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A Course in Miracles

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A Course in Miracles, (1976) is a three-volume set of books that became a spiritual curriculum for many individuals and study groups. As of 2005, Course remains a cult favorite, retaining a spot above 500 in the Amazon rankings and selling an estimated 1.5 million copies. [1] In 1965, Dr. Helen Schucman ("Schucman"), an associate professor of medical psychology appointed to the faculty of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of the Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center, began to hear the words of what she referred to as "It" or "the Voice." Schucman later identified this voice as "Jesus." In October 1965, Schucman reported that she heard from the Voice the words "This is A Course in Miracles. Please take notes"; Schucman then began to write down what she described as a form of "rapid inner dictation." (Tr. 66,384) Over the next seven years, she filled nearly thirty stenographic notebooks with words she received from the Voice -- words that would ultimately evolve into the Text, Workbook for Students ("Workbook"), and the Manual for Teachers, the three sections of A Course in Miracles. Schucman was a clinical psychologist at Columbia Medical Center in New York City at the time she scribed the Course. Dr. William Thetford ("Thetford") was her superior and colleague. Schucman and Thetford collaborated working in private offices in "an air of secrecy." (Wapnick Tr. 374). Schucman dictated her scribed notes to Thetford, who then typed them. Eventually the manuscript totaled 1,500 pages and was placed into black thesis binders.[2]

Insiders in the world of New Age knew about the existence of the book since 1972, because thousands of copies had been circulating in the United States before its actual publication in 1976. At first no information was available about the source of the text, not within 'The Course' itself, nor within the movement that had come into existence because of it. However, the incrowd knew that the origin of the book lay with a certain Helen Schucman. This fact had been made known in 1984 by a woman named Judith Skutch, one of the driving forces behind the movement 'The Course' had engendered. [3]

Helen Schucman was a clinical psychologist by training (she received a Ph.D. in 1957 from New York University). She claims that from 1965-1972 an inner voice dictated to her the three books that make up ACIM. She was assisted by a colleague, William Thetford (1923-1988). In 1972, another psychologist and his wife, Kenneth and Gloria Wapnick, assisted Schucman with her work. The Wapnicks are the ones who started FACIM.[4]

Lawsuit

The book was published and distributed between 1995 and 2000 by Penguin Books, but this appears to have ended with the dispute over copyright. The 1975 asserted copyright was finally voided in 2003 on the grounds of general distribution prior to obtaining copyright, thus placing it in the public domain. The previously registered Trademark on the acronymn, "ACIM" was cancelled by the US Trademark Office on 10/25/2005 and the previously registered Servicemark on the book title, "A Course in Miracles" was canceled by the US Trademark Office on 8/10/2005.[2]

References

  1. ^ *Garrett, Lynn (7 Mar2005). "'Disappearance' Appears Big Time". Publisher's Weekly. Retrieved 2006-07-18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ a b U.S. District Court Southern District Of New York (24 Oct2003). "Opinion, Case: Civil 4126 (RWS) ruling (#00-07413) summary judgment denied" (PDF). pp. 6–7. Retrieved 2006-07-18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ Harskamp, Anton van (17 Nov2001). "A modern Miracle". Bezinningscentrum Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. Retrieved 2006-07-18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ Carroll, Robert T. (2003). The Skeptic's Dictionary. Hoboken, NJ : Wiley. ISBN 0471272426. Retrieved 2006-07-18.

See also

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