A Course in Miracles has modelled itself after a traditional college course. It has a textbook, a workbook and a manual for teachers.
The manual describes the demonstration that teachers of the course must offer their pupils. It is described as taking two quite distinct forms. In one of these, the teacher is envisioned as a healer.
What is A Course in Miracles?
The Course is a spiritual thought system that provides a way to experience God. It is not a religion, but rather a curriculum that consists of three books: the Text which lays out its ideas; the Workbook for Students which offers 365 daily lessons that emphasize experiential learning over belief in a theology; and the Manual for Teachers which answers questions that arise for students and teachers. a course in miracles podcast
The purpose of the course is to help you remember the truth about yourself, God, and reality. It does this by teaching you about the power of forgiveness. When you forgive, you experience the perfect peace, joy, freedom and oneness that the course and all major spiritual paths talk about.
Helen Schucman claimed that the Course was dictated to her word for word through a process of inner dictation. However, she does not take credit for the book and says that it is “the voice of Jesus” that speaks through her. The Course also does not claim to be the only path to God and states that there are thousands of different ways that lead all people to the same end.
What is the Teacher’s Role?
In the Manual for Teachers, we learn that there are two forms in which a teacher can extend the teachings of A Course in Miracles to others. One form is that of the healer or miracles practitioner, who is envisioned as going to people and offering them healing power. The other is the more familiar one of the teacher as a teacher of students, in which case he or she teaches by his demonstration.
The first way in which the teacher demonstrates is by his or her willingness to accept God’s forgiveness and give it away. The Course tells us that “to teach is to demonstrate that there are only two thoughts systems.” Teachers, therefore, need to make a choice to be willing to demonstrate this, and to demonstrate it consistently in all their daily activities and even into sleeping thoughts (Manual, p. 3; M-1.4:1).
It is also important for a teacher to avoid sympathizing with the magic thought, responding to it in a manner that affirms its unreality and nothingness, even if this requires him or her to renounce all hope of ever being successful in eliminating the illusion (Manual, p. 45; M-18.4:2).
What is the Teacher’s Salvation?
In the teacher’s healing role, the teacher must be willing to forgive his pupils. This willingness is necessary for the healing of all relationships. To the world, forgiveness seems like a great sacrifice but to God’s teachers it is a means of liberation.
It is the responsibility of God’s teachers to teach salvation to everyone they meet. This is done through their demonstration of love. God’s teachers show the way to heaven, and if they are successful, everyone they see will learn that there is another way to live.
The manual’s structure is modelled after a college course, with a textbook to be read and studied, a workbook that teaches students how to do the lessons and a teacher’s manual to instruct teachers in how to teach the Course. A common issue that arises in this model is that the manual doesn’t seem to follow from its own title of “teacher’s manual.” In fact, there are many questions that are raised by its contents. The most important of these questions revolve around the teacher’s salvation and his role in teaching.
What is the Teacher’s Healing Role?
The teacher’s healing role consists of helping the patient recognize that his illness is a choice. He also teaches the patient that his thoughts cannot change reality and that God’s power is unlimited (1:7, 2:5).
This guidance, however, can be dangerous when the teacher of God becomes upset or angry with his patients. He must avoid sympathizing with the magic thought and he must be willing to allow the Holy Spirit to judge what his response should be (Manual, p. 46; M-17.2:1).
The teachings of the Manual are also intended to help Course students who have become mature enough to extend its principles to others. This extension takes two different forms. One form is that of a healer, the Course’s version of an Alcoholics Anonymous sponsor. The other is that of a spiritual shepherd, mentor or guide who guides the pupil through the Course’s curriculum. Both forms are important but distinct. They can not be confused with each other. This seems to be the message of the Manual, which describes these functions in separate but related sections.
What is the Teacher’s Guidance Role?
In a general sense, it seems as though everyone knows that A Course in Miracles consists of three volumes: a Text to be read and studied; a Workbook for Students to be practiced and its lessons performed; and the Manual for Teachers, which instructs teachers on how to teach the course. But what many people don’t realize is that the teacher’s guidance role is quite large and goes far beyond teaching the Course’s concepts.
The teacher’s guidance role includes helping the student deal with egoic thoughts and ideas that he has picked up outside of the Course, teaching him to extend forgiveness to others, and determining what aspects of the Course the pupil should take on at any given time. This is a very complex task and, like the other two roles, requires the most patience of all.
In the beginning, learning in A Course in Miracles took place primarily through study. But as one gains confidence in the ideas he learns, his learning becomes more and more concentrated in practice and extension to others.
What is the Teacher’s Counseling Role?
Students go through a lot of stress and often need counseling. Teacher counselors are able to help them deal with their problems and they should be sympathetic and concerned about the student’s well-being. They should also be able to keep their conversation confidential and make the student feel comfortable.
The manual discusses how the teacher of God is both a healer and a counselor. Five of the seven sections depict him as a healing practitioner (the Course’s version of a Christian Science healer). He is seen as going to people with “physical illnesses” and offering them forgiveness.
The other three chapters focus on the teacher’s guiding role. Here the emphasis is on teaching the principles of the Course, but it also includes helping the student deal with egoic thoughts and ideas that may get in the way of his acceptance of the Course. It also includes guiding him in choosing what aspects of the Course to teach at any given time. The instructor should always be willing to aid his pupil, even when he is not in the best mood or is unable to express himself adequately.
What is the Teacher’s Teaching Role?
The teacher in miracles is a multifaceted creature. He is a proxy parent, counseling students/pupils on how to shape their destinies. He is also a healer, imparting the power of forgiveness. He is also a mentor or guide, the Course’s version of an Alcoholics Anonymous sponsor.
The Course modelled itself after a college course with its three volumes: the Text, the Workbook and the Manual for Teachers. The Text and the Workbook are meant to be read and studied, and the lessons in the Workbook need to be practiced and performed. The purpose of the Manual for Teachers, however, has been a subject of much debate.
Initially it seemed that the purpose of the Manual for Teachers was to provide a brief summary of Course principles in question and answer form. More recently it has been argued that the Teacher’s role is to help students become mature enough in the Course that they are ready to extend its principles to others. This extension, it is suggested, is a demonstration of the principles that will give them final reinforcement in your mind and allow them to be fully enthroned as your dominant thought system.
What is the Teacher’s Extension Role?
Although the Course can be read and studied by any student, the Manual implies that experienced students will often take on a function of extension to newer students, shepherding them in their study. In this role, a teacher will lead pupils to the truth and help them learn forgiveness. He will answer questions, teach in a variety of settings, and guide them in applying the Course’s ideas to their lives.
She goes to more and more support meetings, seeing the Course’s culture unfold before her. She sees people treating the Text and Workbook as world-class scripture, studying them intensely. She sees them dedicating years of their lives to this path. And she sees some of them reaching spiritual heights that would be recognizable to people in any other religious tradition.
She knows she is part of something big. She is helping to spark a local community that could become the seed for an ongoing spiritual tradition based on the principles of A Course in Miracles. And she is doing what Jesus asked her to do—she is extending God’s love.
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