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 5,
Wholeness and Spirit.
To summarize my takeaways,
In Section 5 of Chapter 1,
We are reminded that both the miracle and the body are learning devices.
We learn in Section 2 of Chapter 1 the concept of time.
Through the miracle,
Time is collapsed from a horizontal to a vertical perception,
And as such,
The miracle accomplishes learning that otherwise may have taken thousands of years.
Therefore,
The decision of the miracle-minded to not wait on time happens in an instant.
With every collapse of time,
Which is the choice to accept a miracle,
We are brought to our unity with God,
The Father and the Son are one.
The miracle is evidence that our mind has chosen to be led by Christ.
This is our choice.
We cannot serve two masters.
Our choice is either in the service of our egos or in the service of Christ.
Making the choice of a miracle through Christ will feel unstable at first because it is a new way of being for us.
We are given the analogy that the roots of our egos are shallow,
And it is an illusion to think that we can deepen these roots to secure ourselves.
These shallow roots of our egos must be uprooted because they will never be deep enough to sustain us.
The miracle is that God does this for us.
Our job is to simply step aside and allow the miracle to occur.
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 truth,
Nothing more.
A few definitions of terms you will hear within the reading.
Fact – the nature of our true reality,
Which being of God is changeless and eternal.
Ego – our belief in the separated or false self,
Made as a substitute for the self that God created.
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.
Holy Spirit – 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 extension of His Spirit.
It represents the potential within each of us.
Atonement – the Holy Spirit's plan of correction,
Healing our minds from the earthly world of illusion to God's world of truth.
Sonship – all of us,
The creations of God,
You and me.
And now,
On to the reading.
A Course in Miracles Chapter 1 – The Meaning of Miracles Section 5 – Wholeness and Spirit The miracle is much like the body in that both are learning aids for facilitating a state in which they become unnecessary.
When Spirit's original state of direct communication is reached,
Neither the body nor the miracle serves any purpose.
While you believe you are in a body,
However,
You can choose between loveless and miraculous channels of expression.
You can make an empty shell,
But you cannot express nothing at all.
You can wait,
Delay,
Paralyze yourself,
Or reduce your creativity almost to nothing.
But you cannot abolish it.
You can destroy your medium of communication,
But not your potential.
You did not create yourself.
The basic decision of the miracle-minded is not to wait on time any longer than is necessary.
Time can waste as well as be wasted.
The miracle worker,
Therefore,
Accepts the time-control factor gladly.
He recognizes that every collapse of time brings everyone closer to the ultimate release from time,
In which the Son and the Father are one.
Equality does not imply equality now.
When everyone recognizes that he has everything,
Individual contributions to the Sonship will no longer be necessary.
When the atonement has been completed,
All talents will be shared by all the sons of God.
God is not partial.
All his children have his total love,
And all his gifts are freely given to everyone alike.
Except he become as little children means that unless you fully recognize your complete dependence on God,
You cannot know the real power of the Son in his true relationship with the Father.
The specialness of God's sons does not stem from exclusion,
But from inclusion.
All my brothers are special.
If they believe they are deprived of anything,
Their perception becomes distorted.
When this occurs,
The whole family of God,
Or the Sonship,
Is impaired in its relationships.
Ultimately,
Every member of the family of God must return.
The miracle calls him to return because it blesses and honors him,
Even though he may be absent in spirit.
God is not mocked is not a warning,
But a reassurance.
God would be mocked if any of his creations lacked holiness.
The creation is whole,
And the mark of wholeness is holiness.
Miracles are affirmations of Sonship,
Which is a state of completion and abundance.
Whatever is true is eternal,
And cannot change or be changed.
Spirit is therefore unalterable because it is already perfect,
But the mind can elect what it chooses to serve.
The only limit put on its choice is that it cannot serve two masters.
If it elects to do so,
The mind can become the medium by which Spirit creates along the line of its own creation.
If it does not freely elect to do so,
It retains its creative potential,
But places itself under tyrannous rather than authoritative control.
As a result,
It imprisons,
Because such are the dictates of a tyrant.
To change your mind means to place it at the disposal of true authority.
The miracle is a sign that the mind has chosen to be led by Me in Christ's service.
The abundance of Christ is the natural result of choosing to follow Him.
All shallow roots must be uprooted because they are not deep enough to sustain you.
The illusion that shallow roots can be deepened,
And thus made to hold,
Is one of the distortions on which the reverse of the golden rule rests.
As these false underpinnings are given up,
The equilibrium is temporarily experienced as unstable.
However,
Nothing is less stable than an upside-down orientation.
Nor can anything that holds it upside-down be conducive to increased stability.
