A Course In Miracles Workbook Lesson #180, Review of lessons 169 and 170.

 Lesson #180

Review of lessons 169 and 170

God is but Love, and therefore so am I.

Lesson 169 - By grace I live. By grace I am released.

Lesson 170 - There is not cruelty in God and none in me.

In the last analysis we come to learn over a lifetime sooner or later that it is by grace that we live and by grace we are released. Our egos are not in charge no matter what we may think and wish. There are forces far greater than ourselves that govern the universe and our navels are not its center.

In Alcoholic Anonymous, it is suggested in the first three steps that we admit we are not in charge, that there is a Power far greater than ourselves, and that we turn our willfulness over to our Higher Power and become willing to discern and follow the will of our Transcendent Source. We discover in doing so that our lives become grand.

In Unitarian Universalism, we covenant together to affirm and promote a respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part. Maybe we might move from just respect to love for the interdependent web on which we are dependent and in doing so are filled with gratitude and peace.

Today, we begin and end the day, and many times in between, thinking about the grace of God by which we are released from the demands of the ego and liberated into the world of Love. In doing so we realise there is no cruelty in God and none in ourselves, really. Hard to believe.

How is your study of A Course In Miracles coming?

 

A Course In Miracles Workbook Lesson #179, Review of lessons 167 and 168

 Lesson #179

Review of lessons 167 and 168

God is but Love, and therefore so am I.

Lesson 167 - There is one life, and that I share with God.

Lesson 168 - Your grace is given me. I claim it now.

When our soul was incarnated in our current body, we forgot from whence we came. Society conditioned and socialized us to live in the world of the ego. Slowly we came to realize that this world of the ego is a social construction of our own making and not real. As we matured we came to understand that we are One with All which is our natural inheritance from which we have been blinded by the idols of the ego. Today, we remind ourselves that our true life is the One we share with God and this growing awareness is a foundational source of grace.

In Alcoholics Anonymous, in step eleven, it is suggested that we improve our conscious contact with God through prayer and meditation.

In Unitarian Universalism, we affirm and promote the free and responsible search for truth and meaning which takes us back to our origin which is our Oneness with our Creator.

Today, we begin and end the day, and many times in between, reminding ourselves that our essential lives are the ones we share with God and that this apprehension is the source of tremendous peace which transcends the limited understanding of the ego.

A Course In Miracles Workbook Lesson #178, Review of lessons 165 and 166,

 Lesson #178

Review of lessons 165 and 166.

God is but Love, and therefore so am I.

Lesson 165 - Let not my mind deny the Thought Of God.

Lesson 166 - I am entrusted with the gifts of God.

When people would say to John Buerhens that they didn’t believe in God, he said he would reply, “What God is it that you don’t believe in?” It sounds a bit flip and glib but taken seriously it is an excellent question. People believe in many idols and anthropomorphized forms of God but rarely do they contemplate the Oneness, the Source of All, the Ground Of Our Being. Neale Donald Walsch teaches that if you don’t like the word “God” use the word “Life.” What would it mean for a person to say “I don’t believe in life?”

Once we come to a mature understanding of the non dualistic idea of God, we begin to experience and understand the gifts of Grace.

In Alcoholic Anonymous, it is suggested in step eleven that we seek to improve our conscious contact with our Higher Power through prayer and meditation.

In Unitarian Universalism, we affirm and promote the free and responsible search for truth and meaning which will inevitably take us to the apprehension of the non dualistic Oneness which is the Transcendent Source of all that is.

Today, it is suggested that we take a few minutes at the beginning and the end of the day and a few minutes in between to take a few deep breaths, relax, and sink into the non dualistic Oneness and remember our experience of God and realize God’s gifts.

A Course In Miracles Workbook Lesson #177, Review of lessons 163 and 164

 Lesson #177 

Review of Lessons 163 and 164

God is but Love, and therefore so am I.

163 - There is no death. The Son of God is free.

164 - Now, are we one with Him Who is Our Source.

Today, we are reminded once again, who we are. We are not the ego. We are Spirit also known as, AKA, Love.

In Alcoholic Anonymous, it is suggested in step eleven that we seek to  improve our conscious contact with our Transcendent Source through prayer and mediation. Easier said than done. It requires we take some quiet time to just relax and center.

In Unitarian Universalism, we covenant together to affirm and promote our inherent dignity and that of every person. Praise the Lord!

Today, we begin and end the day, and several times in between to remind ourselves that in our souls we are free and our freedom comes from knowing that we are One with our Transcendent Source. Okay?

A Course In Miracles Workbook Lesson #176, Review of lessons 161 and 162

 Lesson 176

Review of lessons 161 and 162

God is but Love, and therefore so am I.

Lesson 161 - Give me your blessing, holy Son Of God.

Lesson 162 - I am as God created me.

We forget who we are. We are as God created us and we are essentially One with the All. It is the ego which has separated us and divided us not only from God but from one another. This is sad, sad, sad. And yet, we remember from Whence we came, and are filled with peace and bliss.

In Alcoholics Anonymous, it is suggested in step three that we turn our will and our lives over to our Higher Power and stop with the separation already. In doing so we experience a miracle.

In Unitarian Universalism, we covenant together to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person and in this affirmation and promotion we are blessed and are reminded who we are as God created us.

Take a few moments at the beginning and end of the day, and several times in between to remind ourselves that we are blessed as the creations of God and we are One with Everything with no separation and division. We are whole, holy. Get it?

Dear Dave - What's the deal with covenant in UU?

The covenant of UU.

 

Question

Dear Dave,

Why does Unitarian Universalism say they are a covenantal religion and then do so little with this concept?

 

John

 

Answer

Hi John,

 

The answer lies in the realm of commitment. A strong covenant cannot be experienced without commitment through thick and thin, good times and bad, health and sickness, richer and poorer, until death do us part.

 

The lack of commitment among UUs to a covenant is well known. It doesn’t take much to join the covenant and it takes nothing to leave. In fact, many people leave and they are never missed or inquired about.

 

UUs don’t do well with conflict because of their governance model which is consensual and not hierarchical. The root word of “religion” is religare which means “to bind,” “to tie together.” There is very little binding UUs together especially in the face of conflict so they just leave..

 

Therefore any covenant referred to is very weak to the point of essentially being nonexistent. UUs use the idea of covenant to affirm and promote their seven principles and this affirmation and promotion is rarely referred to and lifted up in any meaningful way in their communal life together.

 

It is interesting to note that the weakness of Unitarian Universalism is based on its lack of commitment to its basic principles. Some say this is a shame because these principles would improve the welfare of humanity if they were lifted up and practiced more conscientiously. The lack of commitment in any substantive sense to each other in the promotion and affirmation of these principles is the death knell of what might have been a very robust religion.

 

The bottom line answer to your question John is fear. UUs are afraid of commitment because unconsciously they are afraid of obligations and responsibilities to each other. Therefore they eschew any governance structure that would bind them together in a more meaningful way.