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87:7.1 The [[cult]] [[type]] of [[social]] [[organization]] [[persisted]] because it provided a [[symbolism]] for the preservation and [[stimulation]] of [[moral]] sentiments and religious [[loyalties]]. The [[cult]] grew out of the [[traditions]] of "old families" and was perpetuated as an [[established]] [[institution]]; all [[families]] have a [[cult]] of some sort. Every [[inspiring]] [[ideal]] grasps for some perpetuating [[symbolism]]—seeks some [[technique]] for [[cultural]] [[manifestation]] which will insure [[survival]] and augment [[realization]]—and the [[cult]] [[achieves]] this end by fostering and gratifying [[emotion]].
87:7.2 From the [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_68 dawn of civilization] every appealing [[movement]] in [[social]] [[culture]] or [[religious]] advancement has developed a [[ritual]], a symbolic [[ceremonial]]. The more this [[ritual]] has been an [[unconscious]] [[growth]], the stronger it has gripped its devotees. The [[cult]] preserved sentiment and satisfied [[emotion]], but it has always been the greatest obstacle to [[social]] reconstruction and [[spiritual]] [[progress]].
87:7.3 Notwithstanding that the [[cult]] has always retarded [[social]] [[progress]], it is regrettable that so many [[modern]] believers in [[moral]] [[standards]] and [[spiritual]] [[ideals]] have no adequate [[symbolism]]—no [[cult]] of [[mutual]] [[support]]—nothing to belong to. But a religious cult cannot be [[manufactured]]; it must grow. And those of no two [[groups]] will be identical unless their rituals are [[arbitrarily]] [[standardized]] by [[authority]].
87:7.4 The early [[Christian]] cult was the most [[effective]], appealing, and enduring of any [[ritual]] ever conceived or devised, but much of its [[value]] has been destroyed in a [[scientific]] age by the destruction of so many of its [[original]] underlying tenets. The Christian cult has been devitalized by the loss of many [[fundamental]] [[ideas]].
87:7.5 In the [[past]], [[truth]] has [[grown]] rapidly and expanded freely when the [[cult]] has been elastic, the symbolism expansile. [[Abundant]] [[truth]] and an [[adjustable]] cult have favored rapidity of [[social]] [[progression]]. A meaningless cult vitiates religion when it attempts to supplant [[philosophy]] and to enslave [[reason]]; a genuine cult grows.
87:7.6 Regardless of the drawbacks and [[handicaps]], every new [[revelation]] of truth has given rise to a new [[cult]], and even the restatement of the [[religion]] of [[Jesus]] must [[develop]] a new and appropriate [[symbolism]]. Modern man must find some adequate symbolism for his new and expanding [[ideas]], [[ideals]], and [[loyalties]]. This enhanced [[symbol]] must arise out of religious living, [[spiritual]] [[experience]]. And this higher symbolism of a higher [[civilization]] must be predicated on the [[concept]] of the [[Fatherhood]] of [[God]] and be [[pregnant]] with the mighty [[ideal]] of the brotherhood of man.
87:7.7 The old cults were too [[egocentric]]; the new must be the outgrowth of applied [[love]]. The new cult must, like the old, foster sentiment, satisfy [[emotion]], and promote [[loyalty]]; but it must do more: It must facilitate [[spiritual]] [[progress]], enhance [[cosmic]] [[meanings]], augment [[moral]] [[values]], [[encourage]] [[social]] [[development]], and [[stimulate]] a high type of [[personal]] religious living. The new cult must provide [[supreme]] goals of living which are both [[temporal]] and [[eternal]]—[[social]] and [[spiritual]].
87:7.8 No cult can [[endure]] and [[contribute]] to the [[progress]] of [[social]] [[civilization]] and [[individual]] [[spiritual]] [[attainment]] unless it is based on the [[biologic]], [[sociologic]], and [[religious]] significance of the [[home]]. A surviving cult must [[symbolize]] that which is permanent in the [[presence]] of unceasing [[change]]; it must [[glorify]] that which unifies the [[stream]] of ever-changing [[social]] [[metamorphosis]]. It must [[recognize]] true [[meanings]], exalt [[beautiful]] relations, and [[glorify]] the good [[values]] of real [[nobility]].
87:7.9 But the great [[difficulty]] of finding a new and satisfying [[symbolism]] is because [[modern]] men, as a [[group]], adhere to the [[scientific]] [[attitude]], eschew [[superstition]], and abhor [[ignorance]], while as [[individuals]] they all crave [[mystery]] and [[venerate]] the [[unknown]]. No [[cult]] can [[survive]] unless it embodies some masterful [[mystery]] and conceals some worthful unattainable. Again, the new [[symbolism]] must not only be significant for the [[group]] but also meaningful to the [[individual]]. The forms of any serviceable [[symbolism]] must be those which the [[individual]] can carry out on his own [[initiative]], and which he can also enjoy with his fellows. If the new [[cult]] could only be [[dynamic]] instead of [[static]], it might really [[contribute]] something worth while to the [[progress]] of [[mankind]], both [[temporal]] and [[spiritual]].
87:7.10 But a [[cult]]—a symbolism of [[rituals]], slogans, or goals—will not [[function]] if it is too [[complex]]. And there must be the demand for [[devotion]], the [[response]] of [[loyalty]]. Every [[effective]] [[religion]] unerringly develops a worthy [[symbolism]], and its devotees would do well to prevent the crystallization of such a [[ritual]] into cramping, deforming, and stifling stereotyped [[ceremonials]] which can only [[handicap]] and retard all [[social]], [[moral]], and [[spiritual]] [[progress]]. No cult can [[survive]] if it retards moral [[growth]] and fails to foster [[spiritual]] [[progress]]. The [[cult]] is the [[skeletal]] [[structure]] around which grows the living and dynamic [[body]] of [[personal]] [[spiritual]] [[experience]]—true [[religion]].
87:7.11 Presented by a [[Brilliant Evening Star]] of [[Nebadon]].
<center>[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_87 Go to Paper 87]</center>
<center>[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=The_Urantia_Text_-_Contents Go to Table of Contents]</center>
[[Category:Paper 87 - The Ghost Cults]]
87:7.1 The [[cult]] [[type]] of [[social]] [[organization]] [[persisted]] because it provided a [[symbolism]] for the preservation and [[stimulation]] of [[moral]] sentiments and religious [[loyalties]]. The [[cult]] grew out of the [[traditions]] of "old families" and was perpetuated as an [[established]] [[institution]]; all [[families]] have a [[cult]] of some sort. Every [[inspiring]] [[ideal]] grasps for some perpetuating [[symbolism]]—seeks some [[technique]] for [[cultural]] [[manifestation]] which will insure [[survival]] and augment [[realization]]—and the [[cult]] [[achieves]] this end by fostering and gratifying [[emotion]].
87:7.2 From the [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_68 dawn of civilization] every appealing [[movement]] in [[social]] [[culture]] or [[religious]] advancement has developed a [[ritual]], a symbolic [[ceremonial]]. The more this [[ritual]] has been an [[unconscious]] [[growth]], the stronger it has gripped its devotees. The [[cult]] preserved sentiment and satisfied [[emotion]], but it has always been the greatest obstacle to [[social]] reconstruction and [[spiritual]] [[progress]].
87:7.3 Notwithstanding that the [[cult]] has always retarded [[social]] [[progress]], it is regrettable that so many [[modern]] believers in [[moral]] [[standards]] and [[spiritual]] [[ideals]] have no adequate [[symbolism]]—no [[cult]] of [[mutual]] [[support]]—nothing to belong to. But a religious cult cannot be [[manufactured]]; it must grow. And those of no two [[groups]] will be identical unless their rituals are [[arbitrarily]] [[standardized]] by [[authority]].
87:7.4 The early [[Christian]] cult was the most [[effective]], appealing, and enduring of any [[ritual]] ever conceived or devised, but much of its [[value]] has been destroyed in a [[scientific]] age by the destruction of so many of its [[original]] underlying tenets. The Christian cult has been devitalized by the loss of many [[fundamental]] [[ideas]].
87:7.5 In the [[past]], [[truth]] has [[grown]] rapidly and expanded freely when the [[cult]] has been elastic, the symbolism expansile. [[Abundant]] [[truth]] and an [[adjustable]] cult have favored rapidity of [[social]] [[progression]]. A meaningless cult vitiates religion when it attempts to supplant [[philosophy]] and to enslave [[reason]]; a genuine cult grows.
87:7.6 Regardless of the drawbacks and [[handicaps]], every new [[revelation]] of truth has given rise to a new [[cult]], and even the restatement of the [[religion]] of [[Jesus]] must [[develop]] a new and appropriate [[symbolism]]. Modern man must find some adequate symbolism for his new and expanding [[ideas]], [[ideals]], and [[loyalties]]. This enhanced [[symbol]] must arise out of religious living, [[spiritual]] [[experience]]. And this higher symbolism of a higher [[civilization]] must be predicated on the [[concept]] of the [[Fatherhood]] of [[God]] and be [[pregnant]] with the mighty [[ideal]] of the brotherhood of man.
87:7.7 The old cults were too [[egocentric]]; the new must be the outgrowth of applied [[love]]. The new cult must, like the old, foster sentiment, satisfy [[emotion]], and promote [[loyalty]]; but it must do more: It must facilitate [[spiritual]] [[progress]], enhance [[cosmic]] [[meanings]], augment [[moral]] [[values]], [[encourage]] [[social]] [[development]], and [[stimulate]] a high type of [[personal]] religious living. The new cult must provide [[supreme]] goals of living which are both [[temporal]] and [[eternal]]—[[social]] and [[spiritual]].
87:7.8 No cult can [[endure]] and [[contribute]] to the [[progress]] of [[social]] [[civilization]] and [[individual]] [[spiritual]] [[attainment]] unless it is based on the [[biologic]], [[sociologic]], and [[religious]] significance of the [[home]]. A surviving cult must [[symbolize]] that which is permanent in the [[presence]] of unceasing [[change]]; it must [[glorify]] that which unifies the [[stream]] of ever-changing [[social]] [[metamorphosis]]. It must [[recognize]] true [[meanings]], exalt [[beautiful]] relations, and [[glorify]] the good [[values]] of real [[nobility]].
87:7.9 But the great [[difficulty]] of finding a new and satisfying [[symbolism]] is because [[modern]] men, as a [[group]], adhere to the [[scientific]] [[attitude]], eschew [[superstition]], and abhor [[ignorance]], while as [[individuals]] they all crave [[mystery]] and [[venerate]] the [[unknown]]. No [[cult]] can [[survive]] unless it embodies some masterful [[mystery]] and conceals some worthful unattainable. Again, the new [[symbolism]] must not only be significant for the [[group]] but also meaningful to the [[individual]]. The forms of any serviceable [[symbolism]] must be those which the [[individual]] can carry out on his own [[initiative]], and which he can also enjoy with his fellows. If the new [[cult]] could only be [[dynamic]] instead of [[static]], it might really [[contribute]] something worth while to the [[progress]] of [[mankind]], both [[temporal]] and [[spiritual]].
87:7.10 But a [[cult]]—a symbolism of [[rituals]], slogans, or goals—will not [[function]] if it is too [[complex]]. And there must be the demand for [[devotion]], the [[response]] of [[loyalty]]. Every [[effective]] [[religion]] unerringly develops a worthy [[symbolism]], and its devotees would do well to prevent the crystallization of such a [[ritual]] into cramping, deforming, and stifling stereotyped [[ceremonials]] which can only [[handicap]] and retard all [[social]], [[moral]], and [[spiritual]] [[progress]]. No cult can [[survive]] if it retards moral [[growth]] and fails to foster [[spiritual]] [[progress]]. The [[cult]] is the [[skeletal]] [[structure]] around which grows the living and dynamic [[body]] of [[personal]] [[spiritual]] [[experience]]—true [[religion]].
87:7.11 Presented by a [[Brilliant Evening Star]] of [[Nebadon]].
<center>[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_87 Go to Paper 87]</center>
<center>[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=The_Urantia_Text_-_Contents Go to Table of Contents]</center>
[[Category:Paper 87 - The Ghost Cults]]
