Unspeakable Peace

Commaraderie at Book Club

“Maybe we will drown or burn or starve one day, but until then we get to choose if we’ll add to that destruction or if we will care for each other.” This is a quote from the book, Wild Dark Shore, by Charlotte McConaghy. Tonight was my favorite night of the month: book club meeting! The weather was a perfect 70-degrees for dining outside and visiting with dear friends. When there is turmoil at every turn in this world we have made, the oasis we find with friends and loved ones is rejuvenating. The opening quote is much like the teachings of  A Course in Miracles: everything is a choice between fear or love — and if you don’t like your choice, choose again! Happy Autumn everyone …

“Let us resolve today to ask for what we really want, and only this, that we may spend this day in fearlessness, without confusing pain with joy, or fear with love.”

—A Course in Miracles W-339.1:9

“Spiritual living and blessedness are the only evidences, by which we can recognize true existence and feel the unspeakable peace which comes from an all-absorbing spiritual love.”

—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 264: 24-27

A New and Glorified Trust

Art by Elena Wuest

I heard myself say to someone, "We could all choose to have animosity toward our parents, either actual or imagined." But now that I think about it, isn't all animosity imagined? We like to think that some outside influence has forced us to feel hurt or angry, but is that true? Aren't we just setting ourselves up as a victim to say that someone else "made us angry"? After all, I don't have to react with a specified emotion; I can choose to see any given situation as a calm witness, rather than as an upset personality, can't I? It's tempting to say things such as: He/she pushes my buttons. By blaming outside influences for our actions, we can pretend we're victims of life's circumstances. We're so accustomed to looking for help outside of ourselves that we also blame outside influences for our reactions, thinking we have no choice. Truth shows us that we are more than we believe we are. We aren't mortal victims, but spiritual beings with unrealized abilities and power. It's time to wake up!

“My angels are exalted thoughts, appearing at the door of some sepulchre, in which human belief has buried its fondest earthly hopes. With white fingers they point upward to a new and glorified trust, to higher ideals of life and its joys.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 299:7-11

“Suffering is an emphasis upon all that the world has done to injure you. Here is the world’s demented version of salvation clearly shown. Like to a dream of punishment, in which the dreamer is unconscious of what brought on the attack against himself, he sees himself attacked unjustly and by something not himself. He is the victim of this ‘something else,’ a thing outside himself, for which he has no reason to be held responsible. He must be innocent because he knows not what he does, but what is done to him. Yet is his own attack upon himself apparent still, for it is he who bears the suffering. And he cannot escape because its source is seen outside himself.”
—A Course in Miracles T-27.VII.1:1-7

Undisciplined? Or Remembering My Purpose …

Looking back over the last six decades of my life, there were many times of major confusion, and even more instances of minor tailspins. In retrospect, these were nothing more than times when I forgot to listen for omnipresent guidance. My purpose is unfolding every moment, and all I need to do is show up and be willing -- willing to be open-hearted, open-minded -- with no expectations of how things should be. It's tempting to think of this as undisciplined, and others may be critical of this attitude. I can attest to the fact that wandering around in college for five years perfectly prepared me for freelance court reporting. And thirty years of taking down and transcribing depositions was an incredible education, which paved the way for running an art gallery for ten years. All those things brought me to where I am today, and none of it could have been planned. Today, I think of this as listening and following. Back then, I didn't think of it at all…

“Spirit, God, gathers unformed thoughts into their proper channels, and unfolds these thoughts, even as He opens the petals of a holy purpose in order that the purpose may appear.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 506:18-21

“Let me remember what my purpose is. If I forget my goal I can be but confused, unsure of what I am, and thus conflicted in my actions. No one can serve contradicting goals and serve them well. Nor can he function without deep distress and great depression. Let us therefore be determined to remember what we want today, that we may unify our thoughts and actions meaningfully, and achieve only what God would have us do this day.
—A Course in Miracles W-257.1:1–2

Doing The Most We Can

Enhanced photo by Aaron Springston

I love to sit on my back deck, where nothing exists other than the forest and sky, with the insects and birds talking to me. My gratitude for this peace is all-encompassing. Of course, we are conditioned to feel guilty when we are happy in spite of other people’s misery and fear, so the thought crossed my mind that I should feel bad for others. But this was quickly corrected, because I know that no matter how awful I feel about the plight of another, it will do nothing to improve their lot. This does not mean that I have no compassion for them, but that I correct the picture of despair in my thoughts and see them according to the first book of Genesis rather than the second: God created everything and it was good. That is the spiritual reality of Life. So rather than dwelling on images burned into my retina by my knowledge of world events, I translate them into the purity of creation in its natural state: Love. The compassion I feel for all of the earth is not dimmed by my turning away from the material picture; rather it expands to include everything in the panoply of this Love This is the least I can do for my earthly family — or perhaps it’s the most.

“The notion of a material universe is utterly opposed to the theory of man as evolved from Mind. Such fundamental errors send falsity into all human doctrines and conclusions, and do not accord infinity to Deity. Error tills the whole ground in this material theory, which is entirely a false view, destructive to existence and happiness.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 545:1-5

“Every thought you have makes up some segment of the world you see. It is with your thoughts, then, that we must work, if your perception of the world is to be changed.”
—A Course in Miracles W-23.1:4-5

Trusting Your News Source

When the leader of a country repeatedly tells his constituents that the news outlets they are trusting are not trustworthy, a number of things happen. Some people throw up their hands and believe nothing can be trusted, which leads to a fear of our government officials, the election process, and ultimately any agency in charge of helping us. Many of us have been checking the veracity of what we are being told, but it is a laborious, time-consuming effort. And not everyone has the computer skills necessary to unravel the web of deceit which has been purposefully woven. Most of us have news sources which we trust, but how do we know if they are truly trustworthy? Even if they are accurate, some news is often not reported and the information may be an important foundational element of the “whole story”. With all this in mind, I have downloaded the app for Ground News. Within this source is all the news, with a gauge of how much coverage is being given by left/center/right sources, and the ability to click and receive a synopsis or a link to each and every story listed. There are typically 20-30 source stories for each headline and synopsis, which can be accessed if you so desire. This is a huge time saver and gives us the ability to stay informed and retain our sanity. Finally some good news!

“To my sense, the most imminent dangers confronting the coming century are: the robbing of people of life and liberty under the warrant of the Scriptures; the claims of politics and of human power, industrial slavery, and insufficient freedom of honest competition; and ritual, creed, and trusts in place of the Golden Rule, ‘Whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them.’”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Miscellaneous Writings Page 266:1-9

“If data are meaningless there is no point in analyzing them. The function of truth is to collect information that is true. Any way you handle error results in nothing. The more complicated the results become the harder it may be to recognize their nothingness, but it is not necessary to examine all possible outcomes to which premises give rise in order to judge them truly.”

—A Course in Miracles T-8.VIII.6:5-9

Clearing Out Clutter

Photo courtesy of Kailey Jones

Most people seem to be getting rid of things they don’t need. We’re letting go of items which are cluttering up our houses and material surroundings. More importantly, we're clearing out thoughts and beliefs which no longer are needed in our new-found perception of reality. As with our surroundings, we look through the accumulation of years and decide what to release and what to keep. Sometimes we keep more than we had planned, but with our mental clutter, there is very little which needs to stay. Just as we accumulate more and more books and music and all sorts of things, we also accumulate erroneous beliefs. Isn't it just as easy to hold on to Truth as it is error? Now is the time to do just that!

“Citizens of the world, accept the ‘glorious liberty of the children of God,’ and be free! This is your divine right. The illusion of material sense, not divine law, has bound you, entangled your free limbs, crippled your capacities, enfeebled your body, and defaced the tablet of your being.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 227:24-29

“… no form of exercise is urged, except a deep relinquishment of everything that clutters up the mind, and makes it deaf to reason, sanity and simple truth.”
—A Course in Miracles W-rVI.in.3:8

Together

William Blake said: "I am in you and you in me, mutual in divine Love". I understand this to mean that the perfection we are learning to see as ourselves, also is everyone else. I often tell people “We’re all in this together”, but I think I’ll change it to “We are all this – together!” I love the study of the Science of Being! Every day, every moment, revelations in thought bring me a deeper understanding of how this Truth sets us free. I am learning more of what it means that God is Mind, Spirit, Soul, Principle, Life, Truth, Love. It's joyous to expand understanding, including myself in that definition, as a reflection of All that Is!

“So-called mineral, vegetable, and animal substances are no more contingent now on time or material structure than they were when ‘the morning stars sang together.’ Mind made the ‘plant of the field before it was in the earth.’ The periods of spiritual ascension are the days and seasons of Mind’s creation, in which beauty, sublimity, purity, and holiness — yea, the divine nature — appear in man and the universe never to disappear.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 509:20-28

“We who are one would recognize this day the truth about ourselves. We would come home, and rest in unity. For there is peace, and nowhere else can peace be sought and found.”
—A Course in Miracles W-262.2:3

Making Sense of Life

Good Friend, Sharon

“A man’s beliefs are how he makes sense of life.Take that away, and what does he have left?” While at a delightful event benefiting our local library system, these words from the series Outlander came to mind more than once. In our small town, we make sense of life through our connections with each other. The community dinner tonight was delightful for many reasons — a short Agatha Christie-style play in honor of the overall theme of Murder on the Orient Express, dinner catered by a local cafe, a silent auction of goods and art from local businesses and people — but the most joy came from our interactions with each other. The group of 150 or so people were almost all acquainted, and we were happy to visit and laugh together. And that’s why the above quote was in my thoughts: we make sense of life through each other, through friendships, through our children’s sporting events, through library dinners. We don’t need to rely on beliefs when we have knowledge of one another. It makes sense …

“The world becomes a place of hope, because its only purpose is to be a place where hope of happiness can be fulfilled. And no one stands outside this hope, because the world has been united in belief the purpose of the world is one which all must share, if hope be more than just a dream.”
—A Course in Miracles T-30.V.2:7-8

“Belief in a material basis, from which may be deduced all rationality, is slowly yielding to the idea of a metaphysical basis, looking away from matter to Mind as the cause of every effect.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 268: 6-9

Each Heartbeat Brings Peace

Photo by Aaron Springston

Living the peace of God may seem like a fantasy to those who abide by the laws of materiality. It's a common belief that in order to live in peace a person must be delusional, sticking their head in the sand, or at least denying reality in favor of wishful thinking. But many of us see this state of mind in another way. As we learn about the Truth of our being, we are able to glimpse this peace, and the joy it brings. This joy spreads exponentially through our daily activities, as it is expressed through our actions and words. This state of mind does more for the world than all the preaching we may be tempted to do!

“My heart is beating in the peace of God. Surrounding me is all the life that God created in His Love. It calls to me in every heartbeat and in every breath; in every action and in every thought. Peace fills my heart, and floods my body with the purpose of forgiveness. Now my mind is healed, and all I need to save the world is given me. Each heartbeat brings me peace; each breath infuses me with strength. I am a messenger of God, directed by His Voice, sustained by Him in love, and held forever quiet and at peace within His loving Arms. Each heartbeat calls His Name, and every one is answered by His Voice, assuring me I am at home in Him.”
—A Course in Miracles W-267.1:1

“Teach them that their being is sustained by Spirit, not by matter, and that they find health, peace, and harmony in God, divine Love.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 416:32-2

Let it Be …

Do you know anyone who plays events over and over in their mind, making assumptions about why things were said or done, then trying to find solutions to fix everyone involved? A friend received a phone call from someone she hadn’t heard from in the past few years. She didn’t answer the call and was full of worries as to what she may have done wrong which caused her friend to break off contact with her. While I try not to laugh in the face of others’ distress, I couldn’t help myself this time! I quickly reminded her of The Four Agreements, in particular “don’t make assumptions” and “don’t take anything personally”. After a brief conversation, we ended our call and she contacted her old friend. And sure enough, she had done nothing wrong; her friend was going through a rough time and needed a friendly shoulder to lean on. How much easier life is without speculations and suppositions!

“Let all things be exactly as they are. Let me not be Your critic, Lord, today, and judge against You. Let me not attempt to interfere with Your creation, and distort it into sickly forms. Let me be willing to withdraw my wishes from its unity, and thus to let it be as You created it. For thus will I be able, too, to recognize my Self as You created me. In love was I created, and in love will I remain forever. What can frighten me, when I let all things be exactly as they are?

“Let not our sight be blasphemous today, nor let our ears attend to lying tongues. Only reality is free of pain. Only reality is free of loss. Only reality is wholly safe. And it is only this we seek today.”
—A Course in Miracles W-268.1:1–2:5

"Human sense may well marvel at discord, while, to a diviner sense, harmony is the real and discord the unreal.”
—Mary Baker Eddy — Science & Health Page: 563: 1-3

The Swingin’ Door

In the 1970s, I spent a good deal of time in a bar called The Swingin' Door. I fell in love with Texas music and more than one musician. It was an interesting time in popular music history, with the Beatles still stirring our souls and disco bringing a canned cadence to music, which most of the people in my circles shunned. We were all sure we knew the secret to happiness, and holiness had absolutely nothing to do with it. As years passed in a blur, we found the alcohol and drugs no longer brought satisfaction. It took years for me to realize that holiness was found within and reflected outwardly in everything. What a long and interesting road it's been to this point. The gratitude I feel for Life is overwhelming!

“Higher enjoyments alone can satisfy the cravings of immortal man.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health

“How can illusions satisfy God’s Son? Father, the truth belongs to me. My home is set in Heaven by Your Will and mine. Can dreams content me? Can illusions bring me happiness? What but Your memory can satisfy Your Son? I will accept no less than You have given me. I am surrounded by Your Love, forever still, forever gentle and forever safe. God’s Son must be as You created him.

“Today we pass illusions by. And if we hear temptation call to us to stay and linger in a dream, we turn aside and ask ourselves if we, the Sons of God, could be content with dreams, when Heaven can be chosen just as easily as hell, and love will happily replace all fear.”
—A Course in Miracles W-272.1:1-2:2

Giving=Receiving; Receiving=Giving

Photo courtesy of Blake Lasater

Most of the people I know are givers. They give of their time and money to causes they support; they give love and affection to family and friends; they give of themselves generously, always stepping up when anyone is in need. But many of these wonderful people aren't comfortable receiving compliments, or taking a helping hand when they're having problems, or accepting a gift when they're in need. Why do they give so freely, but are uncomfortable accepting others’ offerings to them? This duality in thought is negated with the understanding of a spiritual principle explained in A Course in Miracles Workbook Lesson #108, which tells us that giving and receiving are one. "One thought, completely unified, will serve to unify all thoughts." This unification is the truth which governs everything, when seen for what it is: Truth. Today I will open my heart to receive all the good which is innately mine, and this reception opens avenues to share in unexpected ways. I will offer to others everything I want for myself: peace, happiness, joy, contentment, satisfaction, grace, love. Freely I have received, freely I give!

“To give and to receive are one in truth. Vision depends upon today’s idea. The light is in it, for it reconciles all seeming opposites. And what is light except the resolution, born of peace, of all your conflicts and mistaken thoughts into one concept which is wholly true? Even that one will disappear, because the Thought behind it will appear instead to take its place. And now you are at peace forever, for the dream is over then.”
—A Course in Miracles W-108.1:1-5

“Giving does not impoverish us in the service of our Maker, neither does withholding enrich us.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 79:30-32

Resting in Peace — Here and Now

The term “rest in peace” is usually said when someone passes from this earthly plane. It can also be the key to living free from beliefs and ties to past experiences. This clears the path to knowing Truth. To know Truth means to know ourselves, and to demonstrate divine Principle in our every thought and action. Although I find this form of spiritual practice invigorating, not everyone feels the same. Many people think they would be giving away their individuality if they let go of their personal history. I find the opposite to be true. When losing a sense of personal responsibility, when releasing beliefs about certain circumstances, there is a pure, empty space left in thought. This space allows a recognition of what has always been there: Love. Divine Love. This is our power: the ability to accept the good which is there for us, the ability to rest in peace. Namaste …

“This is the day of peace. You rest in God, and while the world is torn by winds of hate your rest remains completely undisturbed. Yours is the rest of truth. Appearances cannot intrude on you. You call to all to join you in your rest, and they will hear and come to you because you rest in God. They will not hear another voice than yours because you gave your voice to God, and now you rest in Him and let Him speak through you.
—A Course in Miracles W-109.4:1-6

“…when we realize that immortal Mind is ever active, and that spiritual energies can neither wear out nor can so-called material law trespass upon God-given powers and resources, we are able to rest in Truth, refreshed by the assurances of immortality, opposed to mortality."
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 387:8-12

The Returns of Extending Love

Many of us have a difficult time seeing ourselves as a creation of Love. We may feel there are events in our lives so unlovely that we couldn't possibly be the reflection of divine perfection. Many great sages have taught us how to save ourselves from the horror of past events. Thich Nhat Hanh and Mahatma Gandhi have shown us how to rise above our feelings of guilt. No matter how this advice is worded, it comes down to one basic concept: extend Love to others, to everything and everyone. This is our atonement, to see the Oneness of all that Is and realize that nothing can ever occur which will separate us from divine Love. By giving it to the world, we give it to ourselves and feel major changes within. We can forgive ourselves even as we are forgiven, because we were never condemned.

“Think of this, dear reader, for it will lift the sackcloth from your eyes, and you will behold the soft-winged dove descending upon you. The very circumstance, which your suffering sense deems wrathful and afflictive, Love can make an angel entertained unawares.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 574:25-30

“Why would you not be overjoyed to be assured that all the evil that you think you did was never done, that all your sins are nothing, that you are as pure and holy as you were created, and that light and joy and peace abide in you? Your image of yourself cannot withstand the Will of God. You think that this is death, but it is life. You think you are destroyed, but you are saved.”
—Course in Miracles W-93.4:1-4

From Strength to Strength

Photo courtesy of Don Matt

Arthur C Brooks has spent decades studying happiness. Things which bring us pleasure in our early years are not necessarily what nurtures us in our later ones. In his recent book, “From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness, and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life”, this columnist for The Atlantic reports, “Those who are unhappiest later in life are often the strivers on a continual quest for money, power, pleasure, and prestige.” Mr. Brooks also teaches a class on happiness at Harvard Business School. He tells us what most of us already know: “The world gives you a bogus formula for happiness. No 1: Use people. No. 2: Love things. No 3: Worship yourself. And it actually seems right because it’s so close to the truth. It just mixes up the nouns and the verbs. The right formula, based on all of the best neuroscience, clinical, and social scientific research, is simply: Use things, love people, and worship the divine. You can boil down all of the studies of happiness to five words. Those words are: Happiness is love. Full stop.”

“Happy dreams come true, not because they are dreams, but only because they are happy. And so they must be loving. Their message is, ‘Thy Will be done,’ and not, ‘I want it otherwise.’”
—A Course in Miracles T-18.V.4:1-3

"Happiness is spiritual, born of Truth and Love. It is unselfish; therefore it cannot exist alone, but requires all … to share it."
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 57:18-21

Virtual Connections — Are They Real?

Many people say that we are suffering from loss of connections with real people; that we have given ourselves over to technology, thinking we are making connections when we're actually just passing time. I wonder if the face-to-face conversations we have are any more "real" than the computer relationships we sustain. So far, my conclusion is that any relationship can be shallow or deep, and the means by which we connect makes no difference. Virtual visits with my son and his family feel as though I’m walking along with them, joining them for lunch, sitting in their living room while they have their nighttime dance parties. It’s imperative for us all to sustain community connections, too. For those of us who do not get out of the house the way we once did, social media is a wonderful look into community events. I see every parade through the eyes of a local photographer, and see more detail than when my art gallery was right on the route they travel. We have more opportunities to connect with each other than ever before. Let’s do it!

“Love, too, would set a feast before you, on a table covered with a spotless cloth, set in a quiet garden where no sound but singing and a softly joyous whispering is ever heard. This is a feast that honors your holy relationship, and at which everyone is welcomed as an honored guest. And in a holy instant grace is said by everyone together, as they join in gentleness before the table of communion. And I will join you there, as long ago I promised and promise still. For in your new relationship am I made welcome. And where I am made welcome, there I am.”
—A Course in Miracles T-19.IV-A.16:1-6

“After the stars sang together and all was primeval harmony, the material lie made war upon the spiritual idea; but this only impelled the idea to rise to the zenith of demonstration, destroying sin, sickness, and death, and to be caught up unto God, — to be found in its divine Principle.”
—Mary BakerEddy - Science & Health Page 565:23-028

Fear is Not Our Natural State

Art by Vladislav Yerko

"Within a system which denies the existence of basic human rights, fear tends to be the order of the day. Fear of imprisonment, fear of torture, fear of death, fear of losing friends, family, property or means of livelihood, fear of poverty, fear of isolation, fear of failure. A most insidious form of fear is that which masquerades as common sense or even wisdom, condemning as foolish, reckless, insignificant or futile the small, daily acts of courage which help to preserve man's self-respect and inherent human dignity. It is not easy for a people conditioned by fear under the iron rule of the principle that might is right to free themselves from the enervating miasma of fear. Yet even under the most crushing state machinery courage rises up again and again, for fear is not the natural state of civilized man.”
—Aung San Suu Kyi, Freedom From Fear

“Had Blondin believed it impossible to walk the rope over Niagara's abyss of waters, he could never have done it. His belief that he could do it gave his thought-forces, called muscles, their flexibility and power which the unscientific might attribute to a lubricating oil. His fear must have disappeared before his power of putting resolve into action could appear.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 199:25-31

“How safe the world will look to me when I can see it! It will not look anything like what I imagine I see now. Everyone and everything I see will lean toward me to bless me. I will recognize in everyone my dearest Friend. What could there be to fear in a world that I have forgiven, and that has forgiven me?”
—A Course in Miracles W-60.3:2-6

Realizing What We’ve Always Known

“Moonlight on the Osage”

Thomas Hart Benton 

“I wish I'd known about this way of thinking earlier in life,” a friend once said to me. He was concerned that he wouldn't have enough time to assimilate the metaphysical truth we’re learning. Many responses came to mind, but I chose to say none of them. Time -- what a concept! We are eternal, so how can there not be enough time to realize something we've always known? Yes, that does sound rather esoteric, or perhaps a bit airy-fairy -- but doesn't it feel true? As a spiritual author once stated: "Time is something we've made up so everything doesn't happen all at once." When thinking of time in this way, don't we already know everything that ever has been or ever will be? It feels as though our purpose is to remember the knowledge of our true self. With that remembrance, we open the gates of understanding in all areas of existence. There are no limits as to time and space. We have the ability to grasp concepts, to actualize ideas, and to function as the light of the world. The lovely thing about all of this is: No matter how much I may think I understand, there is always more to experience in this never-ending adventure!

“It is your forgiveness that will bring the world of darkness to the light. It is your forgiveness that lets you recognize the light in which you see. Forgiveness is the demonstration that you are the light of the world. Through your forgiveness does the truth about yourself return to your memory. Therefore, in your forgiveness lies your salvation.”
—A Course in Miracles W-62.1:1-5

“Truth and Love enlighten the understanding, in whose ‘light shall we see light;’ and this illumination is reflected spiritually by all who walk in the light and turn away from a false material sense.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 510:9-12

Peace to Every Mind

 “There is a place of peace in the heart that looks out and sees the foolishness of the world but does not judge, criticize or condemn but compassionately accepts the unawakened behavior of others.

This place is called Love.

It is that which cannot be taught, only shown by example.

It is not a lesson to give, it is a relationship with life.

It is not a beating with a stick, but a caress with an open hand.

It is the strongest force in the universe, but needs time to be understood.

The one who encourages you to be afraid is not your friend. The one who shows the unity and interconnectedness of all things will not want something from you.

When you are afraid you are already the victim.

When you are loving, you are exactly where you want be.

This sharing of love without conditions is the way of the heart.”

Michael Kewley

“How holy are you who have the power to bring peace to every mind! How blessed are you who can learn to recognize the means 

for letting this be done through you! 

What purpose could you have that would bring you greater happiness?” 

A Course in Miracles W-63.1:1-3

"Gladness to leave the false landmarks and joy to see them disappear,--this disposition helps to precipitate the ultimate harmony. 

The purification of sense and self is a proof of progress."

Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 324:3-5

 

Forgive Yourself

Have you ever been accused of something you did not do? An unjust charge carries with it a terrible feeling. This same feeling follows many of us around because we have been told that we are born sinners — and that there is nothing to be done about the life sentence. We have come to believe it is our function on this earth to try ever so hard in order to overcome this innate badness. Isn't it a wonderful thing to experience teachings which show us that this is not true? The understanding of our essence as the pure expression of God — and the realization that anything unlike this expression is a material illusion, one which is brought to us courtesy of tainted human beliefs — frees us to be happy. Gone is all the guilt we may have carried around, thinking we were condemned by a power from which we couldn't escape. There has been no condemnation by any power, only illusionary powers to which we have given credence. Breaking free from these beliefs, we are free to be happy, healthy, whole -- and we bloom!

“Whatever indicates the fall of man or the opposite of God or God’s absence, is the Adam-dream, which is neither Mind nor man, for it is not begotten of the Father. The rule of inversion infers from error its opposite, Truth; but Truth is the light which dispels error. As mortals begin to understand Spirit, they give up the belief that there is any true existence apart from God."
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 282:28:3

“Nothing the body’s eyes seem to see can be anything but a form of temptation, since this was the purpose of the body itself. Yet we have learned that the Holy Spirit has another use for all the illusions you have made, and therefore He sees another purpose in them. To the Holy Spirit, the world is a place where you learn to forgive yourself what you think of as your sins. In this perception, the physical appearance of temptation becomes the spiritual recognition of salvation.”
—A Course in Miracles W-64.2:1-4