Hi,
I'm Teresa Hubbard.
Welcome back to our continued reading of the text to A Course in Miracles.
We continue today in Chapter 1,
The Meaning of Miracles,
Section 4,
The Escape from Darkness.
To summarize my takeaways,
In Section 4 of Chapter 1 we are given a comparison between darkness and sin.
Darkness is a lack of light,
While sin is a lack of love.
We are given the two stages of our escape from darkness.
The first stage is our recognition that darkness cannot hide,
Which we generally fear.
The second stage is the recognition that there is nothing we want to hide,
Even if we could.
This recognition is our escape from fear.
We are told that darkness is an example of our belief in scarcity,
But in fact,
Truth is always abundant.
We are reminded that as we perceive,
We have everything,
We have no need of any kind.
The purpose of the atonement is to restore us to this awareness.
We were given everything when we were created,
And the emptiness brought on by fear will be replaced as we forgive both ourselves and others.
As we learn to express ourselves through miracles,
We abandon our belief in scarcity in favor of the abundance that belongs to us.
I invite you to keep a few things in mind as you listen to the reading.
The Course uses male pronouns,
Yet this is simply a way of pointing to the spiritual being having no gender.
The Course is written in first person,
And although not introduced directly to the reader,
It becomes clear that the words are from Jesus,
Often quoting from the Bible.
The Course uses traditional Christian terms in a non-traditional manner.
These words are simply pointers to the truth,
Nothing more.
A few definitions of terms you will hear within the reading.
Holy Spirit.
This is the communication link between God and us,
Bridging the gap between the mind of Christ and our human minds.
Christ.
The self that God created by expression of His Spirit.
It represents the potential within each of us.
Spirit.
The nature of our true reality,
Which being of God,
Is changeless and eternal,
Contrasted with the body,
Which changes and dies.
Light.
A metaphor used to describe the essence of Spirit,
Or the vision of Christ.
Illusion.
Something believed to be real,
Although it is not,
The ultimate illusion is our separation from God.
This illusion causes us to see others as attacking us,
Rather than calling to us for love.
This then causes us to see sin instead of a mistake.
Sin.
An illusion whereby we believe in the reality of our separation from God.
This stems from our egoic sense of our unworthiness of forgiveness,
Which leads to guilt.
Such guilt is then projected onto ourselves and others.
Ego.
Our belief in the separated or false self,
Made as a substitute for the self that God created.
Atonement.
The Holy Spirit's plan of correction,
Healing our minds from the earthly world of illusion to God's world of truth.
Miracle.
The change in mind that shifts our perception,
Transcending the laws of this world to reflect the laws of God.
Through the Holy Spirit,
Our worldly perception of sin,
Guilt,
And fear is transformed into the reality of love and forgiveness.
The miracle provides the means to heal our own minds and the minds of others.
And now,
Onto the reading.
A Course in Miracles Chapter 1.
The Meaning of Miracles.
Section 4.
The Escape from Darkness.
The escape from darkness involves two stages.
First,
The recognition that darkness cannot hide.
This step usually entails fear.
Second,
The recognition that there is nothing you want to hide,
Even if you could.
This step brings escape from fear.
When you have become willing to hide nothing,
You will not only be willing to enter into communion,
But will also understand peace and joy.
Holiness can never be really hidden in darkness,
But you can deceive yourself about it.
This deception makes you fearful because you realize in your heart it is a deception and you exert enormous efforts to establish its reality.
The miracle sets reality where it belongs.
Reality belongs only to Spirit,
And the miracle acknowledges only Truth.
It thus dispels illusions about yourself and puts you in communion with yourself and God.
The miracle joins in the atonement by placing the mind in the service of the Holy Spirit.
This establishes the proper function of the mind and corrects its errors,
Which are merely lacks of love.
Your mind can be possessed by illusions,
But Spirit is eternally free.
If a mind perceives without love,
It perceives an empty shell and is unaware of the Spirit within.
But the atonement restores Spirit to its proper place.
The mind that serves Spirit is invulnerable.
Darkness is lack of light,
As sin is lack of love.
It has no unique properties of its own.
It is an example of the scarcity belief,
From which only error can proceed.
Truth is always abundant.
Those who perceive and acknowledge that they have everything have no needs of any kind.
The purpose of the atonement is to restore everything to you,
Or rather to restore it to your awareness.
You were given everything when you were created,
Just as everyone was.
The emptiness engendered by fear must be replaced by forgiveness.
This is what the Bible means by,
Quote,
There is no death,
End quote,
And why I could demonstrate that death does not exist.
I came to fulfill the law by reinterpreting it.
The law itself,
If properly understood,
Offers only protection.
It is those who have not yet changed their minds who brought the hellfire concept into it.
I assure you that I will witness for anyone who lets me,
And to whatever extent he permits me.
Your witnessing demonstrates your belief and thus strengthens it.
Those who witness for me are expressing through their miracles that they have abandoned the belief in deprivation in favor of the abundance they have learned belongs to them.
