Jesus Delivers the Urmia Lectures 

On April 1, 24 CE, during his thirtieth year, Jesus began to travel to the Caspian Sea as a caravan conductor. On the way, he happened to visit Urmia, an old Persian city situated on the western shore of Lake Urmia. While enjoying a period of rest there, Jesus met Cymboyton, a wealthy merchant, who had built a lecture amphitheater dedicated to the “spirit of religion.” Classes were held daily in this amphitheater, and Jesus participated in some of them. When he was ready to resume his journey, Jesus promised Cymboyton that he would come back and deliver twenty-four lectures over a two-week period. The lectures were to be on the theme of the “Brotherhood of Men.”

When Jesus returned from his trip to the Caspian, he went back to Urmia as arranged, and among other lectures, he gave three significant talks. The themes of these three talks were: “Sovereignty – Divine and Human,” “Political Sovereignty,” and “Law, Liberty, and Sovereignty.”

The Urmia temple that was built by Cymboton and his three sons was dedicated to the furtherance of religion. The faculty of this temple represented more than thirty religions and at the time that Jesus visited there on his way to the Caspian, about seventy-five teachers were in residence. All of these teachers were accredited and supported by their respective groups and were evaluated regularly. Any who interfered with the smooth and harmonious character of the community were replaced.

There was an effort among the faculty to highlight the similarities of the doctrines of the various religions that were represented at the discussions, but only one doctrine was required to earn a seat on the faculty. That doctrine was the belief and recognition of God or a supreme Deity.

Most of the teachers represented a religion, but there were several who were independent teachers and not representative of any established religion. Jesus came before them as one of these unaffiliated teachers. He participated in these discussions on several occasions before he resumed his trip to the Caspian Sea, promising Cymboyton that on his return trip, he would deliver twenty-four talks on “The Brotherhood of Man.” These lectures included discussions on the “Kingdom of God” and the “Kingdoms of Men.”

When Jesus returned from the Caspian, he lived in this religious community for two weeks, delivering his formal lectures. Jesus never before or after said so much on one subject as he did at Urmia.

The political, cultural, and religious conditions in the times of Jesus were significantly different from those of our 21st-century world. Consequently, the content of these lectures was rephrased to reflect our modern times.

The foundation of the brotherhood of men lies in the fatherhood of God, rooted in his love. The kingdom of heaven, a divine government, is based on the spiritual fact of divine sovereignty. Religious peace is only possible when different faiths recognize God's spirit sovereignty, refraining from presuming superiority or exclusive authority. To achieve lasting harmony, religions must give up the idea of ecclesiastical authority and embrace the concept that God alone is spirit sovereign.

Equality among religions and religious liberty can only be sustained if all religions consent to transferring religious sovereignty to a superhuman level – God himself. The kingdom of heaven in human hearts fosters religious unity without requiring uniformity, as it frees believers from notions of authority residing in a church. All individuals are spiritually equal, and this equality transcends castes, classes, social levels, and economic groups; all are brethren in the kingdom of heaven.

If the spirit sovereignty of God is ignored, religious dissension and wars may arise as one religion asserts superiority over another. Freewill beings may be tempted to seek power over others unless they acknowledge themselves as subject to some super-sovereignty. Lasting religious peace necessitates the complete surrender of notions of divine favor, chosen people, and religious sovereignty. True harmony emerges only when God the Father is recognized as supreme, leading to the unity of humans as religious siblings in peace on earth.

The nearly constant warfare on earth is linked to the misguided belief in limitless national sovereignty. There exist only two levels of relative sovereignty: the spiritual free will of individuals and the collective sovereignty of all humanity. All other groupings and associations between these levels are temporary and valuable only if they contribute to individual welfare and planetary progress.

Religious teachers should emphasize that God's spiritual sovereignty surpasses all intermediate loyalties. The rule of the Most Highs aims at the greatest good for the majority of humankind over extended periods. There is no concept of a "chosen people." Sovereignty grows through organization, progressing from the family to the government of all humans.

Political sovereignty develops through the surrender of self-determinism, starting with individuals in families and expanding to larger political entities. Lasting peace requires individual nations to relinquish their powers to a global government, transcending the limitations of international leagues.

As the number of sovereign nations decreases, the need for global governance increases. Peace will only prevail when nations surrender their war-making powers to a representative world government with control over land, air, and naval forces.

The nations of earth must abandon the illusions of self-determination for global tranquility. In a world government, small and large nations will be equally powerful. Supernational sovereignty for the planetary government will be established for the benefit of nations and all humanity.

The evolution of political sovereignty must culminate in the government of all people. All other sovereignties are relative, intermediate, and subordinate. With increasing scientific progress, wars risk becoming increasingly devastating, highlighting the urgent need for a global government to ensure lasting peace and worldwide goodwill among humanity.

For true freedom to exist, individuals who value freedom must recognize that everyone desires the same freedom. Peaceful coexistence requires laws that ensure equal freedom for all. Religion enables spiritual unity, but global governance is necessary to address social, economic, and political challenges for human happiness.

As long as political sovereignty is divided among nation-states, wars will persist. The solution is a global government, as seen in the harmonious coexistence of the fifty American states, which surrendered individual sovereignty for national peace and unity.

War is a symptom of the real disease: the delusion of national sovereignty. To prevent global wars, nations must create genuine world sovereignty. Local, national, and international affairs will be managed by respective governments.

World peace requires more than treaties and alliances; it demands world law enforced by global government – the sovereignty of all humankind. Under such governance, individual liberties will flourish, and the fallacy of self-determination will end. Global regulation of money and trade will usher in an era of worldwide peace, with the potential of a global language and a shared global viewpoint on religion.

True collective security includes all of humanity. The political sovereignty of a representative world government is the key to lasting peace on earth, complemented by the spiritual fraternity of humans, ensuring goodwill among all. There is no other path to realizing peace and goodwill on earth.