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A COURSE IN MIRACLES
CH 19 "BEYOND THE BODY"
V. c. THE THIRD OBSTACLE: "The Attraction of Death" The Incorruptible Body
88 When anything seems to you to be a source of fear, when any situation strikes you with terror and makes your body tremble and the cold sweat of fear comes over it, remember it is always for
one reason-the ego has perceived it as a symbol of fear, a sign of sin and death. Remember then that neither sign nor symbol should be confused with source, for they must stand for something other than themselves. Their meaning cannot lie in them but must be sought in what they represent. And they may thus mean everything or nothing, according to the truth or falsity of the idea which they reflect. Confronted with such seeming uncertainty of meaning, judge it not. Remember the holy Presence of the One given to you to be the Source of judgment. Give it to Him to judge for you, and say:
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Take this from me and look upon it, judging it for me. Let me not see it as a sign of sin and death Nor use it for destruction. Teach me how not to make of it an obstacle to peace, But let You use it for me to facilitate its coming.
ON LINE: ACIM.OE.TX.CH 19.Vc
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A COURSE IN MIRACLES
WORKBOOK Part I
REVIEW VI
<AUDIO><VIDEO> Voice and Music by CIMS SonShip Radio
With this review, we take but one idea
each day, and practice it as often as
is possible. Besides the time we give
morning and evening, which should not be less
than fifteen minutes, and the hourly
remembrances we make throughout the day,
use the idea as often as you can
between them. Each of these ideas alone
would be sufficient for salvation, if
it is learned truly. Each would be enough
to give release to you and to the world
from every form of bondage, and invite
the memory of God to come again.
With this in mind, we start our practicing
in which we carefully review the thoughts
the Holy Spirit has bestowed on us
in our last twenty lessons. Each contains
the whole curriculum, if understood,
practiced, accepted and applied to all
the seeming happenings throughout the day.
One is enough. But for that one there must
be no exceptions made. And so we need
to use them all, and let them blend as one
as each contributes to the whole we learn.
These practice lessons, like our last review,
are centered round a central theme with which
we start and end each lesson. It is this:
"
I am not a body. I am free.
For I am still as God created me."
The day begins and ends with this. And we
repeat it every time the hour strikes,
or we remember, in between, we have
a function that transcends the world we see.
Beyond this and a repetition of
the special thought we practice for the day,
no form of exercise is urged, except
a deep relinquishing of everything
that clutters up your mind, and makes it deaf
to reason, sanity and simple truth.
We will attempt to get beyond all words
and special forms of practicing for this
review. For we attempt this time to reach
a quickened pace along a shorter path
to the serenity and peace of God.
We merely close our eyes, and then forget
all that we thought we saw and understood.
For thus is freedom given us from all
we did not know and failed to understand.
There is but one exception to this lack
of structuring. Permit no idle thought
to go unchallenged. If you notice one,
deny its hold and hasten to assure
your mind that this is not what it would have.
Then gently let the thought which you denied
be given up in sure and quick exchange
for the idea we practice for the day.
When you are tempted, hasten to proclaim
your freedom from temptation, as you say:
"
This thought I do not want. I choose instead..."
And then repeat the idea for the day,
and let it take the place of what you thought.
Beyond such special applications of
each day's idea, we will add but few
formal expressions for specific thoughts
to aid your practicing. Instead we give
these times of quiet to the Teacher Who
instructs in quiet, speaks of peace, and gives
our thoughts whatever meaning they may have.
To Him I offer this review for you.
I place you in His charge, and let Him teach
you what to do and say and think each time
you turn to Him. He will not fail to be
available to you each time you call
to Him to help you. Let us offer Him
the whole review we now begin, and let
us also not forget to Whom it has
been given, as we practice, day by day,
advancing toward the goal He set for us;
allowing Him to teach us how to go,
and trusting Him completely for the way
each practice period can best become
a loving gift of freedom to the world.
~ Original Handscript of ACIM September 1, 1970
ACIM OE WORKBOOK REVIEW VI
CIRCLE OF ATONEMENT ~ COMMENTARY on INTRODUCTION
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A COURSE IN MIRACLES
DAILY LESSONS
L e s s o n 218
<AUDIO><VIDEO>
Voice and Music by CIMS SonShip Radio
I am not a body. I am free. For I am still as God created me.
[198] Only my condemnation injures me.
My condemnation keeps my vision dark, and through my sightless eyes I cannot see the vision of my glory. Yet today I can behold this glory and be glad.
I am not a body. I am free.
For I am still as God created me
.
~ Original Handscript of ACIM
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ACIM Edmonton - Sarah's Reflections
LESSON 218 Review VI [198] It can be but my gratitude I earn.
Sarah's Commentary:
We have aligned with the ego thought system of sin, guilt, and fear and see ourselves as a separate self, alone in the world, weak and vulnerable. We have become unaware of what we are. With the choice made for the ego, we seemingly crossed a bridge from Oneness into the body and the world. The body and the world are illusions, but to us, they seem so very real because we have no recollection of how we got here. Our experience here will continue to feel very real until we have the experience of the holy instant in which we have a glimpse of the eternal. The bridge built by the ego has been detonated with denial and repression so we have no memory of the decision made by the mind to run away from our reality, as divine beings of light and love. Now, we think of our reality as a body, which is limited, lacking, vulnerable, and destructible.
Our decision to listen to the lies of the ego has resulted in tremendous guilt. The ego has convinced us that we have stolen our identity from God, and now we fear that He will come after us. It is not a conscious thought, but it is the origin of the guilt we hold in our wrong minds. However, the ego knows that we will not continue to choose it if it means being overwhelmed with guilt, so it has devised a plan for us to project the guilt and see it in others and blame them for our condition. Thus, we judge others for their guilt, and now we claim innocence for ourselves. When we condemn and blame others, we only experience more guilt, which hurts us. That is the part the ego has kept hidden from us, which is why Jesus goes to great lengths to unveil the ego myth that we have bought into. Once we see it clearly, we will readily dismiss it, as it is the source of all suffering. Jesus shows us that when we condemn our brothers, instead of getting rid of the guilt, we keep it.
There are many ways we condemn: through blame, judgment, attack, unsolicited advice-giving, analyzing the motives of others, correcting others, holding grievances and resentments, focusing on the mistakes of others or even our own, using others to meet our needs through our special relationships, holding onto past hurts, getting vengeance on others through our suffering, compensating for our negative beliefs by trying to be nice and kind, abusing ourselves with substance use and other self-indulgent behaviors and similar strategies that keep us bound to the ego.
These are examples of some of the ways the ego operates in the world. It is always self-serving, always giving to get, and always seeing differences. Even a feeling of discomfort or anxiety around someone is a self-attack based on self-judgment and self-hatred. Our discomforts are never about anyone else. When we take responsibility and see it all as a projection of our own unhealed thoughts, we can begin the process of choosing against the ego and releasing our wrong-minded thoughts to the Holy Spirit. This requires that we look at them first and recognize that they all come from our own wrong minds and are then projected out. The ego will always focus outward. Our senses were made for this purpose. By looking outside of our own minds, we keep the ego thought system intact and not available for healing. By denying, projecting, and repressing our thoughts, they are kept apart from healing.
So what do we do? Our responsibility is to accept the Atonement for ourselves. What does this mean? It means we must take responsibility for our thoughts and recognize that what we have come to believe about ourselves is not the truth. We need to do the work of forgiveness so we can take the steps necessary to return to sanity until we can finally accept our true reality as created by God. How do we do that? We do it by forgiving our thoughts, taking responsibility for them and bringing them to awareness. We do it by being willing to see everything and everyone in our lives as an opportunity to heal ourselves. Everything happening in this illusion is helpful if we choose to see it that way.
With everything that comes up in my life, I have a decision to make. Do I use my past learning and apply my own judgments to my situation, or do I turn the whole situation over to the Holy Spirit for a miracle? Do I choose God or the ego? How do I know which choice I have made? If I still feel guilt, fear, and a lack of peace, then I have chosen the ego. I know that if I am chewing on some issue, then I am still in my ego mind. I know, if I have a story around the situation that I am unwilling to release, I am still in my ego. And I know I have chosen the right mind when I am at peace. It is a process that requires our commitment to stay vigilant, constantly watching our beliefs, thoughts, feelings, and opinions, which underpin the decisions we have made. We are called to be the observer and notice where the mind is focused. The ego may keep chattering, but our part is not to give it any attention.
What is my purpose here? It is always to remember who I am. To do so, I need to look honestly at everything in my life and bring it to the Holy Spirit. My usual way of figuring things out will not heal anything. We need to release our personal self from being the one in charge. Yes, we learn and study the Course, but only for one purpose---to heal the mind by applying what we learn. In order to do that, it is important that we look at everything and keep nothing hidden from the light of Truth. This means that we need to stop and look at what is going on in the mind. Defenses will not allow us to look, so we must be willing to let them down to the extent possible. This takes great courage, great honesty, and a strong dedication to the truth.
The important question to ask is, "What is this for?" in everything we do. It is all about purpose. The ego's purpose is to keep us invested in the illusion. The Holy Spirit's purpose is to wake us up to who we really are. Everything made by the ego can now be used by the Holy Spirit for healing. The form does not change. We can still have our special relationships, although now the content is no longer to serve our needs but for the purpose of healing. The body, which was made to get, can now be used for the holy purpose of giving and extending. Now the body is no longer an end in itself but is a communication device for the Holy Spirit.
Whatever situations you face today, use each of them as opportunities for healing, rather than for self-condemnation. This means that we do not judge what comes up. Murderous and hateful thoughts are only thoughts. Judging them is a way to condemn ourselves instead of looking at these thoughts honestly and being willing to release them to the Holy Spirit. He will do the rest. This is what makes forgiveness easy. It is not done by us. Our part is only to look at the blocks to love. As the mind awakens to the truth, we become clear channels so the love in us can extend through us. No amount of charity work, no amount of service, and no amount of good deeds or of being nice, which comes from compensating for the ego's darkness and self-serving motives, will ever offer the extension of love in the world that can be demonstrated when we make space for the Holy Spirit.
It is our choice as to which operating system we run today---that of the ego or of the Holy Spirit. One brings only condemnation, while the other opens the way for us to behold our glory and be glad. What a choice! And of course, we can only accomplish this with mind training; and that means doing the practices so we over-learn the Lessons until they become our habitual response to every situation where we find that we are not experiencing peace.
Throughout the day when we are not feeling peace, we watch our thoughts and affirm, "This thought I do not want. I choose instead___" (W.RVI.IN.6.2-3) to behold my brother's glory and my own so I can know my innocence and his. Only when we offer forgiveness can we behold the truth, or as Jesus says, "behold this glory and be glad." (W.218.1.3) Ultimately, this is how we learn the central Lesson that we have been practicing every day, which is "I am not a body. I am free. For I am still as God created me." We do not learn this Lesson by shouting down the ego with affirmations. We learn it by looking at how we are defending ourselves against this truth.
Remind yourself of the truth frequently today, as you apply the Lesson to all the events and situations you encounter in your day. When you lapse, remember it is a mistake. Do not give power to your mistake by judging yourself for it and feeling guilty. Simply correct it and resolve to continue with your daily practice.
Love and blessings, Sarah
Printable Document
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PAUSED FOR WEEKEND
A Course in Miracles
TEXT
Chapter Nineteen
Beyond the Body
Voice and Music by Martin Weber, CIMS SonShip Radio
V. Obstacles to Peace
c. The Third Obstacle: The Attraction of Death
77 To you in whose special relationship the Holy Spirit entered, it is given to release and be released from the dedication to death. For it was offered you, and you accepted. Yet you must learn still more about this strange devotion, for it contains the third of the obstacles which peace must flow across. No one can die unless he chooses death. What seems to be the fear of death is really its attraction. Guilt, too, is feared and fearful. Yet it could have no hold at all except on those who are attracted to it and seek it out. And so it is with death. Made by the ego, its dark shadow falls across all living things because the ego is the "enemy" of life.
78 And yet a shadow cannot kill. What is a shadow to the living? They but walk past, and it is gone. But what of those whose dedication it is not to live-the black-draped "sinners," the ego's mournful chorus, plodding so heavily away from life, dragging their chains and marching in the slow procession which honors their grim master, lord of death? Touch any one of them with the gentle hands of forgiveness and watch the chains fall away along with yours. See him throw aside the black robe he was wearing to his funeral and hear him laugh at death. The sentence sin would lay upon him he can escape through your forgiveness.
79 This is no arrogance. It is the Will of God. What is impossible to you who chose His Will as yours? What is death to you? Your dedication is not to death nor to its master. When you accepted the Holy Spirit's purpose in place of the ego's, you renounced death, exchanging it for life. We know that an idea leaves not its source. And death is the result of the thought we call the ego as surely as life is the result of the Thought of God.
The Incorruptible Body
80 From the ego came sin and guilt and death, in opposition to life and innocence and to the Will of God Himself. Where can such opposition lie but in the sick minds of the insane, dedicated to madness and set against the peace of Heaven. One thing is sure---God, Who created neither sin nor death, wills not that you be bound by them. He knows of neither sin nor its results. The shrouded figures in the funeral procession march not in honor of their Creator, Whose Will it is they live. They are not following it; they are opposing it.
81 And what is the black-draped body they would bury? A body which they dedicated to death, a symbol of corruption, a sacrifice to sin, offered to sin to feed upon and keep itself alive---a thing condemned, damned by its maker, and lamented by every mourner who looks upon it as himself. You who believe you have condemned the Son of God to this
are arrogant. But you who would release him are but honoring the Will of his Creator. The arrogance of sin, the pride of guilt, the sepulcher of separation---all are part of your unrecognized dedication to death. The glitter of guilt you laid upon the body would kill it. For what the ego loves, it kills for its obedience. But what obeys it not, it cannot kill.
82 You have another dedication which would keep the body incorruptible and perfect as long as it is useful for your holy purpose. The body no more dies than it can feel. It does nothing. Of itself, it is neither corruptible nor incorruptible. It
is nothing. It is the result of a tiny mad idea of corruption which can be corrected. For God has answered this insane idea with His own, an Answer which left Him not and therefore brings the Creator to the awareness of every mind which heard His Answer and accepted it.
83 You who are dedicated to the incorruptible have been given through your acceptance the power to release from corruption. What better way to teach the first and fundamental principle in a course on miracles than by showing you the one which seems to be the hardest can be accomplished first? The body can but serve your purpose. As you look upon it, so will it seem to be. Death, were it true, would be the final and complete disruption of communication which is the ego's goal.
84 Those who fear death see not how often and how loudly they call to it and bid it come to save them from communication. For death is seen as safety, the great dark savior from the light of truth, the answer to the Answer, the silencer of the Voice that speaks for God. Yet the retreat to death is not the end of conflict. Only God's Answer is its end. The obstacle of your seeming love for death that peace must flow across seems to be very great. For in it lies hidden all the ego's secrets, all its strange devices for deception, all its sick ideas and weird imaginings. Here is the final end of union, the triumph of the ego's making over creation, the victory of lifelessness on Life Itself.
85 Under the dusty edge of its distorted world, the ego would lay the Son of God, slain by its orders, proof in his decay that God Himself is powerless before the ego's might, unable to protect the life that He created against the ego's savage wish to kill. My brothers, children of our Father, this is a
dream of death. There is no funeral, no dark altars, no grim commandments nor twisted rituals of condemnation to which the body leads you. Ask not release of it. But free it from the merciless and unrelenting orders you laid upon it and forgive it what you ordered it to do. In its exaltation you commanded it to die, for only death could conquer life. And what but insanity could look upon the defeat of God and think it real?
86 The fear of death will go as its appeal is yielded to love's real attraction. The end of sin, which nestles quietly in the safety of your relationship, protected by your union, ready to grow into a mighty force for God, is very near. The infancy of salvation is carefully guarded by love, preserved from every thought that would attack it and quietly made ready to fulfill the mighty task for which it was given you. Your newborn purpose is nursed by angels, cherished by the Holy Spirit, and protected by God Himself. It needs not your protection; it is
yours. For it is deathless, and within it lies the end of death.
87 What danger can assail the wholly innocent? What can attack the guiltless? What fear can enter and disturb the peace of sinlessness? What has been given you, even in its infancy, is in full communication with God and you. In its tiny hands, it holds in perfect safety every miracle you will perform, held out to you. The miracle of life is ageless, born in time but nourished in eternity. Behold this infant to whom you gave a resting-place by your forgiveness of each other, and see in it the Will of God. Here is the babe of Bethlehem reborn. And everyone who gives him shelter will follow him, not to the cross, but to the Resurrection and the Life.
88 When anything seems to you to be a source of fear, when any situation strikes you with terror and makes your body tremble and the cold sweat of fear comes over it, remember it is always for
one reason---the ego has perceived it as a symbol of fear, a sign of sin and death. Remember then that neither sign nor symbol should be confused with source, for they must stand for something other than themselves. Their meaning cannot lie in them but must be sought in what they represent. And they may thus mean everything or nothing, according to the truth or falsity of the idea which they reflect. Confronted with such seeming uncertainty of meaning, judge it not. Remember the holy Presence of the One given to you to be the Source of judgment. Give it to Him to judge for you, and say:
89
Take this from me and look upon it, judging it for me. Let me not see it as a sign of sin and death Nor use it for destruction. Teach me how not to make of it an obstacle to peace, But let You use it for me to facilitate its coming.
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