Kenneth Wapnick

Kenneth Wapnick

Kenneth Wapnick (born February 22, 1942 in Brooklyn , New York , † December 27, 2013 in Temecula , California ), was an American psychologist, psychotherapist, author and teacher. He was a world-renowned expert and teacher of the spiritual textbook A Course in Miracles . His books, articles and seminars are fundamental to a thorough understanding of the course's thought system.

Wapnick was a close friend of Helen Schucman and William Thetford , who recorded A Course in Miracles , and was instrumental in publishing the course.

Major works are The Message from A Course in Miracles (1997), Helen Schucman's biography Jenseits der Glückseligkeit (1991) and Love Does Not Condemn: the World, the Flesh, and the Devil According to Platonism, Christianity, Gnosticism, and A Course in Miracles (1989).

Together with his wife Gloria headed Wapnick the "Foundation for A Course in Miracles " (Foundation for A Course in Miracles ), an academy and conference center in Temecula , California . He was a board member of the Foundation for Inner Peace, the editor of the original American edition, A Course in Miracles .

Life

Kenneth Wapnick attended Jewish elementary school, even though his parents were not strictly religious, and then moved to high school. There he began to be interested in Freud and music, especially Beethoven and Mozart . After graduating from high school, he studied clinical psychology . Following his interest in the spiritual dimension of human experience, he did his doctorate on the Spanish mystic Teresa von Ávila under the title "The Psychology of the Mystical Experience" and received his doctorate in 1968.

Wapnick initially worked as a psychotherapist, school psychologist and chief psychologist at a mental hospital. In 1970 he separated from his first wife. After a visit to the Trappist Monastery of Gethsemani in Kentucky , he was baptized a Catholic in 1972 . He gave up his job and spent a few months in various monasteries in Israel .

In 1972 Wapnick met psychology professors Helen Schucman and William Thetford in New York , who had recorded the spiritual textbook A Course in Miracles after giving Schucman an inner voice. Schucman and Wapnick jointly edited the manuscript. They removed personally colored passages, divided the work into chapters and sections, which they provided with headings, and revised paragraph design, punctuation and capitalization, but without changing the content. A Course in Miracles was published in 1976 by the Foundation for Inner Peace, of which Wapnick was a board member.

Together with his second wife, Gloria, whom he married in 1981, founded Wapnick 1982, the "Foundation for A Course in Miracles " (Foundation for A Course in Miracles ) in Ardsley , New York . They expanded it into a training center in Crompond , New York, in 1984 , and opened an academy and convention facility in Roscoe , New York in 1988 , which became a federally recognized teaching institute in 1995. Since 2001 the Foundation has been based in Temecula , California . Kenneth and Gloria Wapnick see the model of their foundation in Plato's Academy . Her aim is to promote and deepen the understanding of A Course in Miracles and its practical application in everyday life in her lectures, seminars and publications . Kenneth Wapnick also oversees the translations of A Course in Miracles into non-English languages.

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Kenneth Wapnick's work was the explanation and commentary of the spiritual textbook A Course in Miracles . It was his concern to create a basis for a sound understanding of the thought system and the application of the course.

A course in miracles and Christianity

In his first books (especially Die Vergabe und Jesus, 1983) Wapnick builds a bridge between the course and Christianity . He shows how the course takes up Christian terms in order to redefine them and to correct traditional thinking from his point of view. He often refers to the course as a "correction of Christianity" and presents opportunities for revisiting statements from the New Testament in the light of the teachings of the course.

After his early creative period, Wapnick presented the course more clearly as a separate spiritual path. In A Course in Miracles and Christianity: A Dialogue , Wapnick and the philosopher and Jesuit priest Norris Clarke jointly demonstrate that the course and the Bible are mutually exclusive theologies that cannot be integrated into a system.

Presentation of the course and its contribution

With The Message from A Course in Miracles (1997), Wapnick provides a comprehensive systematic presentation of the course and its key messages . He explains that the course presents his nondual thought system on two levels: The first, metaphysical level distinguishes the spiritual reality of heaven from the illusory world of perception. The second, practical level remains in the perceptible world and distinguishes two ways of interpreting what is perceived: the judgment of the ego and the forgiveness of the Holy Spirit.

Wapnick shows that the course adds an essential new thought to nondual metaphysics from the tradition of Advaita Vedanta : a motivation for the apparent emergence of the physical universe and the perceivable world - the desire for individual existence without taking responsibility for it.

According to Wapnick, the psychology of the course rests essentially on Sigmund Freud's earlier work . According to Wapnick, the course also offers a way out of ego thinking. According to him, the course completes Freud's portrait of the human psyche by emphasizing the human choice to identify with the ego thought system of guilt , fear, and attack , as a defense against the Holy Spirit's choice of the mind system of forgiveness, healing, and peace . With its doctrine of forgiveness , the Wapnick course provides a method that makes ego thinking conscious by looking without judgment and enables another decision to be made that goes beyond ego thinking.

In The Illusion of Time (1990) Wapnick elaborates the holographic , nonlinear time theory of the course. The book series The Practice of A Course in Miracles is dedicated to the practical application of the 'course' in everyday life.

Biography Helen Schucmans

Wapnick is the author of a biography of Helen Schucman ( Beyond Bliss, 1991). Describing her visionary experiences, her relationship with William Thetford, and the story behind the writing of A Course in Miracles , he traces the ambivalent relationship Schucman had with God and Jesus.

Classification of the course

Wapnick's work shows the parallels in the history of ideas and the main differences between the course and Christianity , Plato , Neoplatonism and philosophical idealism , Gnosticism , Hinduism , Buddhism , Freud's psychoanalytic theory and more recent currents such as New Age . In this way, Wapnick enables the course to be classified within the philosophical and spiritual systems of thought of the world.

In Love Does Not Condemn: The World, the Flesh, and the Devil According to Platonism, Christianity, Gnosticism, and A Course in Miracles (1989), Wapnick shows how A Course in Miracles solves the theological-philosophical problem of theodicy : the question how an imperfect material world, in which evil and suffering are evidently omnipresent, can come from a perfect immaterial almighty-all-good God. According to Wapnick's argument, a theology or philosophy that begins with the premise that the visible world is in some way the manifestation of God's will must inevitably fall into the paradoxical trap of locating an inherent weakness within the almighty-all-good God, the one Tendency towards evil, suffering and death contains, or at least, according to the traditional Christian theological position, a will that allows this. Hence, any school of thought that regards this world as ontologically real faces an insoluble dilemma. Some 2nd century Gnostic schools , especially the Valentine , considered a real world of misery to be incompatible with a loving God and therefore viewed the material world as an illusion, but made it psychologically reality by declaring it a den of sin. A Course in Miracles , according to Wapnick, solves the paradox by presenting his system of thought on two levels. The course views the physical world as an illusion, but not as inherently negative. Rather, if we give it this purpose for ourselves, it serves as a “royal road to heaven”, as a valuable school to learn forgiveness with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Second edition of the course and concordance

In addition to his own publications, Wapnick edited the 2nd edition of A Course in Miracles (1992), which contains a sentence count for the first time. He led the creation of the Concordance for A Course in Miracles , which is based on the model of the Concordances on the Bible and the works of Shakespeare .

In total, Wapnick has published more than 20 books on A Course in Miracles (as of 2006). Translations have appeared in eight languages.

See also

• Helen Schucman

Works in chronological order

• Books (selection)
  • 1982 Glossary-Index for A Course in Miracles . ISBN 0-933291-03-5 , 349 pages.
  • 1983 A Talk Given on A Course in Miracles: An Introduction . ISBN 0-933291-16-7 , 131 pages.
  • 1983 Forgiveness and Jesus: The Meeting Place of A Course in Miracles and Christianity . ISBN 0-933291-13-2 , 389 pages.
  • 1989 Love Does Not Condemn: The World, the Flesh, and the Devil According to Platonism, Christianity, Gnosticism, and A Course in Miracles . ISBN 0-933291-07-8 , 614 pages.
  • 1990 A Vast Illusion: Time According to A Course in Miracles . ISBN 0-933291-09-4 , 344 pages.
  • 1991 Absence From Felicity: The Story of Helen Schucman and Her Scribing of A Course in Miracles . ISBN 0-933291-08-6 , 498 pages.
  • 1995 A Course in Miracles and Christianity: A Dialogue . With Norris Clarke. ISBN 0-933291-18-3 , 108 pages.
  • 1995 The Most Commonly Asked Questions About A Course in Miracles . With Gloria Wapnick. ISBN 0-933291-21-3 , 113 pages.
  • 1997 The Message of A Course in Miracles . In 2 volumes. ISBN 0-933291-25-6 , 614 pages.
  • 2000 The Journey Home: "The Obstacles to Peace" in A Course in Miracles . ISBN 0-933291-24-8 , 510 pages.
  • 2004 Ending Our Resistance to Love: The Practice of A Course in Miracles . ISBN 1-59142-132-2 , 94 pages.
  • 2004 Life, Death, and Love: Shakespeare's Great Tragedies and A Course in Miracles . ISBN 1-59142-142-X , 380 pages.
  • 2005 Journey Through the Workbook of A Course in Miracles: The Study and Practice of the 365 Lessons . ISBN 1-59142-206-X , in 8 volumes.
  • 2006 The Arch of Forgiveness: The Practice of A Course in Miracles . ISBN 1-59142-210-8 , 103 pages.

• Books in German translation (selection)
  • Glossary of A Course in Miracles . Greuthof, Gutach i.Br. 1995, ISBN 3-923662-35-1
  • Introduction to A Course in Miracles . Greuthof, Gutach i.Br. 1993, ISBN 3-923662-33-5
  • Forgiveness and Jesus . Greuthof, Gutach i.Br. 1997, ISBN 3-923662-42-4
  • The illusion of time . Greuthof, Gutach i.Br. 2002, ISBN 3-923662-57-2
  • Beyond Bliss: The Life of Helen Schucman and the Writing of A Course in Miracles . Greuthof, Gutach i.Br. 1999, ISBN 3-923662-49-1
  • A course in miracles and Christianity . Greuthof, Gutach i.Br. 2001, ISBN 3-923662-56-4
  • Heaven Has No Opposite: The Key Questions About A Course In Miracles . With Gloria Wapnick. Greuthof, Gutach i.Br. 1996, ISBN 3-923662-37-8
  • The message of A Course in Miracles . Greuthof, Gutach i.Br. 2000, ISBN 3-923662-55-6

• Contributions (selection)
  • Forgiving the Abuser, in: Lois Einhorn , Forgiveness and Child Abuse: Would YOU Forgive? With a foreword by Arun Gandhi and contributions by u. a. Mumia Abu-Jamal , Patch Adams , Edward Asner , Rubin Carter , Thomas Eagleton , Albert Ellis , Pete Seeger , Kurt Waldheim and Kenneth Wapnick. 215 pages. Robert D. Reed: Bandon, Oregon, Feb. 2006, ISBN 1-931741-69-7

• Article (selection)
  • Mysticism and Schizophrenia . In: Journal of Transpersonal Psychology ( ISSN  0022-524X ), Vol. 1, No. 2, 1969, pp. 49-68, Synopsis
  • Forgiveness: A Spiritual Psychotherapy . In: The Psychotherapy Patient ( ISSN  0738-6176 ), Vol. 1, Issue 3, Spring 1985, pp. 47-53
  • A Simple, Clear, and Direct Course (with Gloria Wapnick). In: The Lighthouse ( ISSN  1060-4987 ), Vol. 4, No. 4, Dec. 1993, facim.org
  • The World as the Royal Road to Heaven . In: The Lighthouse , Vol. 7, No. June 2, 1996, facim.org
  • Being a child . In: The Lighthouse , Vol. 8, No. June 2, 1997, facim.org
  • Resistance (with Gloria Wapnick). In: The Lighthouse , Vol. 10, No. 2 June 1999, facim.org
  • The Diver (with Gloria Wapnick). In: The Lighthouse , Vol. 10, No. 3, Sep. 1999, facim.org
  • The Process of Awakening: Looking at Our Hatred (with Gloria Wapnick). In: The Lighthouse , Vol. 11, No. 1, March 2000, facim.org
  • The Significance of A Course in Miracles as a Spiritual Path . In: The Lighthouse , Vol. 13, No. 2 June 2002, facim.org
  • How to Approach A Course in Miracles: Transcending the I . In: The Lighthouse , Vol. 13, No. 3, Sep. 2002, facim.org
  • A Course in Miracles: A Still, Small Hope . In: The Lighthouse , Vol. 15, No. 1, March 2004, facim.org
  • A Portrait of a Course in Miracles Student as an Artist . In: The Lighthouse , Vol. 16, No. 1, March 2005, facim.org
  • Gentle Means and Easy Tasks . In: The Lighthouse , Vol. 16, No. June 2, 2005, facim.org
  • The World of 2 + 2 = 5 . In: The Lighthouse , Vol. 17, No. June 2, 2006, facim.org

• Article in German translation (selection)
  • An uncompromising course (with Gloria Wapnick), in: Lichtblick (Greuthof, Gutach i.Br., ISSN  1431-9047 ), No. 1, 1996
  • On the need for gentle vigilance , in: Lichtblick , No. 3, 1998
  • Resistance (with Gloria Wapnick), in: Lichtblick , No. 5, 2000
  • Goodness in everyday life (with Gloria Wapnick), in: Lichtblick , No. 6, 2001
  • Jesus, the companion on our journey , in: Lichtblick , No. 7, 2002
  • Learning the course - Transcending the Self , in: Lichtblick , No. 8, 2003
  • The Importance of A Course in Miracles as a Spiritual Path , in: Lichtblick , No. 9, 2004

Other sources

• Interview with Gloria and Kenneth Wapnick, conducted by Ian Patrick in English in September 1998 in Roscoe, miraclestudies.net
• Interview with Gloria and Kenneth Wapnick, conducted by Corinne Edwards in English in December 1995 in Chicago. 1 video DVD. Foundation for A Course in Miracles, 1996.
• D. Patrick Miller: The Complete Story of the Course . Fearless Books, 1997, ISBN 0-9656809-0-8 (journalistic report on the development and dissemination of the course)
• Robert Skutch: Journey Without Distance: The Story Behind A Course in Miracles . Foundation for Inner Peace: Mill Valley, 1996, ISBN 1-883360-02-1 (history of the course)

Web links

• Literature by and about Kenneth Wapnick in the catalog of the German National Library
• Foundation for A Course in Miracles
• Foundation for Inner Peace

References and comments

1. ^ Foundation of A Course in Miracle, accessed January 3, 2014
2. ↑ Greuthof, Gutach i.Br. 1994, ISBN 3-923662-18-1 .
3. ↑ ^{a b} For the history of the writing of A Course in Miracles, see Wapnick: Beyond the Bliss .
4. ↑ Wapnick's work comprises a total of more than 20 books on A Course in Miracles , 50 specialist articles and 100 multimedia publications (as of 2006).
5. ^ A Course in Miracles, ISBN 0-9606388-9-X .
6. ↑ Wapnick: The forgiveness and Jesus , p. 15. ff.
7. ↑ Ibid., P. 19 ff.
8. ↑ Kenneth Wapnick: Beyond the Bliss, p. 395 ff.
9. ↑ American original edition: A Course in Miracles, ISBN 0-9606388-9-X .
10. ↑ See the homepage of the Foundation for A Course in Miracles, facim.org/about ( Memento of the original from August 21, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. and facim.org/vision ( memento of the original from September 1, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , as well as Gloria and Kenneth Wapnick's article On Plato, Jesus, and the Foundation for A Course in Miracles, in: The Lighthouse ( ISSN 1060-4987 ), Vol. 3, No. 3, Sep. 1992, facim.org ( Memento of the original from September 1, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. .    
11. ↑ Currently (2006) editions are published in 15 languages.
12. ↑ Forgiveness and Jesus , p. 11.
13. ↑ Cf. Wapnick's foreword to the German edition of Die Vergabe und Jesus , p. 11 ff.
14. ^ Wapnick, The Significance of A Course in Miracles as a Spiritual Path , in: The Lighthouse ( ISSN  1060-4987 ), Vol. 13, No. 2, June 2002, pp. 1–5, facim.org ( Memento of the original from September 20, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . 
15. ↑ See above or in more detail in Wapnick, Glossary on A Course in Miracles , p. 13 ff.
16. ^ Wapnick, The World as the Royal Road to Heaven . In: The Lighthouse ( ISSN  1060-4987 ), Vol. 7, No. 2, June 1996, facim.org ( Memento of the original from September 2, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . 
17. ↑ See e.g. BS 4-7.