“You have one test, as sure as God, by which to recognize if what you learned is true: If you are wholly free of fear of any kind, and if all those who meet or even think of you share in your perfect peace, then you can be sure that you have learned God’s lesson and not yours. Unless all this is true, there are dark lessons in your mind, which hurt and hinder you and everyone around you.” – A Course in Miracles (ACIM)
Greetings mighty companions,
It’s time to look at the lessons in our mind that “hurt and hinder you, and everyone around you.”
This letter is an invitation to open communication surrounding an issue that desperately needs our attention: the issue of racism in the world, and how it factors into the Course in Miracles community.
I’m specifically speaking to my companions who also appear to walk this world, like me, in a white body.
Before you read any further, please remember how important it is to be radically honest with yourself and with Holy Spirit about what is arising in your mind. As you read, watch your mind with vigilance and veracity because I’m going to likely say things that trigger the ego. Notice the faintest hint of defensiveness, guilt, or fear that arises in the mind as I bring up issues surrounding race. These feelings arising must be acknowledged and taken to Holy Spirit.
In addition, if you are already noticing resistance arise or an inclination to dismiss what I’m saying because this is an issue “of the world” or that “I’m making it real” I hope you will acknowledge that, take a breath, and keep reading.
I am not “making racism real” by talking about it. Racism is built into the fabric of the very dream we are dreaming. Those of us in white bodies simply have the privilege of being able to easily ignore it. Just as we have experienced many “aha” moments in our studies of A Course in Miracles, it’s time to start experiencing “aha” moments surrounding our own unchecked racism.
I started following black and brown anti-racism educators after two online racist incidents occurred with two separate popular, white, well-intentioned spiritual teachers a few years ago. Since then, my eyes have been opened as to how well-intentioned spiritual teachers and teachings can perpetuate racism, even in our beloved Course community.
It is time for students of A Course in Miracles in white bodies to take responsibility for our unexamined racism and supremacy.
You might immediately think, “Racism? Supremacy? That’s definitely not referring to me. I love everybody!”
Remember what I said about watching what is coming up in your mind and looking at it with Holy Spirit. There is going to be an immediate tendency to deny that I’m talking about anything that applies to you. If you are in a white body, this does apply to you, as it applies to me. If you have the thought that there is no racism in you and you are certain that I am wrong, please keep reading.
By racism and supremacy, I am NOT referring to you having negative feelings or conscious hatred towards black or brown people. You can love black and brown people and still have unchecked racism and supremacy within your mind. You can be married to someone of a different race, or be the parent of children of a different race, but have overt and covert racism and supremacy within you.
Scott Woods says it best in his book, “New Framings on Anti-Racism and Resistance:”
“The problem is that white people see racism as conscious hate, when racism is bigger than that. Racism is a complex system of social and political levers and pulleys set up generations ago to continue working on the behalf of whites at other people’s expense, whether whites know/like it or not. Racism is an insidious cultural disease. It is so insidious that it doesn’t care if you are a white person who likes black people; it’s still going to find a way to infect how you deal with people who don’t look like you. Yes, racism looks like hate, but hate is just one manifestation. Privilege is another. Access is another. Ignorance is another. Apathy is another. And so on. So while I agree with people who say no one is born racist, it remains a powerful system that we’re immediately born into. It’s like being born into air: you take it in as soon as you breathe. It’s not a cold that you can get over. There is no anti-racist certification class. It’s a set of socioeconomic traps and cultural values that are fired up every time we interact with the world. It is a thing you have to keep scooping out of the boat of your life to keep from drowning in it. I know it’s hard work, but it’s the price you pay for owning everything.”
Unless we are actively engaged in lifelong, active anti-racist work, we are likely walking around with hidden biases, unacknowledged privilege, and unseen racism. And the fact that we don’t see these things actually makes us more likely to cause harm to people of color.
By the way, if you react against the word “anti-racism” because you don’t want to be “anti” anything and are only “for” peace, please take in these words:
Just as A Course in Miracles prompts us to be vigilant and take an active role in bringing our perceptions to the Holy Spirit in order to heal the mind, to heal racism requires taking an active (not a passive) stand. “Anti-racism” means being vigilant and wholly committed to healing the racism and supremacy within the mind so we stop hurting people of color.
Racism is in the air we breathe, and we uphold racism and supremacy when we don’t acknowledge it or take action to dismantle it.
Being in a white body means that we’ve been born into a system that favors white bodies at the expense of brown and black bodies, and has thus influenced our perceptions, our opportunities, most if not all aspects of our lives, and even our spiritual practice. And it is really hard to see our own racism without help. We can easily ignore it. You can easily ignore it.
As we know as students of A Course in Miracles, we must see how the ego hides out.
And I truly believe we are being called to look at our own racism and supremacy, an issue that is not discussed in A Course in Miracles, but that is playing a huge part in our lives.
The purpose of this letter is to address how we can mistakenly (and unknowingly) use the teachings of A Course in Miracles to actually keep racism and supremacy in place.
The purpose of this article is not to expose your hidden racism, but I do have recommendations for how you can begin anti-racism work at the end of this letter. It is work that requires a lifelong commitment and is not complete from just reading a book or article or affirming that you love everybody.
By shedding light on this, I hope that we, as a Course community, can take a “giant stride” in our efforts to heal the mind, and therefore heal the world.
My hope is that this letter will ignite a desire in you to move into action to deeply engage with anti-racism work and exhume these unseen blocks to love in your mind.
To begin, we can all relate to how A Course in Miracles states radical ideas. Rather than actively deny what the Course says, (e.g. “I don’t do that! I don’t attack my brother!”) we are asked instead to look carefully how we may, in fact, do what the Course says we do (e.g. “have hidden attack thoughts,” that we “attack God” etc.).
I invite you to use the same spirit of openness with this topic of racism. Rather than saying “I don’t have racism or supremacy in me” please consider that you actually DO have these things in you. I have these things in me. We just don’t see them. This is not a cause for guilt or shame. It is a call to get to work.
Anti-racism work is how you begin to expose and heal internalized racism.
I must immediately mention though, that Rachel Cargle, a black anti-racism educator says, “Anti-racism work is not self-improvement work for white people.” It doesn’t end when YOU feel better. “It ends when black people are staying alive and they have their liberation.”
If you don’t engage in anti-racism work, your own racism stays hidden, keeping a system of white supremacy in place, and your brothers and sisters of color who you claim to love, keep dying, suffering, and crying out for you to see them and to hear them.
So here is my first point:
1. When black people, indigenous people, and people of color are systematically oppressed by the white majority of which you are a part, when black men and women are murdered at the hands of white police, simply reaffirming the Truth in your mind (that we have not left God, that we are dreaming, etc.) with no other action is likely a spiritual bypass and an excuse to do no further work.
By spiritual bypass, I am referring to using spiritual ideas to avoid doing inner (and outer) work.
Yes, only the Truth is True and nothing else is True. Yes, we have not left God. Yes, this world is not our Home.
But let me ask you this; If you were walking by a lake and saw someone drowning, would you yell to them and say, “Hey! Don’t worry, it’s not real!” Or would you throw them a life ring?
We MUST be where we are. I’m sure you’d throw that person a life ring because we very much believe we are these bodies. Simply telling yourself “I am not a body” is not going to heal your belief in a body. To learn that you are not a body and have experiences of this teaching, you do your Course in Miracles work.
In the same fashion, because we believe we are bodies, telling yourself “I am not racist” doesn’t make racism go away. In fact, it keeps the problem in place because it goes unseen and stays in shadows. Instead, we need to look at our own internalized racism to clearly see it.
Similarly, simply stopping at “we are one” or “only the truth is true” with no other exhuming of hidden beliefs will keep racism in place. Yes, only the Truth is true. This makes YOU feel better. It restores YOUR peace. If you stop here, this is your white privilege in action, using Truth as an excuse to spiritually bypass the anti-racism work that we desperately need to do to heal racism.
The world is not external to you. It is in YOUR mind. We know this as Course students. So racism IS your problem, not “society’s problem” or someone else’s problem. It is a manifestation coming from within your mind. And you can help by engaging in anti-racism work.
The Course DOES teach that as we heal we do not heal alone, so your affirmation of Truth on some level must be helpful, but your own internal racism goes unseen and continues in the shadows of your mind. This needs to be exhumed.
True healing brings about a healing for ALL. All of us in the Course community have been engaging in our forgiveness work, and I truly believe we are now being asked to forgive our OWN internalized racism and supremacy. For this, we need to do additional work beyond our affirmation of truth. We must come to see how racism and supremacy are alive within us so we can begin to dismantle it.
2. Be willing to acknowledge differences instead of jumping to our Oneness.
I recently had an exchange with someone online who was troubled that an article highlighted a “black scientist.” They said, “why does it have to be highlighted that the scientist is black? This divides us when we are all one!”
I shared that if they had not highlighted that it was a black scientist, most white brains would have thought that the black man in the article’s photo was a model or an assistant. Not the lead scientist. This is just one example of internalized racism in action (and it is only one reason of many as to why it is important to highlight that the scientist is black).
When we jump to statements like, “we are all one” we are using our supremacy to deny that the day to day life of black people, indigenous people and people of color are very different than yours. For instance:
- Coronavirus has disproportionately affected people of color. Black people are dying of Coronavirus at almost three times the rate of white people.
- Black mothers die in childbirth and from complications three to four times the rate of white mothers.
- Majority of COVID-19 business loans have been given out to white businesses.
A dear friend of mine is a clinical psychologist. She obtained her Ph.D. in what I consider to be the most rigorous psychology program in existence. She makes great money, drives a nice car, and is one of the most brilliant women who I know. She is black.
On her drive home from a shopping trip to the mall, she got pulled over. The cop saw all of her shopping bags in the back seat. He made her show him every single receipt to prove she did not shoplift her items. This would never happen to me as a white woman.
And then there is this sign:
So, please, stop saying we are all one in the world. In Truth, YES, of course we are all one. But we are identified with bodies in this world, having vastly different experiences. And this needs to be acknowledged instead of dismissed. Please SEE that people of color are having very different experiences than you in this world.
3. Be willing to get uncomfortable, very uncomfortable, and often.
It is a privilege for you as a white body to not have to think about race. It doesn’t seem to affect you so you may see yourself totally dissociated from the problem.
As I mentioned earlier, racism and supremacy are built into the fabric of the way the world works. White bodies benefit from systemic racism. We need to see this clearly.
As students of A Course in Miracles, we are asked to look at our blocks to love and hand over those blocks to Holy Spirit. As long as you deny that the blocks of racism and supremacy are yours and in your mind, and as long as you don’t see how racism and supremacy influences how you interact with the world, you can’t truly “hand it over.” Racism is not “out there” totally dissociated from you.
To do anti-racism work, it requires you to get uncomfortable. You are going to feel defensive, triggered and upset, all of the ego reactions that we don’t like experiencing.
To heal racism, we need to be willing to get uncomfortable and be willing to feel all of the feelings that are going to arise and not turn away from the work.
4. “Not feeling guided” to take action can be an excuse for actually being fearful to take action or simply not knowing what action to take, or for just being lazy.
It is true that we must ask for guidance always. But what I’ve found in my own life is that if I don’t know how to take action, or if I’m afraid to take action, it is a very convenient excuse to simply say, “I don’t feel guided.”
“Not feeling guided” can also be a smokescreen for being lazy. And laziness in this area is white privilege, showing up yet again.
Watch your mind carefully in this area. Seeing this requires radical honesty with Spirit.
5. Stop saying ALL LIVES MATTER.
To quote my friend and fellow Course teacher, Joe Baker, “This sounds Course-like, but it co-opts the fact that people of color are disproportionately targeted.”
If you need more of an explanation as to why saying “all lives matter” is damaging and hurtful to black communities, read more about this topic here: https://www.vox.com/2016/7/11/12136140/black-all-lives-matter
6. Stop talking and start listening.
It is not a time to make YOURSELF feel better by simply reminding yourself that this “isn’t real” or that your part is simply to “love everybody.” One of the kindest things you can do is to listen and listen deeply. Making what is going on for black people and people of color about you or taking what they are going through and analyzing it under spiritual teachings is unkind. It is dismissive.
7. Get curious about why our Course community seems to be mostly comprised of white bodies.
I have not been to every study group on the planet, but by far and large, every Course in Miracles conference I’ve attended or spoken at, every event and gathering I’ve been to, and every study group I’ve attended predominately consists of white bodies.
A climate of safety is established when people in white bodies become aware of how they have caused harm to black people, indigenous people and people of color, either intentionally or unintentionally and take responsibility for it. And they talk openly about it.
We have caused hurt through what we thought were only loving words.
We have caused hurt by our silence.
We have caused hurt by our lack of understanding of (or refusal to understand) our own internalized racism.
We have caused hurt by making a racial issue about us.
A black friend told me that A Course in Miracles circles are not safe enough for brown and black people, and I agree. And for the people of color who stick around, I believe these individuals are quite a demonstration of tolerance and forgiveness.
And please don’t approach the person(s) of color in your study group to try to make yourself feel better regarding the safeness of the group. Instead, it is important for white ACIM teachers and students to exhume racism and supremacy in the mind through actively engaging in anti-racism work. Resources are below.
8. “Seek not to change the world but seek to change your mind about the world.”
The Course teaches us that the entire world is a projection of our minds. And so the only way to heal the world is to heal the mind.
We are highly motivated to look at the beliefs in our mind that impact our day to day life. We are motivated to change our minds surrounding finances, lack vs. abundance, sickness, physical pain, our relationships with family members, friends, colleagues, etc.
If it is personal, we’re motivated to look at it.
Racism is personal to you, even if you don’t immediately see how. My hope is that you will feel motivated to look more deeply at what is buried in your mind surrounding supremacy and racism. A knee-jerk reaction of “this is not my problem” or “I don’t have a problem of white privilege or white supremacy” is a red flag that there is, in fact, more to be examined here.
It is true that to change the world we must change our minds, but this will remain a while off unless we take an active part in exhuming what is hidden.
9. Please don’t ask your black or brown Course in Miracles friend(s) or study group participant(s) how you can be an ally.
They’ve been carrying the emotional weight of racism and supremacy far longer than you’ve been aware of it. Don’t ask them to educate you. Please check out a resource like this instead and do more internet research: https://sojo.net/articles/our-white-friends-desiring-be-allies
10. A Course in Miracles is uncompromising about where healing occurs but we often miss an important point to maintain white body comfort.
A Course in Miracles teaches that healing occurs at the level of the mind. But if we stop with this thought we are missing something VERY important that is central to A Course in Miracles. Healing happens THROUGH OUR RELATIONSHIPS. This is what makes A Course in Miracles unique from other pathways.
You alone cannot heal the mind.
“The lamp lit in both of you for one another.” (ACIM CE T-20.III.11:6.)
You need your brother (note: by “brother” I am using Course language and am referring to ALL of us). You need your black and brown brothers. Healing takes TWO. You need to see the Truth in your brother. AND you need to see how you have caused harm to your brothers in black and brown bodies in order to fully release the guilt and fear in BOTH of your minds.
11. Harm happens when we use the teachings of A Course in Miracles to gaslight people of color when they try to raise these issues for us to see. One of the most damaging responses we can say is, “If you are not happy you are doing this to yourself.”
This turns A Course in Miracles into a weapon.
White bodies play an active part in upholding racism and supremacy, but when we refuse to see this or learn how this is so, we are telling a brother of color that their suffering is totally their responsibility. It is time to stop doing this. It is time to take responsibility for the part we play in upholding racism and supremacy.
Instead, when black and brown people try to raise these issues for us to see, our job is to listen. And listen hard.
My white mighty companions, we have refused to see. Please let this be a true new beginning where we no longer deny our role in upholding racism, supremacy and harming our brothers of color.
You may respond by saying that a person of color is making a mistake by identifying with their body in the first place. But your brother cannot know their Christ Self until YOU release them by seeing that YOU had a part in maintaining their identification with their body through your unseen racism and supremacy.
It is time for those of us in white bodies to take responsibility, to listen, and to see.
12. Again, remember this teaching from the Course:
“You have one test, as sure as God, by which to recognize if what you learned is true. If you are wholly free of fear of any kind, and if all those who meet or even think of you share in your perfect peace, then you can be sure that you have learned God’s lesson, and not your own. Unless all this is true, there are dark lessons in your mind that hurt and hinder you, and everyone around you.”
Let us stay open to learning what we have refused to see. Let us exhume the racism and supremacy in our minds, which has gone unchecked for far too long. Let us do the important work of learning how to be anti-racist, so we can be truly helpful and truly extend love to our brothers. Please explore the resources below for next steps and for black educators to follow.
>>> If you resonated with this letter, if you are willing to commit to exhuming the ego’s hidden racism, supremacy, biases and assumptions within your mind to help the healing of the Sonship, PLEASE SHARE THIS LETTER on your platforms, with your communities, with fellow students of A Course in Miracles and with your teachers of A Course in Miracles. <<<
With love, open eyes, open ears, and an open heart,
Corinne Zupko
LET’S KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING!
Join us for The Love Lens: Conversations on A Course in Miracles, Racism & the Unified Mind.
RESOURCES:
This letter is just a beginning. Active anti-racism work is lifelong. Here are a few resources to get started with diving into your unexamined racism and supremacy. Please note that this list is NOT exhaustive. Please feel free to add additional recommendations in the comments below.
RESOURCE COMPILATIONS:
- Anti-Racism Resources:
http://bit.ly/ANTIRACISMRESOURCES - 75 Things White People can do for Racial Justice:
https://medium.com/equality-includes-you/what-white-people-can-do-for-racial-justice-f2d18b0e0234
VIDEOS:
- Systemic Racism Explained (This is a great video)
BOOKS:
- The Good Ally by Nova Reid
- Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
- Do Better by Rachel Ricketts
- Heal your Way Forward by Myisha T. Hill
- God is a Black Woman by Dr. Christena Cleveland
- How to be Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi
- My Grandmother’s Hands by Resmaa Menakem
- So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
- Mindful of Race by Ruth King
BLACK ANTI-RACISM EDUCATORS TO FOLLOW (this is not an exhaustive list):
- Ruth King: https://ruthking.net/
- Myisha T. Hill: https://www.instagram.com/myishathill
- Resmaa Menakem: https://www.instagram.com/resmaamenakem
- Ashani Mfuko: https://www.instagram.com/ashanimfukoofficial/
- Sonya Renee Taylor: https://www.instagram.com/sonyareneetaylor
- Rachel Cargle: https://www.instagram.com/rachel.cargle/
Check out Rachel’s Great Unlearn: https://www.patreon.com/thegreatunlearn - Brittany Packnett Cunningham: https://www.instagram.com/mspackyetti/
- Austin Channing Brown: https://www.instagram.com/austinchanning/
- Ibram X. Kendi: https://www.instagram.com/ibramxk/
- Glennon Doyle has a list of additional educators to follow on this post: https://www.instagram.com/p/CA6A-QGjIr0/
ORGANIZATIONS TO SUPPORT:
- The Loveland Foundation: https://thelovelandfoundation.org/
- Additional organizations are listed in the compilations above.
Wow! This letter is an eye opener. I realize racism is lingering in my mind. I learned it early in my life in subtle and not so subtle ways. I tend to ignore it as it makes me feel like a liar. I am one to turn to Holy Spirt with distressing thoughts yet never considered giving Holy Spirt racists thoughts. Well no more. It’s time to wake up.
Thank you so much for this article. This is everything and was so needed. Thank you.
Corinne, thank you so much for this article. Tears of relief streamed down my face as I read it. It is so easy for Course students to dismiss what appears to be going on “out there” or as bodies “but doing this to them(our)selves” This article highlights the power of our own beliefs and brings this social problem into awareness as our own, for us to look at. You have expressed this issue in a way where I can very clearly see how to begin to identify these blocks within my mind to be be released to HS for healing, while being available as a loving, listening, supportive force to people of color. I also want to commend your courage as I know when white bodies ask other white bodies to look at institutional or covert racism, anger and denial is usually the response. I have been searching for a Course teacher to say something that makes sense. Trying not to “make issues real” didn’t feel peaceful. I even felt guilty for getting involved, like I’ve indulged the ego by trying to “fix up” the illusion. I recognize now, I WAS disregarding these issues by not getting to the blocks/beliefs in my own mind responsible for making it seem real. I feel a renewed strength today. I feel there is a way forward with HS as my teacher, to allow healing and ALSO to offer my brother the attention, compassion and healing he so deserves. I have work to do. Thank you so much for your insight.
Thank you for this call for healing and call to action. I am with you!
Thank you for this brave post, full of needed resources to help us truly see the face of Christ in everything.
I’m new to ACIM, yet a Holy Spirit nudge that I keep getting consistently is to go deeper into my own unloving, my own hidden festering corners and projections.
For me, what you are saying here reinforces that teaching directly, let’s not use our journey with ACIM as a soft excuse or hiding corner, let’s be courageous and truly loving.
I have much to learn from these resources here.
Thank you,
Maria
Thank you for writing this article Corinne. Lots of food for thought and helpful from the ACIM perspective too. I want to be part of the solution, so thanks for pointing me in the right direction xox
Corrine, I don’t know if this comment to a post now three years old will reach you. I originally found myself on your page 3-4 months ago as I was dealing with bouts of anxiety. I missed signing up for your class by a day and only now find myself again on your page.
I simply wanted to say, that as an African American practitioner of the Course how thankful I am to see such a clear and concise and Course centered evaluation and approach to this terribly sad and tragic issue that permeates our society.
I’ve recently begun to wrestle with this issue but from the other side ~ which is the availability of the Course to black and brown people. What I mean by that is that the forgiveness principle extolled in the Course actually becomes a high barrier of entry, psychologically, for a people group that has lived under the long standing and persistent horror that racism is and has been. You touch upon the point in your article, but my vantage point is a bit different. How do I share the Course with my black brothers and sisters without triggering their fear response, or more likely a view of the Course as more of the “religious” same, entailing a good amount of turning over our self determinism to a “White God” in the midst of a heavy batch of gaslighting. Let me be clear, I believe the Course to be devinely inspired and to be truth. But the context for consumption that it presents on the black and brown side, is difficult and must be clarified. There are additional difficulties on the white side of this conversation that I believe are quite debilitating, and disruptive to being able to fully encompass the Course as well. I think a focus on our respective healing around this pernicious topic is critical for a successful return to communication for us all. I’m writing this at 3 am, but clearly will be inspecting and praying upon this topic in depth in the days to come. I did want to thank you for your perspective and it’s one that i imagine I will be sharing once I understand my position a bit more clearly.
In love and light, be blessed. Roger
Hi Roger just read your comment and wanted to recommend a couple of resources that might help bridge the gap. First there’s an amazing black pastor, a course in miracles teacher called Earl Purdy, who you might want to check out. And also a great book on Forgiveness written by Desmond Tutu, and his daughter Mpho, called The Book of Forgiveness, it’s not a course in miracles based but it’s very helpful for the mind to see how forgiveness is applied to specifically dealing with living in South Africa and issues around the Apartheid. The book outlines these principles: Naming the Hurt. Granting Forgiveness. Renewing or Releasing the relationship. Hope this helps
Well said. Truly affected me. Thank you.
Thank you so much for this article Corinne. I learned a lot. It is so helpful and answered some of the questions I had. Thank you
Thank you Corinne
This is so needed. I recognize in myself what I never wanted to believe around racism and anti racism. I am and have been looking for a deeper understanding. Thank you for speaking up.
I look forward to anything else you have to share.
Thank you for all the links to delve deeper. ❤️
Thank you for your thoughtful and well written article on this issue. And for the resource links. I agree with everything you said, and have been working diligently on finding those hidden recesses of my mind that house racist thoughts and feelings. But I didn’t know what to do beyond that except to talk about it. With these resources there are many more ideas of what I can do, and I really appreciate that. <3
Well said. Thank you for this invitation and encouragement to heal, learn, grow and truly love.
So so good. As a Course student I’ve paused and been confused on this subject. This brought clarity and provided so many good points. Just calling everything an illusion had always been difficult for me and also convenient when I wanted to ignore things. Your words show courage and light. Thank you!!!
My goodness I had no idea this was going on in my mind & I thank you Corinne for bringing truth to my attention. Thank you for the resource links . I am willing to listen & hear what my black brothers & sisters are saying & wanting & what I have been overlooking all through my life.. I pray that my black brothers & sisters will be able to forgive my arrogance & for all the suffering I am responsible for during this lifetime with a white body.
Bles My Sister Corinne!! =>you convinced me! IAM IN!
See my FB share Comments below:
“Please my Brothers and Sisters of the MostHigh => Take a read of my “TEACHERS OF GOD”acim* Blessed Friend Corinne Zupko… Even if you Believe you are not racist =>her, extremely well written and v.easy to follow and read, letter may help you as it did me =>to take a SOLID STAND for the Anti-Racism Movement 👍🏿 OneLove❣️ OverSeen✞”
Why do you assume because we are in a white body that we are automatically racist? That we need to dig deep and look at what we have done. Gotta tell you, I’m really tired of all of it. Being told I’m a racist just because I’m white. That I have privilege because I’m white. Most of us have worked hard and sacrificed for everything we have accomplished in our life. I’ve been trying to understand ACIM for over 20 years and apparently need to try something else. Everyone talks about how we need to do more. What would that be?
Thank you for your letter trying to shed light on a very ongoing and sad problem. With Covid 19 and all the economic hardships people are experiencing, this is another guilt inducing issue. It has been here all of my lifetime and longer. Just so sad!!!
Patty,
Thank you for your honest response. This post is not about trying something else, but it’s about seeing another layer, a deep layer that permeates the entire ego dream. White privilege does NOT mean you’re a bad person! It means that as a white body you (and I) have been born into a system that favors us.
Please keep this ACIM quote in mind:
“The beginning phases of this reversal are often quite painful, for as blame is withdrawn from without, there is a strong tendency to harbor it within. It is difficult at first to realize that this is exactly the same thing, for there is no distinction between within and without.”
Learning about our internalized racism is not a call for guilt. Through A Course in Miracles we are learning that we are guiltless! But here’s the thing… if this topic triggers us, that’s pointing to the fact that there is something going on beneath the surface that needs healing. And turning away from that won’t heal it for us or for anyone else.
Instead of looking away, we can let the Truth hold us in its Arms, and from that place of strength, fearlessly begin to understand an ego pattern (racism) that permeates the dream.
“Doing more” can begin with deeply listening.
This is an AWESOME short video to begin to understand systemic racism: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrHIQIO_bdQ
And you might want to check out Robin DiAngelo’s book called, “White Fragility.” https://www.amazon.com/White-Fragility-People-About-Racism/dp/0807047414
I love you.
Take a look at this from CBS This Morning . . . a segment with Gayle King and two amazing clear thinking people defining white privilege. I thought they were as good as it was going to get until I read Corinne’s letter to us. I’m in a white body . . . consider myself a person of color . . . . after all white is many shades as is brown as is black as is red as is yellow. Nonetheless . . . I’m radically honest . . . it is not easy . . . and seeing my color as privilege wasn’t easy. I thought I had impediments to gain . . until I dated a person of color and learned of so many experiences in his family–the reality was numbing in its truth. In any case, here is the segment to see . . . you cannot escape it . . . white? you’re innately privileged. Now to change that. Blessings. https://www.cbsnews.com/video/authors-robin-diangelo-and-ibram-x-kendi-on-how-to-become-aware-of-privilege/
\
my blessed sister Patty angle of the MostHigh light …. I HEAR YOU…
….but really, the only thing we must do to “understand” the teachings of TheCourse is =>to understand that:
=> “we were mistaken about the World and It’s Past”
and that we can not “hope” to ever perceive theworld as it really is =>BECAUSE => it is NOT anything but a Hallucination….
we go forward together, not even looking a second back, under the Guiding Light of the Holy Spirit who IS and WILL lead us all back to Our One(1) Self is….
=> LOOK TO THE HOLY SPIRIT just call the name exactly as written here : HolySpirit✞
=> call the H.S. on every breath and on every thought until you can “see” the true reality…
=>call until then will we stop…
and then after that when we can “see” and we need not call on the Almighty with every breath and every thought…
=>then we will simply continuously see the manifestations of the H.Spirit emanating out of “we”….
SIMPLE THNG REALLY 👍🏿 OneLove❣️ Patty
=>Hope to talk2you more One(1) day 🙏🏿 message me directly on fb “OneDrop BillKaz” IAM HERE FOR YOU AND EVERY “BODY’ LIKE YOU! (ALL 7.79 BILL of us atcm*1) : D *-) ✞
footnotes:
*1 atcm <=At The Current Moment
TheCourse <=The Course In Miracles <=THE ONLY REQUIRED COURSE!
7.79 Billion is the Current World Estimated Population
(increasing by about 250,000 every 24hrs with ~500,000 Births and 250,000 Deaths per Day ✔)
per: https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/ ✅
Hi Bill!
I don’t disagree with anything you said. But “understanding” ACIM and actually having experiences of miracles show up in our lives are two different things! The teachings of Truth can easily be used to not look at these issues that are “of the world,” which then keeps what is hidden in place. It is not easily to look at what is hidden. But out of love for our brothers in brown and black bodies, those of us in white bodies must look at what has been denied. This paves the way for ALL of us to recognize our wholeness, our complete innocence, and our Oneness.
I always find it interesting that spirituality somehow turns into political activism. ACIM teaches we are finally free of guilt (great news) but you as God apparently know all white people’s hearts and we should feel guilty. Politics is food for the ego.. I love you and some of your ACIM teachings but this post saddened my heart. God bless you
Pierre, I’m giving you a big hug! This isn’t about politics. This is about people and souls and love and healing. This is a VERY triggering topic for the ego, and that means there’s something here to explore. It is not a call for white guilt as that accomplishes nothing, and is only the ego trying to take hold again.
Consider this quote from ACIM: “The beginning phases of this reversal are often quite painful, for as blame is withdrawn from without, there is a strong tendency to harbor it within. It is difficult at first to realize that this is exactly the same thing, for there is no distinction between within and without.”
If someone told you they were hurting, I know you would want to help them. If our brothers and sisters of color are hurting (which as I’ve listened, many have said they are) from our lack of awareness, wouldn’t we want to do better so we can all heal? Only we haven’t been able to (or wanted to) see this because it is so painful. We were born into a dream that is built on a racist system, and to heal it we’ve got to see it, as uncomfortable as it is.
I want to see. And I’ve been listening deeply to people of color. I look without guilt, but with responsibility and willingness to heal. And I invite you to join me in this. xo
Hi Corinne, I think we have to dive deeper into ownership of what is in the dream state. Many places its said we made this realm, we are ‘mind’ participants in the parameters of its structure and functions. It is quite simply, ours to own the joint making of. After all, consider how complex the place has gotten as its increased in population! Takes me back to when a step-dad of my then room-mate exclaimed to us: A religion is as sophisticated as its members.” Mind is the issue . . . having one, being part of the One, that says I participate — or I go the way of death. Darn! One of these days I’ll be fluent with quotes and locations and references and all! Blessings. p.s. I no longer let anyone get away with supremacist postures . . . I call them on it as that positioning is also the positioning of domination: of whom and what ever.
Hi Corinne – you are saying something that is clearly the antithesis of what the Course teaches — The central teaching of Jesus is that we are not a body. What you are saying here is not accurate – our reality is only spirit. “I am not a body – I am free” I am as God created me.
Our salvation is the release from guilt. In this insane world, the body is at the centre of the ego’s self-concept.
The course does not support or condemn any ideology. Poverty exists. Hopelessness exists. Depression exists. Physical abuse exists. Racist behaviour exists. Unfair behaviour exists. Problems are specific and not general and so are solutions. I think the course is a solution because it is based on the recognition of who we are — we are spirit.
All people are entitled to dignity and separating people into groups based on their physical appearance is making God a body and he is not. God is spirit as are we.
Jesus says in the course: grievances are a senseless attack on salvation. He asks us throughout the course to lay judgement aside.. apparently that is easier said than done.
Holding grievances is a way of making God guilty. Focusing on blame and guilt is a senseless attack on salvation. As Jesus instructs, instead of condemning others and every situation with sweeping and accusatory generalizations, ask “what is salvation father? I do not know. Tell me so I may understand.”
The light the world is inside each of us but the grievances stand between us and separate us into polarized groups instead of bringing us together in love.
I pray to god our Father this day that this polarization, judgement and assignment of guilt end so the son of god can be released from the guilt that we so freely assign. Let us look on the kindness, goodness and love of our brother and not condemn all to death.
I will there be light… darkness is not my will.
Our function here is to remember who we are and so I ask you to focus on love and acceptance. As all are one. To deny the existence of god by assigning guilt to your brother is an attack on God’s plan for salvation. And only Gods plan for salvation will work.
Ms. Zupko – your comments are not accurate and they have nothing to do with the Course. Asserting that the Course supports your ideological statement that all bodies of one colour are responsible for the happiness of bodies of another colour just because you say so is incorrect.
If you accuse your brother of racism and white privilege, you are accusing God of racism and white privilege. God is not a body and neither are we. That is a fundamental concept of the Course. The course is about changing our perception not accusations and guilt.
I take issue with the unconscious moral superiority displayed in your messages. I am responding to your statements because some people seem to believe that what you’re saying is valid because you say the course supports your view. The course does no support this ideology. Perhaps they should read the course themselves and arrive at their own conclusions.
You judge me and make assumptions about me based on the colour of my skin. I am spirit — as are you are — as Jesus is and as is our father. God is not racist… the thought is beyond his comprehension… and to accuse him of this is incorrect.
Have a look at Chapter 27, “The Hero of the Dream” if you want more input from Jesus on the focus on the body. Statements like those you made above require correction. the Holy Spirit will guide you if you ask for assistance.
My first response to this is anger and defensiveness. David Hoffmeister had a movie night, showing and commenting on the movie, “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.” It was the first time I had seen the movie, and his commentary was a great reminder that this world was made in hatred.
One of the things he said included: that when we are identified with the body, we are, BY NATURE, identified with racism, superiority/inferiority, privilege, comparison, etc. He also said something along the lines of: we aren’t the human race, we’re the human racist, meaning that.a human, EVERY human, by definition, is racist.
This whole white privilege thing and if you’re white, look at this, is a cop out! People of EVERY color need to look at their thoughts and take responsibility for their thoughts of racism, prejudice, and hatred,
As I write this, I feel silly, as I know intellectually that it’s all for me or the one mind, and that there are no others, per se, but I wanted to share in the interest of transparency. I’m also feeling an intense need to be right,
I ask the Holy Spirit for help in seeing this differently! ❤️💗🧡
Hi Laura! Thank you so much for your honest and transparent response. I think what David said is great… “the human racist.” We ALL have our own work to do, and what I’m saying is not in opposition to that. I agree!
But those of us in white bodies benefit every day from a system that is in our favor… it operates at the expense of brown and black bodies. As we learn and listen and see that which is hidden, we have an incredible opportunity to extend love to ALL and take one step closer to healing the Sonship (which is of course, already healed. We simply need to accept that). So this work can help us ALL accept that we are already healed and Home. Thank you for your willingness and honesty! xo
The Course means exactly as it says “I am not a body I am free, I am as God created me”… To say your brother is a body is to diminish him. The focus on abstract ideological assumptions and illusions such as white privilege and unconscious bias are your opinion only and not supported by anything in the Course.
You are very kind Corinne. Having read “White Fragility” at the recommendation of my eldest daughter, Jess, who is currently working on a PhD in urban and human Geography(Social Justice Issues such as racism, gentrification, feminism, and just about any FORM of marginalization that bodies can invent with a separated mind) I am faced regularly with how to practice the Course kindly with one of the most intimate members of my classroom of forgiveness in Jess’s case.
Your open letter thankfully asks each of us, as separated minds, to look at our underlying hatred of people of color. A link of that concept with the clarity in the Course that all separated minds hold onto an underlying hatred of God would have been a welcome connection. Jesus asks us to look at this before His love and peacefulness can be found just as you are suggesting that all white people need to look at their own inherent racism which affects all people of color. Your piece is very complete and complicated and shares the same complexity present in the well written works that you share in your booklist.
The question for me has been how do I interface between this wonderful body of work and Jesus’ Course?
I have found “Healing The Unhealed Mind” by Dr. Kenneth Wapnick to be a kind and gentle source for integrating both.
You might like to include his title in your list for Students of the Course to read in tandem with the book list you have generated. Ken’s work, like Jesus Course, is gentle and kind and bridges the gap that seems to exist between the experience of oneself as a body and the experience of self as a mind.
Give it a look if you are so inclined after asking for guidance from our Holy Spirit.
Always,
That Separated Mind known as Bob
Thank you, Separated Mind known as Bob! I truly appreciate your comment and connection to Course teachings. It is true that all separated minds hold onto an underlying hatred of God. In an effort though to not lose the focus on the work that those in white bodies need to do (because it is really easy to divert attention to the work that we ALL need to do), I’m going to trust that those who need to see your comment will see it. Much love xoxo
It’s a good letter, Corinne. Surely I understand and agree that it all should be examined inside us with raw honesty.
Also, I understand still that the main work to heal it all is, after the clear examination, we hand it over and allow to be healed.
The course says clearly that it is a mind training and that nothing in the world/physical level has to be done… for our actions become aligned when the healing in the mind occurs.
So, yes… look inside with deep honest to find these “subtle” ways of racism and be strongly committed to hand over. This is how I understand that the correct actions can be taken to support the healing of those who suffer in this situation.
And even more, I understand also that it is indeed the biggest way to heal the one mind… through the cause itself. What for sure does not avoid taking action in the level of form, however it is secondary if compared both.
Thank you for your contribution 🙏🏽😘
Hello, dear Corinne, and thank you for sharing your heart here. I lovingly disagree from my own perspective but honor the journey that you are creating for yourself here so much and appreciate your sharing.
I am a devout ACIM and quantum physics and Abraham and so on student and I find what you are saying to be of your current heart perspective but not of the teachings. If you start to go into a “problem” of the “world” you will see it is a slippery slope. What about everything else then- wars, poverty, environmental issues, domestic or child abuse… I don’t want to go further bc I don’t want to bring them all up but the point the Course makes is that there are many things you can focus on in the mad world that will make you feel guilt or fear and by focusing on them, you do create them and keep them alive because they are not, and cannot be, true. That follows in a holographic quantum world as well. I know you know this as you addressed it above but it is absolutely true spiritually and scientifically as well.
What I have seen are two sides to every situation come to surface so God can show us that no side is true or needs focus. Even in a white body, I have been subject to racism in the past. I grew up in a very diverse community and was ridiculed for being white many times. The point is not that minorities can be racist, The point is that anyone can create separation and in those cases, I created it. Me. I created a separate feeling for myself with my brown friends and I created their comments. I was in a dance club and had people yell “get that white girl outta here.” When I was hiring for a large company, we were gently told to hire minorities and women ahead of white bodies to increase diversity. The point is that in a quantum world, nothing at all is truth, so all possibilities must be seen (disenfranchised vs favored) and where you focus your own perception only affects your experience. Again- I am
Not claiming to be a victim of racism, I am claiming to be a victim of my own perspective and fear and that this beautiful world of ours will show you all sides because all sides are equally false and the Divine does not want you to be able to settle on any of it.
In current stories we also have two sides. Dear brother George and our dear brother, the police man, knew each other. They worked together. So was this race in this story or “bad blood“? FBI and other statistics have been published that showed that minorities are not adversely affected by police shootings and not specifically by race (white cops vs brown cops). PLEASE KNOW I AM NOT JUSTIFYING ANYTHING HERE AT ALL. I can promise you that while I think death is a celebration and not a bad act anyway, I would NEVER discount someone else’s belief or pain. Again, my point is that ALL the stories are out in this mad world and you can attach to whichever story you want to attach to but you will be a part of that story and not the Holy Spirit who begs for you to give it to him so he can shine light on the fact that we are not separate and never were and that we can find relief and keep on loving. I feel sad for my brothers and sisters who want to keep talking about race because I want them to acknowledge that it cannot possibly be true and then start creating experiences to show that. We cannot create from a belief that is contrary.
If we understand the way the world works scientifically (which aligns with ACIM) in that in every single moment we get to decide the frame of the movie that comes next, it is time to stand up as a community and say with all our brothers and sisters that racism does not and cannot exist and highlight our community as one. If we make it such a strong statement that anyone who exhibits racist behavior has obviously gone mad and make it about them and their perspective just as we would anyone who has any other crazy belief and hold the belief healed in our own hearts and minds, it must disappear just as our bodies can without a death experience as you recently said. The idea of racism which I refuse to believe because I honestly love every single human it hurts (in a good way) and I know is part of the sick illusion. I won’t acknowledge it and I will not be it. I will only be love. I will only know truth. In my mind, I shine light and give to HS. I see advantages to all of us no matter which body. I see individual stories made rich bc of their journeys whatever they may be. I see love, all of it is love and of God.
Paul Selig just did a beautiful channel and stated, “You cannot lift what you damn. You cannot lift what you deny God in. What you deny God in, you put in darkness and what you put in darkness indeed calls you to that darkness.” This is so true for so much of what we see in the world without Vision.
I leave you with one of my favorite quotes from the Course (T 20 I 12):
When you have looked on what seemed terrifying and SEEN it change to sites of loveliness and peace; when you have looked on scenes of violence and death and WATCHED them change to quiet views of gardens under open skies, with clear life-giving water running happily beside them and dancing brooks that never waste away; who need PERSUADE you to accept the gift of vision? And AFTER vision, who is there who COULD refuse what MUST come after? Think but an instant just on this. YOU can behold the holiness God gave His Son. And NEVER need you think that there IS something else for you to see.
I love you so deeply and all who we imagine we see here on this earth. I hold you and watch you in perfect peace and joy regardless of illusion, now and always. I refuse to see otherwise. The illusion will settle as it may, in the meantime, I remain with God.
Sorry this was so long!! It’s hard to talk about this thru text- maybe we should do a podcast on it ;). Love you so much!!
Love,
Leah
Hi Leah, thank you for your comment. I have more to share, and will do so as soon as I can!
Leah… =>it will be a blessed reunion when we meet for the 1st time! 🙏🏿 =>Looking forward!
Bill@thebridgefoundation.info
This article is amazingly well done. So grateful to you. You cleared up my misgivings that I have been feeling Re posts other Course teachers have offered. You gave me words I did not have. Thank you. Really well done. Blessings. Irene Tomkinson
HI Corinne, I read your open letter with interest and understand what you’re telling us, but with respect, I don’t fully agree. Because of the Black Lives Matter campaign, I’ve struggled with being told I’m racist because I don’t believe I am. I was brought up in West Africa and my parents were always respectful and treated everyone well, which was instilled in me (as well as being a naturally kind person), although I know I had a privileged childhood. But even in Africa (& in India for example) there is tribal and caste hatred – it has nothing to do with the colour of people’s skins, but it has everything to do with the unconscious thought that we separated from God, and we project that guilt onto other people. When I started my ACIM Study Group over here in England, the first four students were white Europeans and the fifth was a black person who’s still in our group 12 years later. I’m surprised there aren’t more black people studying the Course – I’d have thought that Oprah made it well-known. So … anything that upsets my peace of mind, including being disturbed about racism, needs to be forgiven with the Holy Spirit – and I’ll be doing that because I’m upset by this topic. However, the Course doesn’t tell us what to do in the world, so I shan’t be campaigning, as I don’t about any political issues, but it does tell us to do the Course. It teaches us to see every body as Spirit/God – ie to see with the eyes/mind of God, not with our own eyes – to overlook the body. The ego loves to distract us and will continually find things to disturb our peace of mind, including racism. As Course students we have a fantastic tool to restore our peace of mind WITH Holy Spirit – forgiveness! With love, Jacquie PS I need to ask Spirit more about this, but these are my thoughts at the moment.
pure gold, my friend, pure gold.
i am in. .
I am a Black man and it is heartbreaking after reading Corinne Zupko’s beautiful article to see these comments. Clearly, she hit the nail on the head. Hit dogs holler.
I have never seen so much intellectualizing in my life by commenters that are being racist. As if believing that you are a good person is the same as actually being a good person. The worst members of a hate group (KKK, etc) go to bed thinking that they are good people. You will have to do better than that.
Remember that old saying? “Faith without works is dead.”
These Course students clearly want to hold onto their racism. Why do I make such a bold statement? If somebody wrote an article about women being raped in American society, virtually nobody would step forward and say “I can’t worry about stuff like that. There are a lot of problems in this world and everybody does things that they shouldn’t. I am personally not a rapist and I do not want to assign guilt.”
Your goodness would compel you to want to fight to make things right and protect women who are being attacked.
So why wouldn’t you want to fight racism to protect people of color?
Many people (not all, of course) become ACIM students because they want spirituality that doesn’t require any real work or risk to earn it. But that is the problem with a bank account that has no money deposited. It has no value. It is an account in name only and when it comes time to make a withdrawal, there will be nothing there. Spiritual bankruptcy.
Louis,
Thank you for your beautiful comment. I really appreciate you taking the time to write it. Your parallel about rape is a powerful example of how many of us Course students fall into a trap of “picking and choosing,” deciding that one thing is “an illusion” and yet something else still needs our attention in this world (like bodily hunger). Too many white bodied Course students dismiss race in the name of it being something “of the world” and yet eat breakfast every morning (and to your point, yes, dismissing racism means we hang onto racism, which keeps the separation in place).
I feel that one of our big mistakes is that we have over-internalized the definition of a miracle as a shift in perception, and neglected the fact that it is more frequently defined as an expression of love.
Many people are engaged in our Love Lens conversations (see: https://fromanxietytolove.com/lovelens/) and my hope is that we’re going to start to turn the tide and that white bodies are going to step up to the plate and own that which we need to own… the fact that “there is no area of our perception” that racism “has not touched.”
Much love to you!
I was under the impression that Jesus’ teachings in the course centre around the elimination of guilt. Now here you are, Ms. Corinne, telling me to bathe in your perception of my guilt. Do you see how insane that is? Perhaps a read of the text is in order. I am not a Body I am free, I am as God created me… God does not judge because he is never condemned… What gives you the right?
Hi Corrine,
I know this letter is old now, but still relevant. It just reminds me that racism is basically one more ego tactic to prove separation is real. It’s no different than any other ego tactic designed to perpetuate the split mind. Once “racism” is addressed, there will be another “problem” and another and another. As always, there is ONE problem and ONE solution, healing our mind of guilt, in any form.
(As a half black woman in physical form), I’m aware that I must avoid the temptation to ever view myself as unfairly treated, but instead realise that I am never upset for the reason I think. I don’t expect the WORLD to offer me a safe and secure place to make my home. It is NOT my home.
True forgiveness in the case of racism is to overlook what never really happened. This is a great opportunity to do that! Bodies are not real, the world and its issues are not real, and no amount of examining why one race of people have imagined “privilege” over another will not make it real.
A Course in Miracles is about healing our minds, not healing the world (there is no world). Pointing the finger at others who may not feel the need to identify themselves as racist is a projection. If you want to look at your own unconscious biases (or racism), I think you should. YOU may need to do that.
However, we must all follow our OWN Inner Teacher. It’s probably why ACIM is ideally a self study course; because we can each address our own misperceptions guided by Spirit, as HE directs, not as other egos think we should…
I write this with the greatest respect and quite sure not everyone will agree. In love, Cheryl
Hi Cheryl,
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. There is much to be unpacked with this subject, and I’m a believer that we’ve overemphasized certain Course teachings at the expense of others. For instance, we quickly go to teachings like, “I am not a body” but we often ignore the Course teachings that prompt us to LOOK at that which we’ve hidden in our minds (e.g. “Do not leave any spot of pain hidden from His Light, and search your mind carefully for any thoughts you may fear to uncover”). We explore the topic of racism and ACIM in depth in our series, “The Love Lens.” Perhaps you’d like to listen to more perspectives (all are welcome: https://fromanxietytolove.com/love-lens-registration/). My “open letter” as well as the Love Lens was born out of my own ongoing commitment to examining my unconscious biases and racism. I never share anything that I haven’t been engaging with myself. Blessings.
Please consider that an endeavor to use mind as a hiding place ought not be considered until defining where mind is. The space between our ears has never been proven to be ‘mind’. There are books from the likes of author Mark Gober telling us this (as in his book An End to Upside Down Living & An End to Upside Down Thinking). No one has proven mind to be our gray matter, and Gober things it (gray stuff) more or less a sending/receiving unit. India has provided us with the likes of Deepak Chopra with 6 very profound words: All form is energy given thought. They are as profound for understand mind as Jesus’ words in the Course: I am as God created me. 6 more profound words. For me mind is that vastness noted in the Course wherein God created us ‘with everything’ and ‘as’ everything. This is where mind resides, and a miniscule part of that is what’s dreamt/dreaming here. I find there’s a caution here in this exploration, which is not to make the error in the dream real, yet handle it. I don’t know how to do that yet. I don’t think it has been done. I do think it’s an outworking in the dream as we’re all equal in Heaven. Blessings.
Thank you Corinne. I agree with what you said. I consider my self an open and loving person, but I know I have racist thoughts and opinions that are in my mind. When I am healed I am not healed alone. No hierarchy in oneness. The face of Christ is not a color or a body, to look with my guide to love is to look on innocence and sameness. Removing the blocks to the awareness of loves presence.
assume post Corrine… really appreciate it
joe
I have read your carefully thought out ideas, – all of which are worth examining. I have much that I could share about this type of deep examination (led by the Holy Spirit). It fits within the Course Curriculum.
Your well-considered arguments, which I have read, are all well worth considering. When it comes to this kind of in-depth analysis, I have a lot to say (led by the Holy Spirit). The course curriculum accommodates it.
Hi Corinne-
Thanks for the well thought out letter. It reminds me of a facebook group I was a part of many years ago around 2015. It was a non-dual group and I had written about the systemic racism found within North America’s nondual community. I have been to many retreats and found so many lacking in color. I had to immediately ask myself what was going on (besides the huge hike in tuition to attend!) In any case, it really resonates with me that we, even though this may be illusion, have much work to do in this community and spiritual bypassing.
On a different note- Have you considered the effects of supporting such a platform as facebook (itself fraught with many concerns)? FB single-handedly manipulated and forced millions into insane belief systems that were inherently divisive, such as climate change denial, anti-vaxxers, and racist movements and white nationalism such as “blue lives matter” and anti-critical race theory proponents. I know it is a huge platform, but the evidence is clear that Mark Zuckerberg does not take precautions or accountability for the insane world we now live in due to its propagation of propaganda.
I know, it’s hard to move to another platform since FB has such reach, even my own friends who claim to know about the invasion of divisive bots (from china and russia) to denigrate our democracy will not get off of the platform in the name of keeping up with friends! I’m not sure what the answer here is, I know sticking with blogs will most likely make you lose many followers, but at what cost?
I’m new to ACIM and found this thread interesting, encouraging, and disheartening all at once. As a person living in a female Black body, I struggle with what it means to feel personally free but systemically unsafe and unheard. I am elated to experience a life of love, while aware that my loving, authentic, assertive self is often perceived as too loud or aggressive. And that has consequences for me that a person who is not in my skin in southern America cannot understand. I have given up my right to be a victim in any circumstance. I cannot tell you how scary this feels to me, but that is my work on my end, and I know God’s plan for me and in me cannot be overridden by the ills of this world. I pray that my White ACIM family will undertake the work (guided by the Holy Spirit) and in love. I am tired of talking to White people about this. Some of these comments on here are very encouraging. I’m glad that White people are recognizing the ways we can move into greater understanding and love. Some comments are disheartening; it’s a luxury to be able to turn away from racism when your body is not Black. I don’t say that to induce guilt. (If guilt comes up for you, examine it.) I say that because while even as my mind is healed to perfect love, this world’s perception of my skin runs through a negative filter by and large. That brings another layer of energy I have to deal with. And I can, and I do by God’s grace. I just want White people to understand that and intentionally shed the world-made filter. This doesn’t happen by ignoring the experiences of Black and Brown people. I don’t expect this world to be free of racism, poverty, sexism, etc. after all, it is the world. I just hope those who are growing in the knowledge and practice of God’s perfect love will first acknowledge and work to shed the effects of racism so this momma can feel safe when my Black son jogs down the street for exercise. That’s all I’m hoping for at this point.
I don’t expect this world to be free of racism, poverty, sexism, etc. after all, it is the world. I just hope those who are growing in the knowledge and practice of God’s perfect love will first acknowledge and work to shed the effects of racism so this momma can feel safe when my Black son jogs down the street for exercise. That’s all I’m hoping for at this point.