The problem with ACIM is not just that it provably does not stem from the historical Jesus, but that the impersonating spirit caused Helen Schucman to become psychotic and blaspheme ACIM.  Her funeral eulogizer, a respected psychologist, deems it likely that she was demon-possesssed.  As Jesus said, "By their fruits you will know them."

[heisenberg:] "For example in the New Testament - Matthew 1:2-17 and Luke 3:23-38 both give contradictory genealogies for Joseph Jesus's father."

Two solutions to this problem have been proposed: (1) It is at least possible that Luke's genealogy traces Jesus' ancestry through Mary's lineage since Joseph was not Jesus' biological father.
(2) Luke's genealogy is not a literally exhaustive genealogy, but a theological genealogy that groups Jesus' ancestors in 3 groups of 14 and therefore omits many names. 

One tradition traceable to first-century Palestine claims that Jesus' brothers used His genealogy in their missionary travels in an effort to persuade skeptical Jews that Jesus satisfies the Jewish credential that the Messiah should descend from King David.  If so, Jesus' brothers probably used Matthew's genealogy.

[heisenberg:] "Also According to Matthew, Jesus was born during the reign of Herod the Great (Matthew 2:1). According to Luke, Jesus was born during the first census in Israel, while Quirinius was governor of Syria (Luke 2:2). However, Herod died in March of 4 BC and the census took place in 6 and 7 AD, about 10 years after Herod's death."

Jesus was born in 7 BC. From Egyptian records we know that the Romans conducted a census every 14 years in their empire. This insight suggests an earlier census in 7 BC.  Remarkably, the best candidate for the "Star of Bethlehem" is the triple conjunction of Jupiter, Saturn, and Mars in December of 7 BC.  In Near Eastern astrology, this conjunction meant that a great  world ruler has been born in Palestine.  When a similar conjection occurred 1,500 years later, Jewish astrologers excitedly expected the arrival of their Messiah.  Whether Quirinius could have conducted the earlier census is a difficult question because we know he was a high Roman official in Syria at an earlier time.  In any case, this issue is a mystery, not a contradiction.

Yes, but Dr. Groeschel, a psychologist,  is famous for debunking alleged demonic possession.  His good friend, Helen Schucman, was the exception.  The impersonating spirit that channeled Jesus to her quickly turned her into a depression psychotic who often used unspeakable profanity to blaspheme her own work--ACIM!  One cannot separate the merits of a literary work from the quality of its source!  To protest, "But I found it helpful!" is epistemologically irrelevant and meaningless.

Don 

Maybe she did channel a higher entity, and afterwards remained open and receptive to other entities, which is when the neg came in.  Is there any evidence that the same entity remained with her after the book was channelled?  Or could it have been another one?

Recoverer-

you say that Helen was in a dark depressive state at the end of her life. Wiki states that one year before her death she was diagnosed with advanced pancreatic cancer. My beloved aunt died of pancreatic cancer (its a horrible disease you literally waste away as your body can no longer assimilate food) she was pretty depressed at the end as well. Perhaps she profaned the material because it was kept being brought up when she was feeling rotten and knew she was dying. I'm not seeing this is the definitive reason only an alternative 'naturalistic' explanation.

Dave

If Helen Schuchman was invaded by some other being later on, that would imply that she didn't benefit by being in touch with the being who gave her the words for ACIM.


I Am Dude wrote on Nov 3^rd, 2009 at 6:18pm:

If Helen Schuchman was invaded by some other being later on, that would imply that she didn't benefit by being in touch with the being who gave her the words for ACIM.

Not necessarily - if I eat right and lift weights, I will become stronger than I was before.  Just because I can't lift a truck that drives over me, doesn't mean I didn't benefit from my time with the weight machine.  If I'm sick (say from pancreatic cancer), I won't even be able to lift the weights I could before.

Anyone who's been that sick knows that it has a draining effect on everything - including mental and spiritual resources.  She could have benefited hugely from the contact (and as I said, I know nothing about the book - I'm only arguing the value of the argument), and still, being in a weakened state and/or being hit by a metaphorical (and possibly metaphysical) truck, she could still have been flattened.

Nothing in this life works in a vacuum, and everything is relative.  Very very few of us, as advanced as we might get, will be able to shuck off the designation "mere mortal" while we're encumbered with our physical bodies and our "real life" and upbringing.  Doesn't mean we haven't benefited from something and improved our lot - just that it isn't necessarily enough.

Basically what you're saying is that when one is touched by the spirit of Christ, they become spiritually invincible.  Do you have proof for this or are you just making it up because it sounds nice and fits nicely with your beliefs?

I must admit, I doubt it was Jesus being channelled.  But I just don't see the evidence of the entity being malicious.