The Twenty-First Principle of A Course in Miracles

Miracles are natural signs of forgiveness. Through miracles you accept God’s forgiveness by extending it to others (T-1.I.21:1-2).

Again, the emphasis here is that miracles are natural rather than supernatural. They are not spectacles. They are shifts in our understanding of perception that make us and others happier. This happiness is self-replicating. To be miracle-minded is to accept the Love that God extends throughout Creation, which acceptance naturally extends that Love to all our brothers and sisters. It is the function of Love to extend itself without limit, and it is our function to learn how to no longer be limited.

A miracle is the moment when we translate perception in a way that allows us to see the world, our self, and others correctly – which is to say, in a way that is loving and not fearful. But “loving” does not mean favorable or preferential; rather, it means neutral. Forgiveness is not pardoning somebody for a bad thing they did. Rather, it is not seeing good or bad at all. To see this way is to perceive the other not as a someone in need of correction that we can supply but rather as a friend whose errors are naturally corrected by God in the context of Creation. We need do nothing but not abandon our brother or sister. Indeed, if we understand Creation correctly, then we know that abandonment is not possible.

Thus, when we “forgive” according to A Course in Miracles, we recognize the inherent unity and innocence of all beings, and let go of the illusion of separation (including separate interests). This letting go naturally undoes our personal experiences of guilt and fear. When we forgive, we remember – and agree to not forget again – that our true identity is not defined by ego and its limited perception but by the Holy Spirit, who cannot be limited.

Thus, the miracle effectively opens us to the Love and oneness that are our inheritance as creations of God. This is what the Holy Spirit teaches us, each and every time it translates perception to reveal a world in which we are healers and helpers.

Our brothers and sisters – broadly defined to include maple trees, blue whales and neutrinos – are essential to miracles. We cannot remember our innocence alone, and we cannot remember the innocence of others if we do not remember that God created us innocent. Miracles insist on our interconnectedness in Creation, and they also teach us that this unity is a function of our Creator, who cannot know us as other than unified.

Thus, this principle encourages us to recognize the ego can do nothing but perpetuate the illusion of separation, and therefore calls us to accept only the Holy Spirit’s interpretation of experience. This acceptance is a miracle, because it does not depend on our own judgment and does not feed our grievances. Rather, it sees us the way God sees us, and does not see us the way God could never see us.

You are a perfect creation, and should experience awe only in the Presence of the Creator of perfection. The miracle is therefore a sign of love among equals (T-1.II.3:3-4).

In this way, A Course in Miracles – in both our study and practice, in both theory and application – restores to our shared awareness the truth that our identity is found in unconditional love and self-acceptance. This naturally leads to a deeper and more sustainable peace, one that we can extend to all the world, which naturally extends the range of our shared awakening.