THE CENTRAL THEME in A Course In Miracles is 'forgiveness'. Heaven's Formula is a term we use for forgiveness because it symbolizes Oneness for us. It is the moment in time when the Father and His Son reunite once again. Through forgiveness the belief in sin or, better stated, error dissolves into the no-thingness from which it came and Truth becomes us. As in the story of The Prodigal Son we have returned to our true home in Heaven. This process is quite simple once one remembers who he is. The Course defines forgiveness as a concept for simply forgetting who we believe we are. The concept of forgiveness assists us to forget what never occurred.

The Course says, "...forgiveness is an empty gesture unless it entails correction. Without this it is essentially judgmental, rather than healing." How could forgiveness be considered judgement? The Course explains that the belief that a wrong has been committed, which then requires our forgiveness places us in a position of judgement. Judgement, no matter how justified it may appear, is a 'them versus us' scenario, perpetuating the belief in separation.

In the last line in the Introduction to A Course in Miracles it says, "Nothing real can be threatened. Nothing unreal exists. Herein lies the peace of God." This idea implies that anything, which is not eternal can therefore be threatened so it cannot be real, it is an illusion. We need only ask ourselves, 'what in this world can be threatened' to validate how illusory the world we believe in, really is. The Course uses this mind-set to assist us in correcting error rather than forgiving sin.

How can we apply forgiveness to our life on a daily basis? In the last few years a powerful tool has become mainstream in the spiritual online community. This tool works in perfect tandem with A Course in Miracles for its purpose is to bring us to a place of inner forgiveness, assisting us in 'removing the blocks to love's awareness'. This is the primary intention The Course teaches.

The tool is called Ho'oponopono, which has its origin in the Hawaiian Huna tradition. We feel this tool is the missing link in A Course in Miracles. It's parallel to The Course is mirror-like. The teachers of Ho'oponopono refer to the process as cleaning, which can be done every moment of the day, easily, silently and in harmony with our own personal daily routine.

A long time student of Ho'oponopono and The Course has this to say,

Everything out there is a projection of one's own mind. What we see in another is what we ourselves possess. It is but a reflection of our own mind, so when we work on healing our own mind, things 'out there' change.

The Course says,

...you have used the world to cover your Love, and the deeper you go into the blackness of the ego's foundation, the closer you come to the Love that is hidden there.

Forgiveness is the Course's method of healing the error made by the ego, penetrating and removing the blackness that blocks the Love we are. The Course also defines this healing as Atonement when it says, "Miracles are part of an interlocking chain of forgiveness which, when completed, is the Atonement."

This student goes on to say,

By taking 100% responsibility [for our lives... our world], we accept that we are the sum total of all past thoughts, emotions, deeds and actions in the One Mind. Our present lives and choices reflect this memory bank of the past. We then begin to see how a process of correcting or setting aright can change our lives and the lives of those around us.

This is a powerful idea and if we can get our mind around it we can begin to clean our lives by forgiving all that we think we have done to make our world what it has become. The world we experience, 'that which can be threatened,' is not real. We made it up and we can 'un-make' it through forgiveness/healing/cleaning. This is a wonderful gift and it's the reason why we think of this process as Heaven's Formula. If we use this process it leads us back to a state of Oneness or what Dr. Hew Len, Master Teacher of Ho'Oponopono calls, Zero.

The Course says that '...miracles rearrange perception...' and that '...it is with your thoughts, then, that one must work, if your perception of the world is to be changed.' Healing or 'cleaning' our thoughts changes our perception leading to what the Course calls 'The Real World.' The Course speaks of The Real World as 'The Borderland,' and of which it says, "...The Borderland is of thought that stands between this world and Heaven." It goes on to say, "...This is the borderland between the worlds, the bridge between the past and present... just beyond the gate of Heaven." We are told this is where God takes the final step in our awakening.

If a tool/formula exists which one can employ every moment of the day to lead one to this borderland, who would not use it? Perhaps those who have not yet reached the awareness that they live in a world of their own making, a world that is the product of their beliefs that guarantees a dark for every light and a sorrow for every happiness.

Let's explore this miracle formula/tool. It's incredibly simple and has the 'feel' of an affirmation or a mantra. Here it is in its simplest form:

I'm Sorry! Please forgive me! Thank You! I Love you!

As we repeat this simple statement we are speaking to the One Mind or the Divine, with which we are One. We use this formula/tool for 'cleaning' our thought processes, thereby erasing the errors that made the world we experience. When we do this we are taking full responsibility for all our past thoughts, emotions, deeds and actions in the One Mind.

Currently, the best known example of the power of this formula to remove the blocks to the awareness of the presence of Love within us is through a Master teacher of *Ho'oponopono, **Dr. Hew Len, mentioned earlier. Dr Len, a staff psychologist in the forensic unit for the criminally insane at Hawaii State Hospital, healed an entire ward of the criminally insane in the 4 years he worked there 'without ever seeing a patient,' just by reading their files and using the Ho'oponopono method.

Does this sound unbelievable? It does to most people we talk to. It seems to fly in the face of all we believe is real, doesn't it? Can forgiveness heal without contact with the one who we perceive as needing healing? In the Bible we read that a Centurion said to Jesus, "...just say the word, and my servant will be healed." Luke 7:7. We are also told "...the things which I do [Jesus] he [those who believe] shall do also; and greater things than these he shall do..." John 14:12. Perhaps more than anything else Jesus spoke about was the power of forgiveness to heal.

Dr Len understood that everything in his world is happening in his mind and to 'clean' his own mind is to forgive or heal his world. Can it really be that simple? Yes, the world changes out there as it changes in here, and forgiveness is the formula for achieving this change.

Here are a few expanded ideas about 'cleaning' from one of the Ho'oponopono lists on the Internet:

I am dissolving the limiting programs that I see and feel.

When you say: "I Love You", you are invoking the spirit of Love to heal within you whatever is evoking your outer circumstances.

I love, acknowledge and appreciate everything.

There is nothing external. Everywhere you look you will see what is inside you.

Instead of planning, I'm trusting Divinity.

When you say, "I Love You", you are asking Divinity to cancel the memories in your subconscious mind to Zero; and Zero is Love.

I am 100% responsible.

The Course says, "Prayer is a way of asking for something. It is the medium of miracles. But the only meaningful prayer is for forgiveness, because those who have been forgiven have everything." Through forgiveness we come to an understanding that we already have [are] everything. What could forgiveness be doing except erasing something that is blocking our vision of this Truth?

The Course expands on this when it says, "Once forgiveness has been accepted, prayer in the usual sense becomes utterly meaningless." Prayer - meaningless? In the consciousness of Heaven, prayer is unnecessary because there are no needs or wants of any kind. We already have everything. The Course validates this with, "The prayer for forgiveness is nothing more than a request that you may be able to recognize what you already have."

This means our vision of Truth is restored to us through the miraculous power of forgiveness. Dr. Len says, "Just saying the phrases to anyone, anything or any emotion wakes you up and frees you to just be." It allows what IS to just Be in and through you. Only the Divinity within us knows what is going on within a person and by allowing, we are surrendering to It, so that Its perfect awareness can do the work of 'cleaning.'

In our thirteen years of teaching A Course in Miracles we have not found a more effective and simple tool/formula for 'removing the blocks to the awareness of Love's presence' than,

I am sorry, please forgive me, thank you, "I love you,"

This, to us, is Heaven's Formula.

© John and Ananda McIntosh, 2008

*For more information on Ho'oponopono read "Zero Limits" by Dr. Joe Vitale and Dr. Hew Len.
**Dr. Hew Len has a doctorate from the University of Iowa.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

An epiphany in 1995 awakened Ananda to the teachings of A Course in Miracles. She soon became an Inter-Faith minister, began a worldwide Internet ministry and continually experiences miraculous changes in the many lives she touches, including profound healing stories from working in the Aids community.

John has been a student of spiritual philosophy for over 30 years incorporating it successfully into his career as a senior marketing distributor in the Health and Wellness arena. He has inspired many thousands of people worldwide to be the best they could be through his teachings.

Together they have 10 published books including, The TAO of The Secret and its audio version Attunement to Wealth, Health & Happiness. Ananda & John continue to inspire all they meet through what they term Quantum Miracles. Podcasts and articles related to their teachings can be accessed on their web site: www.QuantumMiracles.com. Write Ananda and John at: QuantumMiracles@aol.com.