The Mysteries of A Course in Miracles, Chapter 5

Chapter Five
The One Son of God

The Course gives us more details on the Son than the Father. The Father is basically that life or “idea” that initiated all creation and the Son continues it. The Father, we are told, created the Son; the Son did not create Itself. Thus, we have a difference between the two as noted here:

“I and my Father are one, but there are two parts to the statement in recognition that the Father is greater. T-1.II.4

This agrees with Jesus of the Bible who said: “my Father is greater than I.” John 14:28

We are told then that God did not desire to be alone so He extended Himself by creating a Son like unto Himself with all the Father’s original creative powers. He could then take joy in the Son’s creations as if they are His own, for they share the same mind. We are told that “He (God) created you (the Son) as part of Him.” T-24.VI.1 and “You were created only to create” T-14.I.4

The first thing a Course student must grasp about this mysterious figure called The Son, or Son of God, is that it is a unity – sharing oneness with God yet is composed of all of us and more. When, therefore, the Course states that God has only one Son, it is speaking of a great life composed of many parts sharing the same mind and purpose.

Some students take the statement of the “one Son” or “Only Son” literally to the extent that they think this means there are no parts but just one life. Their thinking goes like this:

In this illusion we appear to be many but when we return to our Source, we will no longer be an individual in any degree, but all of us will awaken as the One Son with no parts. The One Son is just dreaming all of us into temporary existence as egos. You and I will disappear along with our egos when the final awakening happens.

This is not only an error in interpretation. but such a view misses many statements in the course to the contrary.

One could make this same error with the Father and the Son which are also grouped as one, but that oneness does not mean sameness for the Course says, as quoted earlier that, “I and my Father are one, but there are two parts to the statement in recognition that the Father is greater. T-1.II.4

Then we read in the unedited version:

“the original statement was “are of one kind.” The Father and the Son are not identical, but you can say “Like Father, like Son.” UR T 1 B 22l.

Just like the Father and the Son share one mind and one life, but are separate parts of the whole, even so, is the Son composed of many parts that make up the one great life. This is comparable to cells in the body that are parts of the one life that make up the whole of your body. It is one life, but composed of many parts. This analogy was used by Paul in a similar approach to the Course:

For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, SO ALSO IS CHRIST. For by ONE SPIRIT we are all baptized into ONE body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into ONE SPIRIT. For the body is not one member, but MANY (All lives together)… Now Ye are the body of Christ (the Son), and members in particular.” I Cor 12:12-14, 27

Here the Course teaches a similar principle of the One and the Many:

“It should especially be noted that God has only one Son. If all His creations are His Sons, every one must be an integral part of the whole Sonship. The Sonship in its Oneness transcends the sum of its parts. T-2.VII.6

“And here, before the altar to one God, one Father, one Creator and one Thought, we stand together as one Son of God. Not separate from Him Who is our Source; not distant from one brother who is part of our one Self” W-pI.187.10

“So do the parts of God’s Son gradually join in time, and with each joining is the end of time brought nearer.” T-20.V.1

“God has but one Son, knowing them all as One.” T-9.VI.3

This one Son consists of many Sons and the principle of the many in the one will continue after the return home:

“When the Atonement is complete and the whole Sonship is healed there will be no Call to return. But what God creates is eternal. The Holy Spirit will remain with the Sons of God, to bless their creations and keep them in the light of joy.” T-5.I.5.

Notice that we are called “Sons of God,” plural, even after our final union with God.

This oneness applies to the entire Trinity:

“The Son of God is part of the Holy Trinity, but the Trinity Itself is One. There is no confusion within Its Levels, because They are of one Mind and one Will.” T-3.II.5 “you are of one mind and spirit with Him.” T-5.VII.3 “There is one life. That life you share with Him.” W-pI.156.2

So, just as you are a part of the “Only Son,” even so, the Son “is part of the Holy Trinity.” The parts of the Son share a Oneness as do the three parts of the Trinity which “Itself is One.”

So, what then produces this oneness? Is it caused by a merging where each part is exactly the same with no one having a unique contribution or individual existence?

No. What causes the oneness is that we all share the same Mind, Will, Spirit and Life. The mind and Spirit of God is circulating within you now giving you life, yet you live your life as a unique contribution. That will not change when we awaken. Instead, we will merely lose our ego which sees us as a separate unconnected unit. When this happens, we will see and accept the unity and oneness of life.

The Course makes it clear that when it speaks of the Son, plural or singular, it is talking about all of us for it says, “WE stand together as one Son of God.” W-pI.187.10 But what is often missed is how inclusive the Sonship really is. The Sonship is often referred to as an actual extension of God Himself:

“Very gently does God shine upon Himself, loving the extension of Himself that is His Son.” T-12.VI.7

Then it draws this fantastic conclusion:

“There is no end to God and His Son, for WE ARE THE UNIVERSE” and we are to “See His creations as His Son.” T-11.I.5.

“God created nothing beside you and nothing beside you exists.” T-10.in.2

“Without you there would be a lack in God, a Heaven incomplete, a Son without a Father. There could be no universe and no reality.” T-24.VI.2

“The universe consists of nothing but the Son of God,” W-pI.183.10

Those are pretty inclusive statements for you and me, but this one tops them all:

“How holy is the smallest grain of sand, when it is recognized as being part of the completed picture of God’s Son!” T-28.IV.9 “all living things as part of him.” M-23.2 “Know, then, the Sons of God, and you will know all creation.” T-7.XI.7

So, the Son not only consists of you, me and all humanity, but all life and creation down to “the smallest grain of sand.”

Since God created “nothing beside you,” this means that when we achieve full awareness we will share life with all things even to the tiniest inorganic particles. Since we all belong to one mind, and mind even creates the grain of sand, we can suppose that mind and life envelopes all things as a unity.

The Course places us as Sons in a very powerful position. We have all the powers that God has but are just unaware of who we are.

We are told that God “created you out of Himself, but still within Him.” T-14.IV.4 You are to “accept your rightful place as co-creator of the universe.” W-pI.152.8 “all His extensions are like Him.” T-12.IV.6

Then we have this powerful statement concerning those who realize their true identity:

“There is now no limit on his power, because it is the power of God. So has his name become the Name of God, for he no longer sees himself as separate from Him.” M-23.2

According to the Course, then, we are truly made in the image and likeness of God with all the powers of godliness, but instead of extending the work of the Father through true creation, we used our unlimited power to limit ourselves in a world of illusion. Apparently, we wanted the challenge of overcoming these self-imposed limits.

Instead of having a fun challenge, we lost our true identity and have become trapped in the illusion and need help getting out. To that end was the reason the Course was written.

When we as Sons of God realize our true power, nothing will be impossible, as was said by Jesus in the Bible.

When students read A Course in Miracles, they usually see the creator Father as a single entity. The concept of the Son is not so cut and dried. It clearly tells us there is one Son and all of us in this illusion are part of it, but there is not agreement on what happens when we return to heaven. Some think the end result will be a Son that is a single entity with no individual parts, and others see it as one united life composed of many parts.

Earlier we showed clear evidence from the Course writings that the latter is true. The Son has many parts but shares in the one mind, as does the Father.

What is not so clear is what the Father is and how He differs from the Son. Perhaps starting with an analogy will help.

If one is writing a book on parenting, the writer may talk about the son, daughter or child in the singular even though the term may apply to the billions of them worldwide.

This he will also do with the father, mother or parent. The fact that he refers to “the son” or “the father” doesn’t mean there is just one entity on the planet in that position.

The same goes for A Course in Miracles. When it speaks of the one Son or the one Father, it talks about a singular position, not a singular entity.

Now, getting back to the parent and child, the analogy also tells us this. The father was once a son and the son will someday be a father. But even when the son becomes a father, he is still a son to his father, but also a father to his own son.

Contrary to common interpretation, the Course’s teachings are in harmony with this example.

First, it clearly tells us that the Son of God (us) will have sons just as the Father had Sons.

“Without your Father you will not know your fatherhood. The Kingdom of God includes all His Sons AND THEIR CHILDREN, who are as like the Sons as they are like the Father.” T-7.XI.7

There you have it. The Sons of God will have “children, who are as like the Sons as they are like the Father.”

This idea is reinforced here:

“His joy lay in creating you, and He extends His Fatherhood to you so that you can extend yourself AS HE DID. You do not understand this because you do not understand Him.” T-8.VI.6

It is certainly true that many students do not understand the Father and Son concept, but it is further clarified here:

“the Son gives Fatherhood to his Creator, and receives the gift that he has given Him. It is because he is God’s Son that HE MUST ALSO BE A FATHER, WHO CREATES AS GOD CREATED HIM. The circle of creation has no end.” T-28.II.1

This truth is emphasized here:

“What He creates is not apart from Him, and nowhere does the Father end, the Son begin as something separate from Him.” W-pI.132.12

And if the Son creates additional sons “as God created him,” then what will the newly created sons call the creator Son?

They will call him “Father.” Yes, this Son will be a Father to his Sons but also a Son to his Father. He is thus a Father and a Son.

So why would this not apply to our Father? Would he also not be a Father to us but a Son to another creator?

Indeed. Consider this:

“The shining radiance of the Son of God, so like his Father that the memory of Him springs instantly to mind. And with this memory, THE SON REMEMBERS HIS OWN CREATIONS, AS LIKE TO HIM AS HE IS TO HIS FATHER.” T-24.II.6

The Son’s creations (his children) are then to him “as he is to his Father.”

Furthermore: “your creations, who are son to you, that you might share the Fatherhood of God,” T-24.VII.1

We will share Fatherhood with God the same way we do with our fathers here. When we have children in this world, we share the principle of fatherhood with our earthly father the same as he did when he had us. The same goes for the next world. When we are Fathers, we will be like our creator Father who is also a Son.

“The Son of God has both Father and Son, because he is both Father and Son. …What can the Son of God not accomplish with the Fatherhood of God in him?” T-11.II.1&4

“The Father must give fatherhood to His Son, because His Own Fatherhood must be extended outward. You who belong in God have the holy function of extending His Fatherhood by placing no limits upon it.” T-8.III.3

“A co-creator with the Father must have a Son. Yet must this Son have been created like Himself. A perfect being, all-encompassing.” T-24.III.6

Every creator Son is a Father and every Father is also a creator son. This is why we are told “The universe consists of nothing but the Son of God.” W-pI.183.10

The final and ultimate question is who is our Father’s Father and how far back does the lineage go? Most would say there is no beginning which is hard to fathom, but so it is.

Our Father identifies with all other Fathers in the universe through the one mind as one Father, and all awakened Sons identify as the one Son, also through the one mind; and through this one mind the Father and the Son are One.

Oneness Is.

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