Greg Mackie's Blog Archive October 2005

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October 27, 2005

Since I've benefited so much from working with my list of Course passages on the glory of who we really are (see my last two blog entries), I decided to present a class on the topic Tuesday night. Toward the end of the class, one of the participants asked a great question. He prefaced it by saying that while he intellectually believed in what those passages describe, he had never really experienced it for himself. The question: How can we move from mere intellectual acceptance of the Course's exalted view of us to a real, experiential awareness of the glory of who we really are?

I offered a two-part answer. First, I said that probably every one of us has had some experience of our glorious true Self, however faint and fleeting, and one way to get in touch with that experience now is to make a conscious effort to remember the times we've experienced it in the past. Second, I said that the journey from intellectual acceptance to living experience is exactly what the Course is designed to facilitate. It gives us a structured mind-training program with a disciplined practice regimen to help us experience for ourselves the magnificent reality it describes. The whole purpose of my class, in fact, was to share the practice of repeating those passages, a practice that can awaken that experience.

This answer led to a discussion in which a number of participants shared that they had experienced glimpses of the glory the Course is talking about. We speculated that just about everyone who has been drawn to the Course has probably had some experiences of this sort. Why else would a person be motivated to walk the Course's path? The man who asked the original question agreed, and then shared something that moved all of us. He wanted to assure us that yes, he had experienced what we were talking about for himself. He had forgotten that, but the sharing in the class had helped him to remember.

We realized then that there is a third way to move from intellectual acceptance to experiential awareness of our glory: drawing on the love and support of our brothers who are walking the path to God with us. As we share our experiences of truth with one another they are reinforced, and everyone remembers just a little more of the wonderful reality he or she forgot. "Take your brother's hand, for this is not a way we walk alone" (W-pI.rV.In.9:6). I think all of us emerged from that class grateful to our mighty companions for the gifts we received from each other that night. Respond to this post

October 20, 2005

Since I wrote my last blog entry on the glory of who we really are, I've been spending a lot of time practicing with the list of Course passages I presented in that entry, the descriptions of the purity and holiness of our true Self. I've applied those beautiful descriptions both to myself and to other people, especially those I've held grievances against. I'm happy to report that this has been a real breakthrough for me. I've experienced a real shift in perception, one that has brought a lot of peace and joy this week. For this I am very grateful.

One thing an exercise like this can do is help us get in touch with the part of us that doesn't see ourselves or others as pure, holy, and glorious. This has certainly happened for me. I hate to admit it, but there is a big part of me that doesn't have a lot of faith in people, including myself. All too often, I find a cynic within me who says that people are selfish, flawed, and will inevitably screw up. This cynical part of me just doesn't believe in the goodness and holiness of people. It sees them as hopeless sinners who can't be trusted to do the right thing.

Needless to say, this is an attack. It is a harsh judgment, a form of unforgiveness. And the Course is clear that we need to let this attitude go if we're going to make progress on the path. The theme of having faith in our brothers (which will help us have faith in ourselves, as the final three quotes in the series below suggest) is a major theme in the Course:

A good teacher must believe in the ideas he teaches, but he must meet another condition; he must believe in the students to whom he offers the ideas. (T-4.I.1:4)
I trust my brothers, who are one with me. (W-pI.181.Heading)< br/> Trusting your brothers is essential to establishing and holding up your faith in your ability to transcend doubt and lack of sure conviction in yourself. (W-pI.181.1:1)
If you would know your prayers are answered, never doubt a Son of God. Do not question him and do not confound him, for your faith in him is your faith in yourself. (T-9.II.4:1-2)
Have faith in him who walks with you, so that your fearful concept of yourself may change. And look upon the good in him, that you may not be frightened by your "evil" thoughts because they do not cloud your view of him. (T-31.VII.5:1-2)

These lines don't ask us to deny the fact that within the illusion, people can be awfully selfish and mistake-prone: "In time, the Holy Spirit clearly sees the Son of God can make mistakes. On this you share His vision" (T-19.III.5:1-2). Instead, what Jesus wants us to see is that however selfish and mistake-prone people may be, at their core they are inherently good and holy beings. Because this is so, we can have total faith in who they really are. We can trust that in the end, however long it takes, their inherent goodness will rise to the surface and bless the world with light and love. This kind of faith says, "Your brother may not know who he is, but there is a light in his mind that does know" (T-9.II.5:8). It says that however clueless a person may seem to be, that person is a holy Son of God who can ultimately be trusted to do the right thing.

How can we develop this kind of faith in our brothers and ourselves? Through forgiveness, which reveals the face of Christ beyond whatever mistakes people have made within the illusion. The Course offers many ways to help us forgive. One of them is simply the frequent repetition of Course lines that affirm the purity and holiness of our true nature-lines like the passages in my last blog entry.

I think one reason I'm getting so much out of those passages is that they directly counter my lack of faith in people with a vision that awakens my faith in them. As long as I'm only looking at appearances, lack of faith is virtually inevitable-the world is indeed full of, as Robert puts it, "bodies misbehaving." But those passages open my eyes to a vision of my brothers and myself that goes beyond appearances entirely, revealing a shared true Self that is "so secure, so lofty, sinless, glorious and great, wholly beneficent and free from guilt, that Heaven looks to It to give it light" (W-pII.224.1:1). How could I not have faith in that? Thank God for the glory of who we really are! Respond to this post

October 14, 2005

We Course students spend a lot of time looking at our egos and getting in touch with the darkness of the ego's world. This is vital work; as the Course says, "No one can escape from illusions unless he looks at them, for not looking is the way they are protected" (T-11.V.1:1). Yet it is equally vital to look at the other side: the purity and holiness of who we really are. Without frequent reminders of our radiant and glorious true Self, looking at the mess we think we made of ourselves can be awfully depressing.

To provide myself with such reminders, I compiled a list of some of the Course's best descriptions of just how glorious we really are. When I'm feeling down on myself and need a lift, I'll sometimes read through the list as a kind of exercise in remembering my holiness. I find it a very helpful way to bring my mind out of the doldrums and back to the joy that God wants me to experience.

You might want to try this yourself. I've pasted some of the "greatest hits" from my list below. You'll notice that all of them are in first person; some were originally that way, while others I changed. I recommend reading them very slowly, applying them to yourself, even inserting your name at various points. Really let them sink in. This is not some abstract teaching; this is a true description of you. Enjoy!

Respond to this post

October 7, 2005

This past week, four words have brought me a lot of peace: "I do not know." On the face of it, the idea of finding peace in not knowing may sound strange. It may sound like a head-in-the-sand stance that recalls George Orwell's intentionally absurd slogan from 1984, "Ignorance Is Strength." But let me explain.

The Course often tells us that we really don't know what things mean or what decision is best in any given situation, so we need to set aside what we think we know and let the Holy Spirit decide things for us. One of my favorite passages on this theme is this great practice from the Text:

When your peace is threatened or disturbed in any way, say to yourself:
I do not know what anything, including this, means. And so I do not know how to respond to it. And I will not use my own past learning as the light to guide me now.
By this refusal to attempt to teach yourself what you do not know, the Guide Whom God has given you will speak to you. He will take His rightful place in your awareness the instant you abandon it, and offer it to Him. (T-14.XI.6:6-11)

What comes up for you when you are told that you don't know what anything means, that you therefore don't know how to respond to anything, and that your past learning is useless as a guide for how to respond? This can be a pretty scary idea. How can we survive in this crazy world if all those facts and techniques and coping skills we so painstakingly learned over the years can no longer guide us? Without our own knowledge, what can we rely upon to get through the maze of countless critical decisions that confront us every day?

This passage goes on to give us the answer to this question: the Holy Spirit, "the Guide Whom God has given you." Admitting that we don't know what things mean or how to respond to them doesn't leave us in a terrifying void with nothing to guide us through life. On the contrary, it opens our minds to the Holy Spirit, Who knows what everything means and how to respond to it, and is therefore the only one who really can guide us through life. Once we realize this, letting go of what we think we know is not a fearful proposition but a liberating one. As the Course says in the Manual: "Therefore lay judgment down, not with regret but with a sigh of gratitude. Now are you free of a burden so great that you could merely stagger and fall down beneath it" (M-10.5:1-2).

This is why the words "I do not know" can bring peace. We're relieved of the burden of having to know everything. Admitting we don't know is not a head-in-the-sand stance, but instead enables us to pull our heads out of the dark sandpit of false certainty and turn them toward the light that can guide us truly. Admitting our ignorance really is strength because it enables us to access the knowledge and strength of the Holy Spirit.

The words "I do not know" really helped me find peace of mind this week during an e-mail exchange I had with someone about political issues. This person disagreed with my views in very strong terms, and expressed his contrary views with absolute certainty. He was absolutely convinced that he was right, and anyone who disagreed with him was hopelessly misguided.

Now, I have to admit that getting slammed by him disturbed my peace. My ego was all too willing to slam him back. But I caught myself and said, "I do not know." How do I know who's right and who's wrong here? How do I know which political theory is correct? How do I know what all this means? How do I know what outcome is best? How do I know how to respond to this guy? I reminded myself that the Holy Spirit knows everything and has a plan for everything that happens in this world, and I entrusted the whole situation to His care.

It's difficult to describe how much relief this brought me. Immediately my attack thoughts fell away, and I felt peace wash over me. After asking for guidance about how to respond, I ended up writing this person back and saying that while I still didn't agree with his views, I wasn't certain of mine and for all I knew, he could be right. He hasn't written back, so I don't know yet how this exchange will turn out. But I do know that I feel very much at peace with it.

How about you? Have you found yourself in situations where your peace is disturbed, where you're clinging to what you think you know or arguing with someone who's convinced that he knows? The next time this happens, you might try using those four liberating words: "I do not know." You might also try the Course practice I referred to above; I've used that practice countless times, with great results. May you find the peace that comes from turning your life over to the One Who really knows. Respond to this post

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