Session 10

WHAT IS THE COURSE FOR? Finding and committing to your path of light
Is the Course your path? The Course expects you to take your time and come to a mature acceptance of its radical way Remember that ultimately the choice of your path is not yours, but has been made by the Holy Spirit Trust that in the end, you will just know if the Course is your path

Until you decide the Course is your path, then anything goes. Explore, sample, do whatever appeals to you. If the Course is your path, should you walk its path alone? Once you know that the Course is your path, it is best to focus just on it. As an old adage says, it is better to dig one well of sixty feet than six wells of ten feet each. The Course is designed as a complete path, in which nothing is lacking that is needed (W-pI.42.7:2). Its committed students are meant to use its methods, rather than those of other paths. You are not making use of the course if you insist on using means which have served others well, neglecting what was made for you (T-18.VII.5). Once, when Helen was judging someone whose spirituality she felt was flaky, Jesus told her, Don't take another's path as your own; but neither should you judge it (Absence from Felicity, p. 450). This can seem like a very narrow attitude. In todays ultra-eclectic spiritual environment, most of us are drawing from all over to meet our needs. Part of this is a pervasive attitude that above all seeks fleeting moments of experiencing the sacred, rather than aiming for long-term progress in getting free of the ego. However, if this long-term progress is what we want to make, it is important to have a framework in which to work. The benefits You need a framework in which to work, a curriculum that is not designed by you. The Course says that, when it comes to learning salvation, you are literally learning-handicapped (i.e., retarded). If the Course is your assigned path, then it is designed perfectly for you. If the Course is your assigned path, then focusing on it is simple acceptance of the inevitable. All of its elements work together; they all pull in the same direction. Combining the Course with other things will invariably mix contradictory elements into it. Its practical focus will leave you no room for escape. Other teachings usually contain elements that allow for absorption in side-issues that require no actual change from you.

You can still read and benefit from other teachings. But the route you travel up the mountain is the Courses. You can read about a route without actually taking it. And it is not possible to take two routes at once.
Walking the Path of Light, July 1-3, 2005, Sedona, Arizona The Circle of Atonement, P.O. Box 4238, West Sedona, AZ 86340 (928) 282-0790 e-mail: info@circleofa.org, website: www.circleofa.org

Exercise: Where do I stand regarding the Course as my path?

The following exercise is intended to help you determine where youre at regarding the two questions weve been exploring. The first question is relevant to you if you havent yet determined whether the Course is your path, and the second is relevant to you if youve determined that the Course is your path. The statements in the left column of the two tables are statements that would suggest a yes answer to the relevant question. The key as you write out your thoughts and insights here is to be as honest as you can with yourself. There are no bad answers and no one is grading thisthe point is simply to get in touch with where you are regarding the issue of committing to the Course as your path.

Is the Course my path?

Yes (comments) I am attracted to the CourseI feel a strong pull to read it, even when I have difficulty understanding it. No/not sure (comments)

I find myself thinking about the Course a lotfor instance, lines from it pop into my head especially when Im faced with problems.

When I have done things the Course asks me to do, it has worked for meit has given me real benefits, such as greater peace and joy.

The Course has proven its worth to me over time.

Walking the Path of Light, July 1-3, 2005, Sedona, Arizona The Circle of Atonement, P.O. Box 4238, West Sedona, AZ 86340 (928) 282-0790 e-mail: info@circleofa.org, website: www.circleofa.org

I have come to a mature acceptance of radical Course ideas that I initially had difficulty with.

When I ask the Holy Spirit if He has chosen the Course as my path, I get a yes.

Other forms of guidancefor instance, serendipitous events like the proverbial book falling off the bookshelfhave suggested to me that the Course might be my path.

When I look within, I just know that the Course is my path. It feels as if it has chosen me.

I am willing and able to walk this path for the foreseeable future, perhaps even for life.

Overall comments on this question:

Walking the Path of Light, July 1-3, 2005, Sedona, Arizona The Circle of Atonement, P.O. Box 4238, West Sedona, AZ 86340 (928) 282-0790 e-mail: info@circleofa.org, website: www.circleofa.org

If the Course is my path, am I walking its path alone?

Yes Ive made a firm commitment to the Course as my path, rather than mixing it with other paths. Not yet, but I see the following benefits in doing so

I regard the Course as the foundation of my spiritual life.

I follow the Courses program as it has been described during this program (even if I dont follow it perfectly).

I study the Course every day.

I make a serious effort to do frequent and regular Course practice every day.

Walking the Path of Light, July 1-3, 2005, Sedona, Arizona The Circle of Atonement, P.O. Box 4238, West Sedona, AZ 86340 (928) 282-0790 e-mail: info@circleofa.org, website: www.circleofa.org

When Im faced with a problem, the first thing I do is turn to the Course for a solution.

The means I use for my spiritual growth (meditation techniques, methods for dealing with daily upsets, etc.) are the Courses means, not another paths means. I read other spiritual teachings with careful discernment, looking at them through the lens of the Course and accepting only what is helpful to me on the Courses path.

My spiritual life is focused on the undoing of the world through forgiving other people.

I regard the Course as a complete spiritual path that provides everything I need to awaken to God.

Overall comments on this question:

Walking the Path of Light, July 1-3, 2005, Sedona, Arizona The Circle of Atonement, P.O. Box 4238, West Sedona, AZ 86340 (928) 282-0790 e-mail: info@circleofa.org, website: www.circleofa.org

Final exercise

WHAT IS MY LIFE FOR?

Consider the alchemists age-old attempts to turn base metal into gold. The one question which the alchemist did not permit himself to ask was What for? He could not ask this, because it would immediately become apparent that there was no sense in his efforts, even if he succeeded. It is noticeable that in all these diversionary tactics [alchemy, perpetual motion machine, squaring the circle, carrying pi to infinity, cryogenics], the one question which is never asked by those who pursue them is What for? This is the question which you must learn to ask in connection with everything your mind wills to undertake. What is your purpose? Whatever it is, you cannot doubt that it will channelize your efforts automatically. When you make a decision of purpose, then, you have made a decision about future effort, a decision which will remain in effect unless you change the decision. (Urtext of A Course in Miracles) We have been building up to this question through all of our sessions. This is the time to pull together everything weve done and combine it all into a resolve to live the life we want in our heart of hearts. Here, you take charge of your life, and make it be about what you truly want it to be about.

Before you start writing

Write for one hour, or at least try your best to Find a quiet place and time, where you expect no interruptions Begin by reviewing the handouts (especially the first one) and what youve written on them

Answer the following four questions

1. What do I want my life to be for (my day, my decisions, my relationships, my function)? 2. Where do I want to be at the end of my lifein terms of my spiritual development and in terms of making a difference in the lives of others? 3. What means do I plan to use to make this goal happen? (Review the means weve explored.) 4. What concrete changes or activities do I want to institute as soon as I get home? (Review the exercises youve done that bear on this)

When you are finished

Find a place to put this where you can review it in your morning quiet time. Put your entire study guide with it, with all the handouts, so you can review them periodically.

Walking the Path of Light, July 1-3, 2005, Sedona, Arizona The Circle of Atonement, P.O. Box 4238, West Sedona, AZ 86340 (928) 282-0790 e-mail: info@circleofa.org, website: www.circleofa.org