A Course in Miracles Complete and Annotated Edition
A Course in Miracles is a spiritual masterpiece that has transformed the lives of millions around the world. This Complete and Annotated edition features extensive footnotes that clarify challenging passages plus 33 cameo essays demonstrating practical applications of the Course's teachings.
As the manual for teachers explains, this curriculum is highly individualized. Nevertheless, there are some general guidelines that apply. The Introduction
A Course in Miracles is a modern spiritual classic that has touched the lives of millions of people worldwide. It combines profound spiritual teachings with far-reaching psychological insights. The book was initially scribed in the years 1965-1972 by Helen Schucman and Bill Thetford, professors of Medical Psychology at Columbia University. The work was then typed up by Ken Wapnick and released in 1976. Since then, it has been translated into over 25 languages and has become a widely-read text.
The Course offers a unique approach to learning, in that it emphasizes the importance of applying the teachings to one's own life. This is done by integrating the text with the workbook. The workbook contains the “instructions for applying the course to your life” (W.in.2:6). It is important to read the introduction before beginning the workbook lessons and to reread it occasionally thereafter.
A major theme in the Course is the idea that nothing exists outside of God's creation. This can be a difficult concept to grasp, especially for those used to the world of dualities and dichotomies that permeate our culture. The Course is helpful in this regard because it teaches that everything is connected and that what occurs at the individual level effects the larger whole.
Another important aspect of the Course is its emphasis on forgiveness. Forgiveness is a powerful tool for shifting the perception of the world from one that sees it as filled with evil to a vision that perceives it as a loving, peaceful and abundant place. This shift in perception is considered a miracle by the Course.
While the Course does teach that all things are created by love, it also teaches that there is no one answer to the question of what the nature of that love is. The Course is not dogmatic about this, but rather suggests that it can only be experienced by individuals who are willing to be open to it.
It is not necessary to be an intellectual to benefit from the Course, although it is obviously written on a fairly high intellectual level with sophisticated metaphysical and theological concepts integrated into its teaching throughout the three books of the Course. It also includes many linguistic and literary devices that can be unfamiliar to those not familiar with them. In this regard, it is helpful to refer to the Clarification of Terms that is provided at the end of the Manual for Teachers. The Text
In 1965, Columbia University clinical psychologist Helen Schucman heard an inner voice that would spark the writing of a modern spiritual classic. This Voice said, “This is a course in miracles. Please take notes.” Over the next seven years, Helen scribed and typed over 1,500 handwritten pages of the Text of A Course in Miracles. The result was the Course, which has profoundly affected the lives of millions worldwide since its release in 1976.
The Course teaches that everything that happens is a miracle, and that there is no exception to this rule. Its message is a call to remember God’s Love, which never fails. Its purpose is to reestablish the awareness of love’s presence, which is your natural inheritance. It is therefore helpful for all, regardless of their religious beliefs. But the Course makes it clear that it is not a path to salvation, as some religions claim to be.
Its practical approach to forgiveness offers an alternative to the belief that you are a victim of life’s events and have to overcome the effects of past mistakes. Its forgiveness process works all the time, in all dimensions of time, and is joined by a chain of forgiveness that reaches backward to undo the effects of earlier errors.
A Course in Miracles is not a curriculum for learning, but a way to free your mind of any limits that you have set on yourself. Its teaching is based on a recognition of perfect equality and the equality of all members of the Sonship.
The Original Edition restores the entire dictation of A Course in Miracles, and presents it in its original sequence, as Schucman and Thetford intended it to be read. Its conversational tone invites you into a dialogue with the Author and brings a sense of his presence that many students of the later editions have found missing. Even advanced students of the Course have found that reading this edition enlivens their experience of it and reveals fresh clarity to them. No other changes have been made to the text, except for a few minor corrections of misspellings and to standardize punctuation. The Exercises
A Course in Miracles is a self-study system of “spiritual psychology” that integrates profound spiritual teachings with far-reaching psychological insights. It has already touched the lives of millions of people worldwide. The text of the Course is written on a very high intellectual level and uses poetic language, often in blank verse. It is also an academically sophisticated thought system that combines metaphysical and theological ideas with deep understanding of such topics as belief systems and defense mechanisms.
The Workbook is designed to help you transfer the ideas from the text to your perception of everyone and everything. Some of the ideas in the Workbook may be difficult to believe, and some you will probably find startling. But the idea is not that you must accept them or even like them, only that you use them to change your perception.
The first step in the application of the ideas is to do the exercises that go with each lesson. Each lesson is planned around a central theme, and the procedures for applying it are explained in detail. Some of the lessons have review periods built in; others simply ask you to apply the idea for that day. It is recommended that you do a single lesson each day for one year, although this is not required and many students have taken longer.
To support your ACIM journey, Pathways offers the Lesson Insights — a weekly commentary by our staff and additional contributions from other students of the Course. These insights are emailed to you each week and are intended to provide you with a deeper understanding of the daily ACIM Workbook Lesson. un cours en miracles france The Answers
A Course in Miracles is written at a very high intellectual level, with sophisticated metaphysical, theological, and psychological concepts integrated into its teachings throughout the three volumes of the text and workbook. It uses poetic language, much of it in blank verse, which has led some to compare it with the world’s great literature. Its thought system combines spiritual inspiration with deep psychological understanding of such phenomena as the nature of belief and the origins of defense systems.
This makes it a difficult book for those who are not very intellectually inclined, or for those without a background in these fields. In addition, there are many sections of the text and workbook that contain complex, unfamiliar vocabulary. Some people find it helpful to purchase a dictionary, or even to hire an interpreter who can explain the meaning of the terms used in the material.
The most frequently asked questions about A Course in Miracles are related to its theology and practice. It is a non-denominational spiritual teaching, although it uses Christian terminology. It is not a religion, however, and it clearly states that “a universal theology is impossible, but a universal experience is not only possible, but necessary” (M.1.4).
It is not a new doctrine, but a restatement of ancient wisdom that has been lost over the centuries. Its main message is that there is a way to reconcile one’s relationship with God, which can be found in the love and forgiveness offered through Jesus Christ.
Since its release in 1976, A Course in Miracles has changed the lives of millions of readers. Its combination of profound spiritual teachings and far-reaching, practical psychological insights has made it a true classic in the field of self-healing and inner transformation. This Complete and Annotated Edition includes all of the original text as Helen Schucman received it, plus extensive footnotes that clarify challenging passages, and 33 cameo essays that show how to apply the Course’s principles in our daily lives. It also offers a new introduction by leading ACIM scholar Robert Perry, along with a new preface by Ken Wapnick and an appendix by Judith Skutch Whitson.