What the holy bigwigs failed to mention: spirituality’s missing ingredient

“Everything is ecstasy, inside. We just don’t know it because of our thinking-minds. But in our true blissful essence everything is alright forever and forever and forever.”—Jack Kerouac

The God most of us believe in is an invention of man, fabricated for the sake of convenience. We accept this human-made God as an indisputable fact. But it makes no sense. If God is love, if God is perfect and if God is all the other beneficent descriptions we ascribe to him, why would he toss anyone into a lion’s den?

And pardon me for being cheeky, but why would anyone in their right mind want to hook up with a capricious and unjust god who gets his jollies from punishing them?

ACIM Lesson 103 is another attempt to set the record straight. It tells us that joy is what we should expect from God. It tells us that perfect happiness is our birthright.

I loved Janet Mitchell’s comment yesterday—here she was having mind-blowing out-of-body-experiences, clairvoyance and psychic ability and the church was schooling her about a puny, punishing God.

How could we have fallen for it?

Far as I’m concerned, one of the best descriptions of the Dude is outrageousness. I mean look at J.C. He was walking on water (when he wasn’t turning it into vino) and he was taking material objects (fish, loaves, etc.) and multiplying them.

That’s pretty outrageous. And that’s what we’re here to do. To be outrageous. Bold. Dazzling.

Dominant paradigms have tried for years to rope us in, to keep us in line. But that’s what we’re undoing with the Course.

What we learned is all backwards. We are not here to play it safe. We are here to be the light. To shine our brilliance. To risk. To love. To spread our joy. Just like Eugene Plushenko:

Pam Grout is the author of 19 books including E-Squared, E-Cubed, Thank & Grow Rich and her new book, Art & Soul,Reloaded: A Year-Long Apprenticeship to Summon the Muses and Ignite Your Daring, Audacious, Creative Side.