The question of time is clearly the most difficult area to understand in A Course in Miracles. This is so not only because of the subject matter, but because the Course says relatively little about it. As we study the three books, we will often see hints of the theory of time, occasionally a paragraph or two, and rarely, an entire section devoted to its metaphysics. And then the subject is dropped and the reader apparently left hanging in the air. Yet there is one passage in the manual for teachers, which we shall talk about shortly, that very specifically states that to understand the Atonement plan, one must understand the concept of time that the Course sets forth. In other places, however, Jesus says that time is an area that we really cannot understand.

In this book, in order to formulate a coherent presentation, I am going to pull together in three parts the various passages in A Course in Miracles that bear on time. The first part will be a discussion of the origin and metaphysics of time. The second will deal with time and the plan of the Atonement, centering on the role of the miracle and the time collapse it fosters. The third will discuss the end of time, and includes the Course's concepts of the real world, Second Coming, Last Judgment, and finally God's last step.

One final note, this book is not meant for a reader new to A Course in Miracles, as it assumes a certain familiarity with its basic concepts. Those readers interested in learning more about the Course and its scribing may consult A Talk Given on "A Course in Miracles": An Introduction and Forgiveness and Jesus: The Meeting Place of "A Course in Miracles" and Christianity. See Related Material at the end of this book for further information.

Go to Chapter 1: The Metaphysics of Time =>

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