The surface traits of God’s teachers are not at all alike. They do not
look alike to the body’s eyes, they come from vastly different
backgrounds, their experiences of the world vary greatly, and their
superficial “personalities” are quite distinct. Nor at the beginning
stages of their functioning as teachers of God have they as yet acquired
the deeper characteristics that will establish them as what they are.
God gives special gifts to His teachers because they have a special role
in His plan for Atonement. Their specialness is, of course, only
temporary; set in time as a means of leading out of time. These special
gifts, born in the holy relationship toward which the teaching-learning
situation is geared, become characteristic of all teachers of God who
have advanced in their own learning. In this respect they are all alike.
All differences among the Sons of God are temporary. Nevertheless, in
time it can be said that the advanced teachers of God have the following
characteristics:
1. TRUST
This is the foundation on which their ability to fulfill their function
rests. Perception is a result of learning. In fact, perception is
learning, because cause and effect are never separated. The teachers of
God have trust in the world because they have learned it is not governed
by the laws the world made up. It is governed by a Power Which is in
them but not of them. It is this Power that keeps all things safe. It is
through this Power that the teachers of God look on a forgiven world.
When this Power has once been experienced, it is impossible to trust
one’s own petty strength again. Who would attempt to fly with the tiny
wings of a sparrow when the mighty power of an eagle has been given him?
And who would place his faith in the shabby offerings of the ego when
the gifts of God are laid before him? What is it that induces them to
make the shift?
First, they must go through what might be called “a period of undoing.”
This need not be painful, but it usually is so experienced.
It seems as if things are being taken away, and it is rarely understood
initially that their lack of value is merely being recognized. How can
lack of value be perceived unless the perceiver is in a position where
he must see things in a different light? He is not yet at a point at
which he can make the shift entirely internally. And so the plan will
sometimes call for changes in what seem to be external
circumstances. These changes are always helpful. When the teacher of God
has learned that much, he goes on to the second stage.
Next, the teacher of God must go through a “period of sorting-out.” This
is always somewhat difficult because, having learned that the changes in
his life are always helpful, he must now decide all things on the basis
of whether they increase the helpfulness or hamper it. He will find that
many if not most of the things he valued before will merely hinder his
ability to transfer what he has learned to new situations as they arise.
Because he has valued what is really valueless, he will not generalize
the lesson for fear of loss and sacrifice. It takes great learning to
understand that all things, events, encounters and circumstances are
helpful. It is only to the extent to which they are helpful that any
degree of reality should be accorded them in this world of illusion. The
word “value” can apply to nothing else.
The third stage to which the teachers of God must go can be called “a
period of relinquishment.” If this is interpreted as giving up the
desirable, it will engender enormous conflict. Few teachers of God
escape this distress entirely. There is, however, no point in sorting out
the valuable from the valueless unless the next obvious step is taken.
The third step is rarely if ever begun until the second is complete.
Therefore, the period of overlap is apt to be one in which the teacher
of God feels called upon to sacrifice his own best interests on behalf
of truth. He has not realized as yet how wholly impossible such a demand
would be. He can learn this only as he actually does give up the
valueless. Through this he learns that where he anticipated grief he
finds a happy light-heartedness instead; where he thought something was
asked of him he finds a gift bestowed on him.
Now comes a “period of settling down.” This is a quiet time, in which
the teacher of God rests a while in reasonable peace. Now he
consolidates his learning. Now he begins to see the transfer value of
what he has learned. Its potential is literally staggering, and the
teacher of God is now at the point in his progress at which he sees in
it his whole way out. “Give up what you do not want and keep what you
do.” How simple is the obvious! And how easy to do! The teacher of God
needs this period of respite. He has not yet come as far as he
thinks. Yet when he is ready to go on, he goes with mighty companions
beside him. Now he rests a while, and gathers them before going on. He
will not go on from here alone.
The next stage is indeed a “period of unsettling.” Now must the teacher
of God understand that he did not really know what was valuable and what
was valueless. All that he really learned so far was that he did not
want the valueless and that he did want the valuable. Yet his own
sorting-out was meaningless in teaching him the difference. The idea of
sacrifice, so central to his thought system, had made it impossible for
him to judge. He thought he had learned willingness, but now he sees
that he does not know what the willingness is for. And now he must attain
a state that may remain impossible for a long long time. He must learn
to lay all judgement aside and ask only what he really wants in every
circumstance. Were not each step in this direction so heavily reinforced,
it would be hard indeed!
And finally, there is a “period of achievement.” It is here that
learning is consolidated. Now what was seen as merely shadows before
becomes solid gains, to be counted on in all “emergencies” as well as
tranquil times. Indeed, the tranquillity is their result; the outcome of
honest learning, consistency of thought and full transfer. This is the
stage of real peace, for here is Heaven’s state fully reflected. From
here the way to Heaven is open and easy. In fact, it is here. Who would
“go” anywhere, if peace of mind is already complete? And who would seek
to change tranquillity for something more desirable? What could be more
desirable than this?
2. 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 to only
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
themselves.
3. TOLERANCE
God’s teachers do not judge. To judge is to be dishonest, for to judge is
to assume a position you do not have. Judgement without self-deception
is impossible. Judgement implies that you have been deceived in your
brothers. How then could you not have been deceived in yourself?
Judgement implies a lack of trust, and trust remains the bed-rock of the
teacher of God’s whole thought system. Let this be lost and all his
learning goes. Without judgement are all things equally acceptable, for
who could judge otherwise? Without judgement are all men brothers, for
who is there who stands apart? Judgement destroys honesty and shatters
trust. No teacher of God can judge and hope to learn.
4. GENTLENESS
Harm is impossible for God’s teachers. They can neither harm nor be
harmed. Harm is the outcome of judgement. It is the dishonest act that
follows the dishonest thought. It is a verdict of guilt upon a brother
and therefore on one’s self. It is the end of peace and the
denial of learning. It demonstrates the absence of God’s curriculum and
its replacement by insanity. No teacher of God but must learn, – and
fairly early in his training, – that harmfulness completely obliterates
his function from his awareness. It will make him confused, fearful,
angry and suspicious. It will make the Holy Spirit’s lessons impossible
to learn. Nor can God’s Teacher be heard at all except by those who
realize that harm can actually achieve nothing. No gain can come of it.
Therefore God’s teachers are wholly gentle. They need the strength of
gentleness, for it is in this that the function of salvation becomes
easy. To those who would do harm it is impossible. To those to whom harm
has no meaning it is merely natural. What choice but this has meaning to
the sane? Who chooses hell when he perceives a way to Heaven? And who
would choose the weakness that must come from harm in place of the
unfailing, all-encompassing and limitless strength of gentleness? The
might of God’s teachers lies in their gentleness, for they have
understood their evil thoughts came neither from God’s Son nor his
Creator. Thus did they join their thoughts with Him Who is their Source.
And so their will, which always was His Own, is free to be Itself.
5. JOY
Joy is the inevitable result of gentleness. Gentleness means that fear
is now impossible, and what could come to interfere with joy? The open
hands of gentleness are always filled. The gentle have no pain. They
cannot suffer. Why would they not be joyous? They are sure they are
beloved and must be safe. Joy goes with gentleness as surely as grief
attends attack. God’s teachers trust in Him. And they are sure His
Teacher goes before them, making sure no harm can come to them. They
hold His gifts and follow in His way, because God’s Voice directs them
in all things. Joy is their song of thanks. And Christ looks down on
them in thanks as well. His need of them is just as great as theirs of
Him. How joyous it is to share the purpose of salvation!
6. DEFENSELESSNESS
God’s teachers have learned how to be simple. They have no dreams
that need defense against the truth. They do not try to make themselves.
Their joy comes from their understanding Who created them. And does what
God created need defense? No-one can become an advanced teacher of God
until he fully understands that defenses are but the foolish guardians
of mad illusions. The more grotesque the dream, the fiercer and more
powerful its defenses seem to be. Yet when the teacher of God finally
agrees to look past them, he finds nothing was there. Slowly at first he
lets himself be undeceived. But he learns faster as his trust increases.
It is not danger that comes when defenses are laid down. It is safety.
It is peace. It is joy. And it is God.
7. GENEROSITY
The term generosity has special meaning to the teacher of God. It is not
the usual meaning of the word; in fact, it is a meaning that must be
learned and learned very carefully. Like all the other attributes of
God’s teachers, this one rests ultimately on trust, for without trust
no-one can be generous in the true sense. To the world, generosity means
“giving away” in the sense of “giving up.” To the teachers of God, it
means “giving away” in order to keep. This has been emphasized
throughout the text and the workbook, but it is perhaps more alien to
the thinking of the world than many other ideas in our curriculum. Its
greater strangeness lies merely in the obviousness of its reversal of
the world’s thinking. In the clearest way possible and at the simplest
of levels, the word means the exact opposite to the teachers of God and
to the world.
The teacher of God is generous out of self-interest. This does not refer,
however, to the self the world speaks of. The teacher of God does not
want anything he cannot give away, because he realizes it would be
valueless to him by definition. What would he want it for? He could only
lose because of it. He could not gain. Therefore he does not seek what
only he could keep, because that is a guarantee of loss. He does not
want to suffer. Why should he ensure himself pain? But he does want to
keep for himself all things that are of God and therefore for His Son.
These are the things that belong to him. These he can give away in true
generosity, protecting them forever for himself.
8. PATIENCE
Those who are certain of the outcome can afford to wait, and wait
without anxiety. Patience is natural to the teacher of God. All he sees
is certain outcome, at a time perhaps unknown as yet but not in doubt.
The time will be as right as is the answer. And this is true for
everything that happens now or in the future. The past as well held no
mistakes; nothing that did not serve to benefit the world as well as him
to whom it seemed to happen. Perhaps it was not understood at the time.
Even so, the teacher of God is willing to reconsider all his past
decisions if they are causing pain to anyone. Patience is natural to
those who trust. Sure of the ultimate interpretation of all things in
time, no outcome already seen or yet to come can cause them fear.
9. FAITHFULNESS
The extent of the teacher of God’s faithfulness is the measure of his
advancement in the curriculum. Does he still select some aspects of his
life to bring to his learning, while keeping others apart? If so, his
advancement is limited and his trust not yet firmly established.
Faithfulness is the teacher of God’s trust in the Word of God to set all
things right; not some but all. Generally his faithfulness begins by
resting on just some problems, remaining carefully limited for a time.
To give up all problems to one Answer is to reverse the thinking of the
world entirely. And that alone is faithfulness. Nothing but that really
deserves the name. Yet each degree, however small, is worth achieving.
Readiness, as the text notes, is not mastery.
True faithfulness, however, does not deviate. Being consistent it is
wholly honest. Being unswerving it is full of trust. Being based on
fearlessness it is gentle. Being certain it is joyous, and being
confident it is tolerant. Defenselessness attends it naturally, and joy
is its condition. Faithfulness, then, combines in itself the other
attributes of God’s teachers. It implies acceptance of the Word of God
and His definition of His Son. It is to Them that faithfulness in the
true sense is always directed. Toward Them it looks, seeking until it
finds. And having found, it rests in quiet certainty on That alone to
which all faithfulness is due.
10. OPENMINDEDNESS
The centrality of openmindedness, perhaps the last of the attributes the
teacher of God acquires, is easily understood when its relation to
forgiveness is recognized. Openmindedness comes with lack of judgement.
As judgement shuts the mind against God’s Teacher, so openmindedness
invites Him to come in. As condemnation judges the Son of God as evil,
so openmindedness permits him to be judged by the Voice for God on His
behalf. As the projection of guilt upon him would send him to hell, so
openmindedness lets Christ’s image be projected on him. Only the
openminded can be at peace, for they alone see reason for it.
How do the openminded forgive? They have let go all things that would
prevent forgiveness. They have in truth abandoned the world, and let it
be restored to them in newness and in joy so glorious they could never
have conceived of such a change. Nothing is now as it was formerly.
Nothing but sparkles now which seemed so dull and lifeless before. And
above all are all things welcoming, for threat is gone. No clouds remain
to hide the Face of Christ. Now is the goal achieved. Forgiveness is the
final goal of the curriculum. It paves the way for what goes far beyond
all learning. The curriculum makes no effort to exceed its legitimate
goal. Forgiveness is its single aim, at which all learning ultimately
converges. It is indeed enough.
You may have noticed that the list of attributes of God’s teachers does
not include those things which are the Son of God’s inheritance. Terms
like love, sinlessness, perfection, knowledge and eternal truth do not
appear in this context. They would be most inappropriate here. What God
has given is so far beyond our curriculum that learning but disappears
in its presence. Yet while its presence is obscured, the focus properly
belongs on the curriculum. It is the function of God’s teachers to bring
true learning to the world. Properly speaking it is unlearning that they
bring, for that is “true learning” in the world. It is given to the
teachers of God to bring the glad tidings of complete forgiveness to the
world. Blessed indeed are they, for they are the Bringers of salvation.