A Course In Miracles Text

8/8/2019 A Course In Miracles Text

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Chapter 1The %eaning of %iracles

&rinci"les of %iracles

'. There is no order of difficulty in miracles. One is not (harder( or (bigger( than another. They are all the same. )llex"ressions of love are maximal.

*. %iracles as such do not matter. The only thing that matters is their source which is far beyond evaluation.+. %iracles occur naturally as ex"ressions of love. The real miracle is the love that ins"ires them. In this senseeverything that comes from love is a miracle.

,. )ll miracles mean life and -od is the giver of life. is voice will direct you very s"ecifically. /ou will be told all youneed to know.

0. %iracles are habits and should be involuntary. They should not be under conscious control. Consciously selectedmiracles can be misguided.

1. %iracles are natural. 2hen they do not occur something has gone wrong.

3. %iracles are everyone!s right but "urification is necessary first.

4. %iracles are healing because they su""ly a lack5 they are "erformed by those who tem"orarily have more for thosewho tem"orarily have less.

6. %iracles are a kind of exchange. 7ike all ex"ressions of love which are always miraculous in the true sense theexchange reverses the "hysical laws. They bring more love both to the giver and the receiver.

'8. The use of miracles as s"ectacles to induce belief is a misunderstanding of their "ur"ose.

''. &rayer is the medium of miracles. It is a means of communication of the created with the Creator. Through "rayerlove is received and through miracles love is ex"ressed.

'*. %iracles are thoughts. Thoughts can re"resent the lower or bodily level of ex"erience or the higher or s"irituallevel of ex"erience. One makes the "hysical and the other creates the s"iritual.

'+. %iracles are both beginnings and endings and so they alter the tem"oral order. They are always affirmations ofrebirth which seem to go back but really go forward. They undo the "ast in the "resent and thus release the future.

',. %iracles bear witness to truth. They are convincing because they arise from conviction. 2ithout conviction theydeteriorate into magic which is mindless and therefore destructive5 or rather the uncreative use of mind.

'0. Each day should be devoted to miracles. The "ur"ose of time is to enable you to learn how to use time

constructively. It is thus a teaching device and a means to an end. Time will cease when it is no longer useful infacilitating learning.

'1. %iracles are teaching devices for demonstrating it is as blessed to give as to receive. They simultaneouslyincrease the strength of the giver and su""ly strength to the receiver.

'3. %iracles transcend the body. They are sudden shifts into invisibility away from the bodily level. That is why theyheal.

'4. ) miracle is a service. It is the maximal service you can render to another. It is a way of loving your neighbor asyourself. /ou recogni9e your own and your neighbor!s worth simultaneously.

'6. %iracles make minds one in -od. They de"end on coo"eration because the :onshi" is the sum of all that -odcreated. %iracles therefore reflect the laws of eternity not of time.

*8. %iracles reawaken the awareness that the s"irit not the body is the altar of truth. This is the recognition thatleads to the healing "ower of the miracle.

*'. %iracles are natural signs of forgiveness. Through miracles you acce"t -od!s forgiveness by extending it toothers.

**. %iracles are associated with fear only because of the belief that darkness can hide. /ou believe that what your"hysical eyes cannot see does not exist. This leads to a denial of s"iritual sight.

*+. %iracles rearrange "erce"tion and "lace all levels in true "ers"ective. This is healing because sickness comesfrom confusing the levels.

*,. %iracles enable you to heal the sick and raise the dead because you made sickness and death yourself and cantherefore abolish both. /ou are a miracle ca"able of creating in the likeness of your Creator. Everything else is yourown nightmare and does not exist. Only the creations of light are real.

*0. %iracles are "art of an interlocking chain of forgiveness which when com"leted is the )tonement. )tonementworks all the time and in all the dimensions of time.

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*1. %iracles re"resent freedom from fear. ()toning( means (undoing.( The undoing of fear is an essential "art of the)tonement value of miracles.

*3. ) miracle is a universal blessing from -od through me to all my brothers. It is the "rivilege of the forgiven toforgive.

*4. %iracles are a way of earning release from fear. ;evelation induces a state in which fear has already beenabolished. %iracles are thus a means and revelation is an end.

*6. %iracles "raise -od through you. They "raise him by honoring his creations affirming their "erfection. They heal

because they deny body#identification and affirm s"irit#identification.+8.


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directly with your brother. @either emanates from consciousness but both are ex"erienced there. Consciousness isthe state that induces action though it does not ins"ire it. /ou are free to believe what you choose and what you doattests to what you believe.

;evelation is intensely "ersonal and cannot be meaningfully translated. That is why any attem"t to describe it inwords is im"ossible. ;evelation induces only ex"erience. %iracles on the other hand induce action. They are moreuseful now because of their inter"ersonal nature. In this "hase of learning working miracles is im"ortant becausefreedom from fear cannot be thrust u"on you. ;evelation is literally uns"eakable because it is an ex"erience ofuns"eakable love.

)we should be reserved for revelation to which it is "erfectly and correctly a""licable. It is not a""ro"riate formiracles because a state of awe is worshi"ful im"lying that one of a lesser order stands before his Creator. /ou are a"erfect creation and should ex"erience awe only in the &resence of the Creator of "erfection. The miracle istherefore a sign of love among equals. Equals should not be in awe of one another because awe im"lies inequality. Itis therefore an ina""ro"riate reaction to me. )n elder brother is entitled to res"ect for his greater ex"erience andobedience for his greater wisdom. e is also entitled to love because he is a brother and to devotion if he is devoted.It is only my devotion that entitles me to yours. There is nothing about me that you cannot attain. I have nothing thatdoes not come from -od. The difference between us now is that I have nothing else. This leaves me in a state whichis only "otential in you.

(@o man cometh unto the Father but by me( does not mean that I am in any way se"arate or different from youexce"t in time and time does not really exist. The statement is more meaningful in terms of a vertical rather than ahori9ontal axis. /ou stand below me and I stand below -od. In the "rocess of (rising u"( I am higher becausewithout me the distance between -od and man would be too great for you to encom"ass. I bridge the distance as anelder brother to you on the one hand and as a :on of -od on the other. %y devotion to my brothers has "laced me in

charge of the :onshi" which I render com"lete because I share it. This may a""ear to contradict the statement (I andmy Father are one( but there are two "arts to the statement in recognition that the Father is greater.

;evelations are indirectly ins"ired by me because I am close to the oly :"irit and alert to the revelation#readinessof my brothers. I can thus bring down to them more than they can draw down to themselves. The oly :"irit mediateshigher to lower communication kee"ing the direct channel from -od to you o"en for revelation. ;evelation is notreci"rocal. It "roceeds from -od to you but not from you to -od.

The miracle minimi9es the need for time. In the longitudinal or hori9ontal "lane the recognition of the equality of themembers of the :onshi" a""ears to involve almost endless time. owever the miracle entails a sudden shift fromhori9ontal to vertical "erce"tion. This introduces an interval from which the giver and receiver both emerge fartheralong in time than they would otherwise have been. The miracle thus has the unique "ro"erty of abolishing time tothe extent that it renders the interval of time it s"ans unnecessary. There is no relationshi" between the time amiracle takes and the time it covers. The miracle substitutes for learning that might have taken thousands of years. Itdoes so by the underlying recognition of "erfect equality of giver and receiver on which the miracle rests. Themiracle shortens time by colla"sing it thus eliminating certain intervals within it. It does this however within the

larger tem"oral sequence.

)tonement and %iracles

I am in charge of the "rocess of )tonement which I undertook to begin. 2hen you offer a miracle to any of mybrothers you do it to yourself and me. The reason you come before me is that I do not need miracles for my own)tonement but I stand at the end in case you fail tem"orarily. %y "art in the )tonement is the canceling out of allerrors that you could not otherwise correct. 2hen you have been restored to the recognition of your original stateyou naturally become "art of the )tonement yourself. )s you share my unwillingness to acce"t error in yourself andothers you must =oin the great crusade to correct it5 listen to my voice learn to undo error and act to correct it. The"ower to work miracles belongs to you. I will "rovide the o""ortunities to do them but you must be ready and willing.?oing them will bring conviction in the ability because conviction comes through accom"lishment. The ability is the"otential the achievement is its ex"ression and the )tonement which is the natural "rofession of the children of-od is the "ur"ose.

(eaven and earth shall "ass away( means that they will not continue to exist as se"arate states. %y word which is

the resurrection and the life shall not "ass away because life is eternal. /ou are the work of -od and his work iswholly lovable and wholly loving. This is how a man must think of himself in his heart because this is what he is.

The forgiven are the means of the )tonement.


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establish your kingdom where you see fit but the right choice is inevitable if you remember this$

Spirit is in a state of grace forever.Your reality is only spirit.

Therefore you are in a state of grace forever.

)tonement undoes all errors in this res"ect and thus u"roots the source of fear. 2henever you ex"erience -od!sreassurances as threat it is always because you are defending mis"laced or misdirected loyalty. 2hen you "ro=ectthis to others you im"rison them but only to the extent to which you reinforce errors they have already made. Thismakes them vulnerable to the distortions of others since their own "erce"tion of themselves is distorted. The

miracle worker can only bless them and this undoes their distortions and frees them from "rison.

/ou res"ond to what you "erceive and as you "erceive so shall you behave. The -olden ;ule asks you to do untoothers as you would have them do unto you. This means that the "erce"tion of both must be accurate. The -olden;ule is the rule for a""ro"riate behavior. /ou cannot behave a""ro"riately unless you "erceive correctly. :ince youand your neighbor are equal members of one family as you "erceive both so you will do to both. /ou should look outfrom the "erce"tion of your own holiness to the holiness of others.

%iracles arise from a mind that is ready for them.


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The basic decision of the miracle#minded is not to wait on time any longer than is necessary. Time can waste as wellas be wasted. The miracle worker therefore acce"ts the time#control factor gladly. e recogni9es that every colla"seof time brings everyone closer to the ultimate release from time in which the :on and the Father are One. Equalitydoes not im"ly equality now. 2hen everyone recogni9es that he has everything individual contributions to the:onshi" will no longer be necessary.

2hen the )tonement has been com"leted all talents will be shared by all the :ons of -od. -od is not "artial. )ll hischildren have his total love and all his gifts are freely given to everyone alike. (Exce"t ye become as little children(means that unless you fully recogni9e your com"lete de"endence on -od you cannot know the real "ower of the

:on in his true relationshi" with the Father. The s"ecialness of -od!s :ons does not stem from exclusion but frominclusion. )ll my brothers are s"ecial. If they believe they are de"rived of anything their "erce"tion becomesdistorted. 2hen this occurs the whole family of -od or the :onshi" is im"aired in its relationshi"s.

>ltimately every member of the family of -od must return. The miracle calls him to return because it blesses andhonors him even though he may be absent in s"irit. (-od is not mocked( is not a warning but a reassurance. -odwould be mocked if any of his creations lacked holiness. The creation is whole and the mark of wholeness isholiness. %iracles are affirmations of :onshi" which is a state of com"letion and abundance.

2hatever is true is eternal and cannot change or be changed. :"irit is therefore unalterable because it is already"erfect but the mind can elect what it chooses to serve. The only limit "ut on its choice is that it cannot serve twomasters. If it elects to do so the mind can become the medium by which s"irit creates along the line of its owncreation. If it does not freely elect to do so it retains its creative "otential but "laces itself under tyrannous ratherthan )uthoritative control. )s a result it im"risons because such are the dictates of tyrants. To change your mindmeans to "lace it at the dis"osal of true )uthority.

The miracle is a sign that the mind has chosen to be led by me in Christ!s service. The abundance of Christ is thenatural result of choosing to follow him. )ll shallow roots must be u"rooted because they are not dee" enough tosustain you. The illusion that shallow roots can be dee"ened and thus made to hold is one of the distortions onwhich the reverse of the -olden ;ule rests. )s these false under"innings are given u" the equilibrium is tem"orarilyex"erienced as unstable. owever nothing is less stable than an u"side#down orientation. @or can anything thatholds it u"side down be conducive to increased stability.

The Illusion of @eeds

/ou who want "eace can find it only by com"lete forgiveness. @o learning is acquired by anyone unless he wants tolearn it and believes in some way that he needs it. 2hile lack does not exist in the creation of -od it is very a""arentin what you have made. It is in fact the essential difference between them. 7ack im"lies that you would be better offin a state somehow different from the one you are in. >ntil the (se"aration( which is the meaning of the (fall(nothing was lacking. There were no needs at all. @eeds arise only when you de"rive yourself. /ou act according tothe "articular order of needs you establish. This in turn de"ends on your "erce"tion of what you are.

) sense of se"aration from -od is the only lack you really need correct. This sense of se"aration would never havearisen if you had not distorted your "erce"tion of truth and had thus "erceived yourself as lacking. The idea of orderof needs arose because having made this fundamental error you had already fragmented yourself into levels withdifferent needs. )s you integrate you become one and your needs become one accordingly. >nified needs lead tounified action because this "roduces a lack of conflict.

The idea of orders of need which follows from the original error that one can be se"arated from -od requirescorrection at its own level before the error of "erceiving levels at all can be corrected. /ou cannot behave effectivelywhile you function on different levels. owever while you do correction must be introduced vertically from thebottom u". This is because you think you live in s"ace where conce"ts such as (u"( and (down( are meaningful.>ltimately s"ace is as meaningless as time.


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?istortions of %iracle Im"ulses

/our distorted "erce"tions "roduce a dense cover over miracle im"ulses making it hard for them to reach your ownawareness. The confusion of miracle im"ulses with "hysical im"ulses is a ma=or "erce"tual distortion. &hysicalim"ulses are misdirected miracle im"ulses. )ll real "leasure comes from doing -od!s will. This is because not doingit is a denial of self. ?enial of self results in illusions while correction of the error brings release from it. ?o notdeceive yourself into believing that you can relate in "eace to -od or to your brothers with anything external.

Child of -od you were created to create the good the beautiful and the holy. ?o not forget this. The love of -od fora little while must still be ex"ressed through one body to another because vision is still so dim. /ou can use your

body best to hel" you enlarge your "erce"tion so you can achieve real vision of which the "hysical eye is inca"able.7earning to do this is the body!s only true usefulness.

Fantasy is a distorted form of vision. Fantasies of any kind are distortions because they always involve twisting"erce"tion into unreality. )ctions that stem from distortions are literally the reactions of those who know not whatthey do. Fantasy is an attem"t to control reality according to false needs. Twist reality in any way and you are"erceiving destructively. Fantasies are a means of making false associations and attem"ting to obtain "leasure fromthem.


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given you for your =oy in creating the "erfect.

)ll fear is ultimately reducible to the basic mis"erce"tion that you have the ability to usur" the "ower of -od. Ofcourse you neither can nor have been able to do this. ere is the real basis for your esca"e from fear. The esca"e isbrought about by your acce"tance of the )tonement which enables you to reali9e that your errors never reallyoccurred. Only after the dee" slee" fell u"on )dam could he ex"erience nightmares. If a light is suddenly turned onwhile someone is dreaming a fearful dream he may initially inter"ret the light itself as "art of his dream and be afraidof it. owever when he awakens the light is correctly "erceived as the release from the dream which is then nolonger accorded reality. This release does not de"end on illusions. The knowledge that illuminates not only sets you

free but also shows you clearly that you are free.2hatever lies you may believe are of no concern to the miracle which can heal any of them with equal ease. It makesno distinctions among mis"erce"tions. Its sole concern is to distinguish between truth on the one hand and error onthe other. :ome miracles may seem to be of greater magnitude than others.


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defense is inherently weak "recisely because it has two edges and can be turned against you very unex"ectedly.This "ossibility cannot be controlled exce"t by miracles. The miracle turns the defense of )tonement to your real"rotection and as you become more and more secure you assume your natural talent of "rotecting others knowingyourself as both a brother and a :on.

The )ltar of -od

The )tonement can only be acce"ted within you by releasing the inner light. :ince the se"aration defenses havebeen used almost entirely to defend against the )tonement and thus maintain the se"aration. This is generally seenas a need to "rotect the body. The many body fantasies in which minds engage arise from the distorted belief that the

body can be used as a means for attaining (atonement. (&erceiving the body as a tem"le is only the first ste" incorrecting this distortion because it alters only "art of it. It does recogni9e that )tonement in "hysical terms isim"ossible. The next ste" however is to reali9e that a tem"le is not a structure at all. Its true holiness lies at theinner altar around which the structure is built. The em"hasis on beautiful structures is a sign of the fear of)tonement and an unwillingness to reach the altar itself. The real beauty of the tem"le cannot be seen with the"hysical eye. s"iritual sight on the other hand cannot see the structure at all because it is "erfect vision. It canhowever see the altar with "erfect clarity.

For "erfect effectiveness the )tonement belongs at the center of the inner altar where it undoes the se"aration andrestores the wholeness of the mind.


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of a learning device can do is to fail to facilitate learning. It has no "ower in itself to introduce actual learning errors.The body if "ro"erly understood shares the invulnerability of the )tonement to two#edged a""lication. This is notbecause the body is a miracle but because it is not inherently o"en to misinter"retation. The body is merely "art ofyour ex"erience in the "hysical world. Its abilities can be and frequently are over evaluated. owever it is almostim"ossible to deny its existence in this world. Those who do so are engaging in a "articularly unworthy form ofdenial. The term (unworthy( here im"lies only that it is not necessary to "rotect the mind by denying the unmindful. Ifone denies this unfortunate as"ect of the mind!s "ower one is also denying the "ower itself.

)ll material means that you acce"t as remedies for bodily ills are restatements of magic "rinci"les. This is the first

ste" in believing that the body makes its own illness. It is a second misste" to try to heal it through non#creativeagents. It does not follow however that the use of such agents for corrective "ur"oses is evil. :ometimes the illnesshas a sufficiently strong hold over the mind to render a "erson tem"orarily inaccessible to the )tonement. In thiscase it may be wise to utili9e a com"romise a""roach to mind and body in which something from the outside istem"orarily given healing belief. This is because the last thing that can hel" the non#right#minded or the sick is anincrease in fear. They are already in a fear#weakened state. If they are "rematurely ex"osed to a miracle they may be"reci"itated into "anic. This is likely to occur when u"side#down "erce"tion has induced the belief that miracles arefrightening.

The value of the )tonement does not lie in the manner in which it is ex"ressed. In fact if it is used truly it willinevitably be ex"ressed in whatever way is most hel"ful to the receiver. This means that a miracle to attain its fullefficacy must be ex"ressed in a language that the reci"ient can understand without fear. This does not necessarilymean that this is the highest level of communication of which he is ca"able. It does mean however that it is thehighest level of communication of which he is ca"able now. The whole aim of the miracle is to raise the level ofcommunication not to lower it by increasing fear.

The Function of the %iracle 2orker


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to look beyond it toward the light.

Corrective learning always begins with the awakening of s"irit and the turning away from the belief in "hysical sight.This often entails fear because you are afraid of what your s"iritual sight will show you. I said before that the oly:"irit cannot see error and is ca"able only of looking beyond it to the defense of )tonement. There is no doubt thatthis may "roduce discomfort yet the discomfort is not the final outcome of the "erce"tion. 2hen the oly :"irit is"ermitted to look u"on the defilement of the altar he also looks immediately toward the )tonement. @othing he"erceives can induce fear. Everything that results from s"iritual awareness is merely channeli9ed toward correction.?iscomfort is aroused only to bring the need for correction into awareness.

The fear of healing arises in the end from an unwillingness to acce"t unequivocally that healing is necessary. 2hatthe "hysical eye sees is not corrective nor can error be corrected by any device that can be seen "hysically. )s longas you believe in what your "hysical sight tells you your attem"ts at correction will be misdirected. The real vision isobscured because you cannot endure to see your own defiled altar.


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Fear and Conflict


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real influence because you are actually afraid of them. This may allay awareness of the guilt but at the cost of"erceiving the mind as im"otent. If you believe that what you think is ineffectual you may cease to be afraid of it butyou are hardly likely to res"ect it. There are no idle thoughts. )ll thinking "roduces form at some level.

Cause and Effect

/ou may still com"lain about fear but you nevertheless "ersist in making yourself fearful. I have already indicatedthat you cannot ask me to release you from fear. I know it does not exist but you do not. If I intervened between yourthoughts and their results I would be tam"ering with a basic law of cause and effect5 the most fundamental law thereis. I would hardly hel" you if I de"reciated the "ower of your own thinking. This would be in direct o""osition to the

"ur"ose of this course. It is much more hel"ful to remind you that you do not guard your thoughts carefully enough./ou may feel that at this "oint it would take a miracle to enable you to do this which is "erfectly true. /ou are notused to miracle#minded thinking but you can be trained to think that way. )ll miracle workers need that kind oftraining.

I cannot let you leave your mind unguarded or you will not be able to hel" me. %iracle working entails a fullreali9ation of the "ower of thought in order to avoid miscreation. Otherwise a miracle will be necessary to set themind itself straight a circular "rocess that would not foster the time colla"se for which the miracle was intended. Themiracle worker must have genuine res"ect for true cause and effect as a necessary condition for the miracle to occur.


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The 7ast udgment is one of the most threatening ideas in your thinking. This is because you do not understand it.udgment is not an attribute of -od. It was brought into being only after the se"aration when it became one of themany learning devices to be built into the overall "lan. ust as the se"aration occurred over millions of years the7ast udgment will extend over a similarly long "eriod and "erha"s an even longer one. Its length can however begreatly shortened by miracles the device for shortening but not abolishing time. If a sufficient number become trulymiracle#minded this shortening "rocess can be virtually immeasurable. It is essential however that you freeyourself quickly because you must emerge from the conflict if you are to bring "eace to other minds.

The 7ast udgment is generally thought of as a "rocedure undertaken by -od. )ctually it will be undertaken by my

brothers with my hel". It is a final healing rather than a meting out of "unishment however much you may think that"unishment is deserved. &unishment is a conce"t totally o""osed to right#mindedness and the aim of the 7astudgment is to restore right#mindedness to you. The 7ast udgment might be called a "rocess of right evaluation. Itsim"ly means that everyone will finally come to understand what is worthy and what is not. )fter this the ability tochoose can be directed rationally. >ntil this distinction is made however the vacillations between free andim"risoned will cannot but continue.

The first ste" toward freedom involves a sorting out of the false from the true. This is a "rocess of se"aration in theconstructive sense and reflects the true meaning of the )"ocaly"se. Everyone will ultimately look u"on his owncreations and choose to "reserve only what is good =ust as -od himself looked u"on what he had created and knewthat it was good. )t this "oint the mind can begin to look with love on its own creations because of their worthiness.)t the same time the mind will inevitably disown its miscreations which without belief will no longer exist.

The term (7ast udgment( is frightening not only because it has been "ro=ected onto -od but also because of theassociation of (last( with death. This is an outstanding exam"le of u"side#down "erce"tion. If the meaning of the7ast udgment is ob=ectively examined it is quite a""arent that it is really the doorway to life. @o one who lives in

fear is really alive. /our own last =udgment cannot be directed toward yourself because you are not your owncreation. /ou can however a""ly it meaningfully and at any time to everything you have made and retain in yourmemory only what is creative and good. This is what your right#mindedness cannot but dictate. The "ur"ose of timeis solely to (give you time( to achieve this =udgment. It is your own "erfect =udgment of your own "erfect creations.2hen everything you retain is lovable there is no reason for fear to remain with you. This is your "art in the)tonement.

Cha"ter +The Innocent &erce"tion

)tonement without :acrifice

) further "oint must be "erfectly clear before any residual fear still associated with miracles can disa""ear. Thecrucifixion did not establish the )tonement5 the resurrection did. %any sincere Christians have misunderstood this.@o one who is free of the belief in scarcity could "ossibly make this mistake. If the crucifixion is seen from an u"side#down "oint of view it does a""ear as if -od "ermitted and even encouraged one of is :ons to suffer because hewas good. This "articularly unfortunate inter"retation which arose out of "ro=ection has led many "eo"le to bebitterly afraid of -od. :uch anti#religious conce"ts enter into many religions. /et the real Christian should "ause andask (ow could this beA( Is it likely that -od imself would be ca"able of the kind of thinking which is Own wordshave clearly stated is unworthy of is :onA

The best defense as always is not to attack another!s "osition but rather to "rotect the truth. It is unwise to acce"tany conce"t if you have to invert a whole frame of reference in order to =ustify it. This "rocedure is "ainful in its minora""lications and genuinely tragic on a wider scale. &ersecution frequently results in an attem"t to (=ustify( theterrible mis"erce"tion that -od imself "ersecuted is Own :on on behalf of salvation. The very words aremeaningless. It has been "articularly difficult to overcome this because although the error itself is no harder tocorrect than any other many have been unwilling to give it u" in view of its "rominent value as a defense. In milderforms a "arent says (This hurts me more than it hurts you( and feels exonerated in beating a child. Can you believeour Father really thinks this wayA It is so essential that all such thinking be dis"elled that we must be sure thatnothing of this kind remains in your mind. I was not ("unished( because you were bad. The wholly benign lesson the

)tonement teaches is lost if it is tainted with this kind of distortion in any form.

The statement (Dengeance is mine sayeth the 7ord( is a mis"erce"tion by which one assigns his own (evil( "ast to-od. The (evil( "ast has nothing to do with -od. e did not create it and e does not maintain it. -od does notbelieve in retribution. is %ind does not create that way. e does not hold your (evil( deeds against you. Is it likelythat e would hold them against meA


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learning failure.

I have been correctly referred to as (the lamb of -od who taketh away the sins of the world( but those who re"resentthe lamb as blood#stained do not understand the meaning of the symbol. Correctly understood it is a very sim"lesymbol that s"eaks of my innocence. The lion and the lamb lying down together symboli9e that strength andinnocence are not in conflict but naturally live in "eace. (


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must be straightened out before you can know anything. To know is to be certain and certainty is strength.&erce"tion is tem"orary. )s an attribute of the belief in s"ace and time it is sub=ect either to fear or to love.%is"erce"tions "roduce fear and true "erce"tions foster love but neither brings certainty because all "erce"tionvaries. That is why it is not knowledge. True "erce"tion is the basis for knowledge but knowing is the affirmation oftruth and beyond all "erce"tions.

)ll your difficulties stem from the fact that you do not recogni9e yourself your brother or -od. To recogni9e meansto (know again( im"lying that you knew before. /ou can see in many ways because "erce"tion involvesinter"retation and this means that it is not whole or consistent. The miracle being a way of "erceiving is not

knowledge. It is the right answer to a question but you do not question when you know. Guestioning illusions is thefirst ste" in undoing them. The miracle or the right answer corrects them. :ince "erce"tions change theirde"endence on time is obvious. ow you "erceive at any given time determines what you do and actions must occurin time. Bnowledge is timeless because certainty is not questionable. /ou know when you have ceased to askquestions.

The questioning mind "erceives itself in time and therefore looks for future answers. The closed mind believes thefuture and the "resent will be the same. This establishes a seemingly stable state that is usually an attem"t tocounteract an underlying fear that the future will be worse than the "resent. This fear inhibits the tendency toquestion at all.

True vision is the natural "erce"tion of s"iritual sight but it is still a correction rather than a fact. :"iritual sight issymbolic and therefore not a device for knowing. It is however a means of right "erce"tion which brings it into the"ro"er domain of the miracle. ) (vision of -od( would be a miracle rather than a revelation. The fact that "erce"tionis involved at all removes the ex"erience from the realm of knowledge. That is why visions however holy do not last.

The ntil you first "erceive him as he is you cannotknow him. 2hile you ask questions about him you are clearly im"lying that you do not know -od. Certainty does notrequire action. 2hen you say you are acting on the basis of knowledge you are really confusing knowledge with"erce"tion. Bnowledge "rovides the strength for creative thinking but not for right doing. &erce"tion miracles anddoing are closely related. Bnowledge is the result of revelation and induces only thought. Even in its mosts"irituali9ed form "erce"tion involves the body. Bnowledge comes from the altar within and is timeless because it iscertain. To "erceive the truth is not the same as to know it.

;ight "erce"tion is necessary before -od can communicate directly to is altars which e established in is :ons.There e can communicate is certainty and is knowledge will bring "eace without question. -od is not a strangerto is :ons and is :ons are not strangers to each other. Bnowledge "receded both "erce"tion and time and willultimately re"lace them. That is the real meaning of ()l"ha and Omega the beginning and the end( and (


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;ight#mindedness is not to be confused with the knowing mind because it is a""licable only to right "erce"tion. /oucan be right#minded or wrong#minded and even this is sub=ect to degrees clearly demonstrating that knowledge isnot involved. The term (right#mindedness( is "ro"erly used as the correction for (wrong#mindedness( and a""lies tothe state of mind that induces accurate "erce"tion. It is miracle#minded because it heals mis"erce"tion and this isindeed a miracle in view of how you "erceive yourself.

&erce"tion always involves some misuse of mind because it brings the mind into areas of uncertainty. The mind isvery active. 2hen it chooses to be se"arated it chooses to "erceive. >ntil then it wills only to know. )fterwards it canonly choose ambiguously and the only way out of ambiguity is clear "erce"tion. The mind returns to its "ro"er

function only when it wills to know. This "laces it in the service of s"irit where "erce"tion is changed. The mindchooses to divide itself when it chooses to make its own levels.


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forgiveness because those who have been forgiven have everything. Once forgiveness has been acce"ted "rayer inthe usual sense becomes utterly meaningless. The "rayer for forgiveness is nothing more than a request that youmay be able to recogni9e what you already have. In electing "erce"tion instead of knowledge you "laced yourself ina "osition where you could resemble your Father only by "erceiving miraculously. /ou have lost the knowledge thatyou yourself are a miracle of -od. Creation is your :ource and your only real function.

The statement (-od created man in his own image and likeness( needs reinter"retation. (Image( can be understoodas (thought( and (likeness( as (of a like quality. (-od did create s"irit in is Own Thought and of a quality like tois Own. There is nothing else. &erce"tion on the other hand is im"ossible without a belief in (more( and (less. ()t

every level it involves selectivity. &erce"tion is a continual "rocess of acce"ting and re=ecting organi9ing andreorgani9ing shifting and changing. Evaluation is an essential "art of "erce"tion because =udgments are necessaryin order to select.

2hat ha""ens to "erce"tions if there are no =udgments and nothing but "erfect equalityA &erce"tion becomesim"ossible. Truth can only be known. )ll of it is equally true and knowing any "art of it is to know all of it. Only"erce"tion involves "artial awareness. Bnowledge transcends the laws governing "erce"tion because "artialknowledge is im"ossible. It is all one and has no se"arate "arts. /ou who are really one with it need but knowyourself and your knowledge is com"lete. To know -od!s miracle is to know im.

Forgiveness is the healing of the "erce"tion of se"aration. Correct "erce"tion of your brother is necessary becauseminds have chosen to see themselves as se"arate. :"irit knows -od com"letely. That is its miraculous "ower. Thefact that each one has this "ower com"letely is a condition entirely alien to the world!s thinking. The world believesthat if anyone has everything there is nothing left.


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I have s"oken of different sym"toms and at that level there is almost endless variation. There is however only onecause for all of them$ the authority "roblem. This is (the root of all evil. (Every sym"tom the ego makes involves acontradiction in terms because the mind is s"lit between the ego and the oly :"irit so that whatever the ego makesis incom"lete and contradictory. This untenable "osition is the result of the authority "roblem which because itacce"ts the one inconceivable thought as its "remise can "roduce only ideas that are inconceivable.

The issue of authority is really a question of authorshi". 2hen you have an authority "roblem it is always becauseyou believe you are the author of yourself and "ro=ect your delusion onto others. /ou then "erceive the situation asone in which others are literally fighting you for your authorshi". This is the fundamental error of all those who

believe they have usur"ed the "ower of -od. This belief is very frightening to them but hardly troubles -od. e ishowever eager to undo it not to "unish is children but only because e knows that it makes them unha""y. -od!screations are given their true )uthorshi" but you "refer to be anonymous when you choose to se"arate yourselffrom your )uthor.


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starting "oint is truth and you must return to your ntil then you are free to crucify yourself as often as you choose. This is not the gos"el Iintended to offer you. 2e have another =ourney to undertake and if you will read these lessons carefully they willhel" "re"are you to undertake it.

;ight Teaching and ;ight 7earning

) good teacher clarifies his own ideas and strengthens them by teaching them. Teacher and "u"il are alike in thelearning "rocess. They are in the same order of learning and unless they share their lessons conviction will belacking. ) good teacher must believe in the ideas he teaches but he must meet another condition5 he must believe inthe students to whom he offers the ideas.

%any stand guard over their ideas because they want to "rotect their thought systems as they are and learningmeans change. Change is always fearful to the se"arated because they cannot conceive of it as a move towardshealing the se"aration. They always "erceive it as a move toward further se"aration because the se"aration wastheir first ex"erience of change. /ou believe that if you allow no change to enter into your ego you will find "eace.This "rofound confusion is "ossible only if you maintain that the same thought system can stand on twofoundations. @othing can reach s"irit from the ego and nothing can reach the ego from s"irit. :"irit can neitherstrengthen the ego nor reduce the conflict within it. The ego is a contradiction. /our self and -od!s self are ino""osition. They are o""osed in source in direction and in outcome. They are fundamentally irreconcilable becauses"irit cannot "erceive and the ego cannot know. They are therefore not in communication and can never be incommunication. @evertheless the ego can learn even though its maker can be misguided. e cannot however make

the totally lifeless out of the life#given.:"irit need not be taught but the ego must be. 7earning is ultimately "erceived as frightening because it leads to therelinquishment not the destruction of the ego to the light of s"irit. This is the change the ego must fear because itdoes not share my charity. %y lesson was like yours and because I learned it I can teach it. I will never attack yourego but I am trying to teach you how its thought system arose. 2hen I remind you of your true creation your egocannot but res"ond with fear.

Teaching and learning are your greatest strengths now because they enable you to change your mind and hel"others to change theirs. ;efusing to change your mind will not "rove that the se"aration has not occurred. Thedreamer who doubts the reality of his dream while he is still dreaming is not really healing his s"lit mind. /ou dreamof a se"arated ego and believe in a world that rests u"on it. This is very real to you. /ou cannot undo it by notchanging your mind about it. If you are willing to renounce the role of guardian of your thought system and o"en it tome I will correct it very gently and lead you back to -od.

Every good teacher ho"es to give his students so much of his own learning that they will one day no longer need

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him. This is the one true goal of the teacher. It is im"ossible to convince the ego of this because it goes against all ofits own laws.


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because knowledge is com"letely im"ersonal and exam"les are irrelevant to its understanding. &erce"tion howeveris always s"ecific and therefore quite concrete.

Everyone makes an ego or a self for himself which is sub=ect to enormous variation because of its instability. e alsomakes an ego for everyone else he "erceives which is equally variable. Their interaction is a "rocess that alters bothbecause they were not made by or with the unalterable. It is im"ortant to reali9e that this alteration can and doesoccur as readily when the interaction takes "lace in the mind as when it involves "hysical interaction. There could beno better exam"le that the ego is only an idea and not a fact.

/our own state of mind is a good exam"le of how the ego was made. 2hen you threw knowledge away it is as if you

never had it. This is so a""arent that one need only recogni9e it to see that it does ha""en. If this occurs in the"resent why is it sur"rising that it occurred in the "astA :ur"rise is a reasonable res"onse to the unfamiliar thoughhardly to something that occurs with such "ersistence.


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survive without =udgment and is laid aside accordingly. The mind then has only one direction in which it can move.Its direction is always automatic because it cannot but be dictated by the thought system to which it adheres.

It cannot be em"hasi9ed too often that correcting "erce"tion is merely a tem"orary ex"edient. It is necessary onlybecause mis"erce"tion is a block to knowledge while accurate "erce"tion is a ste""ingstone towards it. The wholevalue of right "erce"tion lies in the inevitable reali9ation that all "erce"tion is unnecessary. This removes the blockentirely. /ou may ask how this is "ossible as long as you a""ear to be living in this world. That is a reasonablequestion. /ou must be careful however that you really understand it. 2ho is the (you( who are living in this worldA:"irit is immortal and immortality is a constant state. It is as true now as it ever was or ever will be because it

im"lies no change at all. It is not a continuum nor is it understood by being com"ared to an o""osite. Bnowledgenever involves com"arisons. That is its main difference from everything else the mind can gras".

7ove without Conflict

It is hard to understand what (The Bingdom of eaven is within you( really means. This is because it is notunderstandable to the ego which inter"rets it as if something outside is inside and this does not mean anything. Theword (within( is unnecessary. The Bingdom of eaven is you. 2hat else but you did the Creator create and whatelse but you is his kingdomA This is the whole message which in its totality transcends the sum of its "arts. /ou toohave a kingdom that your s"irit created. It has not ceased to create because of the ego!s illusions. /our creations areno more fatherless than you are. /our ego and your s"irit will never be co#creators but your s"irit and your creatorwill always be.


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already been acce"ted. That is why we make no distinction between having the kingdom of -od and being thekingdom of -od.

The calm being of -od!s kingdom which in your sane mind is "erfectly conscious is ruthlessly banished from the"art of the mind the ego rules. The ego is des"erate because it o""oses literally invincible odds whether you areaslee" or awake. Consider how much vigilance you have been willing to exert to "rotect your ego and how little to"rotect your right mind. 2ho but the insane would undertake to believe what is not true and then "rotect this beliefat the cost of truthA

This @eed @ot


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I do not attack your ego. I do work with your higher mind the home of the oly :"irit whether you are aslee" orawake =ust as your ego does with your lower mind which is its home. I am your vigilance in this because you aretoo confused to recogni9e your own ho"e. I am not mistaken. /our mind will elect to =oin with mine and together weare invincible. /ou and your brother will yet come together in my name and your sanity will be restored. I raised thedead by knowing that life is an eternal attribute of everything that the living -od created. 2hy do you believe it isharder for me to ins"ire the dis#s"irited or to stabili9e the unstableA I do not believe that there is an order of difficultyin miracles5 you do. I have called and you will answer. I understand that miracles are natural because they areex"ressions of love. %y calling you is as natural as your answer and as inevitable.

The Ego#


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indebtedness and the holy "erce"tion it would "roduce. The term (holy( can be used here because as you learn howmuch you are indebted to the whole sonshi" which includes me you come as close to knowledge as "erce"tion can.The ga" is then so small that knowledge can easily flow across it and obliterate it forever.

/ou have very little trust in me as yet but it will increase as you turn more and more often to me instead of to yourego for guidance. The results will convince you increasingly that this choice is the only sane one you can make. @oone who learns from ex"erience that one choice brings "eace and =oy while another brings chaos and disaster needsadditional convincing. 7earning through rewards is more effective than learning through "ain because "ain is an egoillusion and can never induce more than a tem"orary effect. The rewards of -od however are immediately

recogni9ed as eternal. :ince this recognition is made by you and not the ego the recognition itself establishes thatyou and your ego cannot be identical. /ou may believe that you have already acce"ted this difference but you are byno means convinced as yet. The fact that you believe you must esca"e from the ego shows this5 but you cannotesca"e from the ego by humbling it or controlling it or "unishing it.

The ego and the s"irit do not know each other. The se"arated mind cannot maintain the se"aration exce"t bydissociating. aving done this it denies all truly natural im"ulses not because the ego is a se"arate thing butbecause you want to believe that you are. The ego is a device for maintaining this belief but it is still only yourdecision to use the device that enables it to endure.

ow can you teach someone the value of something he has deliberately thrown awayA e must have thrown it awaybecause he did not value it. /ou can only show him how miserable he is without it and slowly bring it nearer so hecan learn how his misery lessens as he a""roaches it. This teaches him to associate his misery with its absence andthe o""osite of misery with its "resence. It gradually becomes desirable as he changes his mind about its worth. I amteaching you to associate misery with the ego and =oy with the s"irit. /ou have taught yourself the o""osite. /ou arestill free to choose but can you really want the rewards of the ego in the "resence of the rewards of -odA

%y trust in you is greater than yours in me at the moment but it will not always be that way. /our mission is verysim"le. /ou are asked to live so as to demonstrate that you are not an ego and I do not choose -od!s channelswrongly. The oly One shares my trust and acce"ts my )tonement decisions because my will is never out of accordwith his. I have said before that I am in charge of the )tonement. This is only because I com"leted my "art in it as aman and can now com"lete it through others. %y chosen channels cannot fail because I will lend them my strengthas long as theirs is wanting.

I will go with you to the oly One and through my "erce"tion he can bridge the little ga". /our gratitude to yourbrother is the only gift I want. I will bring it to -od for you knowing that to know your brother is to know -od. If youare grateful to your brother you are grateful to -od for what he created. Through your gratitude you come to knowyour brother and one moment of real recognition makes everyone your brother because each of them is of yourFather. 7ove does not conquer all things but it does set all things right.


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communication is =udged to be worth undertaking.


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7et us start our "rocess of reawakening with =ust a few sim"le conce"ts$

Thoughts increase by being given a$ay.The #ore $ho believe in the# the stronger they beco#e.(verything is an idea.Ho$! then! can giving and losing be associated)

This is the invitation to the oly :"irit. I have said already that I can reach u" and bring the oly :"irit down to youbut I can bring him to you only at your own invitation. The oly :"irit is in your right mind as he was in mine. Theniversal Ins"iration taught me first andforemost that this Ins"iration is for all. I could not have It myself without knowing this. The word (know( is "ro"er inthis context because the oly :"irit is so close to knowledge that he calls it forth5 or better allows it to come. I haves"oken before of the higher or (true( "erce"tion which is so near to truth that -od himself can flow across the littlega". Bnowledge is always ready to flow everywhere but it cannot o""ose. Therefore you can obstruct it althoughyou can never lose it.

The oly :"irit is the Christ %ind which is aware of the knowledge that lies beyond "erce"tion. e came into beingwith the se"aration as a "rotection ins"iring the )tonement "rinci"le at the same time.


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other. The choice for the oly :"irit is the choice for -od. -od is not in you in a literal sense5 you are "art of him.2hen you chose to leave him he gave you a voice to s"eak for him because he could no longer share his knowledgewith you without hindrance. ?irect communication was broken because you had made another voice.

The oly :"irit calls you both to remember and to forget. /ou have chosen to be in a state of o""osition in whicho""osites are "ossible. )s a result there are choices you must make. In the holy state the will is free so that itscreative "ower is unlimited and choice is meaningless. Freedom to choose is the same "ower as freedom to createbut its a""lication is different. Choosing de"ends on a s"lit mind. The oly :"irit is one way of choosing. -od did notleave his children comfortless even though they chose to leave him. The voice they "ut in their minds was not the

voice for his will for which the oly :"irit s"eaks.The voice of the oly :"irit does not command because It is inca"able of arrogance. It does not demand because Itdoes not seek control. It does not overcome because It does not attack. It merely reminds. It is com"elling onlybecause of what It reminds you of. It brings to your mind the other way remaining quiet even in the midst of theturmoil you may make. The voice for -od is always quiet because It s"eaks of "eace. &eace is stronger than warbecause it heals. 2ar is division not increase. @o one gains from strife. 2hat "rofiteth it a man if he gain the wholeworld and lose his own soulA If you listen to the wrong voice you have lost sight of your soul. /ou cannot lose it butyou can not know it. It is therefore (lost( to you until you choose right.

The oly :"irit is your -uide in choosing. e is in the "art of your mind that always s"eaks for the right choicebecause he s"eaks for -od. e is your remaining communication with -od which you can interru"t but cannotdestroy. The oly :"irit is the way in which -od!s 2ill is done on earth as it is in heaven.


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The voice of the oly :"irit is weak in you. That is why you must share It. It must be increased in strength before youcan hear It. It is im"ossible to hear It in yourself while It is so weak in your mind. It is not weak in Itself but It islimited by your unwillingness to hear It. If you make the mistake of looking for the oly :"irit in yourself alone yourthoughts will frighten you because by ado"ting the ego!s view"oint you are undertaking an ego#alien =ourney withthe ego as guide. This is bound to "roduce fear.

?elay is of the ego because time is its conce"t.


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One you cannot be limited to the self the ego sees.

Every loving thought held in any "art of the :onshi" belongs to every "art. It is shared because it is loving. :haring is-od!s way of creating and also yours. The ego can kee" you in exile from the Bingdom but in the Bingdom itself ithas no "ower. Ideas of the s"irit do not leave the mind that thinks them nor can they conflict with each other.owever ideas of the ego can conflict because they occur at different levels and also include o""osite thoughts atthe same level. It is im"ossible to share o""osing thoughts. /ou can share only the thoughts that are of -od and thathe kee"s for you. )nd of such is the Bingdom of eaven. The rest remains with you until the oly :"irit hasreinter"reted them in the light of the Bingdom making them too worthy of being shared. 2hen they have been

sufficiently "urified he lets you give them away. The decision to share them is their "urification.I heard one voice because I understood that I could not atone for myself alone. 7istening to one voice im"lies thedecision to share It in order to hear It yourself. The %ind that was in me is still irresistibly drawn to every mindcreated by -od because -od!s wholeness is the wholeness of his :on. /ou cannot be hurt and do not want to showyour brother anything exce"t your wholeness. :how him that he cannot hurt you and hold nothing against him oryou hold it against yourself. This is the meaning of (turning the other cheek.(

Teaching is done in many ways above all by exam"le. Teaching should be healing because it is the sharing of ideasand the recognition that to share ideas is to strengthen them. I cannot forget my need to teach what I have learnedwhich arose in me because I learned it. I call u"on you to teach what you have learned because by so doing you cande"end on it. %ake it de"endable in my name because my name is the @ame of -od!s :on. 2hat I learned I give youfreely and the %ind that was in me re=oices as you choose to hear it.

The oly :"irit atones in all of us by undoing and thus lifts the burden you have "laced in your mind. se of -uilt

&erha"s some of our conce"ts will become clearer and more "ersonally meaningful if the ego!s use of guilt isclarified. The ego has a "ur"ose =ust as the oly :"irit has. The ego!s "ur"ose is fear because only the fearful canbe egotistic. The ego!s logic is as im"eccable as that of the oly :"irit because your mind has the means at itsdis"osal to side with heaven or earth as it elects.


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2hatever you acce"t into your mind has reality for you. It is your acce"tance of it that makes it real. If you enthronethe ego in your mind your allowing it to enter makes it your reality. This is because the mind is ca"able of creatingreality or making illusions. I said before that you must learn to think with -od. To think with him is to think like him.This engenders =oy not guilt because it is natural. -uilt is a sure sign that your thinking is unnatural. >nnaturalthinking will always be attended with guilt because it is the belief in sin. The ego does not "erceive sin as a lack oflove but as a "ositive act of assault. This is necessary to the ego!s survival because as soon as you regard sin as alack you will automatically attem"t to remedy the situation. )nd you will succeed. The ego regards this as doom butyou must learn to regard it as freedom.

The guiltless mind cannot suffer.


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court because you believe its =udgment would also be against you.

There are many exam"les of how the ego!s inter"retations are misleading but a few will suffice to show how the oly:"irit can reinter"ret them in his own light.

()s ye sow so shall ye rea"( he inter"rets to mean what you consider worth cultivating you will cultivate in yourself./our =udgment of what is worthy makes it worthy for you.

(Dengeance is mine sayeth the 7ord( is easily reinter"reted if you remember that ideas increase only by beingshared. The statement em"hasi9es that vengeance cannot be shared. -ive it therefore to the oly :"irit 2ho will

undo it in you because it does not belong in your mind which is "art of -od.(I will visit the sins of the fathers unto the third and fourth generation( as inter"reted by the ego is "articularlyvicious. It becomes merely an attem"t to guarantee the ego!s own survival. To the oly :"irit the statement meansthat in later generations he can still reinter"ret what former generations had misunderstood and thus release thethoughts from the ability to "roduce fear.

(The wicked shall "erish( becomes a statement of )tonement if the word ("erish( is understood as (be undone.(Every loveless thought must be undone a word the ego cannot even understand. To the ego to be undone means tobe destroyed. The ego will not be destroyed because it is "art of your thought but because it is uncreative andtherefore unsharing it will be reinter"reted to release you from fear. The "art of your mind that you have given to theego will merely return to the Bingdom where your whole mind belongs. /ou can delay the com"letion of theBingdom but you cannot introduce the conce"t of fear into it.

/ou need not fear the higher court will condemn you. It will merely dismiss the case against you. There can be nocase against a child of -od and every witness to guilt in -od!s creations is bearing false witness to -od himself.

)""eal everything you believe gladly to -od!s own higher court because it s"eaks for him and therefore s"eakstruly. It will dismiss the case against you however carefully you have built it u". The case may be fool#"roof but it isnot -od#"roof. The oly :"irit will not hear it because he can only witness truly. is verdict will always be (thine isthe Bingdom( because he was given to you to remind you of what you are.

2hen I said (I am come as a light into the world( I meant that I came to share the light with you. ;emember myreference to the ego!s dark glass and remember also that I said (?o not look there. (It is still true that where youlook to find yourself is u" to you. /our "atience with your brother is your "atience with yourself. Is not a child of -odworth "atienceA I have shown you infinite "atience because my will is that of our Father from 2hom I learned ofinfinite "atience. is voice was in me as It is in you s"eaking for "atience towards the :onshi" in the @ame of itsCreator.

@ow you must learn that only infinite "atience "roduces immediate effects. This is the way in which time isexchanged for eternity. Infinite "atience calls u"on infinite love and by "roducing results now it renders timeunnecessary. 2e have re"eatedly said that time is a learning device to be abolished when it is no longer useful. Theoly :"irit 2ho s"eaks for -od in time also knows that time is meaningless. e reminds you of this in every

"assing moment of time because it is his s"ecial function to return you to eternity and remain to bless yourcreations there. e is the only blessing you can truly give because he is truly blessed.


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&erceiving this as (sin( you become defensive because you ex"ect attack. The decision to react in this way is yoursand can therefore be undone. It cannot be undone by re"entance in the usual sense because this im"lies guilt. If youallow yourself to feel guilty you will reinforce the error rather than allow it to be undone for you.

?ecision cannot be difficult. This is obvious if you reali9e that you must already have decided not to be wholly=oyous if that is how you feel. Therefore the first ste" in the undoing is to recogni9e that you actively decidedwrongly but can as actively decide otherwise.


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)s I have said before ()s you teach so shall you learn.( If you react as if you are "ersecuted you are teaching"ersecution. This is not a lesson a :on of -od should want to teach if he is to reali9e his own salvation. ;ather teachyour own "erfect immunity which is the truth in you and reali9e that it cannot be assailed. ?o not try to "rotect ityourself or you are believing that it is assailable. /ou are not asked to be crucified which was "art of my ownteaching contribution. /ou are merely asked to follow my exam"le in the face of much less extreme tem"tations tomis"erceive and not to acce"t them as false =ustifications for anger. There can be no =ustification for theun=ustifiable. ?o not believe there is and do not teach that there is. ;emember always that what you believe you willteach.


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"unished for sins and the :ons of -od are not sinners. )ny conce"t of "unishment involves the "ro=ection of blameand reinforces the idea that blame is =ustified. The result is a lesson in blame for all behavior teaches the beliefs thatmotivate it. The crucifixion was the result of clearly o""osed thought systems5 the "erfect symbol of the (conflict(between the ego and the :on of -od. This conflict seems =ust as real now and its lessons must be learned now aswell as then.

I do not need gratitude but you need to develo" your weakened ability to be grateful or you cannot a""reciate -od.e does not need your a""reciation but you do. /ou cannot love what you do not a""reciate for fear makesa""reciation im"ossible. 2hen you are afraid of what you are you do not a""reciate it and will therefore re=ect it. )s

a result you will teach re=ection.The "ower of the :ons of -od is "resent all the time because they were created as creators. Their influence on eachother is without limit and must be used for their =oint salvation. Each one must learn to teach that all forms ofre=ection are meaningless. The se"aration is the notion of re=ection. )s long as you teach this you will believe it. Thisis not as -od thinks and you must think as e thinks if you are to know im again.

;emember that the oly :"irit is the Communication 7ink between -od the Father and is se"arated :ons. If you willlisten to is Doice you will know that you cannot either hurt or be hurt and that many need your blessing to hel"them hear this for themselves. 2hen you "erceive only this need in them and do not res"ond to any other you willhave learned of me and will be as eager to share your learning as I am.

The )lternative to &ro=ection

)ny s"lit in mind must involve a re=ection of "art of it and this is the belief in se"aration. The 2holeness of -odwhich is is "eace cannot be a""reciated exce"t by a whole mind that recogni9es the 2holeness of -od!s creation.


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convergence seems to be far in the future only because your mind is not in "erfect alignment with the idea andtherefore does not want it now.

The oly :"irit uses time but does not believe in it. Coming from -od e uses everything for good but e does notbelieve in what is not true. :ince the oly :"irit is in your mind your mind can also believe only what is true. Theoly :"irit can s"eak only for this because e s"eaks for -od. e tells you to return your whole mind to -odbecause it has never left im. If it has never left im you need only "erceive it as it is to be returned. The fullawareness of the )tonement then is the recognition that the se"aration never occurred. The ego cannot "revailagainst this because it is an ex"licit statement that the ego never occurred.

The ego can acce"t the idea that return is necessary because it can so easily make the idea seem difficult. /et theoly :"irit tells you that even return is unnecessary because what never ha""ened cannot be difficult. owever youcan make the idea of return both necessary and difficult. /et it is surely clear that the "erfect need nothing and youcannot ex"erience "erfection as a difficult accom"lishment because that is what you are. This is the way in whichyou must "erceive -od!s creations bringing all of your "erce"tions into the one line the oly :"irit sees. This line isthe direct line of communication with -od and lets your mind converge with is. There is no conflict anywhere inthis "erce"tion because it means that all "erce"tion is guided by the oly :"irit 2hose %ind is fixed on -od. Onlythe oly :"irit can resolve conflict because only the oly :"irit is conflict#free. e "erceives only what is true in yourmind and extends outward only to what is true in other minds.

The difference between the ego!s "ro=ection and the oly :"irit!s extension is very sim"le. The ego "ro=ects toexclude and therefore to deceive. The oly :"irit extends by recogni9ing imself in every mind and thus "erceivesthem as one. @othing conflicts in this "erce"tion because what the oly :"irit "erceives is all the same. 2herevere looks e sees imself and because e is united e offers the whole Bingdom always. This is the one message-od gave to im and for which e must s"eak because that is what e is. The "eace of -od lies in that message

and so the "eace of -od lies in you. The great "eace of the Bingdom shines in your mind forever but it must shineoutward to make you aware of it.

The oly :"irit was given you with "erfect im"artiality and only by recogni9ing im im"artially can you recogni9eim at all. The ego is legion but the oly :"irit is One. @o darkness abides anywhere in the Bingdom but your "art isonly to allow no darkness to abide in your own mind. This alignment with light is unlimited because it is in alignmentwith the light of the world. Each of us is the light of the world and by =oining our minds in this light we "roclaim theBingdom of -od together and as one.

The ;elinquishment of )ttack

)s we have already em"hasi9ed every idea begins in the mind of the thinker. Therefore what extends from the mindis still in it and from what it extends it knows itself. The word (knows( is correct here because the oly :"irit stillholds knowledge safe in your mind through is im"artial "erce"tion.


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whole thought system.

2hen -od created you e made you "art of im. That is why attack within the Bingdom is im"ossible. /ou made theego without love and so it does not love you. /ou could not remain within the Bingdom without love and since theBingdom is love you believe that you are without it. This enables the ego to regard itself as se"arate and outside itsmaker thus s"eaking for the "art of your mind that believes you are se"arate and outside the %ind of -od. The egothen raised the first question that was ever asked but one it can never answer. That question (2hat are youA ( wasthe beginning of doubt. The ego has never answered any questions since although it has raised a great many. Themost inventive activities of the ego have never done more than obscure the question because you have the answer

and the ego is afraid of you./ou cannot understand the conflict until you fully understand the basic fact that the ego cannot know anything. Theoly :"irit does not s"eak first but e always answers. Everyone has called u"on im for hel" at one time oranother and in one way or another and has been answered. :ince the oly :"irit answers truly e answers for alltime which means that everyone has the answer now.

The ego cannot hear the oly :"irit but it does believe that "art of the mind that made it is against it. It inter"rets thisas a =ustification for attacking its maker. It believes that the best defense is attack and wants you to believe it. >nlessyou do believe it you will not side with it and the ego feels badly in need of allies though not of brothers. &erceivingsomething alien to itself in your mind the ego turns to the body as its ally because the body is not "art of you. Thismakes the body the ego!s friend. It is an alliance frankly based on se"aration. If you side with this alliance you will beafraid because you are siding with an alliance of fear.

The ego uses the body to cons"ire against your mind and because the ego reali9es that its (enemy( can end themboth merely by recogni9ing they are not "art of you they =oin in the attack together. This is "erha"s the strangest"erce"tion of all if you consider what it really involves. The ego which is not real attem"ts to "ersuade the mindwhich is real that the mind is the ego!s learning device5 and further that the body is more real than the mind is. @oone in his right mind could "ossibly believe this and no one in his right mind does believe it.

ear then the one answer of the oly :"irit to all the questions the ego raises$ /ou are a child of -od a "riceless"art of is Bingdom which e created as "art of im. @othing else exists and only this is real. /ou have chosen aslee" in which you have had bad dreams but the slee" is not real and -od calls you to awake. There will be nothingleft of your dream when you hear im because you will awaken. /our dreams contain many of the ego!s symbols andthey have confused you. /et that was only because you were aslee" and did not know. 2hen you wake you will seethe truth around you and you will no longer believe in dreams because they will have no reality for you. /et theBingdom and all that you have created there will have great reality for you because they are beautiful and true.

In the Bingdom where you are and what you are is "erfectly certain. There is no doubt because the first questionwas never asked. aving finally been wholly answered it has never been.


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at change but -od created only the changeless. The se"aration was not a loss of "erfection but a failure incommunication. ) harsh and strident form of communication arose as the ego!s voice. It could not shatter the "eaceof -od but it could shatter yours. -od did not blot it out because to eradicate it would be to attack it.


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This is a very "reliminary ste" and the only one you must take for yourself. It is not even necessary that youcom"lete the ste" yourself but it is necessary that you turn in that direction. aving chosen to go that way you "laceyourself in charge of the =ourney where you and only you must remain. This ste" may a""ear to exacerbate conflictrather than resolve it because it is the beginning ste" in reversing your "erce"tion and turning it right#side u". Thisconflicts with the u"side#down "erce"tion you have not yet abandoned or the change in direction would not havebeen necessary. :ome remain at this ste" for a long time ex"eriencing very acute conflict. )t this "oint they may tryto acce"t the conflict rather than take the next ste" towards its resolution. aving taken the first ste" however theywill be hel"ed. Once they have chosen what they cannot com"lete alone they are no longer alone.

To ave &eace Teach &eace to 7earn It)ll who believe in se"aration have a basic fear of retaliation and abandonment. They believe in attack and re=ectionso that is what they "erceive and teach and learn. These insane ideas are clearly the result of dissociation and"ro=ection. 2hat you teach you are but it is quite a""arent that you can teach wrongly and can therefore teachyourself wrong. %any thought I was attacking them even though it was a""arent I was not. )n insane learner learnsstrange lessons. 2hat you must recogni9e is that when you do not share a thought system you are weakening it.Those who believe in it therefore "erceive this as an attack on them. This is because everyone identifies himself withhis thought system and every thought system centers on what you believe you are. If the center of the thoughtsystem is true only truth extends from it.


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must be in agreement about what they believe.

The third ste" then is a statement of what you want to believe and entails a willingness to relinquish everythingelse. The oly :"irit will enable you to take this ste" if you follow im. /our vigilance is the sign that you want imto guide you. Digilance does require effort but only until you learn that effort itself is unnecessary. /ou have exertedgreat effort to "reserve what you made because it was not true. Therefore you must now turn your effort against it.Only this can cancel out the need for effort and call u"on the being which you both have and are. This recognition iswholly without effort since it is already true and needs no "rotection. It is in the "erfect safety of -od. Thereforeinclusion is total and creation is without limit.

Cha"ter 3The -ifts of the Bingdom

The 7ast :te"

The creative "ower of -od and his creations is limitless but they are not in reci"rocal relationshi". /ou communicatefully with -od as he does with you. This is an ongoing "rocess in which you share and because you share it youare ins"ired to create like -od. /et in creation you are not in a reci"rocal relation to -od since he created you butyou did not create him. I have already told you that only in this res"ect your creative "ower differs from his. Even inthis world there is a "arallel. &arents give birth to children but children do not give birth to "arents. They dohowever give birth to their children and thus give birth as their "arents do.

If you created -od and he created you the Bingdom could not increase through its own creative thought. Creationwould therefore be limited and you would not be co#creator with -od. )s -od!s creative thought "roceeds from himto you so must your creative thought "roceed from you to your creations. Only in this way can all creative "owerextend outward. -od!s accom"lishments are not yours but yours are like his. e created the :onshi" and you

increase it. /ou have the "ower to add to the Bingdom though not to add to the Creator of the Bingdom. /ou claimthis "ower when you become vigilant only for -od and his Bingdom.


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you both within the Bingdom and restores its wholeness in your mind. This reflects creation because it unifies byincreasing and integrates by extending. 2hat you "ro=ect or extend is real for you. This is an immutable law of themind in this world as well as in the Bingdom. owever the content is different in this world because the thoughts itgoverns are very different from the Thoughts in the Bingdom. 7aws must be ada"ted to circumstances if they are tomaintain order. The outstanding characteristic of the laws of mind as they o"erate in this world is that by obeyingthem and I assure you that you must obey them you can arrive at diametrically o""osed results. This is because thelaws have been ada"ted to the circumstances of this world in which diametrically o""osed outcomes seem "ossiblebecause you can res"ond to two conflicting voices.

Outside the Bingdom the law that "revails inside is ada"ted to (2hat you "ro=ect you believe.( This is its teachingform because outside the Bingdom learning is essential. This form im"lies that you will learn what you are from whatyou have "ro=ected onto others and therefore believe they are. In the Bingdom there is no teaching or learningbecause there is no belief. There is only certainty. -od and his sons in the surety of being know that what youextend you are. That form of the law is not ada"ted at all being the law of creation. -od himself created the law bycreating by it. )nd his sons who create like him follow it gladly knowing that the increase of the Bingdom de"endson it =ust as their own creation did.

7aws must be communicated if they are to be hel"ful. In effect they must be translated for those who s"eak differentlanguages. @evertheless a good translator although he must alter the form of what he translates never changes themeaning. In fact his whole "ur"ose is to change the form so that the original meaning is retained. The oly :"irit isthe Translator of the laws of -od to those who do not understand them. /ou could not do this yourself because aconflicted mind cannot be faithful to one meaning and will therefore change the meaning to "reserve the form.

The oly :"irit!s "ur"ose in translating is exactly the o""osite. e translates only to "reserve the original meaning inall res"ects and in all languages. Therefore he o""oses the idea that differences in form are meaningful

em"hasi9ing always that these differences do not matter. The meaning of his message is always the same5 only themeaning matters. -od!s law of creation does not involve the use of truth to convince his :ons of truth. The extensionof truth which is the law of the Bingdom rests only on the knowledge of what truth is. This is your inheritance andrequires no learning at all but when you disinherited yourself you became a learner of necessity.

@o one questions the connection of learning and memory. 7earning is im"ossible without memory since it must beconsistent to be remembered. That is why the oly :"irit!s teaching is a lesson in remembering. I said before that heteaches remembering and forgetting but the forgetting is only to make the remembering consistent. /ou forget inorder to remember better. /ou will not understand his translations while you listen to two ways of inter"reting them.Therefore you must forget or relinquish one to understand the other. This is the only way you can learn consistencyso that you can finally be consistent.

2hat can the "erfect consistency of the Bingdom mean to the confusedA It is a""arent that confusion interferes withmeaning and therefore "revents the learner from a""reciating it. There is no confusion in the Bingdom becausethere is only one meaning. This meaning comes from -od and is -od.


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saying you "erceive yourself as unrealA

To be in the Bingdom is merely to focus your full attention on it. )s long as you believe you can attend to what is nottrue you are acce"ting conflict as your choice. Is it really a choiceA It seems to be but seeming and reality are hardlythe same. /ou who are the Bingdom are not concerned with seeming. ;eality is yours because you are reality. This ishow having and being are ultimately reconciled not in the Bingdom but in your mind. The altar there is the onlyreality. The altar is "erfectly clear in thought because it is a reflection of "erfect Thought. /our right mind sees onlybrothers because it sees only in its own light.

-od has lit your mind himself and kee"s your mind lit by his light because his light is what your mind is. This is

totally beyond question and when you question it you are answered. The )nswer merely undoes the question byestablishing the fact that to question reality is to question meaninglessly. That is why the oly :"irit never questions.is sole function is to undo the questionable and thus lead to certainty. The certain are "erfectly calm because theyare not in doubt. They do not raise questions because nothing questionable enters their minds. This holds them in"erfect serenity because this is what they share knowing what they are.

ealing as the ;ecognition of Truth

Truth can only be recogni9ed and need only be recogni9ed. Ins"iration is of the oly :"irit and certainty is of -odaccording to his laws.


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does need clarification. The unhealed healer obviously does not understand his own vocation.

Only minds communicate. :ince the ego cannot obliterate the im"ulse to communicate because it is also the im"ulseto create it can only teach you that the body can both communicate and create and therefore does not need themind. The ego thus tries to teach you that the body can act like the mind and is therefore self#sufficient. /et we havelearned that behavior is not the level for either teaching or learning since you can act in accordance with what youdo not believe. To do this however will weaken you as a teacher and a learner because as has been re"eatedlyem"hasi9ed you teach what you do believe. )n inconsistent lesson will be "oorly taught and "oorly learned. If youteach both sickness and healing you are both a "oor teacher and a "oor learner.

ealing is the one ability everyone can develo" and must develo" if he is to be healed. ealing is the oly :"irit!sform of communication in this world and the only one he acce"ts. e recogni9es no other because he does notacce"t the ego!s confusion of mind and body. %inds can communicate but they cannot hurt. The body in the serviceof the ego can hurt other bodies but this cannot occur unless the body has already been confused with the mind.This situation too can be used either for healing or for magic but you must remember that magic always involvesthe belief that healing is harmful. This belief is its totally insane "remise and so it "roceeds accordingly.

ealing only strengthens. %agic always tries to weaken. ealing "erceives nothing in the healer that everyone elsedoes not share with him. %agic always sees something (s"ecial( in the healer which he believes he can offer as agift to someone who does not have it. e may believe that the gift comes from -od to him but it is quite evident thathe does not understand -od if he thinks he has something that others lack.

The oly :"irit does not work by chance and healing that is of him always works. >nless the healer always heals byhim the results will vary. /et healing itself is consistent since only consistency is conflict#free and only the conflict#free are whole.


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only this is everywhere and in everything. It is everything because it encom"asses all things within itself.


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2hile you believe that two totally contradictory thought systems share truth your need for vigilance is a""arent.

/our mind is dividing its allegiance between two kingdoms and you are totally committed to neither. /ouridentification with the Bingdom is totally beyond question exce"t by you when you are thinking insanely. 2hat youare is not established by your "erce"tion and is not influenced by it at all. &erceived "roblems in identification at anylevel are not "roblems of fact. They are "roblems of understanding since their "resence im"lies a belief that whatyou are is u" to you to decide. The ego believes this totally being fully committed to it. It is not true. The egotherefore is totally committed to untruth "erceiving in total contradiction to the oly :"irit and to the knowledge of-od.

/ou can be "erceived with meaning only by the oly :"irit because your being is the knowledge of -od. )ny beliefyou acce"t a"art from this will obscure -od!s Doice in you and will therefore obscure -od to you. >nless you"erceive his creation truly you cannot know the Creator since -od and his creation are not se"arate. The Oneness ofthe Creator and the creation is your wholeness your sanity and your limitless "ower. This limitless "ower is -od!sgift to you because it is what you are. If you dissociate your mind from it you are "erceiving the most "owerful forcein the universe as if it were weak because you do not believe you are "art of it.

&erceived without your "art in it -od!s creation is seen as weak and those who see themselves as weakened doattack. The attack must be blind however because there is nothing to attack. Therefore they make u" images"erceive them as unworthy and attack them for their unworthiness. That is all the world of the ego is. @othing. It hasno meaning. It does not exist. ?o not try to understand it because if you do you are believing that it can beunderstood and is therefore ca"able of being a""reciated and loved. That would =ustify its existence which cannotbe =ustified. /ou cannot make the meaningless meaningful. This can only be an insane attem"t.

)llowing insanity to enter your mind means that you have not =udged sanity as wholly desirable. If you wantsomething else you will make something else but because it is something else it will attack your thought systemand divide your allegiance. /ou cannot create in this divided state and you must be vigilant against this divided statebecause only "eace can be extended. /our divided mind is blocking the extension of the Bingdom and its extensionis your =oy. If you do not extend the Bingdom you are not thinking with your Creator and creating as he created.

In this de"ressing state the oly :"irit reminds you gently that you are sad because you are not fulfilling yourfunction as co#creator with -od and are therefore de"riving yourself of =oy. This is not -od!s choice but yours. Ifyour mind could be out of accord with -od!s you would be willing without meaning. /et because -od!s 2ill isunchangeable no conflict of will is "ossible. This is the oly :"irit!s "erfectly consistent teaching

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