Seminary Program

This is where we post the essays from many of our Universal Life Church Seminary students. When students finish a ULC course, they write a comprehensive essay about their experiences with the course, what they learned, didn't learn, were inspired by, etc. Here are their essays.

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Tuesday, August 22, 2006

A course in Miracles

A Course in Miracles
THE METAPHYSICS OF BECOMING YOUR OWN MIRACLE WORKER
An Online Course By: Reverend Loretta M. Siani, Ph.D.

Carol A. Birdwell, student of ULC Seminary

Love is all there is. Only Love is Real. All else is Illusion. The opposite of Love is Fear.

Hate is caused by Fear. Fear kills. Fear blinds. Fear lies. Fear literally “makes me sick.”


Love is of God. We are made of Love, God’s Perfect Love. Perfect Love casts out Fear.

God is Love. As the Beatles song says, “All You Need is Love.”



In Love we have great Power, all the power of God, all the Power there is anywhere, as the Sons of God. We are co-creators with God. We are part of God.



It is my lifelong job to choose between Fear and Love. I have seen, and lived in, the world of Illusion. This I was taught by almost all of the world around me, and by my parents, from infancy. It is all illusion.



Now I must “choose again”, every day, every moment, for the rest of my life. I must choose Love and thereby be set Free, to live in Perfect Peace.



From the Introduction to this course we have this:

“What is a miracle? A miracle is an event fueled by supernatural power. For the purposes of this course, a miracle occurs whenever you breakthrough any barrier that has prevented you from realizing your full spiritual potential.

In this regard, a miracle occurs when you experience something you previously believed was impossible for you, such as overcoming an incapacitating fear, obsession or addiction; finally finding the work that is right for you; reconciling or attracting a loving relationship; transcending the effects of a debilitating disease or overcoming any inner obstacle that prevents you from being who you really are.

By the end of our journey (the course) … manifesting everyday miracles. Along the way we will discover over and over again that it is false, fear-based thinking that prevents us from accessing miracles. Seeing life through the lens of fear … separates us from our true source of power. …shift from fear-based thinking to love-based thinking and reconnect yourself to your true power source.

The second shift of thinking you must make is from assuming that you are in any way unworthy of partaking of all of the promises of life, into accepting your inherent and complete worthiness and your core magnificence. Littleness cannot come from greatness. And, you have come from greatness. You are indisputably worthy of all of the promises of life.”

I like all that this above says. I want to remember that I come from GREATNESS, and that I am indisputably worthy of all of the promises of life. I do not want to live in fear any more, but to rather live in Love and Purity with God, as part of the Oneness of God and my brothers.

In psychology we learn that the development of an ego is essential for the child, to realize the difference between “me” and “not me”. We cannot develop as healthy people with out this differentiation. The problem enters when we have over-inflated egos or under-inflated egos as opposed to the healthy balanced ego that can remain in Oneness with God and not “buy into The Separation”.

In meditation we learn that we are part of God, still, in the Oneness. That any other besides Oneness is, again, an Illusion. God, my brothers, and I, myself, are all One. There is, in Reality, no Separation. “The Separation” is Illusion.

Whatever I choose to give my attention to grows. If I choose to pay attention to being a victim, I shall be even more of a victim. If I pay attention to Forgiveness, Beauty, and Love, these, too, will grow in my life. Attention is a great power and it is my choice. Again I am free to choose. When I dwell in the Past and problems of the Past, I shall get more problems in the present and the future, just like those of the Past.

What are my Intentions? They, too, hold great power in creating my today and my tomorrow. As I intend, so is it. As I pay attention to, so I get more of. What are my Desires? These all, I must watch and be aware of if I shall choose Freedom, if I choose Miracles.

Another great gift we have been given is that of visualization. ”Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” was said by W. Clement Stone. Another similar quote is by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832), “Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.” There are many other quotes throughout history that speak of the power of visualization. Many athletes and people in various sports and other fields use the power of visualization to become winners in their particular areas.

As Marianne Williamson said in her book, A Return To Love, “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world.”



Yet how many of us choose to “let our Light shine” in this world of Illusion, in the world where we may be hated for shining? Not many of us. We must learn and choose the new ways, and let our Lights shine, not only for ourselves, but for all of our brothers and all of the world, for them to see that it is not only OK to shine, but that it is, indeed, what we were put on this planet to do!



Love and Forgiveness are always the answer, to all problems generated by guilt. I must love and forgive all people, for everything, including myself. We all “do the best we can at any given moment in time”, and “When we know better, we do better.”



I am never a victim. If I feel like I am a victim, then I am not choosing correctly. As a Child of God, I cannot be victimized. It is not possible. I am not limited. As a Child of God, I am unlimited. God cannot be limited. I am part of God. All I must do is see aright, and claim my inheritance.

Acceptance and gratitude are other wonderful gifts for us to use to create a better life for ourselves.



“There is no order of difficulty in Miracles.” states The Course. A Miracle is a Miracle is a Miracle. All Miracles heal. Sickness is not an accident. It is a defense against the Truth. Sickness is caused by guilt and fear. It is a choice. Perfect Health is mine when I am ready to claim it. Perfect health is Peace of Mind; my Inner Peace becomes my Outer Peace in the healing of my body.



“In a Holy Union couples have joint interests. They focus on giving instead of getting.” Most people have unholy unions. Few of us have Holy Unions. It is the Holy Union we want, where we give to each other and live in the present, not in the past. We find Love and Acceptance in each other and offer the best of ourselves.



Whatever my work may be, it is my job to spread Love. Love is why I am on this planet. Love is what I am to do in all things I do.



This essay is already too long, as I have gone on and on with it, so I shall pull it together now to a close. These above are some things I learned in this course. Some of it I already knew, but this course gave me verification and review. I hate to see this wonderful course come to a close as I have greatly enjoyed looking forward to it each of the 20 weeks, and reading the materials for reinforcement.

Thank you.

Carol A. Birdwell


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