Sean Reagan

Cause and effect refer to the influence X has in contributing to the production of Y. In other words, Y is partially dependent on X for its existence.

In the context of separation, we believe that external forces like weather or other people cause us to behave certain ways and feel certain things. This backwards understanding of cause-and-effect is essential for projection’s effectiveness. However, because fear cannot actually be projected – thoughts do not actually travel – the real cause is our mind’s decision to insist on separation rather than atonement, which is its refusal to recognize its own wholeness which in turn reflects its true creativity and decision-making power.

Thus, in A Course in Miracles, “cause and effect” is understood primarily in the context of the mind and its relationship to the external world. “Cause” are thoughts and beliefs held in mind, and “effect” are the experiences and perceptions that arise as a result of those thoughts and beliefs.

This is fundamental to the ACIM teaching that the outer world is a reflection of the inner world of the mind, which itself underscores that the secret to salvation is that we are doing this to ourselves. When we change our thoughts and beliefs, we naturally change their experiences and perceptions as well.

This understanding of “cause and effect” differs from the concept in physics, which is based on the principle that every action or event in the physical world has a cause, and that cause produces a specific effect. In physics, cause and effect relationships are usually described in terms of interactions between particles, forces, and energy, while in ACIM, the relationships are more about the mind and its influence on perception and experience.

The Course is not the only religious tradition which focuses on the mind’s role in shaping reality. For example, in Buddhism, the concept of karma refers to the principle that our intentional actions produce consequences or effects, either in this life or future lives.

More contemporary new age practices – kin to ACIM but not precisely identical – such as Law of Attraction also make a point of emphasizing the role the mind plays in shaping reality. No suggestion is made that those paths and traditions are more helpful or accurate with respect to reality than A Course in Miracles; rather, it is to notice the way in which the fundamental concept is not alien to human experience.

Our goal with respect to this understanding is to shift our focus on the external world as causing our experiences, and recognizing it instead as a kind of mirror which indicates our internal state.

Form and Content are related ideas which together are central to the curriculum of A Course in Miracles. Form is what the body’s eyes recognize. Form is that which we perceive, and which appears to be real.

Yet in truth, form is merely a vehicle for the content, which is always either love or a call for love. In more traditional nondualistic terms, we might say that “form” and “content” address the distinction between the appearance of things (form) and their true essence or meaning (content).

We might think of a book as an example. A lengthy book with hundreds of pages and a blue cover is not in and of itself healing – but the ideas which are reflected in its pages can be.

On this view, “form” refers to the physical or material aspects of the object – the paper, cardboard and ink that comprise the book. “Content” pertains to the underlying spiritual truth – that reality is beyond the physical world. That is the “meaning” of the book; it is the experience of understanding, or knowing, to which the book points.

In the context of ACIM, “content” typically refers to the remembrance of Love and peace (which, collectively, are healing), which are the true essence of reality and cannot actually be contained or held or possessed by form in any way. A Course in Miracles teaches that the transformation of perception reveals reality to us, and in that revelation we are saved. That is what miracles are.

Hinduism – especially Advaita Vedanta, to which the Course owes a nontrivial debt – also considers of reality and illusion along these lines. In Hinduism, “maya” refers to the illusory nature of the physical world that is experienced through our senses, which correlates to the idea of “form” in ACIM. “Brahman,” which is the ultimate reality, transcends the limitations of the physical world and is the true essence of existence, somewhat the way “content” functions in A Course in Miracles.

In both thought systems, reality is understood to be non-dual. Ultimate truth is beyond the reach of the material world.

Thus, confusing form and content is a major focus of correction in the Course. We are apt to take the form for the content, and thus miss the content altogether. Forgiveness is the means by our perception of separation – of duality – is transformed.

For example, we might see a homeless person asking for money. Responding with cash may or may not be called for – that is the level of form. But forgiveness reveals the content, which is seeing the homeless person as our equal, as our own self, and recognizing in them the same cry for love that exists in us.

When we see the content, then our response will be directed by Love because we are no longer insisting on differences. We are no longer relying on our own judgment to establish meaning and a hierarchy of values. Whatever we do will be what is most helpful in the grand plan of salvation, the scope of which is always beyond our limited faculties.

In A Course in Miracles, the body is the apparent physical entity in the world with which we identify. The body is always personal; it is always unique; it is always separate from other bodies.

Thus, the body is a symbol – perhaps the most enduring – of separation itself. Not only are we physically separate – if you jump in the pool, I don’t get wet – but we also have separate interests. You need to heal from alcoholism; I need to heal from growing up in an alcoholic household. You eat meat and I don’t.

These differences are magnified by the body, and their value in our judgment overwhelms our natural capacity for sharing and extending love. In essence, we forget what we are.

When we identify with the body, we basically enter into competition with one another. The world is a symbol of scarcity, and we have to fight each other for its resources. We might enter into temporary alliances but they are always fragile and subject to change.

The body is vulnerable – it is subject to illness, injury and ultimately death. The ego argues the body is our home – it is what we are in truth. Ego’s existence depends on our acceptance of this argument. When we accept it, then we also accept ego’s arguments for how to navigate the world and protect ourselves.

Ego always leads to suffering, neglect and unhappiness. The evidence for this is literally right before our eyes.

In contrast, the Holy Spirit gently reminds us that we are not bodies but minds which cannot be contained in any form whatsoever. Therefore, on the ego’s view, the body leads to fear and conflict, perpetuating separation. But on the Holy Spirit’s view, which reflects the Peace of God, the body is merely a means of communication, through which we might remember our identity in and as Creation, by teaching Creation’s peace to other apparent bodies.

Thus the body, although an illusion, can becomes a site of learning and teaching when seen with Christ’s healed Vision, which is the Holy Spirit’s only teaching goal. We awaken in the body by learning that we are not the body. When we align our thoughts and actions with the Holy Spirit, the Teacher of God, then the body becomes a means of healing, forgiveness and love.

We don’t have to fight the body or fear the body. We don’t have to celebrate or revere it. We simply have to allow it to be and do what it does, and interpret its function solely in light of the Holy Spirit’s guidance and instruction.

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Miracles transcend the body. They are sudden shifts into invisibility, away from the bodily level. That is why they heal (T-1.I.17:1-3).

Miracles are shifts in thought away from fear and towards love. They reinterpret perception in order to reveal the oneness that is our inheritance in and as God’s Creation. Where once we perceived pain and suffering, now we perceive shared innocence and joy. This is the peace and happiness to which our study and practice of A Course in Miracles directs us. We remember who and what we are in truth. This is what healing is.

Another way to understand the miracle is that it is an invitation to give attention to the level of the mind rather than the body. In doing so, we learn that it is only at the level of mind that we are actually creative and capable of healing ourselves and others.

It is your thoughts alone that cause you pain. Nothing external to your mind can hurt or injure you in any way. There is no cause beyond yourself that can reach down and bring oppression (W-pI.190.5:1-3).

These are liberating words but we don’t believe them. Hence the role of the miracle, in preparing our mind for radical acceptance of the causelessness of guilt.

Miracles are shifts of awareness that occur when we align ourselves with the power of Love, which is God, and let go of the limiting beliefs and judgments that keep us beholden to the ego’s perception of the world, which is limiting. There is – thank Christ there is – another way.

The body is a symbol of separation and limitation. When we confuse the body with our own self, then it becomes a source of suffering. Its physical and emotional pain become our pain. However, when we shift our perception to the level of the mind, then we see beyond the limitations of the body and remember the truth of our divine nature which is fundamentally happy and creative. The body becomes a means of communication, a site of learning that we are not bodies, in order that suffering might come to an end.

Thus, miracles are a means of healing because they help us transcend the limitations of the body and connect with our true spiritual identity. We remember ourselves as God created us. By shifting our awareness to the level of the mind, we experience a sense of inner peace, joy, and fulfillment that easily transcends anything we could achieve through physical means alone.

“Invisibility” here simply refers to our willingness to no longer be “blinded” by the world (e.g., W-pI.189.1:2), and instead to rely on our natural Christ vision.

This shift into invisibility means that we see beyond the physical appearances of things and recognize the spiritual essence that underlies them. We see beyond the surface level of the world and perceive the deeper truth of our interconnectedness, our unity with all Creation.

In this way, our new vision allows us to no longer be bound by the limitations of the body and the ego’s arguments about what we are. We remember our Creator, and naturally reclaim the peace, joy and love that are our true nature.