HOW IS CORRECTION MADE?
page 48, paragraph 4
HOW IS CORRECTION MADE?
HOW IS CORRECTION MADE?
4. In order to heal, it thus becomes essential for the teacher of God to let all his own mistakes be corrected. ²If he senses even the faintest hint of irritation in himself as he responds to anyone, let him instantly realize that he has made an interpretation that is not true. ³Then let him turn within to his eternal Guide, and let Him judge what the response should be. ⁴So is he healed, and in his healing is his pupil healed with him. ⁵The sole responsibility of God’s teacher is to accept the Atonement for himself. ⁶Atonement means correction, or the undoing of errors. ⁷When this has been accomplished, the teacher of God becomes a miracle worker by definition. ⁸His sins have been forgiven him, and he no longer condemns himself. ⁹How can he then condemn anyone? ¹⁰And who is there whom his forgiveness can fail to heal? (ACIM, M-18.4:1-10)
Atonement
I have one thing to do here, one responsibility, one purpose. I am to accept the Atonement for myself. The process is simple. I notice when I respond with a lack of peace and I ask the Holy Spirit for a corrected interpretation. This is so simple that the ego mind, which thrives on complexity, will over-look it. But it works. I have been doing this process for many years and I see how effective it is.
This is the way I am healed, and it is the way my pupil is healed with me. I accept the Atonement (the Holy Spirit’s correction) for myself and as my mind is healed, so is my pupil’s mind. I hear objections from the ego mind as I read this. First, it doesn’t accept that there is only one of us, one mind, but it is an old argument and I’m not interested. The ego sees separate bodies and cannot see past what the body’s eyes see, but I am not limited to the body’s senses anymore.
Teaching: Ego or Jesus
Then the ego complains that this is not how teaching works. A teacher is one who knows more and shares that knowledge with one who knows less. She does that with words, either speaking or writing. The student sits at her feet (metaphorically) and absorbs her wisdom. The ego really likes this definition of teaching. It has all the elements it is so fond of, separation, hierarchy, and perception and projection.
Instead, Jesus has a different form of teaching in mind. In any relationship, the teacher of God watches her thoughts as she interacts, and if she notices even the slightest irritation toward her pupil, she asks for and receives correction. As her mind is healed, the student’s mind is healed. Perfect. The ego hates this. Too simple. Where is the hierarchy in this? Where is the blame and the guilt? And yet, So is he healed, and in his healing is his pupil healed with him.
Healing Thoughts
And if this is really how it works, then why do workshops, write books, teach classes and facilitate courses? Jesus has also told us that our hands, our feet, our tongues are needed, so this kind of teaching must have its place. Of course, it is through the words and the interactions that we see we have thoughts that need healing, but I think it is also helpful in other ways.
If the teacher’s words are inspired, they can help awaken the memory of truth in another’s mind. This has happened for me when I studied with Regina, and with Cate Grieves. I felt a stirring within when I read any number of books. I was helped when I listened to Keith Kavanagh recently. The Way of Mastery moved me deeply and opened me to a more expanded view of myself.
Inspiration
There are so many ways the Holy Spirit speaks to me. A Course in Miracles itself is full of words, and is precious to me as a written path Home. But no book, no workshop, no words can awaken me. They can only motivate me, and inspire me to willingness. It is only the Holy Spirit that heals, and it is only with my willingness to be healed that this is accomplished. And, the hardest of all pill for the ego to swallow, it is only through my healing that my student is healed, not anything I say or do. I am not, after all, special. ~smile~
Video
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