A Course in Miracles, or ACIM, is a three-volume spiritual thought system. It consists of a Text, Workbook for Students and a Manual for Teachers. It is a self-study curriculum designed to teach you how to remember God. The course teaches that you are an incredible, sinless creation and provides the means to unlearn what society and religion have taught you under their misdirected thinking. The Course encourages you to be more loving and accepting of yourself and others.
The Course is claimed to have been "scribed" by Helen Schucman through a process of inner dictation, which she identified as coming from Jesus. She was a clinical and research psychologist at Columbia University. Her coscribe on the project was Dr. William Thetford, a tenured associate professor of medical psychology. He held appointments at Washington School of Psychiatry, Cornell University Medical College and the College of Physicians and Surgeons of the Columbia University College of Medicine.
Schucman began dictating in 1965 and completed the Course in September of 1972. She published it in 1976. It was a tremendous success and by the late 1980's the book had reached thousands of study groups around the world.
There are many different editions of the course. The original copyright was granted to the Foundation for Inner Peace (FIP). FIP is currently the sole publisher and maintains the official a course in miracles review. Other versions are published by non-profit organizations. One of these is the Course in Miracles Society (CIMS). CIMS printed a large number of copies before being hit with a temporary restraining order. Several people, including Marianne Williamson and Doreen Virtue, received the first 500 copies. This edition became known as the Hugh Lynn version of A Course in Miracles, later to be called JCIM.
Several people have written books on the Acim Course and it has become an important influence in spiritual communities throughout the country and world. It has also had a major impact on Christian churches, with a number of Evangelical Christians attesting to the benefits of the Course in their lives. The Course is referred to as a non-sectarian spiritual teaching, but it uses distinctively Christian terminology and makes many references to the Bible.
Although the Course is often associated with Christianity, it is clear that the Course does not promote any particular religion. Rather, it emphasizes that God is everywhere and that love is the way to universal peace. It teaches that fear binds the world and forgiving others sets it free. This is the basis of its claim to be a course in miracles. The book is based on the premise that the true nature of God is love. It calls for a return to this love and teaches us that the only way to experience it is to forgive ourselves and others. Forgiveness is the only real remedy for pain, suffering and lack. The Course tells us that the only source of guilt is our belief in separation from God.
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