Honesty is the second characteristic in the “What are the Characteristics of God’s Teachers?” section of the Manual for Teachers of A Course in Miracles. In this continuing audio conversation, CA Brooks and Bruce Rawles explore how our consistency in choosing against ego’s insanity provides the impetus for our return home to the unchanging peace we never left. The cognitive dissonance of observing the starkly different quality of the two thought systems (inclusion and exclusion) leads us inexorably to the gentle, kind and guilt-absolving honesty of realizing that the world of separation, substitution and specialness we made up in our feverish dreams has never – and will never – make us happy. In prior related conversations, they talked about the importance of the early and later phases in the development of trust – on another segment of her bi-weekly ACIM internet radio program on 12Radio.
This audio further continues the conversation with CA Brooks on another segment of her bi-weekly ACIM internet radio program on 12Radio . Here is a related excerpt from the section on Honesty:
“All other traits of God’s teachers rest on trust. Once that has been achieved, the others cannot fail to follow. Only the trusting can afford honesty, for only they can see its value. Honesty does not apply only to what you say. The term actually means consistency. There is nothing you say that contradicts what you think or do; no thought opposes any other thought; no act belies your word; and no word lacks agreement with another. Such are the truly honest. At no level are they in conflict with themselves. Therefore it is impossible for them to be in conflict with anyone or anything.
The peace of mind which the advanced teachers of God experience is largely due to their perfect honesty. It is only the wish to deceive that makes for war. No one at one with himself can even conceive of conflict. Conflict is the inevitable result of self-deception, and self-deception is dishonesty. There is no challenge to a teacher of God. Challenge implies doubt, and the trust on which God’s teachers rest secure makes doubt impossible. Therefore they can only succeed. In this, as in all things, they are honest. They can only succeed, because they never do their will alone. They choose for all mankind; for all the world and all things in it; for the unchanging and unchangeable beyond appearances; and for the Son of God and his Creator. How could they not succeed? They choose in perfect honesty, sure of their choice as of themselves.”
– M.4.II.1-2
(This recording was made Sept. 15, 2017.)
