ACIM | Why Deprogram Christian Terms in A Course in Miracles?

Alison Anton of the ForgiveNest Podcast talks about how A Course in Miracles redefines, and even corrects, Christian terms. She discusses how traditional Christian terminology can be triggering due to historical misrepresentation and misuse, yet suggests ACIM helps to correct misunderstandings. She leads listeners through a visualization to deprogram (release resistance to) certain charged Christian words, outlining ACIM redefinitions of God (formless love), masculine pronouns (non-gendered spirit), Jesus/Christ (Christ in all), sin (a mistaken belief), and atonement (undoing errors through forgiveness), and points to the Circle of Atonement's Course glossary for more terms.

Read the full transcript here: https://AlisonAnton.substack.com

Podcast Category: Faith and Spirituality

Episode Timestamps:

00:00 Deprogramming Begins

01:25 Why Words Trigger

02:06 Bible Standing Story

03:26 Healing Religious Wounds

04:45 Clarify Not Controversy

06:15 Six Terms Overview

06:54 Bubble Visualization

09:18 Redefining God

12:44 He Him Explained

14:28 Jesus And Christ

18:17 Sin As Error

20:31 Atonement Reframed

24:01 Glossary Terms

25:50 Final Farewell

ACIM Quotes and Prayers:

Note: Alison Anton uses the Complete and Annotated Edition (CE) of A Course in Miracles. This edition is based on the original handwritten notes of Helen Schucman, scribe of A Course in Miracles. Publisher: Circle of Atonement. 

circleofa.org/glossary-of-terms

Changing learning patterns requires undoing the old ones. …Sometimes the new learning is the more important, and has to inhibit the old. It’s a form of correction. [CE T-1.24.5]

All terms are potentially controversial, and those who seek controversy will find it. Yet those who seek clarification will find it as well. They must, however, be willing to overlook controversy, recognizing that it is a defense against truth in the form of a delaying maneuver. [CE C-In.2:1-3]

The name of Jesus is the name of one who was a man, but saw the face of Christ in all his brothers and remembered God. So he became identified with Christ, a man no longer, but at one with God. The man was an illusion, for he seemed to be a separate being, walking by himself, within a body that appeared to hold his self from Self, as all illusions do. [CE C-4.2:1-3]

Is he the Christ? Oh yes, along with you.

Is he God’s only helper? No indeed. For Christ takes many forms with different names until their oneness can be recognized. [CE C-4.5:1-3]

Walking with him is just as natural as walking with a brother whom you knew since you were born, for such indeed he is. [CE C-4.4:6]

…what is out of accord must be undone. It may seem as if darkness must be dispelled before light can come in, but the truth is that darkness is dispelled by light. [CE T-1.24.4:3-4]

“…acceptance of the Atonement places you in a position to realize that your own errors never really occurred.” [CE T-2.II.16:4].