Month: January 2022

ACIM Conversations, Part 2
The Ego and the Spirit

Student: In our last conversation we concluded we either follow the ego or the Holy Spirit, and if two disagree on teachings then one or both of them are in the ego. Let us suppose that one individual follows the ego and the other the Holy Spirit. How would you tell which is which?

Teacher: Tell me. What is the difference between the feelings generated by the two?

Student: The Course tells us that fear, hate, guilt, grievances, attack and lack of peace come from the ego. By contrast, feelings associated with the Holy Spirit are peace, love, joy, unity and probably more. I guess you could say negative feelings are associated with the ego and the positive ones with the Spirit.

Teacher: So, if you observe these two people for a while do you think it would become obvious as to which one has the peace of the Spirit and which has the negativity of the ego?

Student: One would think that would be the case.

Teacher: Here is another clue from the Course: “The Holy Spirit uses logic as easily and as well as does the ego, except that His conclusions are not insane.” T-14.in.1

This makes the interesting statement that both use logic. Therefore, a bystander who is listening may see the logic displayed on both sides and may not be able to conclude who is correct. But then the quote tells us a distinctive difference. What is that?

Student: The conclusions of the ego are insane and those of the Holy Spirit are not.

Teacher: Exactly. If one can identify with the pure reasoning of the Spirit, he will see the conclusions that make sense and know they are on the side of the Spirit. We could go into many differences between the Ego and the Spirit, but this will suffice for this discussion. So, what do we look for in those who are following the Holy Spirit?

Student: Positive feelings of peace and oneness as well as coming to sensible conclusions when using logic.

Teacher: Have you noticed that the one who is furthest from peace seems to come to the most illogical conclusions?

Student: Yes. They both may make logical presentations, but some pretty wild conclusions are reached, and the worst part is the separation between the conclusions is often great.

Teacher: A good example of this is the current rise in the belief that the earth is flat. There is a lot of discussion currently going on as to whether or not this is true. Now, the average person may not think the flat earth person has any logic at all in his thinking, but he would be wrong. If you watch their videos and discussions, you will see many logical and true points presented only to reach the insane conclusion that the earth is flat. Can you see that this is what the ego does on any subject that furthers its cause?

Student: Yes, I’ve seen it with Course students. Sometimes pretty wild and illogical conclusions are reached that are not in harmony with the Course.

Teacher: In a discussion of the Course where there is disagreement, what do you suppose is the most obvious giveaway of who is in the ego?

Student: An insane conclusion.

Teacher: That will occur, but I’m talking about what happens during the actual discussion.

Student: A lack of peace.

Teacher: Have you ever heard a serious ACIM student admit that he lacks peace?

Student: Rarely, if ever.

Teacher: Yes. Because of the Course’s stress on peace, no serious student wants to admit that he lacks it, as that would be like admitting that the ego has control, but he does show his lack of peace in an obvious way. Any idea what it is?

Student: Perhaps it is anger.

Teacher: Again, this is something that the ego does not want to reveal, as it tells everyone that he is not one with the Holy Spirit. Think again. What do you see revealed in discussions where the ego is in control?

Student: I’ve noticed that the one with the weakest case seems to start attacking and judging the other person.

Teacher: Good. That is it exactly! Attacks and negative judgments are easy to justify. If questioned, the guy will just say that he was speaking the truth and there’s nothing wrong with speaking the truth.

Student: Can you give me an example?

Teacher: The one in the Spirit makes his case to the point where the truth should be obvious. The one in the ego will not admit he is wrong, and instead, accuses the other guy of being in the ego, and, arguing from the ego, refusing to admit he is wrong.

Student: That’s almost funny. The guy in the ego portrays the other as being in the ego.

Teacher: Yes. This often happens. The ego when cornered will reflect its own imperfections on to the other person. Can you recall other accusations you have heard?

Student: Sometimes they fly rather freely when an argument gets started. I’ve seen the main guy who is in the attack mode accuse the other guy of being the attacker.

Teacher: This is the mirroring of the ego I was talking about. Anything else?

Student: Accusations of hypocrisy and lying are common and occasionally there will be accusations of intolerance, hate, ignorance and so on.

Teacher: Yes, accusations of hypocrisy and lying are high on the list, but when the ego’s superiority is challenged, it will attack to the maximum amount possible while trying not to expose itself.

Student: Anything else I should look for?

Teacher: The ego reveals itself in many subtle ways, but I’ll point out one more that it often uses and that is playing the victim. It will complain of hurt feelings or being justly offended because of something said. The one in the Spirit is virtually impervious to being offended or hurt through a mere exchange of words. Then the crazy part is the one who is offended will often accuse the other guy of being the one who is offended.

Student: It sounds like the ego is a master of confusion and manipulation.

Teacher: Indeed, it is.

Student: So, what is the difference when two who are in the ego have a disagreement?

Teacher: When two egos have a disagreement there is great confusion for neither understands the other, and both wind up attacking in some manner and being offended. It is interesting to note, though, that one in the ego is often more offended at one in the Spirit than another in the ego. Darkness hates the light more than additional darkness.

Student: How about two who are listening to the Holy Spirit? Do they ever disagree?

Teacher: Normally, they will see eye to eye and understand each other. However, because of the imperfections of communicating with language and different backgrounds, there may seem to be surface disagreements at times, but when they get together and discuss them, they will do so in a friendly spirit without attacking each other, and in the end, see the other’s point of view and understand it.

Student: Would you say that we are examples of two in the Spirit having a conversation?

Teacher: Yes. We both do our best to receive guidance from the Spirit but we have different degrees of investment in absorbing A Course in Miracles. But notice that we are resolving our differences of understanding and coming to agreement.

Student: Yes, and it feels good to the Spirit in my inner core.

Teacher: And if we both stay in contact with that Spirit, our conversations here will bear much fruit.

Copyright by J J Dewey

Read the Introduction HERE, Read Chapter One HERE. Chapter Two HERE, Chapter Three HERE, Chapter Four HERE, Chapter Five HERE Chapter Six HERE, Chapter Seven HERE, Chapter Eight HERE, Chapter Nine HERE, Chapter Ten HERE, Chapter Eleven HERE, Chapter Twelve HERE, Chapter Thirteen HERE, Chapter Fourteen HERE, Fifteen HERE, Sixteen HERE, Seventeen HERE,       Eighteen HERE, Nineteen HERE, Twenty HERE, Twenty-One HERE, Twenty-Two HERE, Twenty-Three HERE, Twenty-Four HERE, Twenty-Five HERE, Twenty-Six HERE, Twenty-Seven  HERE, Twenty-Eight  HERE, Twenty-Nine HERE, Thirty HERE

ACIM Conversations, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part  16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19, Part 20, Part 21, Part 22, Part 23, Part 24, Part 25

Index for Original Archives

Index for Recent Posts

Easy Access to All the Writings

For Free Book go HERE and other books HERE

JJ’s Amazon page HERE

Gather with JJ on Facebook HERE

The Mysteries of A Course in Miracles, Part II

ACIM Conversations, Part 1

The following represents fictional, but realistic conversations between an ACIM student and a knowledgeable teacher.

The Key to Unity

Student: I have read through the text and most of the lessons and I still feel like a babe in the woods. I’ve been communicating with a number of other students, some of whom have studied the Course for decades. What I find confusing is that some of them come up with rather strange conclusions that do not make sense to me and many do not agree with each other. How am I to know what to believe when even dedicated students disagree with each other?

Teacher: Many look to others as a source of true interpretation of the Course. Do you know what the Course says you are choosing when you do this?

Student: Not sure.

Teacher: Idols.

Student: You mean idols like the golden calf in the days of Moses?

Teacher: The golden calf was a substitute for God, and anything that we accept as a source, above that which comes from God, is a substitute and therefore an idol, or a creation of the ego. Here, read this passage.

Student: (He reads): “You will not make decisions by yourself whatever you decide. For they are made with idols or with God. And you ask help of anti-Christ or Christ, and which you choose will join with you and tell you what to do.” T-30.I.14

Teacher: Note that we follow either idols or God or the Christ or the anti-Christ. Here’s a similar passage:

“The Holy Spirit and the ego are the only choices open to you.” T-5.V.6

And where is it that we find the true God, Christ or Holy Spirit?

Student: Within ourselves.

Teacher: And if two people look within, past the outward idols to the true God, will they get different answers and disagree or the same answer?

Student: You’d think they would get the same answer.

Teacher: And if they do not get the same answer, what does that tell us?

Student: It would seem that one or both of them are not receiving from the true Source. Is it really possible for two different people to get the same answer?

Teacher: Let’s see what the Course says. Read this:

Student: “The Holy Spirit’s goal gives one interpretation, meaningful to you and to your brother.” T-30.VII.6.

Teacher: If two receive from the Holy Spirit, how many interpretations will they receive?

Student: It seems to say they would just receive one. I wonder if that is really possible when you consider all the disagreement among students.

Teacher: Is contact and reception from the Holy Spirit possible?

Student: I think so, but it appears that even the students who are disagreeing think they are in contact.

Teacher: Yet when this happens, one or both must be in error as you say. What causes this error?

Student: It would seem that the ego would play a big role.

Teacher: The Course agrees with you. Read this:

Student: “The Holy Spirit is One, and anyone who listens is inevitably led to demonstrate His way for all… The ego is legion, but the Holy Spirit is One.” T-6.I.10

Teacher: So, what would be the difference between those who receive from the Holy Spirit and the ego?

Student: Those who receive from the Holy Spirit would be united in thought, whereas there would be a legion of opinions among those in the ego. Does this mean that those in contact with the Holy Spirit will agree on everything, like the best flavor of ice cream or the best sports team?

Teacher: The Course says that “The Holy Spirit will answer every specific problem.” T-11.VIII.3 Notice that it uses the word “problem.” Something becomes a problem when it increases the feeling of separation. Do you see it as a problem that a friend would like a different flavor of ice cream than yourself?

Student: Not at all.

Teacher: Yet, have you found problems surfacing in group discussions among students who disagree on what the Course teaches?

Student: I have seen a number of problems, especially concerning negative judgments that surface; definitely some dislike and even demand offensive ones be thrown off the discussion group or at least censored.

Teacher: These and other disagreements can increase feelings of separation, and it is here that the Holy Spirit will come when invited and bring unity.

The Course gives us powerful guidance on this in this quote:

“Everything you behold without is a judgment of what you beheld within. If it is your judgment it will be wrong, for judgment is not your function. If it is the judgment of the Holy Spirit it will be right, for judgment is His function. You share His function only by judging as He does, reserving no judgment at all for yourself.” T-12.VII.12

So, what does it tell us about relying on our judgment, or we could say the ego’s judgment?

Student: It says we will be wrong. If we want to be right, we listen to the Holy Spirit.

Teacher: So, if two people disagree to the point of separation, then one or both of them are listening to the ego. Would you agree?

Student: Sounds right.

Teacher: Why are judgments of truth made without the Holy Spirit always wrong?

Student: I’m not sure.

Teacher: Suppose someone gives you a jigsaw puzzle and it lacks the finished picture. You pick up a couple pieces and look at them. Do you think that you can establish the truth of the whole picture this way?

Student: I doubt it.

Teacher: That is the disadvantage of judging from the ego. Even if you are sincere, you cannot see the whole picture, a little like the story of the three blind men and the elephant.

Student: Makes sense.

Teacher: On the other hand, the Holy Spirit sees the whole picture, and when we allow Him to share it with us, this gives us power to make correct judgments. If you and I see the same picture, we are not likely to disagree with what is in it.

Student: Good point. You make oneness sound easy, and it probably should be easy, but I keep wondering why there is so much disagreement and conflict between students, and even some teachers, and what we can do about it.

Teacher: Good thought my friend, and we’ll talk about that when we continue this conversation.

Copyright by J J Dewey

Read the Introduction HERE, Read Chapter One HERE. Chapter Two HERE, Chapter Three HERE, Chapter Four HERE, Chapter Five HERE Chapter Six HERE, Chapter Seven HERE, Chapter Eight HERE, Chapter Nine HERE, Chapter Ten HERE, Chapter Eleven HERE, Chapter Twelve HERE, Chapter Thirteen HERE, Chapter Fourteen HERE, Fifteen HERE, Sixteen HERE, Seventeen HERE,       Eighteen HERE, Nineteen HERE, Twenty HERE, Twenty-One HERE, Twenty-Two HERE, Twenty-Three HERE, Twenty-Four HERE, Twenty-Five HERE, Twenty-Six HERE, Twenty-Seven  HERE, Twenty-Eight  HERE, Twenty-Nine HERE, Thirty HERE

ACIM Conversations, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part  16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19, Part 20, Part 21, Part 22, Part 23, Part 24, Part 25

Index for Original Archives

Index for Recent Posts

Easy Access to All the Writings

For Free Book go HERE and other books HERE

JJ’s Amazon page HERE

Gather with JJ on Facebook HERE

 

 

Translating into Oneness

Let us now examine some of the basic teachings of ACIM and the Ancient Wisdom and see how compatible they are with each other. In doing this we will focus on the writings of various books by Alice A. Bailey and the main work of Helena P. Blavatsky – The Secret Doctrine.

Let us start with God as the Source of all things. Here is a passage giving the ultimate description of God often quoted from the Course:

“Oneness is simply the idea God is. And in His Being, He encompasses all things. No mind holds anything but Him. We say ‘God is,’ and then we cease to speak, for in that knowledge words are meaningless.” W-pI.169.5

Then from the Bailey writings we have this:

“God is not this; God is not that; God is no-thing; God is neither time nor space; God is not feeling or thought; God is not form or substance. God simply IS. God IS—apart from all expression and manifestation as the Manipulator of energy.” Glamour, A World Problem, Page 244

ACIM says that “God is an idea” and, concerning His relationship with this world, states:

“The world as you perceive it cannot have been created by the Father, for the world is not as you see it. God created only the eternal, and everything you see is perishable.” T-11.VII.1

H. P. Blavatsky said something very similar:

“Of tribal Gods there were many; the One Universal Deity is a principle, an abstract Root-Idea which has naught to do with the unclean work of finite Form. We do not worship the Gods, we only honour Them, as beings superior to ourselves.” Secret Doctrine, Vol 1, Page 492

She thus agrees that the “Universal Deity” (the Father in ACIM) is “Root-Idea which has naught to do with the unclean work of finite Form,” but there are advanced beings some call gods or masters that we honor.

She also wrote this:

“The Monad (our divine self) is impersonal and a god per se, albeit unconscious on this plane… it can have no consciousness or perception of things on this earthly plane. “The highest sees through the eye of the lowest” in the manifested world; Purusha (Spirit) remains blind without the help of Prakrit (matter) in the material spheres.” Secret Doctrine, Vol 2, Page 123

This harmonizes with ACIM which says:

“You dwell not here, but in eternity. You travel but in dreams, while safe at home.” T-13.VII.17

“Perception did not exist until the separation introduced degrees, aspects and intervals” T-3.IV.1

The basic teachings concerning the Trinity are in agreement. Both teach that all came from the initiating Father. Both teach that there are three parts to the Godhead: The Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The Ancient Wisdom says the Son “the second aspect of divinity, that which builds and holds the forms in coherent form, and which is the basis of the phenomenon we call time.” Treatise on Cosmic Fire, Page 1032

This agrees with ACIM, which tells us the Son created (or made) the universe of time and Space.

The Ancient Wisdom identifies the Holy Spirit as the Third Aspect that represents intelligence in matter, providing a link between the material world and the spiritual.

ACIM says something similar:

“The Holy Spirit mediates higher to lower communication, keeping the direct channel from God to you open for revelation.” T-1.II.5

Most spiritual traditions present a teaching related to the fall of humanity from some high or spiritual estate to a fallen earthly one. The story of the fall of Adam and Eve in Genesis is well known to many in the West.

ACIM places quite a different twist on this than orthodox Christianity. It tells us that the fall was not Adam falling out of grace with the creator of the physical universe, but it was the Creator (or Maker) Itself who fell or separated Itself from the true Creator.

And who was this creator who fell? It was all of us who have taken incarnation. We are all a part of the Divine Son who separated ourselves from our true spiritual home. The purpose of ACIM is to lead us back to our Source.

The Course’s view on this is quite close to ancient Gnosticism, which at one time was competing with the standard Christian view for dominance.

The Gnostics viewed the creator of the physical universe as an entity who rebelled against the true God and tried to create a kingdom for himself outside the boundaries of heaven. They called this being a Demiurge, a false God closely linked to the common view of Satan.

ACIM presents a softer view of this fallen deity. It tells us that the beloved Son (representing all of us) of the true Creator had fallen asleep and made an illusion into which he was trapped. The Beloved Son was not evil, but merely misled and will at one time awaken to his true nature ad reality. God does not see his Son as being evil any more than a parent does a child having a bad dream.

The idea that we were Sons of God who were one with God who fell into illusion is harmonious with the Ancient Wisdom:

These fallen ones “separated themselves from their parent essence, or, in other words, after the unit had become a multiple, after differentiation and manifestation. …They are not “demons commissioned to create and organize this visible universe,” but fashioners (the “architects”) of the worlds, and the progenitors of man. They are the Fallen angels, metaphorically — “the true mirrors of the Eternal Wisdom.” Secret Doctrine, Vol 2, Page 516

“In ancient Accadian days, this sign Aries was called that “wherein the sacrifice of righteousness was made,” or the sign of “the fallen angels”. The sons of God, impelled by this basic urge, fell from their high estate, took form, and started upon their individual round upon round of the Zodiac.” The Labours of Hercules, Page 33

“The history begins by the descent on Earth of the “Gods” who incarnate in mankind, and this is the FALL.” Secret Doctrine, Vol 2, Page 483

The Book of Revelation describes war in heaven in which a third fell to the earth. The general interpretation is that these are the invisible Satan and his evil denizens who tempt us toward evil.

The Ancient Wisdom agrees with ACIM that it was us who fell to the earth and are incarnated into physical bodies:

“The ‘third part of the stars of heaven’ cast down to the earth — refers to the divine Monads,… the human Egos destined to perform the whole cycle of incarnations.” Secret Doctrine, Vol 2, Page 485

ACIM tells us that the whole world we perceive with our physical senses is an illusion that is not real, but compared to something dreamed up by the mind.

The Ancient Wisdom says something similar:

“You will note that these words ‘in time and space’ have repeatedly recurred in this instruction. Why is this? Because it must constantly be remembered that we are living in the world of illusion—an illusion which is temporary and transient and which will some day disappear, taking with it the illusion of appearance, the illusion of evolutionary unfoldment, the illusion of separativeness, and the illusion of distinctive identity—that illusion which makes us say ‘I am.’” Education in the New Age Pg 25

ACIM tells us that our physical bodies in which we seem to dwell is an illusion. The Ancient Wisdom says this:

“It must ever be remembered that from the point of view of Reality what we call the dense physical body, tangible and objective, is but an illusion. We are told again and again in the ancient writings that it is not a principle. Why is this so? Because it is only an appearance … and this appearance is a fiction or a figment of the human mind. I speak not in parable.” A Treatise on White Magic, Page 550

ACIM places a lot of emphasis on forgiveness, love, peace, sharing and other virtues as essential to liberation. Almost every other spiritual tradition, including orthodox religion, does this also. The Course does, however, direct us in how to achieve these, especially centering on forgiveness. It tells us that we must understand that this world is an illusion and being such, there is nothing to forgive.

The Ancient Wisdom teaches something similar. It tells us that the world is an illusion and to neutralize its effect we should obtain the viewpoint of the observer. This entails looking at your life as if you are a character in a movie you are watching, but you are not affected because it is not true reality.

Here are a couple quotes on this principle:

“The essential attitude for you to cultivate is that of the One Who looks on, that of the Beholder, the Perceiver, and the Observer, leading—upon the Path of Discipleship—to that of the Interpreter.” Discipleship in the New Age: Vol I, Page 442

“The lower forms are constantly and ceaselessly active, endlessly assuming the forms of impulsive desires or dynamic mental thought forms, and it is only as this ‘form-taking’ is controlled and the tumult of the lower nature stilled that it becomes possible for the inner ruling entity to liberate himself from thraldom and impose his vibration upon the lower modifications.

“This is achieved through concentration – the concentrated effort of the soul to hold steadily the position of observer, or perceiver and of seer. When he can do this the lower ‘spectacle’ of the rapidly changing forms of thought and desire fades away, and the realm of the soul, the true field of soul knowledge, can be seen and contacted.”      The Light of the Soul, Page 13

Another teaching where there is harmonious overlap is in the joining of minds which will give us greater insight into the kingdom of God and speed our journey to liberation.

This joining of minds is an important quality expected from spiritual teachers according to ACIM:

“What does it matter if they then appear in many forms? Their minds are one; their joining is complete. And God works through them now as one, for that is what they are.” M-12.2

“Alone they are nothing. But in their joining is the power of God.” M-26.1

This joining of minds principle applies to all:

“Each of us is the light of the world, and by joining our minds in this light we proclaim the Kingdom of God together and as one.” T-6.II.13

The Course places a lot of emphasis on the idea that we need to unite and share in consciousness.

“Alone we can do nothing, but together our minds fuse into something whose power is far beyond the power of its separate parts. By not being separate, the Mind of God is established in ours and as ours. This Mind is invincible because it is undivided.” T-8.V.1

“The Kingdom cannot be found alone, and you who are the Kingdom cannot find yourself alone.” T-8.III.6.

The Ancient Wisdom gives out similar teachings but with a little different terminology, placing emphasis on obtaining oneness within groups.

“Where true identity is achieved, there is no sense of this and that; where the merging is complete, there is no recognition of individual activity within the group, because the will of the merged soul is identical with that of the group and automatic in its working; where true unity is present, the individual applicant becomes only a channel for the group will and activity, and this with no effort of his own but simply as a spontaneous reaction.” Rays and Initiations, Page 168

“The energy of the unit is absorbed by the entire group and the group output in service is thereby increased. The group is then enabled to shift to a higher plane of service and of consciousness. Ponder on this.” Discipleship in the New Age, Vol 1, Page 578

“The interaction between the individualised Selves will result in the merging to perfection of the flame within each one, and a blending of the heat; this will proceed until there is “one flame with countless sparks” within it, until the heat is general and balanced. When this is the case and each Son of God is a perfected Sun, characterised by perfectly expressed light and heat, then the entire solar system, the greater Son of God, will be the perfected Sun. The system will then be characterised by a “blaze of refulgent glory,” and by a radiation that will link it up with its cosmic centre, and thus effect the liberation of the Son, and His return to the far distant source from whence the primal impulse originated.” Treatise on Cosmic Fire, Pages 228-229

We see then that both teachings tell us that there has to be a joining of minds to experience the kingdom of God. We cannot go home alone.

Both teachings give a similar account of our journey from our Source to this material world and then back again.

ACIM teaches that we began in a spiritual state beyond time and space called heaven. We lived there as part of a unity call the Sons of God. We decided to separate and descended to this illusion/dream state. When we awaken, we first become aware of the real world and finally we go back home.

The Ancient Wisdom teaches that we began as Monads, which it sometimes calls Sons of God. The Monads lived as one life in the unmanifest mind of God. Then many of them separated and descended into matter, which is the realm of illusion. We go through many lifetimes and finally awaken to the true reality sometimes called the kingdom of the soul, which is the same as the real world in ACIM. After this partial awakening we finally advance back to our true identity as Monads or Sons of God.

ACIM places a lot of emphasis on focusing within, sensing the Holy Spirit and following its guidance. It is our link with God and will guide us correctly until we return to our spiritual home.

The Ancient Wisdom teaches the same thing but with different language. Instead of using the term “Holy Spirit” it uses the word “soul”. Our souls are a higher part of ourselves that are connected to our Source through a spiritual link similar to the Holy Spirit of ACIM. When the seeker contacts and receives from the soul, he is said to receive “soul contact.” Often when ACIM uses the word soul it is referring to the monad of the Ancient Wisdom.

Both teachings support the doctrine of reincarnation. As discussed in a previous chapter, reincarnation is supported in the text of the Course as well as more personal communications to Helen.

Reincarnation is more of a core belief in the Ancient Wisdom and much is written about it.

Both teachings tell us that there is no eternal hell, and the main hell we have to deal with is right here on this earth. There is also no vicarious atonement, for we are saved by waking up to our true reality. We can, however, assist each other on the path back to Spirit.

Both sets of teachings view sin in a similar manner. They both see sin as merely errors that need corrected rather than there being a need to be punished through guilt. or other means.

What is interesting is that even the Bible, as it was originally written, does not offer the traditional view of Sin. That seems to have been added after Christianity became an established religion. As mentioned earlier, the word “sin” in the New Testament comes from the Greek word HAMARTANO which means “to miss the mark,” or simply to make a mistake. That Jesus saved us from our errors by revealing the path of correction is supported even in the Bible.

The two teachings give out a similar view of time. We have included in this volume a whole chapter dealing with ACIM and time. In a nutshell, these quotes summarize it:

“The present is the only time there is.” W-pI.164.1 “The only aspect of time that is eternal is now.” T-5.III.6 “there is no time.” T-27.VIII.6 and “Time is a trick, a sleight of hand, a vast illusion in which figures come and go as if by magic.” W-pI.158.3

Here are some quotes from the Bailey writings that are in alignment with the Course:

“To say that time is a succession of states of consciousness and that the present is lost in the past instantaneously, and merged in the future as it is experienced, is of small avail to the average student. To say that there is a time when sight is lost in vision, when the sum total of life anticipations are realized in a moment of accomplishment and that this persists for ever, and to point to a state of consciousness in which there is no sequence of events and no succession of realizations is to speak in a language of mystery. Yet so it is and will be. When the aspirant has reached his goal he knows the true significance of his immortality and the true nature of his liberation. Space and time become for him meaningless terms. The only true Reality is seen to be the great central life force, remaining unchanged and unmoved at the centre of the changing evanescent temporal forms.” Light of the Soul, Pages 366-367

“From the standpoint of the Eternal Now, none is greater nor less than another, for the last shall be first, and the first last. Out of manifestation time is not, and freed from objectivity states of consciousness are not.” Treatise on Cosmic Fire, Page 60

“Therefore, past, present and future are seen as one; the recognition of the Eternal Now is gradually developed from incarnation to incarnation and during the continuous process of rebirth.” Esoteric Healing, Page 496

“Where no physical brain exists, what humanity understands by time is nonexistent. The removal of the barriers of the form, stage by stage, brings an increasing realisation of the Eternal Now. In the case of those who have passed through the door of death and who still continue to think in terms of time, it is due to glamour and to the persistence of a powerful thoughtform.” Esoteric Healing, Page 403

It is too bad that few students of the Ancient Wisdom study ACIM and few Course students study the Ancient Wisdom, especially when they are quite harmonious and both add to the complete picture of truth.

What I find quite ironic is that the Bailey transmissions seem to predict A Course in Miracles. They speak of three groups of teachings that will lead people to greater light. The first it says was presented by Helena P. Blavatsky (1875-1890), the second through Alice A. Bailey (1919-1949) and then a third which it calls “Revelatory, emerging after 1975.” Rays and Initiations, Page 255

The perplexing thing for Bailey students is that no significant revelation in harmony with the Ancient Wisdom seemed to surface around that date.

It is interesting that when Bailey began giving out her transmissions, they were generally rejected by the Blavatsky students because they seemed to strike a different note. Now are the Bailey students are doing the same thing in rejecting A Course in Miracles for the same reason?

Indeed, A Course in Miracles strikes a different note than any teaching previously presented. But even though the style and language are much different than anything in the Ancient Wisdom, the harmony on many basic teachings is still there. As time passes, we can expect to see more students exploring both sets of teachings and benefiting from the knowledge therein.

The  books by Alice A. Bailey  can be accessed free HERE

The Secret  Doctrine by H. P. Blavatsky is free HERE

Copyright by J J Dewey

Read the Introduction HERE, Read Chapter One HERE. Chapter Two HERE, Chapter Three HERE, Chapter Four HERE, Chapter Five HERE Chapter Six HERE, Chapter Seven HERE, Chapter Eight HERE, Chapter Nine HERE, Chapter Ten HERE, Chapter Eleven HERE, Chapter Twelve HERE, Chapter Thirteen HERE, Chapter Fourteen HERE, Fifteen HERE, Sixteen HERE, Seventeen HERE,       Eighteen HERE, Nineteen HERE, Twenty HERE, Twenty-One HERE, Twenty-Two HERE, Twenty-Three HERE, Twenty-Four HERE, Twenty-Five HERE, Twenty-Six HERE, Twenty-Seven  HERE, Twenty-Eight  HERE, Twenty-Nine HERE, Thirty HERE

ACIM Conversations, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part  16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19, Part 20, Part 21, Part 22, Part 23, Part 24, Part 25

Index for Original Archives

Index for Recent Posts

Easy Access to All the Writings

For Free Book go HERE and other books HERE

JJ’s Amazon page HERE

Gather with JJ on Facebook HERE

 

The Convergence of the Paths
The Many Paths

The Course makes this curious statement about itself:

“This is a manual for a special curriculum, intended for teachers of a special form of the universal course. There are many thousands of other forms, all with the same outcome. They merely save time.” M-1.4

Here we are told that A Course in Miracles is “a special form of the universal course.”

Concerning this “universal course” we are told that “There are many thousands of other forms, all with the same outcome.”

Having been a student of many spiritual philosophies I have seen threads of similarities running through most of them. Therefore, I wouldn’t be surprised to see an inspired work like ACIM to state that there are other harmonious teachings that steer us toward liberation. I wouldn’t have been surprised if it had given the figure of a dozen or so. If it had said a hundred, I would have thought that to be a very generous estimate, but I would not have put the figure   at thousand. And neither did ACIM. It didn’t stop at a thousand, but said “many thousands.”

The various ACIM students come from many different backgrounds and some have studied numerous spiritual philosophies. Many though, when they discover ACIM, find it so different and enlightening that they stop right there and make it their one guide to spiritual living. They figure they don’t need thousands of books to draw from over even a dozen, but just one as a point of focus and that may be where the Holy Spirit guides them for this particular life.

On the other hand, other students are interested in the bigger or more holistic picture and realize that there are many truths not presented in ACIM and desire to seek them out, and the Course says nothing to discourage this. For those who are guided by ACIM though the choice as to which teachings to consume besides the Course are quite ambiguous. After all, it says there are “many thousands” that lead to the same outcome as the Course. That is basically like telling you to pick any spiritual teaching out there, follow it and it will take you toward awakening.

So, what about the guy who follows a half-crazy cult leader that scams him out of all his possessions? Does that lead him toward liberation?

Actually, such detours are steps that all of us take on the path to awakening. By giving up all his possessions he lessened his attachment to the illusion. Yeah, the cult leader taught many things in error but he did dangle the idea of a better world in front of his followers and that truth will remain embedded with them even after they realize what a fraud he was.

On the other hand, there are many spiritual teachings out there which were initiated and maintained by sincere leaders. Of course, some of them are closer to the truth than others.

These various paths fall into two main categories.

[1] The orthodox or mainstream religions. These would include Christianity, Islam, Judaism and various eastern religions.  All of these teach the idea of taking focus away from the material world and placing it on the spiritual which is also a prime focus of ACIM.

[2] Alternative spiritual movements of which ACIM is one.

For several generations now there has been an increasing number of alternative teachings emerging that have presented a challenge to mainstream religion. Some of them have an organized hierarchy and some do not. Many fall under the public’s generic title of “New Age” but few of them identify themselves as such.

Many of those involved in alternative spiritual teaching do not identify themselves with any religion when polled and this has caused significant concern with religious leaders.

 According to Gallup at the turn of the century 70% of the people in the United States belonged to a church, synagogue or mosque. Religious authorities are alarmed that by 2020 that figure had dropped to 47%. That is an unprecedented drop in identification with orthodox religion.

This doesn’t mean that people are turning toward atheism in droves as an increasing number of people identify themselves as “spiritual, but not religious.” A Pew poll taken in 2017 showed that a whopping 27% of Americans saw themselves in this light. The good news is that these people are still believers in a Higher Power, but just don’t see any organized religion being a good fit for them.

Many ACIM students are in this category.

This breaking away from orthodox religion to exploring alternative thinking is good news for the future of ACIM and other solid teachings, as orthodoxy has a firm hold on the minds of its members and few of them will consider something out of the mainstream.

The problem is that when students seek for truth out of the mainstream, they encounter the good, the bad and the ugly.

As previously noted, all of them can have some value to the sincere seeker but some are definitely more helpful than others.

ACIM doesn’t come out and blatantly tell us that its teachings are the best of the lot, as far as awakening goes, but it does tell us that it will be very helpful for those who make use of it.

Helen was told that the Course was introduced because of worsening world conditions and “Because of the acute emergency, however, the usual slow, evolutionary process is being by-passed in what might best be described as a celestial speed-up.” Journey Without Distance by Robert Skutch

So apparently most of the world’s teachings take us through “the usual slow, evolutionary process,” but ACIM is different in that the Course speeds up the process.

We are told that the plan to have people teach the Course “is to save time. Each one begins as a single light, but with the Call at its center it is a light that cannot be limited. And each one saves a thousand years of time as the world judges it.” M-1.2

In numerous occasions the Course stresses that it will save us much time. Here are a couple:

“Today we try to bring reality still closer to your mind. Each time you practice, awareness is brought a little nearer at least; sometimes a thousand years or more are saved.” W-pI.97.3

“If you achieve the faintest glimmering of what love means today, you have advanced in distance without measure and in time beyond the count of years to your release.” W-pI.127.7

So, we conclude that “many thousands” of teachings will be helpful in the evolutionary process but some, like the Course, can be a big timesaver. Those that stress “what love means” apparently save big time.

Major Approaches to Truth

Therefore, when looking at sources of light outside of ACIM one wants to find those as close to the truth as possible for they will save the most time on the path to awakening.

If the seeker follows the advice of the Course, he will do his best to be one with the mind of the Holy Spirit which will give him power to discern truth from error and the real from the unreal. This is what I have done in my life. I have found that when true principles are presented to me that there is a vibration of recognition that stirs within my inner core wherein the Spirit can be felt.

From my efforts to discern through the Spirit I have seen some value in orthodox religion, but they are indeed part of that “slow evolutionary process” previously mentioned.  However, if students will just bypass their religious authorities and study the world scriptures under the guidance of the Spirit, they can come to many truthful conclusions that will speed the journey.

For instance, I have found the words of Jesus as recorded in the New Testament to be very profound and inspiring. Never has there been so much said in such few words.

In addition, many other parts of the Bible and other world scriptures have thoughts and teachings worthy of contemplation.

In recent times a plethora of teachings have surfaced, often with the claim that they were transmitted from some higher or divine authority, from God to all kinds of other entities.

These transmissions, often called channeling, fall into two general categories.

The first are unconscious transmissions. The most common of these occur when the subject goes into a trance and another entity speaks through his or her body, often with a different voice or accent. Generally, when the medium awakens there will be no memory of what occurred though some say they were somewhat conscious of what was received. Seth and the Law of One are two popular writings received this way.

Another in this category is reception through automatic writing. Here some other worldly force or entity takes control of the hand and writes messages. The subject is unaware of what was written until he reads them himself. The popular “Conversations with God” was received this way.

The second category of transmission is by a fully conscious reception through what we might call mental telepathy. This was the method used by Helen Schucman in receiving A Course in Miracles.

Many esoteric students, including myself, consider the teachings received through conscious reception to be significantly superior to the unconscious ones.  One reason is that many entities drawn to unconscious mediums are not very advanced along the path to awakening. Many of them are no more intelligent than those taking in their words.

The source of other direct voice channels can come from the mind of the medium or even the combined minds of those participating.

There are two major problems with material delivered by unconscious mediums. The first is that almost all of them make predictions that do not come true. Unfortunately, this does not seem to discourage true believers but it does raise a red flag to a dispassionate investigator.

The second problem is that most of their teachings will have points that disagree with each other. If two teachings disagree then either one or both of them are false. They cannot both be true. ACIM puts forth a great teaching on this:

“The truth is true, and nothing else is true. This you have heard before, but may not yet accept both parts of it. Without the first, the second has no meaning. But without the second, is the first no longer true. Truth cannot have an opposite. This can not be too often said and thought about. For if what is not true is true as well as what is true, then part of truth is false. And truth has lost its meaning. Nothing but the truth is true, and what is false is false.” W-pI.152.3

Messages from conscious channeling comes from two sources. The first is from a person’s own ego. These messages will contain contradictory teachings and often include false prophesies. They have flaws similar to the unconscious mediums and are usually created by the subtle desires of the receiver.

The second source is from a being of high intelligence who has mastered the art of mental telepathy. If the material produced far exceeds in quality anything the receiver has written then it most probably came from advanced entity often referred to as a Master of Wisdom. These are mentioned in the Course:

“There are those who have reached God directly, retaining no trace of worldly limits and remembering their own Identity perfectly. These might be called the Teachers of teachers because, although they are no longer visible, their image can yet be called upon. And they will appear when and where it is helpful for them to do so. To those to whom such appearances would be frightening, they give their ideas. No one can call on them in vain. Nor is there anyone of whom they are unaware. All needs are known to them, and all mistakes are recognized and overlooked by them. The time will come when this is understood. And meanwhile, they give all their gifts to the teachers of God who look to them for help, asking all things in their name and in no other.”  M-26.2

The Voice in ACIM identifies Itself as Jesus but there are numerous other Masters besides him who work with humanity. Much of their work is not recognized by humanity for they will often send impressions giving needed ideas and instructions to those dedicated to serving humanity. When the transmissions are received, they often think they came from their own minds.

Then there are significant times that a Master will transmit teachings to be given out to the general public as was the case with A Course in Miracles.

In addition to the Course, numerous teachings of a high order have been transmitted in full consciousness to various teachers of the Ancient Wisdom often linked to Theosophy.  These include Helena P. Blavatsky, the founder of Theosophy, Helena Roerich, Alice A. Bailey, and Lucille Cedercrans as significant conscious receivers. There are numerous others who claim contact with the masters, but these are significant ones.

Rudolf Steiner is another significant figure associated with Theosophy but he received through his own meditations rather than mental telepathy from a Master.

It is interesting that when we include Helen Schucman that we have three Helens receiving very influential teachings by conscious mental telepathy.

Even if a set of teachings is of a high order no student should assume they are infallible. He or she should always run them by the Spirit within to make sure one’s understanding is correct. Without assistance of the Holy Spirit, the drawback of language itself will cause some distortion.

My favorite receiver of the Ancient Wisdom is Alice A. Bailey. Like A Course in Miracles, I only had to read a few pages of her work to conclude that this was a transmission from an intelligence of a very high order. H. P. Blavatsky’s teachings are also profound as she is largely responsible for introducing the Ancient Wisdom tradition to the West.

Like Helen Schucman, Alice A. Bailey started consciously registering a voice from within and at first was reluctant to cooperate. Like Helen, after receiving a number of transmissions she became convinced of their quality and became a willing scribe. Overall, Alice produced 24 books containing over 3,400,000 words.

The purpose of the two sets of writings are quite a bit different. The Course has the one main goal of waking up the seeker to his true reality. The Baily and Blavastky writings also deal with this but go into significant detail in a much wider range of teachings. Even though the  Ancient Wisdom and ACIM are quite harmonious with each other the style and presentation are so different it is like they were written in two different languages. One could even say that ACIM has a language all in its own category. This is one reason that many of its students focus on it alone and do not see much in harmony from other teachings.  Very few ACIM students study the Ancient Wisdom.

On the other hand, students of the Ancient Wisdom have the same problem as Course students.  The writing style and focus seem so different that they do not give them a serious look and will often dismiss them after reading a few pages.  It is interesting though that Ancient Wisdom students will read a wide variety within their accepted philosophy. I would chalk this up to the fact that the various writings within the category of the Ancient Wisdom use a similar language, vocabulary and accepted sources. The problem is that ACIM seems to be in such a different category that similarities in teachings are difficult for them to see.

It is about time then that someone took a serious look at both teaching traditions and see how they line up. If both come from similarly high spiritual sources then they should be a high level of agreement.

Fortunately, I have seriously studied both and have indeed found a high level of such agreement.  To see this one has to realize that both sides use quite a different vocabulary, define words and concepts differently and have a different purpose and focus. But if one looks beyond the imperfection of reducing pure thought down to the symbols that create our writing and look at the ideas expressed one can find much harmony.

And that is what we will do next. We will examine the significant teachings of both and see how they line up with each other.

Copyright by J J Dewey

Read the Introduction HERE, Read Chapter One HERE. Chapter Two HERE, Chapter Three HERE, Chapter Four HERE, Chapter Five HERE Chapter Six HERE, Chapter Seven HERE, Chapter Eight HERE, Chapter Nine HERE, Chapter Ten HERE, Chapter Eleven HERE, Chapter Twelve HERE, Chapter Thirteen HERE, Chapter Fourteen HERE, Fifteen HERE, Sixteen HERE, Seventeen HERE,       Eighteen HERE, Nineteen HERE, Twenty HERE, Twenty-One HERE, Twenty-Two HERE, Twenty-Three HERE, Twenty-Four HERE, Twenty-Five HERE, Twenty-Six HERE, Twenty-Seven  HERE, Twenty-Eight  HERE, Twenty-Nine HERE, Thirty HERE

ACIM Conversations, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part  16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19, Part 20, Part 21, Part 22, Part 23, Part 24, Part 25

Index for Original Archives

Index for Recent Posts

Easy Access to All the Writings

For Free Book go HERE and other books HERE

JJ’s Amazon page HERE

Gather with JJ on Facebook HERE