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April-June, 2012

The One About Charity

by Rev. Stephan Mead, O.M.C.

Charity (n.) the act of deciding since you are better than he, you can take pity on him and give him something of yours. (Especially if someone else is watching you.)

I hadn’t really thought too much about charity until participating in Pathways course 920 with Rev. Susan Lewis. As part of the lessons, we were directed to ACIM 2:V, where the concept of charity is presented in a much different light. In this section, I found the sentence, “Charity is a way of looking at another as if he had already gone far beyond his actual accomplishments in time.” Such a profound statement. I had never thought of charity that way. Receiving charity was to be avoided at all costs. In fact, haven’t we been conditioned by books, movies and most of society that “taking charity” is proof that the last part of one’s character has finally been compromised?

Last fall, when I was going through the most challenging financial times in my life, I borrowed money from my family, friends and even my mighty companion Nancy (soon to be Rev. Nancy.) Deep inside I felt so much shame because no matter how I phrased my request for money, I suspected I was really asking for charity and that feeling almost made me ill. The best I could do was to pretend it didn’t really matter if they helped me out or not. They all did help me.

In the same Course section already quoted is another sentence, “This is because healing rests on charity, and charity is a way of perceiving the perfection of another even if you cannot perceive it in yourself.” Another profound statement! My story has been that I do want healing, and if healing does rest on charity, my concept will have to change. Once again I found as soon as I was willing to set aside what I thought I knew, I was open for the miracle that we are promised is our birthright. The section quoted, ends with “…whenever you offer a miracle (charity) to another, you are shortening the suffering of both of you. …This corrects retroactively as well as progressively.” I don’t want anymore suffering; I would be honored to receive your charity and privileged to extend it!

© 2012, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
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