A Course in Miracles is a spiritual text that was written by Helen Schucman through a process of inner dictation that lasted seven years. During this period, she was assisted by William Thetford and Kenneth Wapnick, two of the Course’s primary editors.
Kenneth Wapnick has written the only known biography
acim
of Schucman, Absence from Felicity. It is a fascinating look at her lifelong conflict between her spiritual nature and her ego. What is ACIM?
In a world that often seems divided and hostile, ACIM's message of loving unity is more timely than ever. Its heady mix of reinterpreted Christian language, modern psychological thought and Eastern metaphysics makes it unlike any spiritual teaching the world has known before.
Though ACIM uses some Christian terminology, it offers the opposite of traditional Christian doctrine, including its view that Jesus Christ was not the Son of God, did not die on the cross and did not suffer for the sins of humanity. Its metaphysics is closer to that of Hinduism and Buddhism, particularly the notions of maya or samsara, which refer to the physical world as a mass illusion.
Described in the New York Times as "an esoteric bible that has gone mainstream," ACIM is considered the bible of the growing number of people who identify as "spiritual but not religious." Although no one tracks membership, it's estimated to be in the millions worldwide. Its followers are devoted to a lifelong practice of forgiveness as the path to enlightenment. It is the only spiritual teaching to promote the idea that everyone shares a divine potential to experience perfect love, peace and oneness.
How was ACIM Conceived?
In November of 1965, Psychology Professor Helen Schucman began taking notes in a unique mix of shorthand and longhand on what she came to call an inner dictation from a voice she identified as Jesus. Over the next decade she transcribed these conversations, and the three volumes that make up ACIM were born. The book is the story of her scribing, and it has become one of the most widely read spiritual texts in the world.
This book, however, does not offer a conventional biography of Helen nor does it attempt to explain her psychodynamics or the nature of her conflict between wanting to return to God and fearing such a return. Instead it focuses on the ways that this conflict plays out in each of us. It argues that it is this fundamental dilemma which accounts for most of our suffering and that it can be resolved by reconnecting to the Love that lies at the center of everything.
It is also the story of a remarkable friendship between Helen and Bill Thetford, the man who eventually became the editor of the Course. He was a lawyer, but his real passion in life was his belief in the existence of God. He urged Helen to publish the Course and helped her form the Foundation for Inner Peace to hold the copyrights. When it was published in 1975, the Course rapidly found its own audience among New Thought and New Age groups. The Course has since gone on to become an international phenomenon, selling more than a million copies.
The most important reason for the success of this book is its clarity and coherence. The teachings are presented in a conversational, often frank style. This approach has led critics to accuse the author of being a loose canonizer. Fortunately, a number of early drafts have survived which allow us to check on the accuracy of some of the claims made in this book.
The earliest available typescript, known as Urtext, is 1079 pages and is organized into 31 chapters with multiple sections in each chapter. It is not clear why these divisions were made but they are certainly consistent with the overall structure of the book.
How was ACIM Scribed?
During 1965 and much of 1966, Psychology Professor Helen Schucman began to record in shorthand notes what she experienced as conversations with a Voice within her mind. The Voice told her it was a course in miracles and instructed her to take down its teachings. For a decade Schucman took down these teachings, recording them in a mixture of shorthand and longhand, and the result became A Course in Miracles, also known as ACIM.
The dictation changed gradually from conversation to lecture. During this period the teachings were given mainly in the form of questions or answers, and they often focused on Helen and Bill's troubled relationship. The "Voice" also commented on the Bible, elaborating upon such statements as, "seek ye first the Kingdom of Heaven and all else will be added unto you."
When the typescript for the Course was finally available in 1968 it consisted of ten hundred pages of text, divided into 31 chapters with several sections each. It was later rearranged by Ken Wapnick into the three-volume book now in print. But no copy of the original Thetford typescript (known as the Urtext) has been found and we do not know what it was like.
We do not know if Thetford's editing followed the original dictation to any great degree, although the "Voice" did instruct him to remove some of the highly personal material which shows up in early chapters. He also told Schucman not to do the editing herself, which she seems to have been unable to comply with.
The most important change to the original dictation was in the format. From about Chapter 4 on the Course became a lecture with some passages in Shakespearean blank verse. The rearranging was done primarily to make the work easier to read.
At the time Ken Wapnick reorganized the Course, he had no idea that this decision would result in such widespread acceptance of the work as it has become. He did not realize that the reworking of the original dictation was in violation of the Voice's instructions. He also did not realize that the changes in the original dictation, at every stage of its editing, were making it increasingly difficult to restore to it its purity and integrity as originally intended.
What is ACIM Teaching?
The purpose of ACIM is to teach forgiveness to those who are willing. This is accomplished by teaching the thought system of the Holy Spirit as opposed to the ego's thought system. The ego is all about attacking the other and being self-centered, but the Holy Spirit offers healing to those who are willing to give it up.
The Course was dictated to Helen Schucman by an inner voice she identified as Jesus. It was written in three volumes: the Text, Workbook for Students, and Manual for Teachers. There are also two supplemental ACIM pamphlets, "Psychotherapy: Purpose, Process, Practice," and "The Song of Prayer."
A Course in Miracles is a spiritual textbook that is designed to teach forgiveness as the way out of suffering. It is based on the principle that there is one God and that God's love extends to all people regardless of their beliefs. Its goal is to help us remember our true identity, which is one with God and the rest of creation.
In 1976 the book was published, and Helen became a full-time teacher of ACIM. Since then, many more have become teachers and the Course has spread worldwide. In addition to promoting the book, the ACIM Foundation provides education and training to those who wish to teach. The Foundation is an educational and non-profit organization.
It has no membership requirement and no hierarchical structure. There are no priests, no churches and no formal establishment to rule the members and dictate to them what they must believe. Instead, it relies on the little willingness of individual students to turn their grievances over to Love.
The founders of the organization envisioned that ACIM would be more than just a book. They hoped to create a community of people who would support each other in applying the Course's principles to their lives. It has now grown into a large, worldwide spiritual movement with over 300,000 active teachers. As a result, the Course is taught in over 27 languages and has touched the lives of millions of people. It is not a religion, but a reinterpretation of traditional Christian teachings.
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