The First Chinese Conference: An Unprecedented International Endeavor

2 posts · 1 participants · started Dec 23, 2020, 9:56 AM

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   Richard E WarrenParticipant
   Dec 23, 2020, 9:56 AM

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   Urantia Foundation News: Oct 1, 2020:

   The First Chinese Conference: An Unprecedented International Endeavor

   By Vicki Heng Fan Yang, Chinese Translation Team Member, California, United States.

   I am a longtime Urantia Book reader who was born in Taiwan in 1947. I moved to the United States in the 1970s, but I return to Taiwan and China often and maintain a good connection there. You could say that I have brought what I’ve learned in the west back to the east, and that includes the fifth epochal revelation.

   For many years I have studied and been very active in a spiritual organization called A Course in Light (ACIL). At one point I published an article about The Urantia Book on our website. Richard Zhu saw that article and contacted me. The rest, you could say, is history. I began collaborating with Richard on his Chinese translation in early 2015.

   For the past several years I have been sharing quotes from The Urantia Book with ACIL students online. Interest in the book is increasing, so I decided to hold a gathering to further inform them about The Urantia Book and its history. The conference was to be in Taichung, Taiwan. It is a city in the middle of the country. Not only do we have many students in Taichung, people from either the north or south can get there in two hours.

   It was scheduled for late March, and we registered over 100 truthseekers, all students of ACIL, who have become interested in adding The Urantia Book to their spiritual repertoire. Sadly, the global pandemic thwarted our plans, causing us to postpone and reschedule as a Zoom gathering in early September.

   The logistics of this online meeting were no easy feat. Time zones spanned the globe, from Taiwan in the east, to San Francisco and Chicago in the United States, and as far west as Paris. But we rearranged the agenda to accommodate local times, and through the magic of electronics were able to greet each other face to face. We attracted 102 attendees from Taiwan and 26 more from China.

   Our two days were filled with a mixture of Urantia Book–related presentations, interspersed with prayer and meditations. Presentations were given by: Richard Zhu, translator of The Urantia Book into Chinese; Georges Michelson-Dupont, Urantia Foundation Trustee and Manager of Translations; Tamara Strumfeld, executive director of Urantia Foundation; Susanne Kelly of Dallas, Texas, a longtime reader and very good friend; and Meifeng, one of my students from Taiwan, who presented on “Universal Gravity vs. Creating Reality by Belief.”

   The rest of this fascinating story, including comments from the other translator, Richard Zhu, Urantia Foundation representative Tamara Strumfeld, presenter Suzanne Kelly, and translation manager Georges Michelson-Dupont, are at this link: https://www.urantia.org/news/2020-10/first-chinese-conference-unprecedented-international-endeavor

    

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   Richard E Warren

2. RE

   Richard E WarrenParticipant
   Dec 23, 2020, 9:57 AM

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   Chinese Conference Generates Enthusiasm for The Urantia Book

   By Vicki Heng Fan Yang, Chinese Translation Team Member, California, United States

   I would like to share some of the gratifying comments that I received from the participants of our first Chinese conference of prospective readers of The Urantia Book. I hope this heartwarming feedback will give you a glimpse of the fertile soil that awaits the seeds of the revelation in Mainland China and Taiwan. The enthusiasm of my students fuels my own as I continue to work with Richard Zhu on the Chinese translation of The Urantia Book into both Simplified and Traditional characters. I am also looking forward to planning and hosting another Urantia conference for Chinese-speaking readers in the near future.

   Tina’s Observations

   “Those three precious Saturdays were like a spiritual feast of inspiring topics. The speakers chose to focus on topics that would appeal to those of us who had not yet read the entire Urantia Book but had been exposed to the teachings through weekly quotes sent by Vicki.
   “Richard Zhu’s talk about the ascending journey to Paradise clearly gave us a whole new picture of the Universal Father’s plan and the huge and detailed organization. As students of ACIL, we have been taught that ‘all is in perfect Divine order.’ What we accepted by faith before, The Urantia Book now gives us in detailed and concrete revelations!

   “Both Mei Fong and Richard gave talks that were rich in content and wisdom, using examples, such as synonyms or analogies, to compare key concepts in The Urantia Book with familiar Chinese sayings from ancient books and classic scriptures. I appreciated their use of repeated, proven wisdom to help us increase understanding and build sincere faith. Universal truth rings true no matter at which time and in which culture.

   “Last but not least, I would like to show my appreciation to Vicki, who has been sending us excerpts from The Urantia Book every Sunday for the past two years. Though difficult to follow in the beginning, they helped me to expand and upgrade my consciousness. The more I am involved, the more I love to read the book. And the more I read, the better I understand.”
   “While listening to the talks, I was inspired to paint a Mandala ‘Flower of Life.’ My theme was, ‘We all come from the stars.’ I was trying to express my love and sense of belonging to the universe. From universes, stars, planets, time and space worlds, humans, to the plants in nature, we are all creations from the Creator. We are family!” ~ Tina

   Fun’s Comments

   “Having heard that Vicki Yang, the translator of A Course in Light, had suggested The Urantia Book as an advanced study course, I searched the Internet with curiosity. I did not find many Chinese references, so I stopped looking. Later, I joined a Urantia Book study group on WeChat. Though I slowly gained some degree of understanding, the giant book scared me. Without a Chinese translation, it would be impossible for me to read it.

   “Fortunately, I discovered the conference, and signed up without hesitation. I was overjoyed with the three-day series, and many of my questions were answered. The timing of this conference was fortuitous. If it had been held two years earlier, I might not have understood it at all. There were high-quality speakers who helped bring me into this expanded belief system step by step. I was especially moved by Vicki’s and Richard Zhu’s devotion and contributions.

   “Though most Chinese people may not be quite ready to read this book, I believe that in a few years more will be inspired by it. I believe a single spark can start a wildfire. So, I have set up a public account on social media, sharing some information. Although there are not yet many followers, with such a large Chinese population, it is inevitable and necessary that we will advance spiritually.”

   Reactions from Chu Li

   “I benefited a lot from the conference. It’s like I was instantly expanded, and I heard the inner voice from deep within. I understood the meaning of my life. I gratefully decided that I will not only study The Urantia Book carefully, but I will also do my part to help share the wisdom of the revelators. We are looking forward to the Chinese version.”

   Source/more Urantia Foundation News Stories: https://www.urantia.org/news/2020-12/chinese-conference-generates-enthusiasm-urantia-book

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   Richard E Warren

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