Nothing Real Can Be Threatened

Wed, 21 Dec 2005 21:24:46 GMT

Christmas as the End of Sacrifice

The sign of Christmas is a star, a light in darkness. See it not outside yourself, but shining in the Heaven within, and accept it as the sign the time of Christ has come. He comes demanding nothing. No sacrifice of any kind, of anyone, is asked by Him. In His Presence the whole idea of sacrifice loses all meaning.

This Christmas give the Holy Spirit everything that would hurt you. Let yourself be healed completely that you may join with Him in healing, and let us celebrate our release together by releasing everyone with us. Leave nothing behind, for release is total, and when you have accepted it with me you will give it with me. All pain and sacrifice and littleness will disappear in our relationship, which is as innocent as our relationship with our Father, and as powerful. Pain will be brought to us and disappear in our presence, and without pain there can be no sacrifice. And without sacrifice ther love must be.

Let no despair darken the joy of Christmas, for the time of Christ is meaningless apart from joy. Let us join in celebrating peace by demanding no sacrifice of anyone, for so you offer me the love I offer you. What can be more joyous than to perceive we are deprived of nothing? Such is the message of the time of Christ, which I give you that you may give it and return it to the Father, Who gave it to me.

I give you to the Holy Spirit as part of myself.
I know that you will be released, unless I want to use you to imprison myself.
In the name of my freedom I choose your release, because I recognize that we will be released together.

So will the year begin in joy and freedom. There is much to do, and we have been log delayed. Accept the holy instant as this year is born, and take your place, so long left unfulfilled, in the Great Awakening. Make this year different by making it all the same. And let all your relationships be made holy for you. This is our will. Amen.

seriously?

Sat, 17 Dec 2005 17:31:23 GMT

Seriously!

There is an A Course in Miracles game! http://www.shiftthegame.com/

Sun, 04 Dec 2005 15:20:27 GMT

I'm reading a tough (for me) part of the Course - I haven't gotten much further than my last post.

I was thinking about forgiveness. I find it much easier to forgive others than I do myself. Particularly in situations where I acted like an ass. Am I holding myself to some sort of standard that I'm not holding others to? Why is it easier to forgive them? I have many "excuses" for myself, from the level of form right on up to the Course's idea of forgiveness, it's clear that I have not forgiven myself. And although it's less and less often, I still beat myself up about that one situation.

sigh. on the ng

Sun, 27 Nov 2005 15:28:27 GMT

I stated in my first journal post that I created this journal to give myself a background with the goal of being accepted at the moderated news group - but I have changed my mind. It seems to me, that the moderated version is run by the "negative nellies" and free speech is not allowed. Even if the un-moderated version is rampant with "trolls" - I think free speech is better. And one thought I have about the troll - when she is not so bogged down in her insults, she sometimes gives good criticism. You just have to dig far and wide to find it.

I have never been afraid to see all sides of an issue. The people at the ng are very self-referential and have relationships that go back many years. One thing I noticed is that they discuss other boards, issues and old discussions but don't link to them, so lurkers (like me) often go for a very long time not knowing what the hell they are talking about. ((I find this weird b/c in my secular journal we all link to everything all the time!)) Recently someone finally posted a link to Awakening the Open Mind, and from there I found links to other stuff they had been talking about. ATOM is not very active, but I decided that that is where I will sign up and join and ask questions.

And just so my thousands of readers (ahem.) can see for themselves, here are the links...

The moderated news group.
The un-moderated news group.
Awakening the Open Mind

special

Sat, 26 Nov 2005 17:39:11 GMT

Special Love = Special Hate

I'm reading a part called "the Treachery of Specialness" - and I seem to struggle with this part. I don't have much problem letting go of my special hates, but I DO have trouble letting go of my special loves. Particularly with my cats. And my fiance. And my family and friends. And that I am special. If I love my cats more, then I must love some other animal less, and if I love my friends and family more, then I must love someone else less.

So, I'm reading and it says "You are not special." I immediately think of Fight Club and Tyler Durden saying, "You are not special. You are not a beautiful or unique snowflake. You're the same decaying organic matter as everything else." and "You're the all-singing, all-dancing crap of the world."

I have nothing profound or insightful to say about this - I just thought it was funny that Jesus and Tyler say the same thing for completely different ends. But J makes non-specialness beautiful instead of degrading: "He is in need of your acceptance of himself as part of you, as you for his. You are alike to God as God is to Himself. He is not special, for He would not keep one part of what He is unto Himself, not given to His Son but kept for Him alone. And it is this you fear, for if He is not special, then He willed His Son to be like Him, and your brother is like you. Not special, but possessed of everything, including you. Give him but what he has, remembering God gave Himself to you and your brother in equal love, that both might share the universe with Him Who chose that love could never be divided, and kept separate from what it is and must forever be."

hi

Fri, 25 Nov 2005 20:36:52 GMT

I haven't updated this journal for a few days. I haven't been reading the Course, I sorta got distracted by a John Irving novel for a few days. :-)

I've never been good at asking for things. Asking for anything. It's pretty extreme sometimes... I remember not asking for toothpaste when I was in high school after emptying the tube. I've known this for a long time (thanks Drew!) and it's something I've been working on little by little, over the years.

For the past couple of weeks I have working extra hard on it, but instead of asking people for things, I've been asking the Holy Spirit to help me with my insomnia. I figure that is the best way to build a relationship of trust. Then, later, I can move on to other problems that I have, and I can ask for help with those. Practicing asking for help is just as vital as practicing forgivness. At least for me it is.

And let me tell you, it's working! I had a little problem last night, but I think that had to do with the coffee I drank after too-much-turkey. But I have been sleeping pill free 2 weeks! I got an attitude of gratitude....

clarification of terms

Sat, 19 Nov 2005 18:49:16 GMT

Mind - Spirit

The term mind is used to represent the activating agent of spirit, supplying its creative energy. When the term is capitalized it refers to God or Christ (i.e., the Mind of God or the MInd of Christ). Spirit is the Thought of God which He created like Himself. The unified spirit is God's one Son, or Christ.

In this world, because the mind is split, the Sons of God appear to be separate. ... In this illusory state, the concept of an "individual mind" seems to be meaningful. It is therefore described in the course as if it has two parts; spirit and ego.

The term "soul" is not used except in direct biblical quotations because of its highly controversial nature.

The mind can be right or wrong, depending on the voice to which it listens. Right-mindedness listens to the Holy Spirit, forgives the world, and through Christ's vision sees the real world in its place.

Wrong-mindedness listens to the ego and makes illusions; perceiving sin and justifying anger, and seeing guilt, disease and death as real.

In this world the only remaining freedom is the freedom of choice; always between two choices or two voices. ... Consciousness is the receptive mechanism, receiving messages from above or below; from the Holy Spirit or the ego.

----------------------------------------

I've read this many times, and this is a shortened version, but this time I noticed that the Voice of the Course (supposedly Jesus) does NOT capitalize "biblical".

I did good

Thu, 17 Nov 2005 14:06:07 GMT

I kept my mouth shut all weekend long. Not one peep. Of course, no one asked, either. Sometimes I think that is the only downfall to a MM, that so few good discussions take place, that I never find out what is truly happening in the lives of the people I hang out with. I'm too busy laughing!

Every time I have tried to explain the concepts behind the Course I have failed to achieve understanding. I have been thinking of a new "presentation" that I would like to try out. Now all I need is a victim, I mean volunteer. I mean victim, er, I mean volunteer. I'm not a very good writer, but perhaps I should think about a written presentation...

sometimes the Course is funny

Thu, 17 Nov 2005 13:51:18 GMT

"The wrapping does not make the gift you give. An empty box, however beautiful and gently given, still contains nothing. And neither the receiver nor the giver is long decieved." T23,3,2

Tue, 15 Nov 2005 15:24:37 GMT

Sometimes I read the most beautiful things, and I want to share them.

"Joy is unlimited, because each shining thought of love extends its being and creates more of itself."

T22,14,8

14,7

Tue, 08 Nov 2005 14:08:38 GMT

What do you want? Light or darkness, knowledge or ignorance are yours, but not both.

The search for truth is but the honest searching out of everything that interferes with truth. Truth is. It can neither be lost nor sought nor found. It is there, wherever you are, being within you. Yet it can be recognized or unrecognized, real or false to you.

It is not possible to convince the unkowing that they know. From their point of view it is not true.

Light cannot enter darkness when a mind believes in darkness, and will not let it go. Truth does not struggle against ignorance, and love does not attack fear. What needs no protection does not defend itself. Defense is of your making. God knows it not.

the miracle

Sat, 05 Nov 2005 18:07:04 GMT

Since this is a course in miracles, I suppose I ought to think about what a miracle is.

Strangely, it's a little ambiguous. In the Clarification of Terms, it basically tells you what the ego is, and then says a miracle is the ego's opposite. "What is the ego? Nothingness, but in a form that seems like something." And then later, "The ego's opposite in every way, -in origin, effect and consequence - we call a miracle." Even later still, "What is a miracle? A dream as well." And "The miracle forgives; the ego damns. Neither need be defined except by this."

Chapter 1 is "The Meaning of Miracles" and goes at great length to give attributes of miracles. They are natural, they are habits, they occur naturally as an expression of love, they are beginnings and endings, they are teaching devices, they are thoughts, there is no order of difficulty.

The miracle is the Atonement. Atonement is defined differently in the Course than in regular Xtianity. Here the atonement is not the amends or reparation for sin, but rather THE shift in perception that comes from practicing forgiveness. It's aka as Enlightenment, the Christ-mind or Buddha-mind. The miracle manifests on the level of form as "thoughts of forgiveness". Every thought of forgiveness is a miracle, and when you practice thinking with "miracle mindedness" so often that it becomes habit, perception shifts and Voila! Atonement. Now you think like God instead of like a human.

That "no order of difficulty" business is very important. It's the first sentence of the whole she-bang. "There is no order of difficulty in miracles. One is not "harder" or "bigger" than another. They are all the same. All expressions of love are maximal."

This means that to forgive the person who butted in front of you in line at the movies and forgiving the (add personal hard-to-forgive situation here) terrorists that blew up WTC is exactly the same thing.

Why forgive at all? There are a seemingly endless situations where anger, hatred and judgment appear to be necessary.

Well, to forgive implies that there was condemnation. The Course teaches that the world we live in an illusion, that the truth is we are all One in Heaven right NOW. What you see around you (the universe) is all one colossal bad dream and we have simply FORGOTTEN the Truth of our Oneness. God has never forgiven us, because God never condemned us. He simply ignores the dream, knowing it's not true. If we are all perfectly innocent in Heaven, then there is no need to condemn our fellow human beings for transgressions, since they never happened at all.

Practicing forgiveness is the ONLY action or thought here on the level of form that moves away from the ego's plan to maintain the illusion and toward the Truth of God. I've been practicing practicing forgiveness for almost a year, and while I am no where near perfect (on the level of form) I'm getting better at it.

Thu, 03 Nov 2005 20:28:27 GMT

I've been thinking about the random quote today... It's part of a bigger discussion of "you are what you teach" with "teaching" being a larger context than a classroom. What I think it really means is you teach what you are, and you can choose that.

Let's say you are angry. Your pissed at the world, the government, your family, God, a particular race, an ex-lover, what have you. Maybe (on the plus side) you use that anger to get out there and do something about it.... you demonstrate, you write letters, you journal endlessly about the injustices of the world in your blog. But what are you doing, really? You are perpetuating, increasing and expanding that anger. Teaching others (and thus yourself) that you are anger, that it's ok to be angry, and how to express that anger.

Whether we want to be teachers or not, we are. What are you teaching?

Imagine teaching love. If you demonstrate with your actions that you have love for every single person on this earth (no matter how seemingly vile and repugnant), then you perpetuate, increase and expand love. You teach yourself and others that you are love, it's ok to love and how to express that love.

Now imagine every single person on earth teaching love.

random quote

Thu, 03 Nov 2005 14:42:59 GMT

When you teach anyone that truth is true, you learn it with him. T14,2,5

what I don't like...

Tue, 01 Nov 2005 15:01:33 GMT

He, His, Him, God, Son, Sonship, Brother. Nary a She, Sister or Goddess to be had.

God is sexless, and words are just symbols, so I let it go. And I remember that the whole thing is written for a specific audience, namely Xtians. Focus on the message, not the words.

I forgot to mention that one of the things I really like is the "When I said"s. It's always a correction of the Bible. The Course doesn't really judge the Bible as being wrong... it just quietly and consistently corrects its mistakes. An example:

When I said "I am come as a light into the world," I meant that I came to share the light with you. Remember my reference to the ego's dark glass, and remember also that I said, "Do not look there." It is still true that where you look to find yourself is up to you. Your patience with your brother is your patience with yourself. Is not a child of God worth patience? I have shown you infinite patience because my will is that of our Father, from Whom I learned of infinite patience. T5,6,11

These are some of the examples of upside-down thinking in the New Testament, although its gospel is really only the message of love. If the Apostles had not felt guilty, they never could have quoted me as saying, "I come not to bring peace but a sword." This is clearly the opposite of everything I taught. Nor could they have described my reactions to Judas as they did, if they had really understood me. I could not have said, "Betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss?" unless I believed in betrayal. The whole message of the crudifixion was simply that I did not. The "punishment" I was said to have called forth upon Judas was a similar mistake. Judas was my brother and a Son of God, as much a part of the Sonship as myself. Was it likely that I would condemn him when I was ready to demonstrate that condemnation is impossible? T6,1,15

One of the greatest Course one-liners is in the next paragraph....

I do not call for martyrs but for teachers.

me, now

Tue, 01 Nov 2005 01:00:25 GMT

Things I really like about the Course:

It never claims to be the-one-and-only-way-through-Jesus. It does claim that the only way to peace is to change how you think.

It never directs you how to behave, only how to think. There are no morality and Thou-Shalt-Nots here.

It's very design and structure does not lend itself to any organization (read: religion) of any kind. It is an individual workbook.

It does not aim to change the world. It aims to change how you think about the world.

It redefines Love as all-encompassing.

It's writing is beautiful.

clarification of terms

Tue, 01 Nov 2005 00:39:37 GMT

The name of Jesus is the name of one who was a man but saw the face of Christ in all his brothers and remembered God. So he became identified with Christ, a man no longer, but at one with God. The man was an illusion, for he seemed to be a separate being, walking by himself, within a body that appeared to hold his self from Self, as all issusions do. ... Is he the Christ? O yes, along with you. His little life on earth was not enough to teach the mighty lesson that he learned for all of you. He will remain with you to lead you from the hell you made to God. .... Is he God's only Helper? No, indeed. For Christ takes many forms with different names until their oneness can be recognized.

God or the Ego

Tue, 01 Nov 2005 00:15:40 GMT

It is impossible not to believe what you see, but it equally impossible to see what you do not believe. Perceptions are built up on the basis of experience, and experience leads to beliefs. It is not until beliefs are fixed that perceptions stabilize. In effect, then, what you believe you do see. This is what I meant when I said, "Blessed are ye how have not seen and still believe," for those who believe in the resurrection will see it. The resurrection is the complete triumph of Christ over the ego, not by attack but by transcendence.

T11,VI,1

On Judgment.

Mon, 31 Oct 2005 16:18:54 GMT

I've never been comfortable with the concept of sin or evil. Happily, the Course teaches that there is no such thing. If Jesus died for our sins, why does the concept of sin still exist? The obvious answer is that Jesus did not die for our sins.

Why, then, did Jesus die? Or better yet, since that question is loaded with presumption, Did Jesus die?

The resurrection clearly shows that Jesus did not die. He returned again and again to show that death is an illusion and the body did not matter.

The Course teaches that God never condemned because we are still perfectly innocent in Heaven. God simply dismisses the ego-illusion we call the universe because it has never been. If God does not judge us, why do we judge each other? If we are all one, then to judge another is to judge yourself.

When you meet anyone, remember it is a holy encounter. As you see him you will see yourself. As you treat him you will treat yourself. As you think of him you will think of yourself. Never forget this, for in him you will find yourself or lose yourself. Whenever two Sons of God meet, they are given another chance at salvation. Do not leave anyone without giving salvation to him and receiving it yourself. For I am always there with, in remembrance of you.

The Goal of Truth

Sun, 30 Oct 2005 17:36:03 GMT

In any situation in which you are uncertain, the first thing to consider, very simply, is "What do I want to come of this? What is it for?" The clarification of the goal belongs at the beginning, for it is this which will determine the outcome. In the ego's procedure this is reversed. The situation becomes the determiner of the outcome, which can be anything. The reason for this disorganized approach is evident. The ego does not know what it wants to come of the situation. It is aware of what it does not want, but only that. It has no positive goal at all.

Without a clear-cut, positive goal, set at the outset, the situation just seems to happen, and makes no sense until it has already happened. Then you look back on it, and try to piece together what it must have meant. And you will be wrong. Not only is your judgment in the past, but you have no idea what should happen. No goal was set with which to bring the means in line. And now the only judgment left to make is whether or not the ego likes it; it is acceptable, or does it call for vengeance? The absence of a criterion for outcome, set in advance, makes understanding doubtful and evaluation impossible.

The value of deciding in advance what you want to happen is simply that you will perceive the situation as a means to make it happen. You will therefore make every effort to overlook what interferes with the accomplishment of your objective, and concentrate on everything that helps you meet it. It is quite noticeable that this approach has brought you closer to the Holy Spirit's sorting out of truth and falsity. The true becomes what can be used to meet the goal. The false becomes the useless from this point of view. The situation now has meaning, but only because the goal has made it meaningful.

The goal of truth has further practical advantages. If the situation is used for truth and sanity, its outcome must be peace. And this is quite apart from what the outcome is. If peace is the condition of truth and sanity, and cannot be without them, where peace is they must be. Truth comes of itself. If you experience peace, it is because the truth has come to you and you will see the outcome truly, for deception cannot prevail against you. You will recognize the outcome because you are at peace. Here again you see the opposite of the ego's way of looking, for the ego believes the situation brings the experience. The Holy Spirit knows that the situation is as the goal determines it, and is experienced according to the goal.

The goal of truth requires faith. Faith is implicit in the acceptance of the Holy Spirit's purpose, and this faith is all-inclusive. Where the goal of truth is set, there faith must be. The Holy Spirit sees the situation as a whole. The goal establishes the fact that everyone involved in it will play his part in its accomplishment. This is inevitable. No one will fail in anything. This seems to ask for faith beyond you, and beyond what you can give. Yet this is so only from the viewpoint of the ego, for the ego believes in "solving" conflict through fragmentation, and does not perceive the situation as whole. Therefore, it seeks to split off segments of the situation and deal with them separately, for it has faith in separation and not in wholeness.

Confronted with any aspect of the situation that seems to be difficult, the ego will attempt to take this aspect elsewhere, and resolve it there. And it will seem to be successful, except that this attempt conflicts with unity, and must obscure the goal of truth. And peace will not be experienced except in fantasy. Truth has not come because faith has been denied, being withheld from where it rightfully belonged. Thus do you lose the understanding of the situation the goal of truth would bring. For fantasy solutions bring but the illusion of experience, and the illusion of peace is not the condition in which truth can enter.

This passage struck me deeply. Not only in the big picture, but in the everyday ego-oriented way. And it struck me again when I was embroiled in an "evolution/creationist" discussion. For most people, the goal is not the truth, but to support their view of the world, viewing it from the past and then trying to make sense out of it.

Why Ambrosius19?

Sun, 30 Oct 2005 16:42:06 GMT

Absolutely nothing to do with ACIM.

Ambrosius is my cat who lived to the age of 19. After weeks of trying to think of something profound for a new username, I gave up and decided to honor my most beloved kitty.

ok! so here it is!

Sun, 30 Oct 2005 16:23:34 GMT

I'm hoping to keep all my ACIM related posts here. I am a smidgen over half way through the Text. I try to practice forgiveness, but I slack on the lessons. I have few friends in real life that are interested in my ACIM stuff, so I separated (HA! "separated") my LJ life into 2: this one for practicing forgiveness posts and the other for ego-related life.

Also, I have found little in the way of ACIM communities online. I have been lurking the car-wreck of a newsgroup http://groups.google.com/group/talk.religion.course-miracle but after lurking for a long time, I refuse to join. My availability to blogs and groups is hampered by strong firewalls at work and I am pretty much stuck with LJ and Google groups. Part of my motivation for this journal is to create a back ground to refer to for joining the moderated version of the above newsgroup. It's a small newsgroup and I have a pretty good idea that they might be paranoid about a newcomer, and after having lurked for 6 months or more at the unmoderated one, I understand where they are coming from.

So, sometimes (admit it, alot of the time) I feel rather isolated with an inability to communicate about ACIM. My friends don't want to hear it and my boyfriend doesn't want to hear it. If I do discuss it with them, I feel uncomfortable using Course terminology. More on this later.

So, this space is for me. I am happy to share this part of my life. Howver, this is not the place for mean-spirited attacks or sarcastic barbs. Curiosity and thoughtful, polite skepticism are welcome.

I plan, for now, to keep my posts public, and maybe find some other folks on LJ that are interested.