A Course in Miracles
Chapter 17: Forgiveness and Healing.
Section I: Introduction.
References: First Edition P 337; Sparkly Edition P 400; Third Edition P 351
(January 12, 1967)
17:1 The betrayal of the Son of God lies ONLY in illusions, and ALL his “sins” are but his own imagining. His REALITY is forever sinless. He need not be forgiven, but AWAKENED. In his dreams, he HAS betrayed himself, his brothers, and his God. Yet what is done in dreams, has not been REALLY done. It is impossible to convince the DREAMER that this is so, for dreams are what they are, BECAUSE of their illusion of reality. Only in waking is the full release from them, for only then does it become PERFECTLY apparent that they had NO effect on reality at all, AND DID NOT CHANGE IT. FANTASIES CHANGE REALITY. That is their purpose. They CANNOT do so IN reality, but they CAN do so in the mind that would HAVE REALITY DIFFERENT.
2 It is, then, only your WISH to change reality that is fearful, because, by your wish, you think you have ACCOMPLISHED what you wish. This strange position, in a sense, ACKNOWLEDGES your power, yet by DISTORTING it, and devoting it to “evil”, it also MAKES IT UNREAL. You cannot be faithful to two masters, who ask of you conflicting things. What you use in fantasy, you DENY to truth. But what you GIVE to truth, to use FOR you, is SAFE from fantasy.
