The Circle of Atonement - Dedicated to A Course in Miracles
Daily Reading
Workbook Lesson:Lesson # 137—When I am healed I am not healed alone. [more] Lesson Index.
Text Reading: T-13.IV—The Function of Time.
Lesson & Reading Plan Calendar
Today's Inspiration: What would they see instead [of their own specialness]? The shining radiance of the Son of God, so like his Father that the memory of Him springs instantly to mind. And with this memory, the Son remembers his own creations, as like to him as he is to his Father. And all the world he made, and all his specialness, and all the sins he held in its defense against himself, will vanish as his mind accepts the truth about himself, as it returns to take their place. (T-24.II.6:1-4)
2012 Workbook Class
Free Workbook phone class: The Circle is pleased to offer again, for 2012, an ongoing Workbook phone class, taught each weekday morning at 10 a.m. ET by teachers from the Circle Course Community. We have three new teachers, with four returning teachers from 2011. New members are welcome to join in at any time. If you are interested, please email us at workbook@circleofa.org. These classes are being recorded for those who can't join in at the appointed time.
Comments from the 2011 class: "The discussion and sharing has been so valuable." "The sense of community created by the phone-in class was remarkable." "I am truly a different person." "All of you are so great and so full of wisdom!" "This year has been the best in my study of Course since I started in the late 80's."
New Workbook Commentary: Commentary on Lesson 135: If I defend myself I am attacked. by Robert Perry. This is the longest lesson in the Workbook—26 paragraphs. It is also one of the seven "giant strides" in the Workbook. In this commentary, I will survey its teaching under the following headings: Defense affirms our vulnerability. Defending the body reinforces our identification with it. The real source of our body's problems. Our plans vs. His plans for us. What are we really defending against with our plans? Present trust. The practice instructions.
Prayer Ministry
Prayer Ministry: Do you need prayers? Click here to receive healing and blessing prayers for all of the significant events and situations of your life.
A Better Way Newsletter
April/May Issue of A Better Way #116 by Robert Perry. In this issue, we have an article by Robert entitled "'The Loneliness is Gone': Thoughts on Inviting a Closer Relationship with Jesus." While the Course does not require us to have a relationship with Jesus, throughout its pages it encourages us to invite him into our lives. In this article, Robert shares a crucial insight into why a relationship with Jesus can be such a precious gift for us as we walk the path of the Course. Click here to read A Better Way.
New Articles
Denial Makes the World Go Round by Greg Mackie. Everyone steeped in the culture of self-help and recovery knows that denial is not "a river in Egypt," but a destructive means of keeping our addictions in place. However, a recent article in the New York Times presents a more benign view: While too much denial can be destructive, some degree of denial is essential to maintaining friendly human relationships. Is denial, then, a good or a bad thing? A Course in Miracles would agree that denial holds together human relationships as we know them, but in its view this is not a good thing, for human relationships as we know them are not as friendly as we think. Their real nature is obscured by layers of denial far more pervasive and destructive than we suspect, layers that keep us in misery. Fortunately, we can peel away these layers of denial, and when we do, we can discover the joy of truly loving relationships.
Should we bring more children into the world? by Robert Perry. Should we be bringing more children into the world, given the state of the world, overpopulation, etc.? More generally, how does the Course view the whole issue of having children?
From Monkey Mind to the Mind of God. Our Real Thoughts and How We Can Find Them by Greg Mackie. The Course criticizes our current thoughts but then rather than disparaging thought altogether, urges us to find our real thoughts. What are these real thoughts? How exactly can we make contact with them?
How can my judgments be real if my mind is factually blank? by Robert Perry. I have been repeating the thought from Review IV: "My mind holds only what I think with God." It has reminded me that we are incapable of judging. When we think without God, the Course tells us our minds are blank and this is a fact of What we are. So is it really judging, if the mind itself is "blank"? How can illusory pollutants within our minds exist if factually our minds are blank?
The Key to Communication by Greg Mackie. I am confused by the following passage: The guiltless and the guilty are totally incapable of understanding one another. Each perceives the other as like himself, making both unable to communicate, because each sees the other unlike the way he sees himself.(T-14.IV.10:1-2)
Integrated ACIM
In our online copy of the entire text of A Course in Miracles, each section and paragraph contains links to all the articles and commentaries of ours that reference that section or paragraph. In all, it contains over 6,700 such links. Therefore, if you need clarity on a particular statement in the Course, you can just go to that place and click on the "related articles" link. If you want clarity on a certain section or lesson, you can go there and click on the "commentary" link. Links in green are available to everyone. Links in red are to commentaries and articles available in our various reading programs and the Circle Course Community. You must be subscribed to the program to access the links in red.
Our Purpose
Our purpose is to be a bridge into the profound and unparalleled wisdom of A Course in Miracles. We clarify the Course's often difficult language in order to make possible a deeper understanding of its teachings. We then help you put those teachings into practice, explaining how to apply them in your everyday life.
Our work grows out of our commitment to be as faithful as possible to what A Course in Miracles says. It also grows out of our years of dedication to walking this path ourselves and to helping others walk it. Our deepest desire is to see the Course's purpose realized in the lives of students and in the world.
As a student working with the Circle of Atonement you will be able to count on us for daily companionship and support. We are here to help you with both the theory and the application of this priceless teaching. You need never feel alone in the process. Based on the feedback we have received, we believe that our support can save you years on your journey back to God.
The Missing Piece
About
2,000 years ago Jesus offered a revolutionary message to the world
which, even now, has not been fully grasped. The church quickly
institutionalized his radical teachings into an organized religion
about worshipping him, obscuring the true meaning of his
transformative message. It is our belief that Jesus has appeared
again to humanity in the pages of
A Course in Miracles to
frame his ancient message for contemporary ears. As the authentic
voice of Jesus, A Course in Miracles provides the crucial
"missing piece" that supplies the healing Jesus
originally intended for the world. An important part of our mission
here at the Circle of Atonement is to ensure that Jesus'
vital message will never be lost to the world again.
Read our piece,
"The Promise of the Course: A Statement of Intent".
