... see Lies vs. Truth

Sometimes when thinking about the purpose of lies it makes me wonder why do we lie? Really? And we do it unconsciously too… like when women put on make-up in the morning. Isn’t showing the world a different face than the one you have somewhat of a lie? It seems to be everywhere, even in the Course community. Last year a sad experience around a Course community related event became a difficult forgiveness lesson, further motivating me to inquire.

Early in my studies of the Course I heard about Dr. Ken Wapnick through a member of a study group I was attending at the time. Once I found Ken, I was hooked.

I had never heard anyone speak with more honesty and lack of personal investment on anything, let alone the Course. And I have ve listened to plenty of presenters, having been an avid researcher of metaphysical and spiritual subjects all my life. Most Course teachers cannot abstain from throwing the “I” here and there, as I am doing here. It is always about my experience, my view, my opinion, how I relate to this teaching, etc. But not Ken, he seldom mentions himself in the thousands of pages he has written, and seldom does he make himself the hero of anyone’s movie. The interesting thing is that this makes him even more attractive.

Now, the purpose here is to discuss our deeply rooted need to lie, not a specific teacher of the Course. It’s just that Ken makes a perfect example of a different kind of honesty, one that is very effective and is taught by the Course. In order to undo all the lying that goes on in the world we need to understand where it comes from.

In this world lying is actually a very natural thing. Telling lies is something that is built-in into our nature, the nature of the ego, as long as we do most of our listening from the wrong inner teacher. Lying, or misrepresenting what is, is a built-in mechanism, an intrinsic part of the thought system that rules and perpetuates our world. There is practically nowhere you can look, no advertisement you can hear, no book you can read, that does not contain a lie.

The problem is actually ontological. This world was made as a result of a lie. The world we seem to live in, as the Course says, was not created by God, it was rather made by the ego. This is one of the most basic and core teachings of the Course. The world and everything we seem to see in it, all of it’ was made by the ego and not just for no reason but to serve a specific purpose. Yes there is intent in building it, making it, projecting it, forgetting that we did just that and then seeing it as if for the first time.

Though it makes us somewhat uncomfortable and it is clearly beyond our understanding we, as students of the Course, sometimes quickly settle into the premise that this world is not really there. However, when we do this we stop short of going deeper into the question of why. If we live in a world that isn’t real, not really there, then why do we think it is real? Why do we seem to dwell in it? Why do we prefer that it be real? Why does it make us anxious to accept its unreality? What purpose does an unreal world, accepted as real, serve? And how does this ultimately relate to our basic need to lie?

Are we lying to ourselves then? Yes, of course! Not only do we lie to ourselves on a deep, unconscious, or metaphysical level but this is reinforced by all sorts of lying that goes on at the conscious level. We either tell lies, innocent ones, like when I put on make-up every morning before stepping out of the house, basically changing my face to the world, or when we overlook the lying that goes on in the world, sometimes selectively. We are lied to by politicians at election time, yet we meekly go to the polls and cast our vote for the lesser of two liars, even when the lies are obvious. We are lied to by businesses and we empty our pockets upon their next promotion.

This basic need to lie, and be lied to, is founded on the deep ego premise that in order for there to be a “me,” in order for me to exist, and in order to continue to survive and thrive as a separate organism, there cannot be a God. At least not an all-encompassing non-dualistic One Being of which I am an integral part. In order for me to be here- and I like that- and in order for us to be here- and we like that- there must be a way for there to be many instead of One, or at least two.

But where is the mother lie that births all the children lies? It lies precisely on the idea that God can indeed be undone. In order for me to be here and for us to be here God must die. As impossible and ludicrous as this may sound that is the basic tenet of the ego and of the world, it is the glue that holds the universe neatly in place and an idea that must be perpetuated in order to guarantee its existence. I must convince myself of this on a continual basis in order to experience a separate and individual existence with some consistency.

The only way to convince myself of this total untruth is to tell myself a lie, many lies, and then believe them. It’s not just a thought system it is a lie system. One tiny lie, one “tiny mad idea,” as the Course refers to this big-whopper, snow-balls into a universe of continuous deception from the big-bang to the belief in birth, the belief in death, and everything in between.

Here is an example. I just received in the mail a monthly magazine published by an organization that promotes itself as a Course based organization. The magazine proudly displays advertisements about books and materials they publish, sell, or resale. One ad reads the following, about a version of the Course they are selling, a work-in-progress version before the Course was ever officially published by the Foundation for Inner Peace. The ad reads: “This version derives from a version that was completed by Helen Shucman and Bill Thetford in 1972. Later editing by others removed about %25 of the material…Many students consider study of this unabridged version to be indispensable in their curriculum.”

Upon reading this, an unaware reader may jump on the phone and order the so-called indispensable book. However, one need but do some light research at a couple of web sites or read one or two chapters of a couple of books to find out this is a misrepresentation of the truth. Firstly, this is not an unabridged version of the Course, nor is it the Original Course as it has been dubbed for publication. There were other manuscripts prior to that one. And there was work still left to be done, in order for the document to become what it needed to become in order to serve all of humanity, all inclusively. this particular version is one of several earlier manuscripts, a work-in-progress, of the Course prior to final publication. Second, Helen Schucman was involved in the editing process of the Course right into its publication’s final stages and initial expansion in small groups in which Helen chose not to participate as a teacher, a function she (and Jesus through her) clearly delegated to Dr. Wapnick. But both she and Bill Thetford, her co-scribe, used this final publication, studied it, practiced it, carried it around, and proudly shared it as the definitive work.

It is said that by their fruits we shall know them. Looking at it with the heart it is quite obvious that everyone who was involved in this process was brought into it at the right time, for the right purpose in the role that he or she would fulfill to perfection under Jesus’ Guidance, including the collaboration of Dr. Wapnick with Helen Shucman for stylistic minor edits in the final stages. Edits like punctuation, adding titles and headings, numbering for easy reference across languages like the Bible, moving some of the text around for better readability, and extricating any left-over personal notes between Jesus, Helen, and Bill as deemed appropriate by all of them were necessary in order to bring the contents of the message to its final form.

Helen’s hearing had to be fine-tuned by Jesus Himself in order to arrive at a product that, based on a basic principle of the Course, is equally applicable and can be embraced by the entire Sonship, meaning all of humanity, regardless of culture, language, location, gender, age, etc. A version devoid of personal reference material had to be assembled in order to accomplish this. Specificity is of the ego. Specificity makes specialness, a major no-no in this school. So you see? This was not edited by “others” in absence of Helen and Bill. This is a lie, and it appears in this magazine time and time again, month after month. Its publishers repeat it to people over and over again. One wonders if they even believe it themselves. They probably mean well and this is what they have heard from others, or it may be what they’ve decided to say in order to sell this book and spark interest and therefore more sales. Why is that?

We could find thousands of examples, even within the Course community, of how people use a teaching to lie, deceive, and enrich themselves with material wealth, fame, and fun. But pointing out the faulty behavior in others and dwelling on it only serves one purpose: The ego’s purpose of self-preservation through the enforcement of the rules of separation. There are always others to blame. The misrepresentation of truth above mentioned is a lie that is being told and is spreading among thousands of people. So to those people, it becomes a truth. I am using this as an example of how comfortable we become with lies and how easily we accept them.

The Course’s Manual for Teachers has a section about how to come to God if we follow it in practice. This process results in the manifestation of our Spirit, incipient at first, complete at last, and always paving the way for our return Home. The manifestation is described as a process in which the characteristics, or attributes, of Spirit become freely manifest in the newly born teacher of God, or student of this Course. The first and earliest manifestation or attribute of Spirit listed is Trust. The second one is Honesty, plain and simple honesty. These two are the basis for all the subsequent ones.

In short, being tempted to lie, or being exposed to other people’s lies, is almost unavoidable here in this world, regardless of Course involvement by the perpetrators. The Manual gives us here a good meter for knowing when one is giving in to the temptation to misrepresent the truth and hopefully to know when one is potentially being deceived, brackets are mine:

“The term [Honesty] actually means consistency. There is nothing you say that contradicts what you think or do; no thought opposes any other thought; no act belies your word; and no word lacks agreement with another. Such are the truly honest. At no level are they in conflict with themselves. Therefore it is impossible for them to be in conflict with anyone or anything.” (ACIM M-4.II.1.5).

Based on this description it would seem that we are always lying to ourselves, others, or God. You see? It is not just about what you say. It is not just about what you do. It is not just about what you think. It’s about how all of these are aligned, it is about who you are, consistently. When one sees a Course related organization or teacher engaging in any form of conflict, or even apparent deceit, it is time to do two things: forgive and forgive.

This means it is time to do one thing really: See it as a call for love. This is what the Holy Spirit would have us do with every perceived form of attack. Recognizing a lie simply means that we both have slipped into the temptation to be separate; the attraction that this holds for both of us deep inside.

So, thread lightly, be cautious, don’t get taken-in by the ego’s plan unfolding currently in the barrage of Course-based gurus that are sprouting everywhere in this community. Just DO the Course yourself and follow your Inner Guide. If anyone’s teachings are helpful in this purpose, embrace them. If not, we are better to leave them aside. Either way, it is best to forgive them both because neither is special. There is no lack of forgiveness opportunity in this or any other community. And if you catch yourself telling a white lie, or a major lie, forgive yourself as well. One day day you too, like Pinocchio, will BE the Real Deal, and won’t have to resort to lies to keep this dream alive.