2001/10/12 08:19-Stella Maris Novillo-Fwd: [K-list] Fwd: Terrorist Attacks. Are you really powerless?

To: K-list
Recieved: 2001/10/12 08:19
Subject: Fwd: [K-list] Fwd: Terrorist Attacks. Are you really powerless?
From: Stella Maris Novillo

On 2001/10/12 08:19, Stella Maris Novillo posted thus to the K-list:

I would like to share with all of you this message from Miracle
Communication Center.
Yours, with love.
César.
WHAT IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER?

AN ARAB, AN AMERICAN, OR THE CHRIST?

A CHRISTIAN, A BUDDHIST, A MUSLIM, A HINDU, OR THE CHRIST?

I am writing this on Tuesday, September 18, 2001, one week after the
terrorist hijackers took out the twin towers of the World Trade Center and
crashed a jet into the Pentagon. This time of great devastation and
upheaval is an opportunity to wake up to the Truth of Who You Are.

In Chinese, the character for “crisis” means both
“danger” and “opportunity.” The danger is to rely
on old solutions, old habits of thinking. The opportunity is to learn to
think differently. The danger is to continue projecting images and seeing
the enemy “out there,” becoming increasingly defensive, taking
enormous security precautions against the external enemy, and turning away
from the Truth of Who You Are.

Years ago, the cartoonist had it exactly right in the “Pogo”
cartoon strip: “We have met the enemy, and they is us.”
Exactly how is it that the enemy is us?”

Let me demonstrate exactly how “we are the enemy” by telling a
little story of how I woke up this morning. This story contains everything
about how the mind works. When I first woke up early this morning, I
discovered that I was experiencing deep peace, the peace of God, and I was
grateful. But then a neighbor’s motorcycle varoomed and shattered the
silence and my peace.

Let’s look at that last sentence very carefully. The varoom of the
motorcycle did shatter the silence, but it did not have to shatter my peace.
I only allowed it to shatter my peace because I listened to a voice that
said, “Damn, he’s got a lot of nerve making that much noise so
early in the morning.” In A Course in Miracles, listening to the
wrong voice is called wrong-mindedness.

Wrong-mindedness listens to the ego and makes illlusions, perceiving sin and
justifying anger. A Course in Miracles. Clarification of Terms. 6.1

Experiencing anger and frustration, I was getting the results of my
wrong-minded thinking.

However, when I was still for a moment and remembered to ask for help to
hear the voice of right-mindedness, I experienced, again, the peace of God.

The mind can be right or wrong, depending on the voice to which it listens.
Right-mindedness listens to the Holy Spirit, forgives the world, and
through Christ’s vision sees the real world in its place.
C- 5:1-2

It is always a case of listening to the wrong or right voice, of forgetting
or remembering. When I remember to ask for help, I am choosing again,
letting go of the wrong voice, listening to the right voice, and
experiencing the peace of God. It is that simple.

In the world the only remaining freedom is the freedom of choice, always
between two choices or two voices. C-7:1

That is why Pogo had it right. The enemy is not “out there.”
The enemy is in the mind, is us, a voice within my mind to which I choose to
listen.

Although it happened so fast that I seemed to have no choice, I did have
choice, and I chose to perceive wrongly the noise of the motorcycle,
disregarding the voice for peace.

Perception selects and makes the world you see. It literally picks out as
the mind directs. The still, small Voice for God is not drowned out by all
the ego’s raucous screams and senseless ravings to those who want to
hear It. Perception is a choice and not a fact. But on this choice depends
far more than you may realize as yet. For on the voice you choose to hear,
and on the sights you choose to see, depends entirely your whole belief in
what you are. Perception is a witness but to this, and never to reality.
T-21.V.1:1-11.

When you listen to the right voice, you see with Christ’s vision.

Christ’s vision has one law. It does not look
upon a body, and mistake it for
the Son whom God created. It beholds
a light beyond the body; an idea
beyond what can be touched, a purity
undimmed by errors, pitiful mistakes,
and fearful thoughts of guilt from dreams of sin.
It sees no separation. And it looks
on everyone, on every circumstance,
all happenings and all events, without
the slightest fading of the light it sees.
W-p1.158.7:1-5

When I listen to the right voice, I look out and see with Christ’s
vision,

And it looks on everyone,

yes, even the motorcyclist,

on every circumstance, all happenings and all events,

yes, even the destruction of the twin towers,

without the slightest fading of the light it sees.

In every moment as we walk through this world, we have the opportunity to
practice listening to the right voice, the still, small Voice for God and to
let go of the raucous screams and senseless ravings of the ego.

Here is a scenario to demonstrate how this choice for the right voice plays
out. Let’s say that you and I meet. I have an opportunity to look
with Christ’s vision beyond the appearance of your body and see the
Christ in you.

The Christ in you is very still. He looks on what He loves, and knows it
as Himself. And thus does He rejoice at what He sees, because He knows that
it is one with Him and with His Father. T-24.V.1:1

You have an opportunity to look with Christ’s vision beyond the
appearances of my body and see the Christ in me.

When we look at each other in this full recognition, we nod, slightly, and
say “Namaste,” meaning “the Christ in me greets the Christ
in you.” In this scenario, we are both in our right minds, having
forgiven wrong-minded thinking. This is why in A Course in Miracles, the
emphasis is on learning how to forgive. This is what Jesus means in his
second commandment:

You should love your neighbor as yourself.
Matthew.22:39

It is tempting, however, to be in our wrong minds, listening to the raucous
screams and senseless ravings of the wrong voice. Let’s get right
down to it. If you were to meet Osama bin Laden, could you be still a
moment, ask for help, listen to the right voice, and see the Christ in him
as yourself?

Now I have probably gone too far. If the outrage and anger is welling up in
you because of the reprehensible acts of the terrorists, the drill is to
remember that the anger is coming from a raucous and screaming voice. That
voice is not so. If I had asked you in the beginning to see the Christ in
him as in yourself, you would have found it utterly ridiculous. But now,
perhaps, you can see the reasonableness of knowing that you are the Holy Son
of God, everyone walking this earth is the Holy Son of God, and so is bin
Laden. He is not the enemy. The enemy is the wrong voice in your mind. To
see him differently is always your choice, which voice.

See no one as a body. Greet him as
the Son of God he is, acknowledging
that he is one with you in holiness.
W-p1.158.8:3-4

It is a reclamation project to come to the realization that it is all
happening in your mind. This is the good news. To see exactly how you are
reclaiming the Christ in your mind, we have to start right at the beginning.

In reality, there is only one voice in your mind, the still, small Voice for
God. Listening to this voice is called right-minded thinking. But there
seems to be another voice, the one you made, the raucous screams and
senseless ravings of the ego. Listening to this voice is called
wrong-minded thinking. Since it has no source in Reality, it is not real.
It certainly seems real, seeming to emanate from a self, but there is no
self apart from the Son of God.

The self you made is not the Son of God. Therefore, this self does not
exist at all. And anything it seems to do and think means nothing. It is
neither bad nor good. It is unreal, and nothing more than that. It does
not battle with the Son of God. It does not hurt him, nor attack his peace.
It has not changed creation, nor reduced eternal sinlessness to sin, and
love to hate. What power can this self you made possess, when it would
contradict the Will of God? W-p1.93.5:1-9

It may be helpful to look at your mind, graphically:

God=Mind=Thought

~ split~

Wrong-mindedness Right-mindedness

ego Holy Son of God
world Kingdom of God
dream Reality
projection Extension
illusion Truth
pain Joy
sin Holiness
conflict Peace of God
darkness Light
Nothing unreal exists Nothing real can be threatened

This is a graphic representation of your split mind. It all comes down to
whether you choose to listen to the voice of wrong-mindedness, or to the
voice of right-mindedness. Fortunately, there is a Plan, and you are not
alone in your choosing. The Holy Spirit is the voice of right-mindedness.

The Holy Spirit mediates between
illusions and the truth. Since He must bridge
the gap between reality and dreams,
perception leads to knowledge through the grace
that God has given Him, to be His gift to
everyone who turns to Him for truth.
Across the bridge that He provides are dreams
all carried to the truth, to be dispelled
before the light of knowledge. There are sights
and sounds forever laid aside. And where
they were perceived before, forgiveness has
made possible perception’s tranquil end.
W-p11.7.1:1-5

It is simply a matter of asking the Holy Spirit for help in letting go, or
overlooking, or relinquishing, or forgiving unreal thoughts voiced from
wrong-mindedness and learning to listen to Real Thoughts voiced from
right-mindedness. Real Thoughts flood in to fill the vacancy of unreal
thoughts when you stay fixed on the Truth of Who You Are, the Holy Son of
God.

That is why the entire emphasis in A Course in Miracles is on learning to
forgive. And that is what Jesus means when he says to turn the other cheek.

But I say unto you that you resist not evil:
but whosoever shall smite thee on thy
right cheek, turn to him the other also.
Matthew.5:39

The problem is never external. The problem is always internal, and that is
where the solution lies.

Jesus gives us a special instruction on What is Forgiveness? in His Course
in Miracles. This special instruction is set up in two columns in this
article to demonstrate, graphically, how your mind is split between the two
voices. The left-hand column describes the tempting voice of
wrong-mindedness, the right-hand column is the voice of right-mindedness.
Reading the instruction in this fashion enables you to experience directly
the action of your mind.

What is Forgiveness?

The tempting voice of
Wrong-mindedness Right-mindedness

Forgiveness recognizes what you thought your brother did to you has not
occurred.
It does not pardon sins and make them real. It sees there was no sin. And
in that view are all your sins forgiven.

What is sin, except a false idea
about God’s Son?

Forgiveness merely sees its falsity, and therefore lets it go. What is free
to take its place is now the Will of God.

An unforgiving thought is one
which makes a judgment that it
will not raise to doubt, although
it is not true. The mind is closed,
and will not be released. The thought
protects projection, tightening
its chains, so that distortions are
more veiled and more obscure; less
easily accessible to doubt, and
further kept from reason. What can
come between a fixed projection and
the aim that it has chosen as its
wanted goal?

An unforgiving thought does many
things. In frantic action it pursues
its goal, twisting and overturning
what it sees as interfering with
its chosen path. Distortion is its
purpose, and the means by which
it would accomplish it as well. It
sets about its furious attempts to
smash reality, without concern for
anything that would appear to pose
a contradiction to its point of view.

Forgiveness, on the other hand, is still, and quietly does nothing. It
offends no aspect of reality, nor seeks to twist it to appearances it likes.
It merely looks, and waits, and judges not.

He who would not forgive must
judge, for he must justify his failure
to forgive.

But he who would forgive himself must learn to welcome truth exactly as it
is.

Do nothing, then, and let forgiveness show you what to do, through Him Who
is your Guide, your Savior and Protector, strong in hope, and certain of
your ultimate success. He has forgiven you already, for such is His
function, given Him by God. Now must you share His function, and forgive
whom He has saved, whose sinlessness He sees, and whom He honors as the Son
of God.

There, you just experienced the action of your split mind. In the right
column is the expression of the Truth of love and forgiveness; in the left
column is the temptation of the falsity of fear and judgement. In each
moment the choice is yours. In each moment you have the power to choose.
That is why Jesus says to you:

All power is given unto you
in earth and Heaven. There is nothing that
you cannot do.
W-p1.191.9:1-2

You can now see that you are not being asked to forgive a terrorist outside
of you. This would be impossible. The terrorist is in your mind. You are
being shown that you have the power to ask for help to forgive this internal
terrorist.

A sure way to practice this empowerment is to be grateful. Since
wrong-mindedness can make only unreal thoughts, you can be grateful that the
dream was, in fact, over before it was begun. You are the Holy Son of God
before, during, and after the insane dream of separation. Be grateful that
when you are caught for a moment in the painful dream, there is a way out,
instantaneously. I used the word when because you are in the state of
constant temptation to believe in the dream you made. Constant vigilance is
required to ask for help to wake up from the dream to the Truth of Who You
Are. The Holy Spirit’s function is to undo your meaningless thoughts
the moment you ask for “Help.” Then you find yourself saying,
“Thank You.” Now that’s gratitude.

Or you discover yourself experiencing the peace of God, and you find
yourself saying, “Thank You.”

It is always “Help,” or Thank You.” Notice that you are
simply asking for help to forgive wrong-minded thoughts.

The mind can be right or wrong, depending on the voice to which it listens.
Right-mindedness listens to the Holy Spirit, forgives the world, and through
Christ’s vision sees the real world in its place. C-5:1-2

Since wrong-minded thoughts have no source, they are simply for giving away.

And so again we make the only choice
that ever can be made; we choose between
illusions and the truth, or pain and joy,
or hell and Heaven. Let our gratitude
unto our Teacher fill our hearts, as we
are free to choose our joy instead of pain,
our holiness in place of sin, the peace
of God instead of conflict, and the light
of Heaven for the darkness of the world.
W-pI.190.11.1-2

Go ahead, try it. Read through What is Forgiveness? again, only this
time, when you complete a passage on the right side of the page, say
“Thank You.”

When you finish a passage on the left side, say “Help.”
Here, I will start you out:

What is Forgiveness?

The tempting voice of
Wrong-mindedness Right-mindedness
Forgiveness recognizes what you thought your brother did to you has not
occurred. It does not pardon sins and make them real. It sees there was no
sin. And in that view are all your sins forgiven.

“Thank You.”

What is sin, except a false idea about
God’s Son?

“Help.”

Now go back and read through completely What is Forgiveness? expressing your
gratitude as you experience whole-minded thinking in the right column, and
asking for help as you experience the temptation of wrong-minded thinking in
the left column.
“Thank you.”

Our gratitude will pave the way to Him,
and shorten our learning time by more
than you could ever dream of. Gratitude
goes hand in hand with love, and where one is
the other must be found. For gratitude
is but an aspect of the Love which is
the Source of all creation. God gives thanks
to you, His Son, for being what you are;
His Own completion and the Source of love,
along with Him. Your gratitude to Him
is one with His to you. For love can walk
no road except the way of gratitude,
and thus we go who walk the way to God.
W-p1.195.10:1-6

And now, as we come to the end, let’s look back at the beginning, the
title of this article. What is in your eye, the eye of the beholder, right
now? When you look on your brother, can you look beyond his nationality, or
his religion, to see the Christ in him? Now when you see an image of bin
Laden, can you ask for help to see that he is the Christ? Remember that the
Christ is an active presence in your mind, waiting with infinite patience
only for your recognition. Behold the Christ in you, and you will behold
the Christ in him.

Christ is God’s Son as He created Him.
He is the Self we share, uniting us
with one another, and with God as well.
W-p11.6.1:1-2

Remember, also, that whatever you see, all is well. Even when you are
tempted to see wrong-mindedly, know that it is simply unreal, and know that
you can ask for help to see right-mindedly. You have the power to choose the
Truth. It makes you free from unreal images.

And ye shall know the truth,
and the truth shall make you free.
John.8:32

The images you make cannot prevail
against what God Himself would have you be. Be never fearful of temptation,
then,
but see it as it is; another chance
to choose again, and let Christ’s strength prevail
in every circumstance and every place
you raised an image of yourself before.
T-31.VIII.4:1-2

But what if you still find yourself unable to see beyond the image of bin
Laden?

For what appears to hide the face of Christ
is powerless before His majesty,
and disappears before His holy sight.
The saviors of the world, who see like Him,
are merely those who choose His strength instead
of their own weakness, seen apart from Him.
They will redeem the world, for they are joined
in all the power of the Will of God.
And what they will is only what He wills.
T-31.VIII.4:3-6

Finally, see again in your mind the images of smoke and ashes where the twin
towers once stood and then see all images but disappear
as mists before the sun.

You are as God created you, and so
is every living thing you look upon,
regardless of the image you see.
What you behold as sickness and as pain,
as weakness and as suffering and loss,
is but temptation to perceive yourself
defenseless and in hell. Yield not to this,
and you will see all pain, in every form,
wherever it occurs, but disappear
as mists before the sun. A miracle
has come to heal God’s Son, and close the door
upon his dreams of weakness, opening
the way to his salvation and release.
Choose once again what you would have him be,
remembering that every choice you make
establishes your own identity
as you will see it and believe it is.
T-31.VIII.6:1-5

When my neighbor varoomed his motorcycle into his driveway this afternoon,
I welcomed him home with a smile. “Namaste.”

“Thank You. I am so grateful.”
WHAT IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER?