Exploring A Course in Miracles
148 episodes - English - Latest episode: 4 days ago -Exploring A Course in Miracles offers in-depth conversations on Course-related topics from Robert and Emily Perry. To learn more about Circle of Atonement offerings for your A Course in Miracles journey, including our Complete and Annotated Edition (CE) of A Course in Miracles and our Course Companions online learning community, please visit www.circleofa.org.
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Episodes
Interview with Foundation for Inner Peace President Tam Morgan (Part 1)
April 26, 2023 12:15 - 52 minutes - 121 MBIn this episode, Robert and Emily interview Tam Morgan, president of the Foundation for Inner Peace (FIP) and daughter of FIP cofounder Judith Skutch-Whitson. Tam’s psychic gifts are what originally inspired her mother’s interest in the paranormal, an interest that ultimately led Judy to publish the original edition of A Course in Miracles with scribes Helen Schucman and Bill Thetford. Tam has led a fascinating and colorful life where, as a teenager, she was able to get to know Bill Thetford...
What A Course in Miracles Can Bring to Political Vision
April 18, 2023 16:27 - 57 minutes - 133 MBDoes A Course in Miracles have anything to say about politics? Some say no—it’s strictly about changing your own mind. Other say yes—it contains a vision for a new world based not on competition and materialism but on love and forgiveness. As a follow-up to the recent episode on Marianne Williamson’s campaign for the US presidency, Emily and Robert share their views on the Course’s relationship to politics. They explore at length four principles from the Course that could form the basis for ...
Marianne Williamson's Presidential Candidacy
April 03, 2023 17:49 - 49 minutes - 116 MBMarianne Williamson is running for president. The person who is probably most associated in the public mind with A Course in Miracles is running for the most powerful office in the world. What should we as Course students think and feel about that? Some believe the Course has nothing to do with politics. But what does the Course itself say? In this episode, Emily and Robert talk about Marianne’s candidacy—what it means for the Course and what it might mean for the country. They talk about...
Blessing as a Spiritual Practice
March 27, 2023 19:14 - 1 hour - 145 MBBlessing is a familiar concept in our culture. We say “bless you” when someone sneezes or offer a blessing before a meal. Blessing has also been part of religion and spirituality for millennia, where it is seen as transferring sacred power to another person. Interestingly, blessing is also an important topic in A Course in Miracles, where it is referred to nearly 300 times. These references are a goldmine of both teaching and practice about this important concept. In this episode, Robert a...
BONUS: Spiritual Bypassing and A Course in Miracles
March 18, 2023 16:53 - 41 minutes - 56.6 MBSpiritual bypassing is defined as using spiritual truth to sidestep the work of facing issues on a personal, interpersonal, or societal level. This is a topic that has been associated with A Course in Miracles due in part to the Course’s core teaching of unconditional forgiveness as well as the teaching that, no matter what we do to each other here - including the worst of what human beings do to one another, we can never make ourselves guilty on the level of spirit. The arguments aro...
What is a Holy Instant?
March 06, 2023 06:39 - 1 hour - 153 MBThe “holy instant” is a lovely term in A Course in Miracles. Who wouldn’t want to experience a holy instant? Yet unclarity abounds regarding this key aspect of the Course’s path. Join Robert and Emily as they cover a wide range of topics regarding the holy instant, including: What is a holy instant? What are the benefits? How do you know if you are having one? What are examples of holy instants? What do we do to have them? What can go wrong in trying to have them? How do they relate to mirac...
81: What is a Holy Instant?
March 06, 2023 06:39 - 1 hour - 153 MBThe “holy instant” is a lovely term in A Course in Miracles. Who wouldn’t want to experience a holy instant? Yet unclarity abounds regarding this key aspect of the Course’s path. Join Robert and Emily as they cover a wide range of topics regarding the holy instant, including: What is a holy instant? What are the benefits? How do you know if you are having one? What are examples of holy instants? What do we do to have them? What can go wrong in trying to have them? How do they relate to mirac...
OPEN-MINDEDNESS 10 Traits of the Spiritually Advanced (Part 6 of 6)
February 27, 2023 14:43 - 58 minutes - 134 MB#spiritualawakening #spiritualpodcasts #spirituality #acourseinmiracles In this episode, Robert and Emily finish their tour through the ten traits of the spiritually advanced from the Manual for Teachers of A Course in Miracles. The final trait is open-mindedness, which the Course says is perhaps the last trait we acquire. That’s because it involves truly opening our minds about who people are. Our judgments have quickly slapped labels on them, but now we leave room to let our inner Teacher ...
PATIENCE & FAITHFULNESS 10 Traits of the Spiritually Advanced (Part 5 of 6)
February 20, 2023 20:20 - 58 minutes - 80.2 MBWe are nearing the end of our tour through the ten traits of the spiritually advanced. This week Robert and Emily talk about patience and faithfulness and, as usual, the Course has unique things to say about both. First, it says that the basis for genuine patience is trust. If we truly trust in the outcome, we can wait with no anxiety whatsoever. In addition, the concept of faithfulness here is not about being faithful to God or others, but about being faithful in applying the Course’s princ...
DEFENSELESSNESS & GENEROSITY 10 Traits of the Spiritually Advanced (Part 4 of 6)
February 13, 2023 17:39 - 55 minutes - 127 MBAs we continue our tour through the 10 traits of the spiritually advanced from the Manual for Teachers of A Course in Miracles, our episode this week centers on defenselessness and generosity. How can we be defenseless in an attacking world? What does the Course say about the kind of generosity required of someone spiritually advanced? Join Robert and Emily for closer look at this very important Course teaching and how to apply it to our lives. The Circle of Atonement is a nonprofit shari...
GENTLENESS & JOY: 10 traits of the spiritually advanced (part 3 of 6)
February 06, 2023 11:40 - 55 minutes - 126 MBIn this episode we cover the fourth and fifth characteristics of the spiritually advanced: gentleness and joy. However much we may admire gentleness, we worry that in a stubborn world it’s simply too weak to get the job done. But could it be that we have underestimated what the Course calls the “limitless the strength of gentleness”? Gentleness is so strong, says the Course, that it can grant us joy. Not as a fleeting emotion, but as a constant state, so constant that it’s one of our charact...
GENTLENESS & JOY: 10 Traits of the Spiritually Advanced (part 3 of 6)
February 06, 2023 11:40 - 55 minutes - 126 MBIn this episode we cover the fourth and fifth characteristics of the spiritually advanced: gentleness and joy. However much we may admire gentleness, we worry that in a stubborn world it’s simply too weak to get the job done. But could it be that we have underestimated what the Course calls the “limitless the strength of gentleness”? Gentleness is so strong, says the Course, that it can grant us joy. Not as a fleeting emotion, but as a constant state, so constant that it’s one of our charact...
HONESTY & TOLERANCE: 10 Traits of the Spiritually Advanced (Part 2 of 6) - Exploring A Course in Miracles
January 31, 2023 09:21 - 49 minutes - 113 MBThis episode of Exploring A Course in Miracles covers honesty and tolerance, the second and third characteristics of the spiritually advanced in the Manual for Teachers. Perhaps we see these as beginner traits, far below the spiritual heights, but the Course grants them a much loftier significance. It speaks of an extreme form of honesty, which it calls “perfect honesty” and which we might call ultra-integrity. Likewise, it speaks of an extreme kind of tolerance, in which we are so tolerant ...
HONESTY & TOLERANCE: 10 Traits of the Spiritually Advanced (Part 2 of 6)
January 31, 2023 09:21 - 49 minutes - 113 MBThis episode of Exploring A Course in Miracles covers honesty and tolerance, the second and third characteristics of the spiritually advanced in the Manual for Teachers. Perhaps we see these as beginner traits, far below the spiritual heights, but the Course grants them a much loftier significance. It speaks of an extreme form of honesty, which it calls “perfect honesty” and which we might call ultra-integrity. Likewise, it speaks of an extreme kind of tolerance, in which we are so tolerant ...
TRUST: 10 Traits of the Spiritually Advanced (Part 1 of 6)
January 23, 2023 22:41 - 49 minutes - 121 MBWith this podcast we are embarking on a six-episode series, something we haven’t done before. The series is on the remarkable section in the Course on “What Are the Characteristics of God’s Teachers?” This section lays out ten character traits of the spiritual advanced. What kind of person are we aiming to become on the spiritual path? What kind of character will have as we near the end? That is what this series will attempt to answer. In this episode, we introduce the series and dive int...
What A Course In Miracles Says About Goals
January 16, 2023 18:29 - 56 minutes - 52.3 MBWe often think of goals as being out of keeping with spiritual awakening. A Course in Miracles, however, believes in the importance of goals. It encourages the same kind of goal-directed behavior that an Olympic athlete might use, except that now we set and pursue spiritual goals, rather than material ones. The reason is simple: Reaching any sort of destination is a function of how much energy you consistently put in its direction. And that is what goals are about: deciding you want...
The Case For Life After Death With Jeffrey Mishlove
December 12, 2022 17:25 - 40 minutes - 37.3 MBThis podcast episode features Jeffrey Mishlove, Ph.D., the first-prize winner of the Bigelow Institute contest for essays on the evidence for survival of physical death. He was the host of the long-running PBS series Thinking Allowed, and is currently the host of the YouTube series New Thinking Allowed. Circle founder Robert Perry and executive director Emily Bennington talk with Jeffrey about evidence for life after death and for the spiritual nature of reality, and what this means for ...
What We’ve Learned About Holy Relationship in A Course In Miracles
November 28, 2022 15:11 - 57 minutes - 53.1 MBWe hope you will join in for a conversation that is more personal than usual to learn practices that will benefit your own relationships. Holy relationships are a bit of a mystery. What makes them work? What throws them off track? In this podcast, Circle founder Robert Perry and executive director Emily Bennington will share what they are learning within their own holy relationship. In particular, they will describe what they call the “three legs of the stool,” each of which is crucial...
Part 2 - Manifesting & ACIM: Does God Supply Our Material Needs?
November 21, 2022 15:12 - 57 minutes - 53.2 MBWouldn’t we all love to have our material needs effortlessly supplied by God? What does the Course say about this idea? In the second of our 2-part series on “Manifesting and A Course in Miracles,” Robert and Emily discuss places in the Course that address trusting God with the physical journey of our lives which includes our finances, possessions, and circumstances.
Part 1: Manifesting and A Course In Miracles
November 07, 2022 17:59 - 53 minutes - 49.3 MBOne of the most influential spiritual teachings of our time is that our thoughts create our reality and that we can use our thoughts to manifest the things we desire. We do this by employing “the law of attraction.” Does A Course in Miracles teach anything like this? Does the Course address it? And, apart from manifesting, does the Course ever say that through our use of spiritual means our material needs can be effortlessly met? Join Circle founder Robert Perry and executive directo...
The Insanity of Being Well Adjusted to an Insane Society
October 24, 2022 16:02 - 50 minutes - 116 MBWe consider being well-adjusted to be the epitome of mental health. But what if we are adjusting to an insane world? Could we be like good cult members who learn to blend right in with the craziness around them? What is the origin of our obsession with adjustment? Listen as Robert and Emily discuss the true results of adjusting to insanity and what A Course in Miracles recommends as our way out.
The Insanity of Being Well Adjusted to Society
October 24, 2022 16:02 - 50 minutes - 116 MBWe consider being well-adjusted to be the epitome of mental health. But what if we are adjusting to an insane world? Could we be like good cult members who learn to blend right in with the craziness around them? What is the origin of our obsession with adjustment? Listen as Robert and Emily discuss the true results of adjusting to insanity and what A Course in Miracles recommends as our way out.
BONUS: Living Jesus' Love Ethic
October 12, 2022 19:59 - 19 minutes - 26.6 MBIn this bonus episode, Circle of Atonement executive director Emily Bennington shares how Jesus' original message changed our world and asks, "Are we willing to make our lives, even in their most ordinary details, a witness to our care for others? Can we truly reorient ourselves towards living his love ethic?"
The Way Out of Fear with A Course In Miracles
October 10, 2022 15:33 - 50 minutes - 46.9 MBFear is an emotion that undermines all of us, draining our strength and ruining our peace. Thank goodness, then, A Course in Miracles contains extensive teaching on fear—on its cause and its solution. We tend to believe that fear is caused directly in us by outside events, and that the only way to dispel it is to master our fear and assert our power. But there's another way. The Course teaches that our fear is entirely caused from within, by how we choose to think. Listen to Circle o...
The Golden Rule in A Course In Miracles
September 26, 2022 14:41 - 52 minutes - 48.2 MBThe Golden Rule (e.g. "do unto others as you would have them do unto you") is found in all the world’s great religions. The language used may be different, but the wisdom behind it is the same. Accordingly, it's safe to say there is something about The Golden Rule that has commanded humanity’s universal respect. But does it have a place in A Course in Miracles? Indeed, the Course does contain a whole teaching about the Golden Rule. Listen now to this conversation between Robert and Emi...
Which Journey Are You On? Physical or Spiritual?
September 19, 2022 16:29 - 41 minutes - 38.7 MBWe see ourselves, quite naturally, as being on a physical journey in which we are constantly trying to control our external circumstances in order to erect a good life. But while we are engrossed in that project, we are simultaneously on another journey, a spiritual journey. In this podcast, Circle founder Robert Perry and executive director Emily Bennington discuss the relationship between these two journeys, as well as which is the real one of our lives.
What Does A Course In Miracles Say About Prayer?
September 12, 2022 17:23 - 1 hour - 57.1 MBThere is no more basic and universal response to the Divine than prayer. Yet we all have questions about how to do it. Whom do we pray to? What do we pray for? How can we pray most effectively? These questions can be especially confusing for students of A Course in Miracles, who often wonder if we should pray at all. Yet there is no mystery about any of these questions in the Course itself. The Course contains extensive instruction on prayer, roughly 200 references to prayer,...
BONUS EPISODE: Fumbling Jesus' Legacy: We Can't Let It Happen Again
September 05, 2022 13:34 - 20 minutes - 19 MBAuthor's Note: "This is an edited version of a very long email I sent to the Circle board on January 30, 2002. I had recently discovered the guidance Helen received on December 31, 1975, in which Jesus spoke of the Course growing 'from infancy into a helper of the world.' This guidance electrified me because it so closely mirrored long-time guidance and thoughts of my own about the Course’s purpose in the world. And since my guidance and thoughts were also about the Circle’s role, I felt ...
What A Course In Miracles Offers to Christians Leaving the Church
August 29, 2022 13:40 - 1 hour - 69 MBMillions of people are streaming out of the Christian church these days. Most of them are unaware that A Course in Miracles may be the perfect landing spot for them. The Course was intentionally written to those who were rooted in the Christian tradition yet also need healing from it. It brings to the foreground all that we loved about Jesus and Christianity, but that was buried beneath so much that was confusing, divisive, and hurtful. Join Circle founder Robert Perry and executive di...
What Does the Course Say About Oneness?
August 22, 2022 18:05 - 1 hour - 58.1 MBA Course in Miracles says that Heaven is “merely an awareness of perfect oneness.” Yet it also talks about God, Christ, Sons of God, our creations, the Holy Spirit, and angels all being within that oneness. So how do we resolve that? Are those names just different ways of talking about the oneness? Or are there distinct beings within the oneness? And if there are, is it still “perfect oneness”? If you want to learn more about the Course's teaching on oneness (including how it does ...
Is God in Nature? Spirituality of Nature, Plants and Animals
August 09, 2022 16:31 - 54 minutes - 50.9 MBMany students ask us what A Course in Miracles has to say about plants and animals? If the world around us is an illusion, what does that mean for nature? Should we just ignore it? We usually assume that humans have great worth and intelligence, but we don’t tend to grant that same assumption to plants and animals. In light of this, when the Course talks about animals, plants, and even grains of sand and waves on the ocean, it offers us a surprisingly different perspective. In this f...
Roger Walsh on A Course in Miracles and the World's Great Spiritual Traditions
August 01, 2022 20:36 - 1 hour - 85.8 MBRoger Walsh, professor of psychiatry and religious studies at University of California at Irvine, has been with the Course from nearly the beginning and has practiced the Course on a daily basis for decades. He brings a breadth of learning into how the Course relates to the world’s great spiritual traditions as well as the unique contributions it offers. His interests focus on topics such as exceptional psychological health and wellbeing, practices to cultivate them such as meditation, y...
What is Leadership? Definition from a Spiritual Point of View
July 25, 2022 21:46 - 51 minutes - 47.7 MBThis is a time in which good leaders are desperately needed, and our collective ideas about leadership are changing dramatically. In this heartfelt discussion, Emily Bennington and Robert Perry discuss what ACIM has to say about leadership, and asks how we can be the kind of leaders it is asking us to be - in our lives and in the world. They also invite us to question the influence we have over others, whether or not we consider ourselves to be “leaders” in a formal sense.
What is the Holy Spirit?
July 18, 2022 16:19 - 1 hour - 70.2 MBIf you're a Course student, you've likely approached the Holy Spirit many more times than you have approached a conversation with God. "Ask the Holy Spirit." "Turn it over to the Holy Spirit." These are such common phrases in practice, but we still see a lot of confusion around who and what He (Holy Spirit) is. In this episode of Exploring A Course In Miracles, Robert Perry and Emily Bennington discuss the basic questions to help viewers gain a more complete understanding of the Holy ...
INTERVIEW: Dr. Sharon Hewitt Rawlette - Evidence for Spiritual Truth
July 11, 2022 16:34 - 1 hour - 67.7 MBA Course in Miracles is a very practical path, but its practicality rests on some extremely unconventional views about the nature of reality. Is there evidence for those views? That is what we discuss with philosopher and writer Sharon Hewitt Rawlette. Sharon is a recent prize winner in the Bigelow Institute contest for essays on the evidence for life after death. In this conversation, Circle founder Robert Perry and executive director Emily Bennington ask Sharon about evidence for the...
What is the Real World? Spiritual and Metaphysical Understanding
June 27, 2022 12:59 - 54 minutes - 50.4 MBPerhaps we remember our parents saying, “Wait till you get out into the real world!” We know that world, where life is a struggle because no one gives you a break. But according to A Course in Miracles, that’s the illusion, and we can look past that illusion “into beauty that will enchant you, and will never cease to cause you wonderment at its perfection.” That, says the Course, is the real world. What is it? How can we see it? Join Circle founder Robert Perry and executive director Emi...
Shadow Figures
June 21, 2022 19:07 - 1 hour - 55.6 MB"Shadow figures” is the term A Course in Miracles uses for the images we carry of people from our past who didn’t give us the love we craved. These “ghosts” haunt our present. We project them onto individuals in the present, so that we relate to those present individuals as if they were the ghosts from the past. No wonder our relationships don’t work! Join Circle Teachers Robert Perry and Emily Bennington as they discuss shadow figures, how they guide our search for love, as well as the co...
Cult of Self: Living in the Age of Narcissism
June 13, 2022 19:34 - 1 hour - 58.1 MBWe have witnessed an unprecedented focus on the self for the past few decades. This focus has permeated society, mainstream spirituality, and the ACIM community. Circle founder Robert Perry and executive director Emily Bennington call this “the cult of self” and in this podcast episode, they explored what it is, its effects, how we can spot it, and what we can do to resist its lure.
The Pull of God
June 01, 2022 15:53 - 44 minutes - 61.6 MBIn the old days, it was “a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” Now, we just worry that it’s unsatisfying. A Course in Miracles teaches that it is neither. The Course says that at the foundation of our being we feel an irresistible attraction to God, which it calls “the pull of God.” Join Robert Perry and Emily Bennington for a lively discussion of this important but little-known teaching.
Is Belief in God Necessary?
May 16, 2022 13:49 - 53 minutes - 72.9 MB“God” is a word that appears throughout the pages of A Course in Miracles. But how important is it for us to believe in God? Do we have any real evidence that God exists? Is belief in God necessary for making progress on the spiritual journey? In this episode of Exploring A Course in Miracles, Circle founder Robert Perry and executive director Emily Bennington discuss these questions as well as what the Course has to say about the nature of God, how He loves us, why the Course isn't strictly...
BONUS: What is the Story Project?
May 09, 2022 16:25 - 54 minutes - 74.4 MBThe Circle Story Project is a collection of real-life stories that exemplify Course principles, ranging from profound experiences and unusual phenomena to more everyday inner shifts. In this bonus episode of Exploring A Course in Miracles, Circle founder Robert Perry and executive director Emily Bennington talk with Story Project leader Sue Pearson and editor James Gregory about how the Story Project was formed, how to make a submission, and how stories can be used to share the Course with...
How to Rise Above Our Anger
April 27, 2022 14:38 - 1 hour - 95.4 MBWhat is anger? What causes it? How can we be relieved of it? Is it a force of its own that we can either bottle up or let flow through us? Or is it the result of something we ourselves are freely doing? For answers to these questions and more, you are invited to join Robert Perry and Emily Bennington for an in-depth look at anger as it is discussed in A Course in Miracles.
BONUS: Interview with Katherine Woodward Thomas
April 07, 2022 14:13 - 58 minutes - 86.6 MBKatherine Woodward Thomas is the New York Times-bestselling author of Conscious Uncoupling and Calling in the One. Katherine is also a licensed marriage and family therapist and a teacher to students all around the world who want to learn about ending or beginning a significant relationship with love at the center. In this interview, Circle of Atonement Executive Director Emily Bennington interviews Katherine on the overlap between her work and A Course in Miracles.
Holy Week Preview
March 25, 2022 14:09 - 49 minutes - 44.7 MBThe time between Palm Sunday and Easter is widely known as ‘Holy Week’. For many raised in Christian traditions, this has been a sacred week which is rich in ritual, meaning, and emotion, all of it building up to the joy of Easter. Course students from other traditions may not have any associations with Holy Week at all. Regardless of your background, wouldn’t it be wonderful to celebrate Holy Week under the umbrella of A Course in Miracles? In this episode of Exploring A Course in Miracles,...
Where is the Feminine in ACIM?
March 07, 2022 15:22 - 55 minutes - 75.8 MBCourse students have long struggled with the fact that the feminine seems entirely absent from the pages of A Course in Miracles. God is “Father.” The Holy Spirit is referred to as “Him.” We are all called “Sons.” Other people are called “brothers.” In this podcast episode, Circle founder Robert Perry and executive director Emily Bennington speak about what this means while also highlighting examples of where the feminine does appear in the Course. You can register to watch these podcast r...
Was Helen's Editing Guided?
February 28, 2022 15:31 - 59 minutes - 87.8 MBAs the Course community has become aware that far more editing was done in the Course than was previously known, the idea has grown up that all of this editing—done primarily by Helen Schucman—was guided. In other words, just as the dictation was from Jesus, the editing was too. That’s a comforting idea, but we don’t have to speculate about this. We can see literally thousands of editing decisions that Helen made. What story do those decisions tell us? In this podcast episode, Circle found...
What Does the Course Say about Boundaries?
January 04, 2022 15:08 - 1 hour - 83.5 MBWe all know healthy boundaries are important. Long before boundaries were celebrated as an essential part of self-care, Robert Frost wrote, “Good fences make good neighbors.” And yet, as Course students, the topic of boundaries brings up many significant questions: How do we reconcile boundaries with the spiritual teaching that we ultimately have no boundaries, that the lines between us are a fiction of the mind? When does an emphasis on setting boundaries get in the way of the supreme value...
The Course's Christmas Story
December 14, 2021 18:10 - 1 hour - 55.9 MBWe often think of Christmas as the celebration of Jesus' birth in the world. The Course has its own take, however, one that celebrates a holy birth within all of us. In this episode of Exploring A Course in Miracles, Circle of Atonement founder Robert Perry and executive director Emily Bennington share an encapsulation of the Course's Christmas teachings and how we can all apply them to our lives. To listen to other Exploring A Course in Miracles podcasts, visit circleofa.org/podcast.
Today Let Us Be Thankful
November 30, 2021 18:42 - 1 hour - 90.6 MBA Course in Miracles contains 325 references to gratitude and thanks. Circle founder Robert Perry has compiled these references, pulled out the main themes and what we are left with is a truly unique and loving approach to practicing gratitude. In this episode of Exploring a Course in Miracles, Robert and Executive Director Emily Bennington take a closer look at these teachings that offer us practical guidance on what the Course says it really means to be grateful. NOTE: Exploring A Cour...
Our Vision for the Circle and for A Course in Miracles
November 16, 2021 14:58 - 59 minutes - 88.9 MBWhen it comes to spirituality, so much of the focus is on how we ourselves can benefit. Does this practice bring us peace, are we feeling healthier and more motivated, etc. As students of A Course in Miracles, we all have personal goals we hope to achieve through this path, but have we ever stopped to consider what the Course’s goals may be? Have we ever wondered whether the Course itself has a purpose to achieve in the world and how we can help it get there? At the Circle of Atonement, ...