A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of “A Course in Miracles” (#affiliatelink) is a book by Marianne Williamson. Unsurprisingly, this is a book about love. It talks of miracles and mentions Christ. I was apprehensive at first, thinking that this book would be too far outside my comfort zone. However, I agreed with most of the ideas.
A Course in Miracles
A Return to Love discusses a A Course in Miracles which is a “self-study program of spiritual psychotherapy contained in three books”. I’d never heard of this program before but it seems to offer a definition of what a miracle is that I understand and can get behind.
A miracle is a shift in thinking from what we might have done in the past or should be doing in the future, to what we feel free to do righ here, right now.
A Return to love, Chapter 5
Marianne posits that love is the answer to all problems and this idea intrigues me. She challenges us to live fully, avoiding the fear that tries to hold us back. In particular, love is the answer to both internal and external issues. In fact, she says that self-loathing is the cause of much misbehavior, whether we are being unkind to violent or unkind to ourselves or to others.
The Baha’i Writings and A Return to Love
Let’s look at some of the ideas from various chapters. In general, I found them to be resonant with The Baha’i Writings.
One idea presented in chapter three is that the each person is worthy as soon as he/she is born. We are all worthy by virtue of the fact that God created us. Once we are born, our purpose “is to grow into our perfection”. The Baha’i writings teach that each creature created by God, from the smallest mosquito to the biggest mammal exemplifies the perfection of God. For me, this brings up the question of how do we figure out what our perfection is, the gift that each of us has to offer the world. Marianne would likely say that we can find this out by submitting to God, an easy concept but one that is difficult to put into practice. Here are two quotes that I’d like to reflect on further to consider how to apply them to my life:
“To forgive is merely to remember only the loving thoughts you gave in the past, and those that were given you. All the rest must be forgotten.”
A Course in Miracles as quoted in A Return to Love, Chapter 3
“Our internal state determines our experience of our lives; our experiences do not determine our internal state.”
A Return to Love, Chapter 3
Chapter 6: Relationships
In Chapter 6, Marianne further discusses the idea of perfection:
“People are not perfect—that is, they do not yet express externally their internal perfection. Whether we choose to focus on the guilt in their personality, or the innocence in their soul, is up to us.”
A Return to Love, Chapter 6
Have you ever felt that someone else was judging you? Or have you ever mistreated someone and then felt that they treated you negatively? Williamson captures this idea when she says:
“If we judge another person, then they’ll judge us back—and even if they don’t, we’ll feel like they did!”
A Return to Love, Chapter 6
The quotes taken from chapters 7-9 speak to me. I post them here to provide an opportunity for me to reflect on them. I invite you to do so as well.
Chapter 7: Work
“Our job is to tend to our own growth as people, our grace and integrity and humility”
A Return to Love, Chapter 7
Chapter 8: The Body
“Healing is a return to love. Illness and death are often painful lessons in how much we love, but they are lessons nonetheless.”
A Return to Love, Chapter 8
Chapter 9: Heaven
“The key to happiness is the decision to be happy.”
A Return to Love, Chapter 9
“It is not our arrogance but our humility which teaches us that who we are is good enough, and what we have to say is valid”
A Return to Love, Chapter 9
A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of “A Course in Miracles” (#affiliatelink) reminds us that we can solve many problem with love. If we love ourselves and others, we can find a way to solve problems without using conflict.
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This book changed my life when a friend introduced it to me in college. We listened to the audio version (highly recommend) on a road trip. Later, I bought my own tape and listened to it whenever I needed reminding of A Course in Miracles. I also bought the book, but I enjoy listening it to more which is rare for an avid reader like me.
At this point in my life I needed to do a lot of forgiving and letting go of the past. I’m convinced it helped me to heal and move on. It also opened the door for these kinds of self-development type books. I understand how they are viewed negatively but I believe they’ve helped more than those who don’t want to take a chance and see what it’s about.
I was sure that I replied before, Lani! Any other books that had the same impact for you?