Basically, somebody says they heard a "voice" speaking to them!
Okay. What better proof do you need?
It has to okay, right?
This is Mysticism.
Somebody writes down some personal philosophy and hangs the authority on God. In this case: Jesus.
Bart Ehrman would call this Forgery:)
If I start hearing voices somebody rush me to a hospital, please!
Guess who helped out the author? Edgar Cayce's son. Read below.
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A Course in Miracles was originally written in a collaborative venture by Schucman and Thetford. In the beginning, the voice (which Schucman claimed to have identified itself earlier to her as Jesus) described them as scribes. [ 2 ]
In 1976, A Course in Miracles was published and distributed as a three-volume set—which had evolved from the original notes—and comprised three books: Text, Workbook for Students, and Manual for Teachers.
During the first 19 years of its circulation, A Course in Miracles was published, printed and distributed directly by the students of the work. In 1995, the printing and distribution of the work was licensed to Penguin Books for five years.
Helen Cohen Schucman
Schucman was a clinical and research psychologist, who held the tenured position of Associate Professor of Medical Psychology at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons at the Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City. During her tenure at Columbia University, Schucman worked with William Thetford, whom she first met in early 1958.
A Course in Miracles (ACIM) was "scribed" by Schucman between 1965 and 1972 through a process of inner dictation. [ 4 ] She experienced the process as one of a distinct and clear dictation from an inner voice, which earlier had identified itself to her as Jesus. [ 5 ] Schucman's scribing of A Course in Miracles began with these words: "This is a course in miracles, please take notes." [ 6 ]
Wouter Hanegraaf distinguishes Shucman's process as a type of channeling that articulates revelation, clarifying that "... in cases of inner dictation in which the medium hears a voice dictating messages, (s)he writes down [these messages] in a fully conscious state." Hanegraaf continues by specifically characterizing Shucman's case as spontaneous channeling, indicating that "...[o]ver the years the voice proved to be remarkably consistent, stopping the dictation when interrupted [by Shucman's daily activities] and continuing at the next opportunity." [ 7 ] Hanegraff also references specific dialogue between Shucman and Thetford citing author Robert Skutch, [ 8 ] among other authors, including Kenneth Wapnick, whom Hanegraaf indicates as a "good" source for complete discussion on this subject.
During this time, Schucman worked in a collaborative venture with William Thetford in scribing A Course In Miracles (ACIM) and also with its initial edits. [ 6 ] The main transcription process took seven years, from 1965 through 1972, during which time she would take down the notes in shorthand, then each day read back these notes to Thetford, who would type them out while she read them. After all the ACIM material had been initially transcribed it was then edited for publication by Schucman and the other two primary editors, Thetford and Kenneth Wapnick.
When Schucman experienced some personal difficulties and hesitance after hearing the voice, Bill Thetford, her work supervisor and friend, contacted Hugh Lynn Cayce (son of the celebrity psychic Edgar Cayce) at his Association for Research and Enlightenment in Virginia Beach, Virginia to seek his advice and counsel. Shucman later met with Cayce before she began to record the Course.
