God's Son is guiltless
July 31, 2006
A little while ago in our Text class we were studying the section entitled "The Circle of Atonement" (T-14.V). The circle of Atonement is the circle of those who have been freed from guilt through the Atonement. In truth, we are all within this circle, for the Atonement has been given to everyone. Yet most of us don't recognize this, and we won't recognize it until we take our part in God's plan for salvation. This part varies in form from person to person, but the content of each part is the same: to teach everyone that "God's Son is guiltless" (T-14.V.2:1). In practical terms, this means communicating to everyone in some way the message that he or she is a perfectly innocent and holy being.
To express this idea using the "circle of Atonement" metaphor: Communicating this message to others is an act of inviting them into the circle of Atonement. In each situation of our lives, then, we have a choice. Whenever we teach anyone that God's Son is guiltless, we invite him or her into the circle of Atonement and thus come to recognize that we are in the circle as well. But whenever we condemn anyone, we throw him or her out of the circle of Atonement and thus believe that we are outside of the circle as well.
While we were studying that section, an incident happened to me that felt like a perfect snapshot of what the section was talking about. I was driving to our local post office, and right when I was ready to turn in to the entrance, someone cut right in front of me. I had the right of way, and what this person did was very dangerous—she could easily have slammed right into the driver's side of my car if I hadn't been alert. I have to confess that my first reaction was to mentally scream at her, "You idiot!" (Fortunately, the words never reached my lips.) However, at that moment, I also remembered my Course lesson. I was doing a lesson about seeing everyone with the eyes of Christ. So, I immediately said to myself, "No, I don't want to condemn this person. I want to see her with the eyes of Christ."
After we had both parked in the post office parking lot, the person who cut in front of me came out of her car and profusely apologized. She knew what she had done, and she felt absolutely horrible about it. She felt terribly guilty. But by this time, thanks to the lesson I was doing, I honestly no longer felt angry with her. So I said, "Don't worry about it. It's okay. It was just a little mistake, and no one got hurt. No problem." I could really see the burden lift from her when I did that. Though she continued to apologize, perhaps not quite certain that she had atoned sufficiently, it also looked to me like she was relieved that she wasn't going to get the tongue-lashing she thought she deserved. We parted on very friendly terms, and that was that.
On the surface this was a small incident, but it contained within it the choice I mentioned above. My first reaction to the other driver was to toss her straight out of the circle of Atonement and into the ninth circle of hell. And as I was thinking "You idiot!" the truth is that I was in hell as well. But my decision to look upon her with the eyes of Christ was a decision to invite her into the circle of Atonement. By saying forgiving words to her that I sincerely meant, I was teaching her that God's Son is guiltless. This had a powerful positive effect on my own state of mind-I felt inspired and uplifted. Something truly loving came forth from me, and this helped me to see my own innocence and loving nature. By inviting her into the circle of Atonement, I came to recognize that I was in the circle as well. As the section says, "From everyone whom you accord release from guilt you will inevitably learn your innocence. The circle of Atonement has no end" (T-14.V.7:5-6).
Return to top | Send Reader Feedback | View Reader Feedback | Printer friendly version
Dear friend: We offer the materials on this website to you in the hope that they can serve you well on your journey home. Your continuing donations support the work of the Circle of Atonement. Thank you.
Click here to make a Donation.
This material is copyrighted by the Circle of Atonement, P.O. Box 4238, W. Sedona, AZ 86340. All rights reserved. The opinions expressed are the personal interpretation and understanding of the author(s).
Please report problems to the webmaster.
