[acimlessons_list] WORKBOOK PRACTICE

[Susan Carrier]

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+ COMMENTARIES ON LESSONS FROM THE WORKBOOK OF A COURSE IN MIRACLES
+ by Allen Watson, with Practice Summaries by Robert Perry, 
+ of The Circle of Atonement
+ Visit our website at <http://www.circleofa.com <http://www.circleofa.com/>
>
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 
WORKBOOK PRACTICE - Preliminary Notes on Workbook Practice

To begin with, I'd like to share some thoughts about what Workbook practice
really is, and what it is intended to accomplish.  From my study of the
Course, I believe the Workbook is intended to train us in the formation of a
habit of spiritual practice.  This habititual practice is meant to continue
until we have nearly completed our spiritual journey. Let me try to explain
what I mean by this habit of spiritual practice.

In the Manual for Teachers, Chapter 16, "How Should the Teacher of God Spend
His Day?," the Course discusses what daily practice should be like for those
who have completed the Workbook. This gives a clear picture, then, of the
results of the Workbook's training program, or the kind of daily practice
for which the Workbook is the training program.

The discussion of daily practice in this chapter becomes more understandable
if we set it in the context of the various categories the Course discusses
within its curriculum: 

  *   pupils 
  *   teachers of God 
  *   advanced teachers of God 
  *   teachers of teachers 

We begin as pupils or students, those who have begun to study the Course.
Next, after a certain level of "accomplishment," we become "teachers of
God." What qualifies us as a teacher of God?

A teacher of God is anyone who chooses to be one. His qualifications consist
solely in this; somehow, somewhere he has made a deliberate choice in which
he did not see his interests as apart from someone else's. Once he has done
that, his road is established and his direction is sure....He has entered an
agreement with God even if he does not yet believe in Him. He has become a
bringer of salvation. He has become a teacher of God (M-1.1:1-3, 6-8).

By this definition, all it takes to become a teacher of God is a moment in
which we realize we share common interests with another person. That common
interest must, by implication, be "salvation," because in that moment we
have entered an agreement with God and have become a "bringer of salvation."
Another way of seeing this, perhaps, is that we have experienced a holy
instant, or a moment of true forgiveness.

And yet, in Chapter 16, there seems to be a different set of criteria. The
Manual states clearly: "He cannot claim that title [teacher of God] until he
has gone through the workbook, since we are learning within the framework of
our course" (M-16.3:7). So, although in general a teacher of God can be said
to be anyone who has made a decision that involved common interests with
another, within the framework of the course (that is, within this particular
form of spiritual curriculum) a "teacher of God" is someone who has
completed the Workbook for Students. 

The Course appears to be making a distinction between a teacher of God in
the general sense, and a teacher of God who is sharing with another person
the specific goal of learning the Course. To be a teacher in that special
sense, one needs to complete the Workbook. Since the Workbook in many places
assumes we have studied the Text, we can therefore assume that completing
the Workbook also includes completing the Text. To be a teacher of God in
the framework of the Course, then, means having completed both volumes. It
seems only common sense that one should complete a course--any
course--before claiming to teach it.

I should note, for people unfamiliar with the Course, that it is all right
to do the Workbook before reading all of the Text, if you feel guided to do
that. I would say that the "normal" order would be to read the Text first,
or at least most of it, before doing the Workbook, but that is by no means a
strict rule. If you have been led to begin the Workbook, it isn't necessary
to read all of the Text first. I would recommend beginning to read it as
soon as possible, however.

Beyond the level of "teacher of God" lies "the advanced teacher of God"
(M-16.1:1). That phrase describes someone who is nearing the end of his or
her personal journey, living on the verge of or within the real world--that
is, with spiritually clarified perception of the world--as Jesus lived while
on earth. Every student of the Course is in training to become an advanced
teacher of God; Chapter 4 of the Manual describes the characteristics of an
advanced teacher (M-4:2:2), a list of ten very fundamental character traits,
including trust, honesty, gentleness, patience, and defenselessness. This
chapter also tells of the often long process a person goes through in
developing these characteristics.

And even beyond that exalted level are the "Teachers of teachers"; beings
who have "laid the body down merely to extend their helpfulness to those
remaining behind" and who "retain no trace of worldly limits" while
"remembering their own Identity perfectly"; beings who are "no longer
visible" yet who "appear when and where it is helpful for them to do so"
(M-26.2:1-3; 3:9).

With that understood, let's turn back to Chapter 16. It begins with
describing what the day is like for an advanced teacher of God; to such a
person, the question of how to spend the day "is meaningless." He or she
lives without a program. They keep in constant touch with the Holy Spirit
and are told, moment to moment, what to do (1:1-10). Of course, we all
aspire to such a state, but few, if indeed any, have yet attained it. I
don't know of anyone who has. So the chapter then addresses itself to the
more common level of the less-than-advanced teacher of God, who is still in
the process of developing those ten characteristics. It says:

"But what about those who have not reached his certainty?" (M-16.2:1) And
now the chapter begins to discuss how a teacher of God (as opposed to an
advanced teacher) spends his day. Unlike the advanced teacher, the day for a
teacher of God is not entirely without structure: "They are not yet ready
for such lack of structuring on their own part" (M-16.2:2). What is going to
be described here is the post-Workbook practice, the habit of practice which
the Workbook is designed to teach us. This practice is meant to continue
until we reach the state of advanced teachers of God, where structure
becomes meaningless and we live in a spontaneous partnership with the Holy
Spirit. Even after completing the Workbook, we are not yet ready for
complete lack of structure.

Workbook practice is very structured. Post-workbook practice is loosely
structured. And the practice of an advanced teacher is characterized by lack
of structuring.

The post-Workbook practice, in simple outline, is this: 

   1.Begin the day right, as soon as possible after waking. "As soon as
possible after waking take your quiet time, continuing a minute or two after
you begin to find it difficult" (M-16.4:7). The goal in this time is to
"join with God," and we should spend as long as it takes (the length of time
is not a major concern) until it becomes    difficult (4:4-8). 
   2.Repeat the "same procedures" at night; just before sleeping if possible
(5:1). 
   3.Remember God all through the day (6:1-14). 
   4.Turn to the Holy Spirit with all your problems (7:4-5). 
   5.Respond to all temptations by reminding yourself of the truth (8:1-3;
10:8; 11:9). 

Developing the habit of this five-fold practice is the purpose of the highly
structured practice of the Workbook. The practice given in its lessons
begins very easily, with just a minute or two in the morning. Very quickly,
it introduces the other practices: morning and evening times; hourly
remembrances; frequent reminders between the hours; listening to the Holy
Spirit for guidance; and responding to every temptation with the day's
lesson. The Workbook verbally sounds a trumpet each time it introduces a new
practice. The duration and intensity of these practices steadily increases
as we progress. We meet first one, then another. There will be a brief
period of intense practice, than an easing up, letting us catch our breath,
before the pace picks up again.

If we follow the instructions of the Workbook carefully we will, at the end
of the year, have formed the steady habit of daily practice the Manual
speaks about. If we do not follow the instructions of the Workbook
carefully, and simply "do it" however we feel like doing it, we will not
develop that habit. Habits are formed by disciplined repetition, and no
other way. Therefore, watch, as you read, for both the instructions for
practice and for the passion with which Jesus urges us to really do the
practice. He isn't casual about it at all! He pleads with us; he cajoles us;
he sympathizes with our difficulties but calls us back to a renewed effort
after failure. And at one point in the Introduction he tells us that, "...it
is doing the exercises that will make the goal of the course possible"
(W-IN.1:1-2).

In the Text, in a section talking about daily practice, he says, "The speed
by which it [the goal] can be reached depends on this one thing alone; your
willingness to practice every step" (T-30.Int.1:3).

And in a passage that is reminiscent of a TV pitchman trying to sell us an
amazing slicer/dicer along with a set of knives, he tries to impress on us
the importance and value of the disciplined practice to which he calls us:

Is it not worth five minutes of your time each hour to be able to accept the
happiness that God has given you? Is it not worth five minutes hourly to
recognize your special function here? Is not five minutes but a small
request to make in terms of gaining a reward so great it has no measure? You
have made a thousand losing bargains at the least.

Here is an offer guaranteeing you your full release from pain of every kind,
and joy the world does not contain.

You can exchange a little of your time for peace of mind and certainty of
purpose, with the promise of complete success. And since time has no
meaning, you are being asked for nothing in return for everything. Here is a
bargain that you cannot lose. And what you gain is limitless indeed!
(W-pI.98.5-6)

To me, there is no doubt that the author of the Workbook really desires and
expects us to make every effort to follow his instructions. As he says in
the Workbook's Introduction:

You are merely asked to apply the ideas as you are directed to do. ...It is
their use that will give them meaning to you, and will show you that they
are true (W-pI.In.8:3, 6).

As an aid to those who want to follow the practice of the Workbook, this
book includes with each lesson a condensed summary of the practice
instructions which apply to the day. (Often a set of instructions is given
in one lesson and carries over for several weeks, without being restated
daily.) These summaries were written by Robert Perry.

Now, I'm not saying that everyone who reads the Workbook has to engage in a
disciplined practice of the Workbook. I'm not trying to tell you what you
should do; that is a matter of individual guidance. But I do mean to point
out that, if you want to make the Course your path, these are the
instructions given by the author, and he heavily stresses their importance
within the curriculum he gives us.

I do believe that the Workbook lessons were written in a particular order
for a reason, and that there is an intelligently planned approach in the way
they work cumulatively to transform our thoughts as we study them. Therefore
I always recommend that people do the lessons in order, 1 to 365.
Nevertheless, if the imposition of such minimal "structure" or the
submitting of oneself to this very slight amount of authority raises the
level of fear in us, then a compromise approach, doing it however you
please, may be better.

I believe that the resistance we have to following Jesus's instructions in
the book is nothing more than a manifestation of the basic "authority
problem" that is said, in the Text, to be the root of all "evil." Even so,
doing the lessons out of order, or ignoring the instructions for practice to
do them however we feel comfortable, is certainly better than not doing them
at all! And, if trying to force myself to follow the practice instructions
disturbs me so much it threatens to cause me to stop altogether, then throw
that approach out the window.

And if you find resistance strong and dedication weak, you are not ready. Do
not fight yourself. (T-30.I.1:6, 7).

To summarize: I believe that the instructions in the lessons are very
explicit for a reason. We are meant to follow these instructions to the
letter, as much as we possibly can. We will not be able to do so, especially
in the beginning, but the whole intent of the exercises is to form a habit
of spiritual practice that will endure for a lifetime. You can't do that
without some persistent effort over a long period of time.

The goal is clear, but now you need specific methods for attaining it. The
speed by which it can be reached
depends on this one thing alone; your willingness to practice every step.
Each one will help a little, every time it is attempted. And together will
these steps lead you from dreams of judgment to forgiving dreams and out of
pain and fear....So now, we need to practice them awhile, until they are the
rules by which you live. We seek to make them habits now, so you will have
them ready for whatever need (T-30.In.1:2-5, 7-8). 
 
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+ Commentary by Allen Watson
+ Practice Summary: Robert Perry
+ Available in book format from The Circle
+ of Atonement (Vol. 1 reprint due by end of 2004, write us for info)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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