Fire

In the Urantia Book

Andon, fire discoverer

• Andon’s philosophy had been most confused; he had barely escaped becoming a fire worshiper because of the great comfort derived from his accidental discovery of fire. 63:6.2
• Andon had the idea of making fire with flint 63:2.4-7 69:6.4 81:2.9
• using fire enabled Andon to defy climate and thus forever to be independent of their animal relatives of the southern lands 63:2.6
• Though Andon, the discoverer of fire, avoided treating it as an object of worship, many of his descendants regarded the flame as a fetish or as a spirit. They failed to reap the sanitary benefits of fire because they would not burn refuse. 69:6.4
• When asked where fire came from, the simple story of Andon and the flint was soon replaced by the legend of how some Prometheus stole it from heaven. 81:2.9

Benefits and dangers

• Fire building, by a single bound, forever separated man from animal; it is the basic human invention, or discovery. Fire was a great civilizer 52:1.5 69:6.2-3 81:2.3-8
• fire opened the doors to metalwork and led to the subsequent discovery of steam power and the present-day uses of electricity. 69:6.8
• civilization is going backwards today; came out from savagery by way of fire, animals, and slavery and now seeks energy in nature 69:8.12
• in continental and most developed country in a neighbor planet all buildings are fireproof 72:7.4
• spiritual flames consume mortal bodies in translation during light and life ages 55:2.4-5

Ancient mores

• the ideas of supernatural origin led directly to fire worship, and fire worship led to the custom of “passing through fire,” a practice carried on up to the times of Moses. 69:6.6
• primitives held fire in superstitious regard; they regarded it as fetish 66:5.20 69:6.4-5 88:1.2
• Primitive man feared fire and always sought to keep it in good humor, hence the sprinkling of incense. 69:6.4
• Fire and water were always considered the best means of resisting ghosts and evil spirits 69:6.2 83:4.6 87:6.12
• early methods of detecting crime consisted in conducting ordeals of poison, fire, and pain. 70:10.5

Jesus

• the Sanhedrin passed an unprecedented decree closing synagogues throughout Palestine to Jesus and his followers. The Hebron synagogue refused and was soon destroyed by fire. 154:2.1
• John Mark brought seven good-sized fish, which the Master put on the fire, and when they were cooked, the lad served them to the ten. 192:1.8
• Peter warmed himself in Annas’ courtyard by a fire 184:2.2-7

Persians

• Andrew had presented Teherma to Simon for instruction. Simon looked upon the Persian as a “fire worshiper,” although Teherma took great pains to explain that fire was only the visible symbol of the Pure and Holy One. (141:6.1,3)
• Fire was mixed up with magic in the minds of primitive fear-ridden mortals. Fire reverence reached its height in Persia, where it long persisted. 85:4.4
• Zoroaster did not teach the worship of fire but sought to utilize the flame as a symbol of the pure and wise Spirit of universal and supreme dominance. All too true, his later followers did both reverence and worship this symbolic fire. 95:6.4

Bible parallels

Passages that the paragraphs cited above parallel, quote or reinterpret, from Duane Faw’s Paramony cross-references. Hover a reference to read it.

• Fire fetish 69:6.4 — Ex 13:21-22.
• Fire from Gods 69:6.6 — Gn 19:24; 1 Ki 18:38; Lv 9:24; Lv 10:1-2.
• Passing through fire 69:6.6 — 2 Ki 16:3.
• Water baptism 87:6.12 — Mt 3:6,11; Mk 1:4-5,8; Lk 3:3,7,16; Jn 1:25-26,31,33; Jn 3:22-23; Acts 1:5.
• Jesus serves breakfast 192:1.8 — Jn 21:12-13.
• Peter warms self 184:2.2 — Mk 14:54b; Lk 22:55; Jn 18:18.
• Fire reverence 85:4.4 — 2 Ki 16:3; 2 Ch 33:6; 2 Macc 1:18-22; Lv 18:21; Jer 32:35; Ezk 16:21.
• Fire reverence (Hanuka) 85:4.4 — 1 Macc 4:52-59.

Where it appears

Fire is linked in 4 paragraphs of the text.

What links here