FACIM D2: ACIM is Not Our Friend
The foundation has expanded their online teaching with a YouTube channel:
As of right now they have video clips of Ken and Gloria teaching. I subscribed and was the — you guessed it Lonni — the 11th subscriber. I just know that means something important! It’s just gotta.
I met a nice woman, Marie, from Switzerland (originally from France) yesterday. She said she’d been reading my blog (I immediately expressed my condolences), and thanked me for it, so again it was nice to meet someone in person that came as a result of my website. We’re going to have her over for lunch sometime this week, hopefully today.
In class yesterday morning Bonnie fell asleep so I ran her home at the break so she could have a nap and be ready for the afternoon session. The whole morning session was dedicated to going over THE CHART. See blue dot. See blue dot run. See blue dot jump over the veil of forgetfulness back to its rightful place. No wonder Bonnie fell asleep — the rest of us only stayed awake out of politeness (joking! — it’s all a set up for the next paragraph).
Speaking of putting people to sleep: at lunch Erik Archbold — a hypnotherapist (see?) from Austin, Texas — hung out with us, and our conversation made the time pass so quickly that Yvonne was forced to drive like Magnum P.I. for us to make it back to the Foundation on time. (Ken would have been furious.)
In the afternoon session Ken tackled a subject he’d been asked about during the lunch break: the Course’s contradictory use of language in relation to praying for specifics versus true prayer. The gist of the grist was that it’s OK to pray for specifics on the bottom rungs, but that if you stay there you’ll form a co-dependent relationship with Jesus as the enabler, and you’ll never grow up (”A boy, a man, then a Spirit” line may or may not have been used several times) and only reinforce your identification with your body and the world. Prayer is the process of attaining true prayer or forgiveness, which dovetails with the line in the Course where Jesus says his love is both the means and the end.
It was like a masterclass on that one subject, and there are rumors I took too many notes. (The rumors coming from the pen indentation on my right hand.)
A couple other concepts that were highlighted:
• you don’t want the symbols, you want the source
• why settle for bread crumbs (specifics) when you can have the banquet (experience of the peace of God)
• you have to recognize how miserable you truly are SO THAT you can become a happy (read: motivated) learner.
One idea that’s really hitting me is the idea of waking up each day with the idea: “I am going to use today to weaken my identification with ego”, and realizing — given our intimate knowledge of the pain of our ego identification — that this can be a truly joyful goal, a joyful way to traverse one’s life.
Another idea that’s really coming across to me is, “The course is not our friend,” as in, not our ego’s friend. And since we’re mostly identified with our ego… well, it’s buh-bye time. Ulp! How could that part of us say, “I love this Course”, unless it was using it for specialness, to become more “spiritual”. I am struck again and again by the uncompromising message of the Course.
Yvonne went with Gayle to some sort of olive oil store. I think Gayle was planning on coming back with a tee-shirt that said, “Olive us are one.” I’m not sure if she got it, but I’ll report on this tomorrow. It could send shock waves through the Foundation.
Lonni came over to spend the evening with Bonnie and Yvonne and me. We had a lot of fun! After Lonni left I found out she brought over 5 bags of cookies and chocolates, so if you ever run into her at a future class, latch on tight!
Bonnie will be playing her “Bach around the clock” (it might have a more prestigious technical name, like “Bach Partita #1 Double”, for instance) before the start of class tomorrow, and then the Celtic Lament on Thursday. I’m really relying on her to blow everyone away so I can reap the rewards of residual specialness. Wish me luck!
