ACIM Chapter 6 Introduction. The relationship of anger to attack is obvious, but the relationship of anger to fear is not always so apparent.

Introduction P 1

1 The relationship of anger to attack is obvious, but the relationship of anger to fear is not always so apparent. Anger always involves projection of separation, which must ultimately be accepted as one’s own responsibility, rather than being blamed on others. Anger cannot occur unless you believe that you have been attacked, that your attack is justified in return, and that you are in no way responsible for it. Given these three wholly irrational premises, the equally irrational conclusion that a brother is worthy of attack rather than of love must follow. What can be expected from insane premises except an insane conclusion? The way to undo an insane conclusion is to consider the sanity of the premises on which it rests. You cannot be attacked, attack has no justification, and you are responsible for what you believe.

I’ve got this one down. I never get confused about where my urge to attack comes from. If I feel like attacking someone, it is always because I am afraid. I am afraid because I think I am vulnerable to attack and am justified in defending myself. My attacks these days seldom get past the thought phase. I am good at catching them, realizing my fear is baseless, or at least being willing to be taught that, once again, my fear is baseless.

Here is an example I wrote about when I was still working.

I went past a turn-off that would take me to a customer of mine. I didn’t take it because he was not on my schedule that day, but I noticed a pang of resentment toward him, and then I had one of those mental conversations that I sometimes indulge in. Everything he said to me was an attack, and everything I said to him was a defense (which is an attack). All of this was in response to a story I made up in my mind about a phone call he did not return.

Giving this to the Holy Spirit, I understand that I perceived his failure to return my call as an attack. Maybe he is talking to my competitor and is thinking of switching suppliers, in which case he becomes my enemy, someone to overcome. I must convince him that I am valuable to him, but because he is now a threat to my income stream, I resent him, and anything I say to him will come from fear and not from love. He will not see me as valuable if I come with sword and shield in hand.

Fixated on Fear

The ego mind is fixated on fear, fear of loss and lack. Maybe I will lose a customer, and my boss will value me less. I could lose money and not have enough for all I think I need. I fear not being valued. The ego solution to being afraid is to fight back through whatever means, but it is always some kind of attack and defend strategy in which I am separate from this other person. I see us with different goals; to achieve my goal, the other must relinquish his. Now, I am enemy to my boss, who I perceive as having unreasonable expectations. And I am enemy to my customer as well as to my competitor. I feel as if the enemy surrounds me.

Of course, none of this has actually happened except that he failed to return my call. But as I allowed the scenario to play out, I could see how the ego works to keep separation in place. I feel a pang of discomfort, and the ego weaves it into a story where the enemy surrounds me. The ego offers to protect me by giving me ways to defend myself. Now, I am making everyone separate and am attacking my brother. So, the underlying feeling is that I am guilty and don’t deserve to win. The ego lies when it offers protection.

A Different Interpretation

When I offer it to the Holy Spirit for interpretation, He reminds me that my boss, customer, and competitor are innocent, just as I am. We are none of us guilty for our thoughts or our actions. He reminds me that we do have one common goal, and that is to feel safe and happy, and we achieve this through forgiveness. As I regain my equilibrium and remember the truth, I accept that this is my only function.

The feeling of being less than, attacked, of loss and lack, all of these are just different forms of believing I am separate from God, and thus cannot be true. All of this turned around as I accepted responsibility for my thoughts and beliefs rather than seeking someone else to blame. I was afraid because of the meaning I gave a call not returned, not because of anything else.

Even if I was right about the failure to return the call and I did lose that customer, I am the one who decides what that means. No matter what seems to be happening in my story, I give it all the meaning it has for me, and I am free to remember that forgiveness is my only function. When I remember my function and focus on my forgiveness work, I trust the rest to work out as it will. The ego says I must be forever on guard, but the ego is such a liar. I am perfectly loved and perfectly protected. When I remember this, I am perfectly at peace with whatever is occurring.

Introduction, P 2

2 You have been asked to take me as your model for learning, since an extreme example is a particularly helpful learning device. Everyone teaches, and teaches all the time. This is a responsibility you inevitably assume the moment you accept any premise at all, and no one can organize his life without some thought system. Once you have developed a thought system of any kind, you live by it and teach it. Your capacity for allegiance to a thought system may be misplaced, but it is still a form of faith and can be redirected.

This sentence stands out for me: Everyone teaches and teaches all the time. Understanding that this is true, I want to always teach for God. But since I always teach, the only way to always teach for God is to think with God. If I am angry with someone I am teaching anger whether I say anything or not. If I worry about money or running out of time, I teach lack and loss.

I stay aware of my emotions and thoughts, which lets me know what I believe. I can say the words “I am responsible for my world.” But if I am angry that my neighbor’s trash blew into my yard, then I know that I am not taking responsibility for my world no matter what I think I say or what I think I believe. My anger tells me that I am upset. Assigning the reason for the upset to my neighbor tells me that I think that neighbor is the cause of my upset.

Thinking With Ego or With the Holy Spirit

If I bring the problem with the neighbor to my ego mind, it will prove to me that I am right to be angry. It will offer to protect me by having a discussion with my neighbor. Since I have a spiritual ego, it will think of words to make my neighbor feel guilty that sound “nice.” But the anger and blame are there, and that is what I will be teaching.

Even if I chose to pick up the trash and not confront the neighbor in any way, I would still be teaching anger and blame if those beliefs were in my mind. I would be teaching it to myself. I would be reinforcing a wrong-minded thought, making it even more real. This makes it harder to let go. The only way not to teach anger and blame is to accept the Atonement for the belief that someone is guilty.

From a healed mind, I will hear the Holy Spirit’s guidance about what to say, if anything. And with my mind healed of the belief that I am victim to my neighbor, I will be at peace. I will happily pick up that trash for my neighbor. What a simple way to extend love and what a delight to be at peace with the world.

To read Pathways of Light insights on the introduction, CLICK HERE.