ACFIP Newsletter
Issue 21 - June 2009
Quarterly Newsletter of the Australian Centre for Inner Peace
Michael Dawson
PO Box 125, Point Lookout
North Stradbroke Island,
Queensland 4183,
Australia
Email: mdawson@acfip.org
Web site: http://www.acfip.org
___________________________________________________________________________
CONTENTS:
* Forgiving Jesus
* Aikido and Conflict Resolution
* Workshops
* Books and Audio Materials for Sale
* Links
* Inspirational Quotations
If you wish to read previous issues please go to
http://www.acfip.org/newsletterarchive.html.
If your email address ends with .au I put your address on my
Australian list for advance notice of workshops I am giving in
Australia. If you do not want to be on this list please let me
know. If you reside in Australia and want to be on this list,
but you address does not end in .au, please email me and I will
include it.
If you are new to the Course you might find my summaries of
help.
You can find them at http://www.acfip.org/sum.html and
http://www.acfip.org/art4.html
Regards
Michael Dawson
http://www.acfip.org
___________________________________________________________________________
Forgiving Jesus
I have great need for lilies, for the Son of God has not
forgiven me.
A Course in Miracles T-20.II.4
Why Do We Need To Forgive Jesus?
This may sound a strange question for Christians taught that
Jesus sacrificed and suffered on our behalf thus lifting our
sins away. Should not this earn our gratitude and love instead
of attack? This question might be more understandable for Jews
as they have often been accused of murdering the Christ and have
suffered persecution and rejection as a consequence.
The Bible portrays Jesus as God's one son whilst we, in
St.Paul's words, are only adopted sons ( Ga 4:4, Ep 1:5). Jesus
has been given a special position in God's eyes which has been
denied us. Being second best must produce, albeit denied, a
feeling that we have been unfairly treated which we will then
project onto Jesus. Although we are happy to be identified with
such an exalted figure there must follow a resentment that only
Jesus is getting this extra-special treatment. Jesus is placed
on a pillar existing in a state forever unattainable by us.
Jesus appeared to set us an example that suffering atones for
sin and leads to salvation. When we are told we must suffer to
get something of value we must be left with mixed feelings. "Yes
I do want this thing of value (or I think I do) but do I really
have to suffer to get it?" These thoughts will produce an
ambivalence towards the teacher. A secret anger mixes with our
veneration for Jesus which can eventually lead to a complete
reversal of the way we think of him. Rebelling against what is
now perceived as a harsh teaching we proceed to bury him under
the pillar we once put him on.
I am constantly being perceived as a teacher to be exalted or
rejected, but I do not accept either perception of myself. ....
Some bitter idols have been made of him who would be only
brother to the world. Forgive him your illusions, and behold how
dear a brother he would be to you.
A Course in Miracles T-4.I.6:7, C-5.5:7-8
The Gospels clearly show that Jesus's teaching and example
aroused much hostility which finally led to his death. Yet his
life was one of teaching the power of love and forgiveness and
healing the sick. Why should this upset so many people? One
example of this is when he told people to love the tax gatherer,
a particularly hated figure in their society. His teaching went
against the norms of the ego thought system which believed in
real enemies, justified anger and persecution of the guilty. "An
eye for an eye" seemed a sensible and just doctrine given to
them from the Old Testament. Jesus's teaching was ‘against the
stream' and very threatening to their thought system. The
insecurity created by Jesus's teaching was perceived as a major
threat to the ego and warranted the death of Jesus.
The world must therefore despise and reject me me, because the
world is the belief that love is impossible.
Ibid. T-8.IV.3:7
A Course in Miracles teaches that we choose against Heaven and
unity and wanted separation, specialness and autonomy instead.
Rebelling against our Father we have decided to go it alone
without any need of God's help. As Jesus stands for God in our
world we will also spurn his help, effectively telling him,
"Thanks, but I don't need your help, I can do things much better
myself".
You have very little trust in me as yet, but it will increase as
you turn more and more often to me instead of to your ego for
guidance. The results will convince you increasingly that this
choice is the only sane one you can make.
Ibid. T-4.VI.3:1-2
Our egos believe that sin must be punished. Jesus becomes a
screen on which we can project our denied sins so he can be
punished instead of us. If Jesus can be made to die for our sins
we are off the hook. In response Jesus states:
I am made welcome in the state of grace, which means you have at
last forgiven me. For I became the symbol of your sin, and so I
had to die instead of you. ... No one can die for anyone, and
death does not atone for sin.
Ibid. T-19.IV.A.17:1-2,8
Jesus's Equality With Us
Equals should not be in awe of one another because awe implies
inequality. It is therefore an inappropriate reaction to me. An
elder brother is entitled to respect for his greater experience,
and obedience for his greater wisdom.
Ibid. T-1.II.3:5-7
Making Jesus into a special and only son of God robs us of the
lesson he tries to teach. He trod the same paths as we now tread
and learnt the same lessons we must learn. His example to us is
that he succeeded and so can we. In the end we will all become
like him, it is only a question of time.
There is nothing about me that you cannot attain. I have nothing
that does not come from God. The difference between us now is
that I have nothing else. .... The name of Jesus is the name of
one who was a man but saw the face of Christ (the Course's
symbol of total forgiveness) in all his brothers and remembered
God. So he became identified with Christ, a man no longer, but
at one with God........Is he the Christ? Oh yes, along with you.
Ibid. T-1.II.3:10-12, C-5.2:1-2, C-5.5:1
As we learn to take back our projections from Jesus and forgive
we open ourselves to his help. Now he is perceived as an elder
brother who only wants to heal our minds and asks nothing in
return. Walking the path of forgiveness with Jesus as our
teacher will eventually allow us to follow his request:
Teach not that I died in vain. Teach rather that I did not die
by demonstrating that I live in you.
Ibid. T-11.VI.7:3-4
The following true story gives a good example of our ambivalence
towards Jesus:
The Voice of Jesus
by Linda Chubbuck
Please go to http://www.acfip.org/tvojesus.html
___________________________________________________________________________
Aikido and Conflict Resolution
The train clanked and rattled through the suburbs of Tokyo on a
drowsy spring afternoon. Our car was comparatively empty—a few
housewives with their kids in tow some old folks going shopping.
I gazed absently at the drab houses and dusty hedgerows.
At one station the doors opened, and suddenly the afternoon
quiet was shattered by a man bellowing violent, incomprehensible
curses. The man staggered into our car. He wore laborer’s
clothing, and he was big, drunk, and dirty. Screaming, he swung
at a woman holding a baby. The blow sent her spinning into the
laps of an elderly couple. It was a miracle that the baby was
unharmed.
Terrified, the couple jumped up and scrambled toward the other
end of the car. The laborer aimed a kick at the retreating back
of the old woman but missed as she scuttled safety. This so
enraged the drunk that he grabbed the metal pole in the center
of the car and tried to wrench it out or its stanchion. I could
see that one of his hands was cut and bleeding. The train
lurched ahead, the passengers frozen with fear. I stood up.
I was young then, some twenty years ago, and in pretty good
shape. I’d been putting in a solid eight hours of Aikido
training nearly every day for the past three years. I liked to
throw and grapple. I thought I was tough. The trouble was, my
martial skill was untested in actual combat. As students of
Aikido, we were not allowed to fight.
“Aikido,” my teacher had said again and again, ‘is the art of
reconciliation. Whoever has the mind to fight has broken his
connection with the universe. If you try to dominate people, you
are already defeated. We study how to resolve conflict, not how
to start it.”
I listened to his words. I tried hard. I even went so far as to
cross the street to avoid the pinball punks who lounged around
the train stations. My forbearance exalted me. I felt both tough
and holy. In my heart, however, I wanted an absolutely
legitimate opportunity whereby I might save the innocent by
destroying the guilty.
“This is it I said to myself as I got to my feet. “People are in
danger. If I don’t do something fast, somebody will probably get
hurt.”
Seeing me stand up, the drunk recognized a chance to focus his
rage. “Aha!” he roared. “A foreigner! You need a lesson in
Japanese manners!”
I held on lightly to the commuter strap overhead and gave him a
slow look of disgust and dismissal. I planned to take this
turkey apart, but he had to make the first move. I wanted him
mad, so I pursed my lips and blew him an insolent kiss.
“All right!” he hollered. “You’re gonna get a lesson.” He
gathered himself for a rush at me.
A fraction of a second before he could move, someone shouted
“Hey!” It was earsplitting. I remember the strangely joyous,
lilting quality of it—as though you and a friend had been
searching diligently for something, and he had suddenly stumbled
upon it. “Hey!”
I wheeled to my left; the drunk spun to his right. We both
stared down at a little, old Japanese man. He must have been
well into his seventies, this tiny gentleman, sitting there
immaculate in his kimono. He took no notice of me, but beamed
delightedly at the laborer, as though he had a most important,
most welcome secret to share.
“C’mere,” the old man said in an easy vernacular, beckoning to
the drunk. “C’mere and talk with me.” He waved his hand lightly.
‘‘the big man followed, as if on a string. He planted his feet
belligerently in front of the old gentleman, and roared above
the clacking wheels, “Why the hell should I talk to you?” The
drunk now had his back to me. If his elbow moved so much as a
millimeter, I’d drop him in his socks.
The old man continued to beam at the laborer. “What’cha been
drinking’?” he asked, his eyes sparkling with interest. “I been
drinking’ sake,” the laborer bellowed back, “and it’s none of
your business!” Flecks of spittle spattered the old man.
“Oh, that’s wonderful,” the old man said, “absolutely wonderful!
You see, I love sake too. Every night, me and my wife (she’s
seventy-six, you know), we warm up a little bottle of sake and
take it out into the garden, and we sit on an old wooden bench.
We watch the sun go down, and we look to see how our persimmon
tree is doing. My great grandfather planted that tree, and we
worry about whether it will recover from those ice storms we had
last winter. Our tree has done better than I expected, though,
especially when you consider the poor quality of the soil. It is
gratifying to watch when we take our sake and go out to enjoy
the evening—even when it rains!” He looked up at the laborer,
eyes twinkling.
As he struggled to follow the old man’s conversation, the
drunk’s face began to soften. His fists slowly unclenched.
“Yeah,” he said. “I love persimmon, too“ His voice trailed off.
“Yes,”said the old man, smiling, “and I’m sure you have a
wonderful wife.”
“No,” replied the laborer. “My wife died.” Very gently, swaying
with the motion of the train, the big man began to sob. “I don’t
got no wife, I don’t got no home, I don’t got no job. I’m so
ashamed of myself.” Tears rolled down his cheeks; a spasm of
despair rippled through his body.
Now it was my turn. Standing there in my well-scrubbed youthful
innocence, my make-this-world-safe-for-democracy righteousness,
I suddenly felt dirtier than he was.
Then the train arrived at my stop. As the doors opened, I heard
the old man cluck sympathetically. “My, my,” he said, “that is a
difficult predicament, indeed. Sit down here and tell me about
it.”
I turned my head for one last look. The laborer was sprawled on
the seat, his head in the old man’s lap. The old man was softly
stroking the filthy, matted hair.
As the train pulled away, I sat down on a bench. What I had
wanted to do with muscle had been accomplished with kind words.
I had just seen Aikido tried in combat, and the essence of it
was love. I would have to practice the art with an entirely
different spirit. It would be a long time before I could speak
about the resolution of conflict.
Terry Dobson
___________________________________________________________________________
PLEASE NOTE: The Australian Centre for Inner Peace is not a
counselling or psychotherapy centre; therefore we do not offer
telephone or email service or counselling, therapy, or crisis
intervention for personal problems. Please see the Contacts
section at the end of this newsletter.
___________________________________________________________________________
Forthcoming Workshops on A
Course in Miracles
in Australia and Germany
2009 and 2010
For up to date information on my workshops go to
http://www.acfip.org/fws.html
Australia 2009 Dates
BRISBANE
Relaxation Centre
Sunday 16 August 2009
A FULL HEART AND AN EMPTY MIND
(A Course in Miracles Workshop)
The deepest but forgotten truth about ourselves is that we are
one with the love and mind of God.
To let this memory return to our awareness we need to question
everything we think is true, to realise we know nothing about
how to awaken to peace and joy, and learn to extend kindness and
goodwill to others. Insight of the mind must be balanced with
compassion of the heart.
This workshop will explore how we can awaken to our spiritual
reality through the healing power of insight, kindness,
awareness and forgiveness.
VENUE:
Relaxation Centre,
15 South Pine Road
Alderley
Brisbane 4051
BOOKINGS:
Relaxation Centre
07 3856 3733
(Please do not book through me)
TIMES: 9.30am to 5pm
COST: $55
Clare, SA - Sat 10 and Sun 11, October 2009
(2hrs drive north of Adelaide)
HEALING OURSELVES and OTHERS
from the perspective of A Course in Miracles
Health Is Inner Peace....Health is the result of relinquishing
all attempts to use the body lovelessly.
A Course in Miracles
Using the spiritual path of A Course in Miracles we will explore
what true healing is - the return to our awareness of our
spiritual identity. Identification with our body as our home is
the origin of all our physical and psychological suffering.
The basis of this workshop is that the cause of all disease lies
in the mind and not the body. Disease is a shadow on the body,
of the guilt in our minds.
During the workshop we will focus on undoing the blocks we have
built to the presence of God's love and joy within us through
the understanding and practising of forgiveness.Only this love
heals.
We will investigate what the Course means by healing ourselves
and others and contrast the differences between the healed and
the unhealed healer. Practical exercises will be used to help
understand the ego and to practice forgiveness and turning
within for guidance.
An overview of the Course's metaphysical, psychological and
spiritual teachings especially in regard to healing will be
covered.
No previous knowledge of the book A Course in Miracles is
required.
VENUE:
Clare
SA 5453
(2hrs drive north of Adelaide)
TIME:
Sat - 9.30 TO 5.30
Su - 9.30 TO 4.30
BOOKINGS:
Edeltraud Ennich
PO Box 614
Clare, SA 5453
Tel: 08 8842 3114
COST
Deposit: $60 to cover basic costs ($30 non-refundable)
plus a donation for the workshop.
Food provided.
Cheques or postal monies made out to Edeltraud Ennich
Hillier, SA - Sat 17 and Sun 18, October 2009
(40 minutes drive from the centre of Adelaide, close to Gawler)
A FULL HEART AND AN EMPTY MIND
from the perspective of A Course in Miracles
Let me not think that I can find the way to God, if I have
hatred in my heart.
Let me not try to hurt God's Son, and think that I can know his
Father or my Self.
A Course in Miracles Lesson 246
There is no path to truth, it must come to you. Truth can come
to you only when your mind and heart are simple,
clear, and there is love in your heart; not if your heart is
filled with the things of the mind.
J Krishnamurti
The deepest but forgotten truth about ourselves is that we are
one with the love and mind of God.
To let this memory return to our awareness we need to question
everything we think is true, to realise we know nothing about
how to awaken to peace and joy, and learn to extend kindness and
goodwill to others. Insight of the mind must be balanced with
compassion of the heart.
This workshop will explore how we can awaken to our spiritual
reality through the healing power of insight, kindness,
awareness and forgiveness.
No previous knowledge of A Course in Miracles is required.
VENUE:
"Riverdell"
Clifford Road
Hillier
South Australia
(40 minutes drive from the centre of Adelaide)
TIME:
Sat and Sun - 9.30 TO 5.00
COST:
Booking Fee - $30 (non refundable)
Workshop - By Donation
Some accommodation on site - $40
Bring food to share for lunch both days
For Details Contact:
Pamela St Claire
(08) 8322 0444
email: pstclaire@chariot.net.au
People should send their Booking Fee to:
Pamela St Claire
36 The Causeway
O'Halloran Hill SA 5158
and include a cheque made payable to P. St Claire
___________________________________________________________________________
Germany 2010 Dates
For up to date information on my workshops go to
http://www.acfip.org/fws.html
Bonn
June 5/6 2010
9.30am to 5.30pm
HEALING OURSELVES and OTHERS
from the perspective of A Course in Miracles
Health Is Inner Peace....Health is the result of relinquishing
all attempts to use the body lovelessly.
A Course in Miracles
Using the spiritual path of A Course in Miracles we will explore
what true healing is - the return to our awareness of our
spiritual identity. Identification with our body as our home is
the origin of all our physical and psychological suffering.
The basis of this workshop is that the cause of all disease lies
in the mind and not the body. Disease is a shadow on the body,
of the guilt in our minds.
During the workshop we will focus on undoing the blocks we have
built to the presence of God's love and joy within us through
the understanding and practising of forgiveness.Only this love
heals.
We will investigate what the Course means by healing ourselves
and others and contrast the differences between the healed and
the unhealed healer. Practical exercises will be used to help
understand the ego and to practice forgiveness and turning
within for guidance.
An overview of the Course's metaphysical, psychological and
spiritual teachings especially in regard to healing will be
covered.
No previous knowledge of the book A Course in Miracles is
required.
An Evening Introductory Talk - Fri June 4
7.30pm to 9.30pm
Contact:
Albert-Schweitzer-Haus
Beethovenallee 16
Bonn 53173
tel: 0228 - 36 47 37
http://www.albert-schweitzer-haus-bonn.de
___________________________________________________________________________
Freiburg
June 12/13 2010
HEALING OURSELVES and OTHERS
from the perspective of A Course in Miracles
Health Is Inner Peace....Health is the result of relinquishing
all attempts to use the body lovelessly.
A Course in Miracles
Using the spiritual path of A Course in Miracles we will explore
what true healing is - the return to our awareness of our
spiritual identity. Identification with our body as our home is
the origin of all our physical and psychological suffering.
The basis of this workshop is that the cause of all disease lies
in the mind and not the body. Disease is a shadow on the body,
of the guilt in our minds.
During the workshop we will focus on undoing the blocks we have
built to the presence of God's love and joy within us through
the understanding and practising of forgiveness.Only this love
heals.
We will investigate what the Course means by healing ourselves
and others and contrast the differences between the healed and
the unhealed healer. Practical exercises will be used to help
understand the ego and to practice forgiveness and turning
within for guidance.
An overview of the Course's metaphysical, psychological and
spiritual teachings especially in regard to healing will be
covered.
No previous knowledge of the book A Course in Miracles is
required.
An Evening Introductory Talk - Fri June 11
Contact:
Margarete Sennekamp
Winterhaldenweg 4,
79856 Hinterzarten,
Tel./Fax: 07652-917530
email: M.Sennekamp@t-online.de
Tel/Fax : 0761-73930
www.Sophia-Institut.de
Biography
Michael discovered A Course in Miracles whilst visiting the
Findhorn Foundation in 1982. He subsequently became a member of
the Foundation for about six years and involved himself with
healing and teaching. In 1994 he published Healing the Cause - A
Path of Forgiveness which serves as an introduction to the
Course. His second book, The Findhorn Book of Forgiveness
(Findhorn Press) uses exercises, stories and case histories to
guide the reader to inner peace through forgiveness. Michael now
lives in Australia and gives workshops on the Course world-wide.
___________________________________________________________________________
BOOKS AND AUDIO MATERIALS FOR SALE - by Michael Dawson
Books:
Healing the Cause - A Path of Forgiveness. Findhorn Press
1994
Also available in German, Romanian, French, Dutch, Spanish and
Portuguese.
The Findhorn Book of Forgiveness. Findhorn Press. 2003
Also available in German, Polish and Romanian.
For more details and how to purchase please visit:
http://www.acfip.org/books_tapes.html
Audio Tapes and CDs - Healing the Cause:
Since 1986 I have been conducting healing workshops in the UK
and abroad, and have continually experimented to find healing
and forgiveness exercises that are effective. I have found
that a particular exercise can be effective for one person but
not another. Accordingly, I was led to develop a series of
exercises. Over the years workshop participants asked if these
exercises could be put onto audio cassettes and CDs so they
could repeat them. This has resulted in the Healing the Cause -
Exercise series - Tapes 1 to 4 (2 exercises on each tape) and
CD1 and 2 (4 exercises on each CD)
CD - 3 Healing Exercises in English with German translation. 10
Euro
Content:
Ex1. Forgiving Ourselves.
Ex2. Changing Perception and Finding peace.
Ex3. Changing Perception of another - exercise for two people.
These exercises are similar to existing exercises already
available on CDs but are translated into German.
Two New CDs
1. Three Steps of Forgiveness.
This workshop concentrates on the process of forgiveness from
the perspective of A Course in Miracles. Includes 3 healing
exercises.
Recorded at the Annual Miracle Network Conference in
London, November 2001. 1 hour 12 mins. One CD
2. Finding and Eliminating the Blocks to Receiving Guidance.
This talk investigates what stops us hearing the guidance that
is ever present in our lives. Recorded at the Annual Miracle
Network Conference in London, October 20001 hour. One CD
For more details and how to purchase please visit:
http://www.acfip.org/audio.html
___________________________________________________________________________
CONTACTS
Foundation for A Course In Miracles
41397 Buecking Drive, Temecula, CA 92590
Tel: 909 296 6261 Fax: 909296 9117
Books, videos, CDs and audio tapes by Kenneth and Gloria Wapnick
are available from their web site http://www.facim.org
Question and Answer Service:
Their electronic outreach section has a question and answer
service http://www.facimoutreach.org/ on the theory and practice
of the Course. Their database of 1,400 questions and answers is
searchable. They no longer take new questions as they feel all
possible questions have now been put.
Their publications can also be ordered in Australia at:
Adyar Bookshop
230 Clarence Street
Sydney, NSW 2000
Foundation for Inner Peace - the publishers of A Course in
Miracles
http://www.acim.org/
ACIM study groups:
Go to The Miracle Distribution Center
http://www.miraclecenter.org/ for the largest and most
frequently updated list of A Course in Miracles study groups
available anywhere.
Miracles Studies Australia
http://www.miracle-studies.net.au lists study groups for
Australia and new Zealand
A Course In Miracles Pen Pals:
The Miracle Network http://www.miracles.org.uk hosts a A Course
in Miracles pen pals group:
To join this e-mail discussion group, send your
e-mail address to e.pals@miracles.org.uk.
They will send you updated lists of other e.pals and
inform them of your e-mail address.
A Course In Miracles Chat Groups:
The aim of this board is to provide a place for people to chat
about ACIM.
Any related discussions are more than welcome and I believe
helpful! - moderated by Glyn Milhench
http://glynbo.proboards84.com/index.cgi?board=acim
Belief.net ACIM discussion:
This Belief.net web-based discussion is hosted by Joe Jesseph.
http://community.beliefnet.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=151
___________________________________________________________________________
INSPIRATIONAL QUOTATIONS
About three or four times a week I send a short quotation from
some spiritual teacher or poet to people who have requested some
uplifting thoughts. I have included some below. If you wish I
can add your name to the email list.
How long, O Son of God, will you maintain the game of sin? Shall
we not put away these sharp-edged children's toys? How soon will
you be ready to come home? Perhaps today? There is no sin.
Creation is unchanged. Would you still hold return to Heaven
back? How long, O holy Son of God, how long?
A Course in Miracles Lesson 250
Do understand that you are destined for enlightenment.
Co-operate with your destiny, don't go against it, don't thwart
it.
Allow it to fulfil itself.
All you have to do is to give attention to the obstacles created
by the foolish mind.
Nisargadatta Maharaj
When you listen to the voice in your head, that
is to say, do not judge. You'll soon realize: there
is the voice, and here I am listening to it, watching
it. This I am realization, this sense of your own
presence, is not a thought. It arises from beyond
the mind.
Eckhart Tolle
The Power of Now
Gamble everything for love,
if you're a true human being.
If not, leave
this gathering.
Half-heartedness doesn't reach
into majesty. You set out
to find God, but then you keep
stopping for long periods
at meanspirited roadhouses.
Rumi
One is more likely to awaken through surrender than through
seeking to waken. The effort to awaken is the effort of ego,
whereas to surrender is to give up all efforts and to place
oneself in the hands of a vast force that is more powerful than
any realization of non duality.
When one finally gives up one's futile attempts to make reality
conform to one's own wishes, and allows it to unfold on its own
terms, all the energy that was tied up in foolish attempts to
manipulate the universe is freed up.
Mariana Caplan
Halfway Up the Mountain - The Error of Premature Claims to
Enlightenment