Resolutions and tribal mind
Posted on December 31, 2006 | Leave a Comment
Do I join the millions of other people who make resolutions that they won’t keep? It seems futile and silly look at that way. Then again, it doesn’t hurt to take a time of reflection to examine those places in our lives that cry for more attention.
Currently K and I are reading “Sacred Choices” by Christel Nani, in which the author speaks about the places in our lives where we are living from other’s expectations, which she calls “tribal beliefs.” It’s as good a term as any to describe societal expectations. She doesn’t claim that all tribal beliefs are bad for us. I would dismiss the book out of hand if she did. She does say that following those expectations that are out of alignment with what feeds us, saps energy and vitality out of our lives, enough so that living out of alignment for too long can lead to susceptibility to illness. Read more
Adding Podcasts
Posted on December 30, 2006 | Leave a Comment
I’ve been wanting to add an audio version of the Course to the site but have been unable to persuade the people I know with “good” voices to volunteer the time needed for the project. So I decided to do it myself.
As you will quickly notice, I do not have a professional’s presentation. You might even call me speaking challenged, as I spent several years in speech therapy and have to really concentrate to get the words to come out in the proper order and without a strong lisp. No matter. I am what I have available and the podcasts are getting made. What you hear is what you get.
There may even be a silver lining to the situation. Since I have no illusions about how I sound I’m okay with less than perfect recordings. I’m not going to do a lot of re-recording or editing of the lessons. The goal is to offer understandable audio versions of the lessons for the sight impaired or those who simply prefer to listen rather than read. If you can do better and are willing to donate mp3 recordings of the lessons, please contact me.
Hello world!
Posted on December 29, 2006 | Leave a Comment
Printing “Hello World!” is the standard first program that programmers write when learning a new programming language. It seems a good place to start with a new journal, and a good place to start the lessons from A Course in Miracles once again.
I first encountered the Course over 20 years ago at a party. The host had the old fashioned three volume set on her bookshelf. A Course in Miracles, what an intriguing title. I pulled volume 1, the Workbook for Students off the shelf and started to read the introduction.
This is a course in miracles. It is a required course. Only the time you take it is voluntary. Free will does not mean that you can establish the curriculum. It means only that you can elect what you want to take at a given time. The course does not aim at teaching the meaning of love, for that is beyond what can be taught. It does aim, however, at removing the blocks to the awareness of love’s presence, which is your natural inheritance. The opposite of love is fear, but what is all-encompassing can have no opposite.
This course can therefore be summed up very simply in this way:
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