Unlearning

Unlearning 

“This is a course in miracles. It is a required course. Only the time you take it is voluntary. Free will does not mean that you can establish the curriculum. It means only that you can elect what you want to take at a given time. The course does not aim at teaching the meaning of love, for that is beyond what can be taught. It does aim, however, at removing the blocks to the awareness of love’s presence, which is your natural inheritance. The opposite of love is fear. But what is all-encompassing can have no opposite. This course can therefore be summed up very simply in this way. Nothing real can be threatened. Nothing unreal exists. Herein lies the peace of God.”

A Course in Miracles, Introduction

A Course in Miracles teaches that all mankind is united in a universal spirit which is connected to God. We are literally the offspring of God, and Jesus offers a perfect example of how to live in total love. Through the teachings of the Course we are better equipped to love and forgive others as we live in a space of non-judgement, for this is the path to peace.

The principles of A Course in Miracles hinge upon the law of love, which is the law that governs my life. In the Bible, Jesus says it this way,

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’  The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:30-31)

A Course in Miracles does not profess to have a monopoly on spiritual insight. Instead, its goal is to revise one’s thinking based on universal spiritual themes. It offers a path to peace through decoding and deconstructing a thought system rooted in fear and replacing the learned fear-based system with a love. For love is the only thing that exists. Everything else is just an illusion. By learning to see things differently, though this love based system, one attains greater peace. This peace is gained through the regular practice of forgiveness.

Although the Course uses Christian terminology, it is not specifically a Christian doctrine. Its terms are used in a psychological context, so its themes are universal for anyone looking to develop their spiritual practice. One need not be Christian for the principals to apply.

By studying the Course, I see Jesus in a deeper way. He is no longer just the sacrificial Lamb of God who gave up His life for mine, who led his followers to learn the principles of God, or the rebel who disrupted Jewish tradition. After walking the Course, Jesus, who is the inspired voice behind the Course, emerged as a spiritual guide, a teacher, a mentor, a brother. Through the words of the Course and His life illustrated in the Bible, He is for me the ultimate spiritual guide. He is the ultimate symbol of love. For His example and words teach us how to love God, the Source of all love, but also our fellow man, God’s creation, for whom we were created to love. That’s our purpose, our reason for living and being. For when we love, we feel most at peace with the world. Jesus came to teach us how to return to this natural state of love. The calm, peaceful, joyous, effervescent place. For this is our present-day Eden.