Ask Jo Williams discussion

Dear Jo,

Loved the book and the "remembering" of how much easier life can be when we take the Freeway! I've been thinking about your statement that all death is a suicide - then does that mean if a person feels he or she has done all they can do here and they want to go back to the Oneness they can make that choice? And that there is (or shouldn't be) any guilt/shame for someone who has chosen an abortion. Many women I know agonize over that decision they made years ago & since it's all a dream it doesn't really matter, does it?

Hi Paula!

Thanks so much for your question. The statement "all death is suicide" is based on ACIM Lesson 152, paragraph one: "No one can suffer loss unless it be his own decision. No one suffers pain except his choice elects this state for him. No one can grieve nor fear nor think him sick unless these are the outcomes that he wants. And no one dies without his own consent."

This position seems extreme and too inclusive to be true. Everything in us resists the idea that our deceased loved ones chose to die--especially when that loved one was a young child. Yet the acceptance of this liberating truth is the beginning of the end of all sorrow and pain and of all illness and death.

Specifically, you asked if suicide is okay if someone "has done all they can do here and they want to go back to the Oneness." First, remember that death is not real. What God made eternal cannot and does not die--except in dreams. So the decision to take one's physical life would never put one at jeopardy of judgment or rejection by God because: 1) God is Love and Love does not judge; and 2) God knows death is not real because He did not create it.

It's important to remember, however, that death does not automatically usher one into the presence of God or Oneness. Only consciousness does that.

My ACIM mentor, Rev. Randolph, used to say, "If Uncle Jack was a one-way jerk on this side, he'll be a one-way jerk on the other side." Again, although passing from the physical plane may give us otherworldly insights--such as recognition of how we have wasted our lives or the realization that we are not our physical bodies--it does not awaken us to the remembrance of our Oneness with God. The only thing that does that is living the one simple law God ordained: Love. This is because when we live in the state of unconditional love, we automatically recognize that this is Who and What we are: Love extending.

The second part of your question is about abortion. I'll take a lot of flack on this response, I'm sure, but once again, I remind you that there is no death. Thou shalt not kill because you cannot kill. I can destroy an embryo, yes, but I cannot destroy the essence of that being because God created that life indestructible. Its form, in the dream we call physical life, can change, can wither and die, but its spiritual substance continues, uninterrupted, for all eternity.

At this point, people often want to remind me that I'd feel differently if it was my own life or the life of a loved one rather than principles I was so seemingly glibly discussing. But here's where faith comes in. Yes, I will be devastated by the loss of a family member. I will miss seeing that person's physical form terribly. At the same time, I know that the spiritual being that inhabited that physical form is alive and well, eternally.

I lost an infant son in 1975. I thought the loss would destroy me. It wasn't until many years later--years steeped in the study of ACIM--that I realized the being I called Kema, my infant son, had voluntarily come into my life and made his exit in order to assist me in my awakening. And since we are all One, I now know that Kema was a part of my One Self, my Higher Self, urging me back to my Reality in God.

Finally, I'd like to comment on your last question "since it's all a dream it doesn't really matter, does it?" Ultimately--on the highest level-- no, nothing in the dream matters because it never really happened. However--and this is a big HOWEVER--Jesus says in ACIM that we are ill-advised to act as though what's happening in the dream doesn't matter. The reason is its in and through the dream that we discover the Atonement--Who and What we are--through love and forgiveness. So it's always advisable to consult Spirit regarding our every decision. When we do that, we can rest assured we have taken the action ordained by Love and moved ourselves closer to remembering the Truth of us. It only takes a second to do this, and it takes the burden off you and places it on the One Who always knows the highest and best for all concerned.

If I sincerely place the decision of whether or not to abort in Spirit's hands and follow His direction, I can rest in faith that both my life and the life within me is blessed and protected and that Spirit will provide whatever is needed to assure that protection. What? Am I saying Spirit might ever possibly direct someone to abort? What blasphemy! But is it? God ordained that the Holy Spirit be able to see both our feverish dreams and our eternal reality. So Spirit both understands our human frailties and our unchangeable Truth. Spirit sees that we are like small children acting out a cops and robbers game. Bang! Bang! You're dead. But when Mom calls us for supper, we get up and brush ourselves off and go home.

The bottom line to remember, Paula, is that God is Love and Love never judges, never condemns. It's also helpful to remember that Jesus tells us in ACIM that we cannot get it wrong. We can delay recalling the Truth indefinitely but not eternally. Because it's God will that we share everything that He is forever. There's no place for us to go and nothing for us to do because, in Reality, we have never left our Home in God.

I hope you have found this answer helpful. If you have further questions, please feel free to post them.

Namaste,
Jo

Hi Jo..Thank you for doing this :-)