ACIM Chapter 11. V. The “Dynamics” of the Ego, P 16-18

ACIM Chapter 11. V. The “Dynamics” of the Ego, P 16-18

V. The “Dynamics” of the Ego, P 16

16 Do not underestimate the appeal of the ego’s demonstrations to those who would listen. Selective perception chooses its witnesses carefully, and its witnesses are consistent. The case for insanity is strong to the insane. For reasoning ends at its beginning, and no thought system transcends its source. Yet reasoning without meaning cannot demonstrate anything, and those who are convinced by it must be deluded. Can the ego teach truly when it overlooks truth? Can it perceive what it has denied? Its witnesses do attest to its denial, but hardly to what it has denied. The ego looks straight at the Father and does not see Him, for it has denied His Son.

What Jesus seems to be telling me in this paragraph is that the ego has something to say, and if I am interested in and want to believe it, then I will. That does not make it true; it only means that I want it to be true. When I was holding a grievance against someone, I saw justification for that grievance every time I was around this person.

The grievance was my ego interpretation of this person’s actions, and I was fully buying into that interpretation. But when I realized how painful it is to separate myself in this way, I changed my mind. I decided I wanted to be happy and asked for help seeing differently. My prayer was answered, and I began to see this person’s actions in another way as I chose to become aware of the Holy Spirit’s interpretation.

Now, when I see him, I smile—every time.

It just makes me happy to see him. Nothing changed about this person. The only change occurred in my mind. I wanted to see the Christ in him, so Christ Vision was given to me. The transition from seeing with ego to seeing with the Holy Spirit seemed to take time because I needed time to fully let go of my judgments.

I had a lot invested in my grievance, and I had to divest myself of it. I continued to see, first with ego and then with the Holy Spirit, for a while as I learned through contrast that the ego had nothing to offer that I wanted. The ego can show me what I think I want, but it cannot show me the truth. Once I make a new decision, I understand why I want the truth. The ego illusion was blinding me to the Son and thus to God.

How could the Son of God stand right in front of me, and I not see Him? I saw what I wanted to see. That is all the ego does for me. It shows me what I want to see, not what would make me happy, not the truth. The ego cannot give me those things because the ego doesn’t have them to give. The power to choose is mine. To see God, I must choose to see His Son. What grievance could be more important than that?

V. The “Dynamics” of the Ego, P 17

17 Would you remember the Father? Accept His Son and you will remember Him. Nothing can demonstrate that His Son is unworthy, for nothing can prove that a lie is true. What you see of His Son through the eyes of the ego is a demonstration that His Son does not exist, yet where the Son is the Father must be. Accept what God does not deny, and it will demonstrate its truth. The witnesses for God stand in His light and behold what He created. Their silence is the sign that they have beheld God’s Son, and in the Presence of Christ they need demonstrate nothing, for Christ speaks to them of Himself and of His Father. They are silent because Christ speaks to them, and it is His words they speak.

“Would you remember the Father? Accept His Son, and you will remember Him.” I want to remember my Father, so I will accept His Son. His Son is every one of us together. I watch my mind for judgmental thoughts about anyone, and when I find them, I know I must be wrong. There is nothing my brother can do that changes his nature.

He is innocent, and more than innocent, He is the Son of God. Nothing that is done within this illusion of time and space demonstrates his unworthiness. Within time, he is guilty, but he is not in time; he is in God. The illusion of guilt does not alter reality. When I become temporarily confused and start to believe what my eyes show me, I ask for the Atonement. The eyes are made to prove the unprovable, to provide me a picture of what I want to believe, not what is real.

I don’t want to try to prove that my brother is not the Son of God by witnessing his errors.

And I don’t have to do this. I have allowed the Holy Spirit to show me what lies behind a brother’s ego story, and so I know the miracle of a changed perception. I wish I had words to adequately describe what this feels like. It doesn’t seem enough just to say that I went from chaos to peace.

Some things in the Course gain meaning only through the experience of them, and once experienced, the understanding is irrefutable. Who would return to hell once Heaven is glimpsed? Well, I seem to need to make the decision for Heaven many times before I have made my final decision. But could I go back to not knowing there is another way? No. That is not possible. Can’t get the toothpaste back in the tube!

Here is the sentence that makes my heart speed up.

“The witnesses for God stand in His light and behold what He created.” Oh my! This is what I want! I want to stand in God’s light, look at you, and see what God created. I want to witness to your reality and so know God. Oh, yes! I want to be silent in the presence of such radiant beauty and simply allow Christ to speak.

Yesterday, I looked for Christ in everyone I saw. It was a lovely day. It was not a perfect attempt, and I was well aware of the ego pushing back, pointing out errors, and even an emotional reaction to the whole thing. I began to feel unaccountable irritation with certain people. But I also wanted, beyond ego thinking, to have this day of Christ consciousness. So, it was given to me, and I loved it! Today, I ask that I witness God’s creations everywhere I go. I am willing to be silent and let Him speak through me.

V. The “Dynamics” of the Ego, P 18

18 Every brother you meet becomes a witness for Christ or for the ego, depending on what you perceive in him. Everyone convinces you of what you want to perceive, and of the reality of the kingdom you have chosen for your vigilance. Everything you perceive is a witness to the thought system you want to be true. Every brother has the power to release you, if you choose to be free. You cannot accept false witness of him unless you have evoked false witnesses against him. If he speaks not of Christ to you, you spoke not of Christ to him. You hear but your own voice, and if Christ speaks through you, you will hear Him.

That first sentence really grabs my attention: “Every brother you meet becomes a witness for Christ or for the ego, depending on what you perceive in him.”  When I see someone as manipulative and mean-spirited, it is not because she is. I see her in this way because I want to. I perceive it because I want the ego thought system to be true. It is essential that I accept this and recognize it when it happens if I want my mind to be healed.

What do I do now that I understand what I have been doing? Whenever I think of this person, I notice my thoughts and feelings. If they tell me that I am asking to be convinced that the ego is real and that I want it, then I ask the Holy Spirit to heal my mind. What I really want is sanity. I want to be happy and to return to God’s mind. I have been confused and now I want clarity, so I ask for it.

According to my willingness, this is done for me.

Sometimes, I have to revisit this idea because, while I want clarity, the ego mind also attracts me. But every time I choose differently, my desire for God grows stronger, and my willingness for healing increases. As I do this, I begin to see this one sister of mine differently. Instead of showing me the ego, she begins to witness to our Divinity.

Every time I think of her, I either bind myself ever closer to the ego or let her strengthen the truth that I am free. What I see in another has little to do with their actions or their words. It is actually a demonstration of my preferences and thus says more about me than about them. It shows me what it is in my mind that I need to heal. May I always choose healing.

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