Sin or Mistake?
The difference between a sin and a mistake is fundamental to the practice of forgiveness in A Course in Miracles.When we chose to look upon "the tiny mad idea" with the ego, the ego instantly called it sin. "In his forgetting did the thought become a serious idea, and possible of both accomplishment and real effects." (T-27.VIII.6:3) Our sin, we believe, is that through our selfish choice we have destroyed God, the Kingdom, Love, and Oneness forever.
The Holy Spirit looks upon this same choice (to side with the ego) as a mistake. According to Jesus in the Course, "...[dreams] had no effect upon reality at all, and did not change it." (T-17.I.1:7) In other words, Heaven remained perfectly unaffected and undisturbed: "...not one note in Heaven's song was missed." (T-26.V.5:4)
As Jesus reassures us, "Son of God, you have not sinned, but you have been much mistaken." (T-10.V.6:1)
So how do we make this idea meaningful? How do we move beyond the metaphysics - as nice as they sound - to the experience?
The way we realize this mistaken choice accomplished nothing [i.e. didn't destroy Love], is by joining with that [Love/God/Oneness, symbolized by Jesus in our dream] which we think we destroyed, and we do that through the day-to-day practice of forgiveness.
If we're joined with it (Love), we didn't destroy it or alienate it, or it wouldn't still be there for us to join with, and thus in this joining do all our reasons for guilt and fear evaporate. But only the experience of this joining will be truly convincing, which is why we cannot do this Course alone.
It is holding the hand of Jesus, looking at our wrong mind with His forgiveness beside us, that allows us to finally integrate the metaphysics and the experience. It is only within the presence of His love that we truly come to know the joy of our sinlessness.
posted by acimmonk @ 7:32 PM
2 comments
2 Comments:
Dear acimmonk,
The concept that transgressions are errors that need correction is beautiful. When the ego fosters the belief that we should be punished for our sins (and may even forfeit the chance for everlasting life) creates fear of a god that can easily be angered.
However, I struggle with this idea because the New Testament often mentions sin, judgment and casting wood that bears no fruit into the fire to be burned. These ideas come from the teachings and parables from Jesus, the same author as ACIM. Have mistakes been introduced into the Gospels over time?
Andrewjohn2008@gmail.com
Hi again Andrew,
I think the gospels - then and now - are largely the result of an egoic interpretation and misunderstanding of Jesus' message of pure love. For this reason, the theology of the Bible and ACIM cannot be reconciled. To go a step further, ACIM seeks to correct the (egoic) teachings of Christianty.
The Course uses our familiarity with Christian terminology as a way to connect with our experience - so many of us either coming from Christian religions or well acquainted with them, and the figure of Jesus - so that eventually we can be moved beyond the terminology itself and "Christian" ideas of sin, guilt, fear, judgment, hell, punishment and so forth. While there are obvious messages of love in the gospels, any attempt to bring the Bible and ACIM together would ultimately fray the message of both. They are not the same.
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