The Shoe

“Without judgment are all things equally acceptable, for who could judge otherwise? Without judgment are all men brothers, for who is there who stands apart?” ACIM Teacher’s Manual, page 12

“When you feel tired, it is because you have judged yourself as capable of being tired. When you laugh at someone, it is because you have judged him as unworthy. When you laugh at yourself, you must laugh at others, if only because you cannot tolerate the idea of being more unworthy than they are. All this makes you feel tired because it is essentially disheartening. You are not really capable of being tired, but you are very capable of wearying yourself. The strain of constant judgment is virtually intolerable. . . . if you wish to be the author of reality, you will insist on holding on to judgment.” ACIM text page 47

The Course makes clear that we not only SHOULD not judge, but we CANNOT judge. Only the Holy spirit can, because He sees everything. Our judgment about anything is flawed. It cannot help but be. Even our reactions to events, other people, circumstances, are flawed because we don’t know the reasons for them.

“I do not know what anything, including this, means. And so I do not know how to respond to it. And I will not use my own past learning as the light to guide me now.” ACIM text pg. 298

So all of the judgment I do about anything is based on what I believe about it from my past learning.

For example, take a shoe. I tried this example when my DH and I were trying to explain the Course to his daughter and she thought I was crazy, I know. But - what is a shoe? A shoe is a compilation of materials stitched together in a manner that fits onto my foot and keeps my foot dry/warm/uninjured. And I can judge that to be a good thing. But had I never seen a shoe before from the moment I was born, I would not know what it was for. I had to be taught in the past what a shoe was for and that the right size, shape, even color, would be a good thing for me. Yet - what about a shoe on another person’s foot coming at me from behind? Well, I know that would hurt based on previous learning (from my past) and that makes that particular shoe a bad thing. (Because, let’s face it, a bare foot would hardly have the same impact.)

Any judgment that I make is based on my past learning and my perception of what is good or bad. Any judgment the Holy Spirit makes is based on knowledge, not perception. And so - I must relinquish judgment to the Holy Spirit. My wanting to be my own god - the “author of reality” - is what keeps me bound to this world. I am not the author of reality - only God is. I must learn to let it all go.

“Your past is what you have taught yourself. Let it all go. Do not attempt to understand any event or anything or anyone in its ‘light’ for the darkness in which you try to see can only obscure.” ACIM Text pg. 297

When I try to see anyone or anything in its “light” - as I see it in this body, this physical world of perception - I see it in darkness.

This World is the Opposite of Heaven

"For this world is the opposite of heaven, being made to be its opposite, and everything here takes a direction exactly opposite what is true. In heaven, where the meaning of love is known, love is the same as union. Here, where the illusion of love is accepted in love's place, love is perceived as separation and exclusion." ACIM Txt. pg. 341

This world is the opposite of heaven. Everything separate - identities (via the ego), physical forms, opinions, beliefs, skin colors, separation of a baby from its mother at birth, separation of a body from the world and its family at death - all of it is opposite of heaven, because in heaven, all is love, all is union and wholeness, which is the make-up of God.

We live in this world and we react to the multitude of difficulties we think we face here, but in reality, anything of this world is an illusion, one we made up to "hide" from God, to be gods to ourselves. We have buried God and the love and peace and joy we could experience by uniting our minds with His, under a blanket of ego that keeps His face hidden from our view, Yet, by looking on the face of Christ (and using Jesus' face in form if a symbol is needed?), we can come to remember who we truly are and when we remember, we can go home. The way to remember is through forgiveness of everything in this world and forgive our brothers because our brother's actions or inactions or whatever grievances we hold against him, are untrue and never occurred at all.