Lesson #46
God is the love in which I forgive.
Forgiveness is one of those words in English which has several meanings and nuances. The way A Course In Miracles uses the word is not commonly understood in that “forgiveness” as the Course uses the word, only takes one person. “Forgiveness” is not a bilateral or a multilateral concept.
Perhaps the best definition of “forgiveness,” as the Course uses the term, is “the willingness to give up making other people and circumstances responsible for one’s unhappiness.” This willingness to no longer make other people and circumstances responsible moves one out of the role of victim to a role of agency.
Jesus said as the Romans were killing HIm, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” I imagine Jesus saying this with a chuckle. He was right. They didn’t know what they were doing. They thought they could kill His Spirit by killing His body. All the Romans were left with was dead meat. Jesus’ spirit is alive and well, and we still are talking about and learning from Him today, two thousand years later.
In Alcoholics Anonymous and other Twelve Step programs we are asked to make a list of all the people we have harmed and to make amends where it would no further harm. In Unitarian Universalism we covenant together to affirm and promote justice, equity, and compassion towards ourselves as well as in human relations.
Today we are asked by Jesus in Lesson # 46 to remember that God is the love in which I forgive. The God of the Universalists loves God’s creations unconditionally. As we are loved unconditionally we also strive to love unconditionally as we say, “God is the love in which I forgive.”
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