventures. The local universe Mother Spirits, Creative Daughters of the Infinite Spirit, particularly demonstrate his dedication to fostering the spiritual ascension of material creatures. Unlike the Sons of God who sometimes incarnate in the likeness of mortal flesh, the Infinite Spirit and his coordinate Spirits undergo a series of divinity attenuations that allow them to draw near to beings of animal origin, appearing as angels to guide mortals through their earthly existence. The Conjoint Creator truly functions as the great ministering personality of creation, the universal mercy minister who not only represents the Father and Son but also bestows the universal ministry of mercy in his own name and right as a divine personality of absolute dignity.

The quintessential attribute of the Infinite Spirit is omnipresence—his all-pervading spiritual influence that extends throughout the universe of universes as a manifestation of universal and divine mind. Both the Second and Third Persons of Deity maintain an ever-present spiritual representation on all worlds, enabling the Universal Father, who is infinite and therefore limited only by volition, to be spiritually present anywhere through either the Son or the Conjoint Actor. The Father functions alone in the bestowal of Thought Adjusters and the encircuitment of personality, but in the contact of spirit forces with intelligent beings, he utilizes the spirits and personalities of both the Eternal Son and the Infinite Spirit to establish a comprehensive divine presence.

In religious scriptures, the term "Spirit of God" is often employed interchangeably to designate both the Infinite Spirit of Paradise and the Creative Spirit of a particular local universe, creating potential confusion for those without deeper spiritual discernment. The Holy Spirit specifically refers to the spiritual circuit of the Creative Daughter of the Paradise Infinite Spirit and is indigenous to each local universe, confined to the spiritual realm of that creation. By contrast, the Infinite Spirit maintains absolute omnipresence throughout all reality. The various spiritual influences—including the work of the Thought Adjusters, the Infinite Spirit, and the local universe Mother Spirit—operate in perfect synchronization despite their diverse origins, functioning in mortal minds and souls as a unified spiritual presence that manifests as the influence of the Supreme Being, "who is ever able to keep you from failing and to present you blameless before your Father on high."

The comprehensive spiritual ministry represents not only the Infinite Spirit in his own capacity but also embodies the presence of the Father, the Son, and the Father-Son union, as the Conjoint Actor functions simultaneously in all these relationships. This unified spiritual presence could appropriately be termed the spirit of God, for such a liaison truly constitutes the union of the spirits of God the Father, God the Son, God the Spirit, and God the Sevenfold, even extending to the emerging experiential reality of God the Supreme. This multidimensional spiritual influence works harmoniously to guide and support the spiritual development of will creatures throughout the grand universe.

The widespread bestowal and far-flung distribution of the Third Source and Center throughout the cosmos must not obscure or diminish the fundamental reality of his divine personality. The Infinite Spirit is not merely a universal presence, an eternal action, a cosmic power, or a holy influence (though he encompasses all these functions), but primarily exists as a true and divine personality of absolute nature. As a complete and perfect personality, the Infinite Spirit stands as the divine equal and coordinate of the Universal Father and the Eternal Son, a reality that becomes increasingly apparent to ascending creatures who must attain the Spirit before they can approach the Father through the Son.

The Infinite Spirit possesses all attributes associated with genuine personality, most notably absolute mind that "searches all things, even the deep things of God." Beyond mere cognition, the Spirit exercises sovereign will in the bestowal of his gifts, "dividing to every man severally and as he wills" according to divine wisdom. The Conjoint Creator experiences authentic emotional states, demonstrating "the love of the Spirit" and experiencing sorrows that prompt the admonition, "Grieve not the Spirit of God." Whether observed as Paradise Deity or as a local universe Creative Spirit, the Third Person communicates as a conscious entity, speaking to those who have "ears to hear," making intercession for believers, and exerting direct personal influence upon created beings, leading those who follow the Spirit's guidance to become "sons of God."

Even while beholding the extraordinary phenomenon of the Infinite Spirit's ministry extending to the remotest worlds of the universe of universes and coordinating untold legions of diverse beings who originate in the Third Source and Center, we must affirm the essential truth that this same Source and Center maintains comprehensive personal integrity. In the administration of universes, the Father, Son, and Spirit function in perfect and eternal interassociation, divinely and absolutely interlocked in a service of creation and control that forever unifies them as one operational Deity. In the person of the Infinite Spirit, the Father and Son are mutually present with unqualified perfection, for the Spirit embodies the likeness of both the Father and the Son, and also manifests the perfect unity that eternally exists between these divine partners.