Paper 67 Overview: The Planetary Rebellion

The planetary rebellion on Urantia was a serious event that changed how society and spiritual development progressed. It started when Caligastia, who had been in charge of Urantia for 300,000 years, decided to join Lucifer's rebellion and betray the planet. The rebellion affected every planet in the local system but did not stop biological evolution on Urantia.

Van and his followers stayed loyal to the universe rulers and opposed the rebellion. For seven years, they fought against Caligastia's forces until authorities from Edentia came to help. The rebellion caused confusion and problems for Urantia, but it also showed the amazing loyalty of people like Amadon, who became a hero for his steadfastness.

Understanding human problems on Urantia requires knowledge of important past events, especially the planetary rebellion. This rebellion changed how social evolution and spiritual development proceeded on the planet. The physical evolution of the planet continued normally, but the spiritual history of Urantia was greatly affected by this terrible event.

Caligastia had been in charge of Urantia for 300,000 years when Satan visited him. Satan told Caligastia about Lucifer's planned "Declaration of Liberty" and Caligastia agreed to join the rebellion. This was a serious betrayal of trust because Planetary Princes are given high responsibility for the welfare of evolving mortals.

Sin is when a personality knowingly resists cosmic reality, while error is just a misconception of reality. Evil is a partial realization of reality, but iniquity is open defiance of recognized reality. When sin is chosen repeatedly, it becomes habitual, and habitual sinners can become iniquitous rebels against the universe.

Just before great things were about to happen on Urantia, Caligastia held a meeting with Daligastia, who then called together the ten councils of Urantia. Caligastia demanded that all groups give up their powers to Daligastia until the government could be reorganized. Van, the chairman of the coordination council, spoke against this and appealed to Lucifer on Jerusem.

When word came back from Jerusem supporting Caligastia, Van gave a seven-hour speech against Lucifer, Caligastia, and Daligastia. The planet was cut off from all outside communication, and each group had to decide whether to follow Caligastia or remain loyal to the universe. This struggle continued for more than seven years until authorities from Edentia finally intervened.

News of the rebellion on Jerusem was broadcast by the Melchizedek council, and emergency Melchizedeks were sent to Jerusem. Gabriel represented the Creator Son, whose authority had been challenged. The system of Satania was isolated from other systems because of the rebellion.

On Urantia, forty members of the staff of one hundred, including Van, refused to join the rebellion. Many seraphim and cherubim joined the rebellion, as did many midway creatures. The loyal staff lived in a settlement east of Dalamatia, guarded by loyal midway creatures and with access to the tree of life. Van worked for seven years to maintain loyalty to the universe government.

When the final count was taken, forty members of the Prince's staff had remained loyal, while sixty had joined the rebellion. Those who remained loyal were later transferred to Jerusem to continue their journey to Paradise. The sixty rebels chose Nod as their leader but soon discovered they had lost their connection to the system life circuits.

The rebel staff migrated north and east, and their descendants were known as the Nodites. These extraordinary beings mated with humans, which led to legends about gods coming down to mate with mortals. The rebels eventually died natural deaths, and much of the later human idolatry grew from attempts to honor the memory of these beings.

Great confusion lasted for about fifty years after the rebellion began. The rebels tried to completely reorganize the world through revolution instead of evolution. While some people near Dalamatia showed quick advancement in culture, when these new methods were tried with outlying peoples, they caused chaos.

The rebels soon had to defend Dalamatia against attacks from the people they had taught about liberty too early. Caligastia's plan to rebuild society based on individual freedom failed quickly. Society went back to its old biological level, and 162 years after the rebellion, a tidal wave destroyed Dalamatia, removing almost all traces of its once splendid culture.

Van's followers moved to the highlands west of India to escape attacks and to plan for the world's recovery. Before the Melchizedek receivers arrived, Van put ten commissions of four people each in charge of human affairs. Life Carriers led this council of forty during the seven years of waiting.

The Amadonites were a group of 144 loyal Andonites who followed Amadon. Van and Amadon remained on Urantia until Adam arrived, sustained by the tree of life and the Melchizedeks for over 150,000 years. Under the Melchizedek receivers, Van helped preserve civilization and set up more than 350 advanced settlements around the world within 1,000 years after the rebellion.

When a creature repeatedly rejects light, they experience soul-destroying consequences that only concern Deity and that individual. However, the external consequences of sin affect everyone within range of such actions. These effects are both inevitable and widespread.

Fifty thousand years after the planetary administration collapsed, earthly affairs were so disorganized that humanity had gained very little compared to when Caligastia arrived 350,000 years earlier. Sin on Urantia did not greatly delay biological evolution but it did deprive mortal races of the full benefits of the Adamic inheritance. No person suffers spiritual deprivation because of another's sin, but the administrative, intellectual, and social effects of sin are far-reaching.

Amadon stands out as the hero of the Lucifer rebellion. He was a descendant of Andon and Fonta who had contributed life plasm to the Prince's staff. Amadon chose to stand with Van throughout the seven-year struggle against the brilliant Caligastia.

For seven years, the first question from celestial beings about the Satania rebellion was always about whether Amadon of Urantia still stood strong. While the rebellion has hindered the local system and its fallen worlds, Amadon's inspiring loyalty has done more good in the universe than all the evil of the rebellion. His steadfastness shows the wisdom of the Father's plan to recruit the Corps of Mortal Finality largely from common mortals like Amadon.