A Course in Miracles Review

A Course in Miracles is a self-study spiritual thought system. It uses Christian terminology but is ecumenical and emphasizes experience over belief in a theology.

Its underlying premise is that the greatest "miracle" is gaining a full awareness of love's presence in your life. It views reality as a world of unity, love and sinlessness.

The Text

A Course in Miracles describes a completely different kind of world than the one most people perceive. It is a world of unity, love and forgiveness. It is a world where everything that exists is God's creation, and where evil, sin and guilt are viewed as misperceptions.

The Course is designed as a self-study spiritual thought system and contains three books: the Text, which lays out the concepts on which the thought system rests; the Workbook for Students, which presents 365 daily lessons; and the Manual for Teachers, which answers frequently asked questions. Although the Course uses Christian terminology, it addresses universal spiritual themes. It also emphasizes that it is not a religion, but only one of thousands of spiritual paths that all lead to God.

This audiobook is a presentation of the first book, the Text, of A Course in Miracles (ACIM). The original manuscript was dictated word for word to Helen Schucman through a process of inner dictation. It was completed in 1976 and published by the Foundation for Inner Peace.

The Workbook

The workbook is a practical companion to the Text. It consists of 365 daily lessons designed to help you undo guilt and experience the freedom that comes from forgiveness. The lessons are simple, and it is the doing of them that makes them meaningful. They are a kind of discipline to be learned, and you will find that your habits of thought change with consistency.

A Course in Miracles is a self-study spiritual thought system that teaches how to experience the greatest miracle of all: the awareness of love's presence within your life. It was received by Helen Schucman, a psychologist at Columbia University, through a process of inner dictation, starting in 1965. The three-volume curriculum includes a Text, a Workbook for Students, and a Manual for Teachers.

Though A Course in Miracles uses Acim Christian vocabulary, it expresses a non-sectarian spirituality and emphasizes experience over belief in a theology. It was published in 1976 and has since been distributed worldwide.

The Manual

Most students of A Course in Miracles know that the curriculum consists of three volumes, a Text, a Workbook for Students, and a Manual for Teachers. Each volume is designed to serve a different purpose. The Text lays out the concepts of the Course’s thought system; the Workbook is meant to be practiced, its lessons performed; and the Manual for Teachers serves as a guide in helping students learn to teach the Course (Manual, p. 296; M-1.4:2).

The Course teaches that remembering God is the way to universal love and peace, and it calls upon us to forgive those who have not remembered. Although the Course uses Christian language, it is ecumenical in content and clearly states that it is but one form of the universal course, of which there are “many thousands.” Thus, anyone can benefit from it. However, the Course is written on a high intellectual level, with sophisticated metaphysical, theological, and psychological concepts integrated throughout its teachings.

The Teachings

A Course in Miracles is unlike any other modern educational course. It is a spiritual text channeled through one or more human messengers, and as such it has taken on the exalted status of inspired scripture for its followers. It is a course in undoing the ego’s separation from reality and teaches a profoundly different way of forgiving, which brings healing and freedom.

It is a book of forgiveness that asks its students to be healers, both in the world and in their relationships. It calls for a change of perception, mind and belief, from the ego’s story to God’s truth. Its goals are to teach its students to be miracle workers, saviors of the world and healers of their relationships by practicing forgiveness.

This course has become a modern spiritual classic, having sold over three million copies. But despite its lofty status, it has not yet achieved its larger goals of healing the world and the relationships within it.