The Holy Instant: Reflections on the Nature of True Giving

Hello, My name is Rex Kneisley and I have been a student of the “Course in Miracles” for over 30 years now. For those of you who are not aware, “The Course” as I will refer to it from now on, is an inspired text published in the mid-seventies. The Course is many things. It is philosophy. It is spiritual guidance. It is Psychology. It is Poetry. It is a modern message from Jesus of Nazareth for those that choose to treat it as such. But first and foremost, it is a Course. Much like any other Course in say Mathematics, Literature, Economics, Dancing, or even Juggling, the Course in Miracles aims to teach. The reader becomes the student, and the book becomes the teacher. The ultimate aim of the Course, however is to direct us towards a Greater Teacher. The words on the page are read and comprehended. They enter our minds and become thoughts. On a higher level, the process can be thought of in a greater context. God shares his Thoughts with us.
Now you may or may not have heard of the Course in Miracles. I’m sure you have heard of Jesus and I’m also sure you have heard of God. These terms trigger strong emotions and beliefs in most people. I would ask you to lay those reactions aside for the moment. I have come before you to share my experience. Many Christians view the Course as blasphemy. Many Students of the Course say that it is incompatible with Christianity. I see it as blending of the two. Even as Jesus of Nazareth attempted to clarify the tenants of Judaism to his first century audience, so the Course attempts to clarify the tenants of Christianity to a modern audience. Even those people who are familiar with the Course or who consider themselves Students of the Course or even Teachers of God, I invite you to lay aside all of your presuppositions and interpretations.
The Course is divided in to three main sections. Text, Workbook for Students, and Manual for Teachers. I personally focus mostly on the Workbook for Students. That is one of the amazing things about the Course, there really is no right or wrong way to approach the Course. Some people focus on the Text, others on the Manual for Teachers. Some believe that the 365 workbook lessons only need to be done once (the Workbook for Students contains exactly 365 daily lessons and is meant to be studied over the course of a year). I personally have been through the Workbook for Students many times over and continue to practice the daily lessons on a regular basis. It has very specific instructions on what to do, such as repeating certain lessons at the top of every hour (a seemingly impossible task). But, it also cautions you against being too rigid or dogmatic in your approach to the lessons. There is a beautiful passage in Lesson 95 that talks about how to approach your “failures” to adhere to the instructions that the Course lays out. The very core of the Course teachings are succinctly contained in this sort seemingly innocuous “aside”.
There may well be a temptation to regard the day as lost because you have already failed to do what is required. This should, however, merely be recognized as what it is; a refusal to let your mistake be corrected, and an unwillingness to try again. The Holy Spirit is not delayed in His teaching by your mistakes. He can be held back only by your unwillingness to let them go. Let us therefore be determined, particularly for the next week or so, to be willing to forgive ourselves for our lapses in diligence, and our failures to follow the instructions for practicing the day’s idea. This tolerance for weakness will enable us to overlook it, rather than give it power to delay our learning. Work Book Lesson 95 Paragraph 8
Note the beautiful language that the Course employs. You may not believe that the Course is divinely inspired and that is OK. But I do. I do for many reasons. But the beauty of the language used is reason enough. I believe the Course to be one of the finest examples of the use of the English language.
This course has come from him because his words have reached you in a language you can love and understand. Manual for Teachers #23 Paragraph 7

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