Ask: (#3) How can there not be a connection between Truth and you as a person?

(This is a continuation of a conversation published as the March 21 and 28 articles).
 “…You have said, ‘I think you may be locked in the old, religious habit of spiritualizing the ego. That’s when you think that there is a connection between the Truth and what you do or do not do as a person’. By judging me as thinking from 'old religious habit of spiritualizing the ego' haven't you contradicted yourself and judged me from the ego?
            Also, how can there not be a connection between the Truth and what you do or do not do as a person? That's clearly separation thinking because WE ARE TRUTH. How then am I so calm and less stressed out since I started studying the Course? As I study the Course and Jesus points me gently towards the Truth I feel peaceful even for a little bit, why is that? If there is no connection between Truth and what I do as a person?
            You have said you spend your experience, energy and time with your clients in exchange for money- so aren't you valuing your worldly abilities in this dream world therefore reinforcing the ego?..” – KR

There is a difference between judging and merely observing. Judgment applies a meaning (right/wrong, good/bad) and results in an emotional charge. When you merely observe you do not give any meaning (right/wrong, good/bad) and you feel no emotional charge. I was simply asking you to look at your thinking. I was not implying that your thinking was right or wrong or good or bad, but that you may find it is an obstacle to peace.
The self is not Truth. The self is the illusion that A Course in Miracles talks about. The Truth (God) within your mind is reality. The body/personality/ego is not reality. You are calm since you started reading the Course because it points you to the Truth within yourself. But if you want to experience only peace you will have to release yourself from your identification with a self.
            When I say that there is no connection between what you do as a person and Truth I mean that what you do as a person has no effect on Truth. Truth goes on untouched by the self in any way. The self is only a projection of your mind so your awareness of the Truth affects your projection of the self. But what the self does or does not do does not affect Truth in any way. So there is no reason to give meaning (right/wrong, good/bad) to what the self does.
It is this teaching – that nothing real is occurring in your experience of a self in a world because God (Truth) goes on untouched by any of it – that sets A Course in Miracles apart from other teachings. It is a teaching in absolute forgiveness that releases you from guilt and fear of punishment. Of course other teachings – Hinduism, Buddhism, for example - teach that the self and its world are all an illusion. But as far as I know only ACIM actually helps you do the psychological work necessary to release yourself from the unconscious and conscious belief in guilt that is the primary obstacle to peace.
Yes, this self in my mind exchanges its experience, energy, etc. for money because I have evaluated these as worth something. I leave it up to others, however, as to whether or not what I offer has value for them. That is the way that the world works. But I no longer evaluate myself by what the self has to offer. If I did, then, yes, it would reinforce the ego in me and be an obstacle to peace. But the Truth is true for me now and I let go of the self – which means I let it be, and let it do what it does, without judgment.

What changes as you go along in this process is not what you do in the world, but from which thought system you approach the world. So your life in the world looks like any ordinary life, but you experience peace within because you come from an awareness that Truth, not the self, is Reality.

>>>>>
Learn about the book The ACIM Mentor Articles, The Plain Language A Course in Miracles, 4 Habits for Inner Peace, and Releasing Guilt for Inner Peace at www.acimmentor.com.
If you have a question the answer to which you think will help others send it to Liz@acimmentor.com and indicate that you want it answered in the ACIM Mentor newsletter/blog.

Comments

Anonymous said…
If Pastors, ministers, etc. of churches received no financial assistance for their services, not many would survive. Thats how the world works when in the world. Liz would not have the time to do both (clean and mentor) to help the most people and/or answer blogs and still be at peace and eat.
10:04 AM
will said…
KR,

Your in one of the most difficult phases of the Course in Miracles. People looking at the Course to see what it is about turn away when they run into this; people doing the Course quit or just become frustrated and angry. I went back and forth with Liz for years trying to make sense of the words (T)truth, (R)reality and mind. The confusion from this makes it very difficult to understand the text or lessons. Your 'brain' comes up with a million questions that can't be answered to it's satisfaction thus 'proving' the Course is crazy. The 'brain' comes up with a million reasons to quit the Course all of which seem reasonable given the confusion. A Course in Miracles just isn't for everyone. There is no quick fix, no quick "feel goods" in fact after you study the Course things begin to get worse (confusion) rather than better. I have no answer on why I kept doing the Course when it got tough other than I sensed strongly I was on the right path. EVERYTHING else pointed to the opposite. There is tremendous confusion among students about what the Course is teaching. Why would anyone want to put themselves through this? As the Course says this is only one of many paths that lead to the same result. My only answer is from my own experience that I knew somewhere inside me that I should keep going. I had been 20 years in 'recovery'(12 step) when I started and had run up against a wall. The answers and understanding about the Course started after about 5 years and it was gradual from there. Now I look back and wonder how I could not of understood it seems so simple but that's just the way it is. Your 'brain' is not going to give you answers to Course questions. It can't. But over time the answers from the Holy Spirit start to come and it really makes it worth the effort. The changes that happen are at a depth it's hard to imagine when you start. I'm nine years into this and have just begun to really get a grip on what is happening. The payoff is you see the big picture in a way that just is not possible otherwise. And that's not a put down on other paths. It's just different that's all.
8:35 AM
Karen said…
Will,

I so much appreciate your responses. Like Liz, what you say is consistent with the Course, and it's encouraging to hear the difficulties you've faced with the Course and the rewards of your perseverance. This is the second time I've tried the Course. The first time was about 20 years ago, but at that time I felt it wasn't right for me. A few months ago I felt suddenly drawn back to it, immediately felt at peace and felt my fear diminish considerably. This time I am determined to continue, even though right now I am feeling more of a tug back toward worldly concerns. But I think this is normal, and I think it will be overcome. In spite of this "tug," I know that I wouldn't be satisfied with my life now without following this path. It's not easy, but for me it's now the only way.
1:21 PM
will said…
I think a lot of people look at things like Buddhism and think a couple of workshops on meditation/Buddhism where they can learn the lingo and bang they have mastered it. But if you look at the monks they are going in as children and spending a lifetime at it. In the United States we equate learning with going to school. Study hard and you'll get it. But with spirituality if you want to get deep, learning is a much different process and with the Course where you are coming to terms that nothing you have learned so far in life is going to help much...that's a lot to swallow.
2:08 PM
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