Unity Metaphysics 1 (Blue Book)
Lesson 05 The Creative Process
Creation is a divine activity which is occurring perpetually. In this chapter we will focus on the process by which Divine Mind and our minds create. We will develop our understanding of how divine ideas are translated into thoughts and images in our minds for the purpose of manifestation. We will discover that we contribute in a profound way to the forming of our physical, mental, and emotional realities. As we come to understand more about the creative process, we will become aware of our ability to consciously cooperate with God in fulfilling the creative plan in the world.
5A HOW GOD CREATES:
Ed Rabel handwritten note: "Who knows? We have only the Bible as a reference to this."
- Ed Rabel
". . . there is one underlying law and . . . through this law all things come into expression; also . . . there is one universal Mind, the source and sole origin of all real intelligence. First is mind, then mind expresses itself in ideas, then the ideas make themselves manifest" (Jesus Christ Heals 121).
This description outlines the process of creation as it unfolds within Divine Mind. Each idea created by Divine Mind is whole and perfect.
5B CO-CREATION:
Ed Rabel handwritten note: "Handwritten note: How Man creates: By acknowledging and expressing his or her divine inheritance — divine ideas."
- Ed Rabel
"The ideas of Divine mind are whole and complete in their capacity to unfold perpetually greater and more beautiful forms according to the thinking capacity in man. Man catches mental sight of an idea in Divine Mind and proceeds to put it in terms comprehensible to him on his plane of consciousness. All ideas have their origin in Divine Mind, but their character as unfolded by man depends entirely upon his acquaintance with God" (Atom-Smashing Power of Mind 94).
"God creates in the ideal, and man carries out in the manifest what God has idealized" ( Christian Healing 43).
"The ideas of God are potential forces waiting to be set in motion through proper formative vehicles. The thinking faculty in man is such a vehicle, and it is through this that the visible universe has existence. Man does not 'create' anything if by this term is meant the producing of something from nothing; but he does make the formless up into form; or rather it is through his conscious cooperation that the one Mind forms its universe" (Atom-Smashing Power of Mind 93).
Divine ideas are the most enduring and most powerful things in the universe, possibilities for the divine unfoldment of humankind are contained within these ideas. We have only to accept them as our divine inheritance and allow them to express through us.
5C CAUSE AND EFFECT:
Ed Rabel handwritten note: "Changes under grace."
- Ed Rabel
"All true action is governed by law. Nothing just happens. There are no miracles. There is no such thing as luck. Nothing comes by chance. All happenings are the result of cause and can be explained under the law of cause and effect" (Charles Fillmore Prosperity 58).
"Most of us begin with effects and try to work from them, but the true metaphysician begins with causes (Ernest Wilson Many Mansions 18).
If we are truly willing to enter into conscious co-creatorship with God, we must understand the law upon which all creation is based. This is the law of cause and effect. All cause is in the realm of mind. Effects are the result of the thoughts we hold in mind. This insight helps us become aware of the power of our thoughts to shape and form our world.
5D THE POWER OF THOUGHT:
Man is the power of God in action. To man is given the highest power in the universe, the conscious power of thought" (The Twelve Powers of Man 68).
"The thinking faculty in man makes him a free agent, because it is his creative center; in and through this one power, he establishes his consciousness—he builds his world" (Keep a True Lent 114).
To recognize the power of thought is the key to working consciously with the creative process. It is by our thoughts that we transform not only our inner but our outer world. It is important to remember that when we use the term "thought" we are referring to the combined energies of both thinking and feeling.
5E THE WORD/LOGOS:
"The living Word of God is spiritual principle. It is omnipresent, like the air we breathe, and anyone may apply it" (Connie Fillmore The Unity Guide to Healing 25).
"This divine Logos was and always is in God; in fact it is God as creative power" (Mysteries of John 11).
"The Word of God is immanent in man and all the universe. All creation is carried forward by and through man's conscious recognition of this mighty One. Man is the consummation of the Word. His spirit has within it the concentration of all that is contained within the Word . . . Jesus expresses this perfect Word of God as spiritual man; 'the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us' (John 1:14)" (RW/Word 213).
"An understanding of the Logos reveals to us the law under which all things are brought forth, the law of mind action. Divine Mind creates by thought, through ideas" (RW/Logos 124).
The Word, or Logos, is a mystical concept, a metaphor, which refers to God as creative principle. Each of us has the ability to express this creative principle through our spoken word. The more aware we are of its source and nature, the more powerful our word will be.
5F THE POWER OF THE SPOKEN WORD:
"Words — the vehicles through which ideas make themselves manifest" (RW/Word 213).
"We are the offspring of God, and our words have power proportionate to our realization of our indwelling spiritual kingdom" (Atom-Smashing Power of Mind 149).
"All words are formative but not all words are creative. The creative word lays hold of Spirit substance and power" 4 (The Twelve Powers of Man 29).
Words themselves are not the power but carry the power of the thoughts they represent. Words express a thought already held in mind. Therefore, in addition to changing our words to effect transformation in our lives, we must also change the thoughts which have inspired the words. The most powerful of all spoken words are affirmations of Truth.
5G UNDERSTANDING THE CREATIVE PROCESS:
"The truth is then: That God is Principle, Law, Being, Mind, Spirit, All-Good, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, unchangeable, Creator, Father, Cause, and Source of all that is;
That God is individually formed in consciousness in each of us, and is known to us as 'Father' when we recognize Him within as our Creator, as our mind, as our life, as our very being;
That mind has ideas and that ideas have expression; that all manifestation in our world is the result of the ideas that we are holding in mind and are expressing;
That to bring forth or to manifest the harmony of Divine Mind, or the 'kingdom of heaven,' all our ideas must be one with divine ideas, and must be expressed in the divine order of Divine Mind" (Christian Healing 16).
Mr. Fillmore's statement is a comprehensive summary of the nature of God and the elements and dynamics which comprise the creative process. In order for each of us to participate fully in this process we need to inte- grate these insights into every level of our being.
SUMMARY STATEMENTS
WHEN WE SPEAK OF THE CREATIVE PROCESS, WE ARE REFERRING TO THE PROCESS BY WHICH THE ABSTRACT BECOMES MANIFEST FORM.
WE REFER TO THE METAPHYSICAL TRINITY OF MIND, IDEA, AND EXPRESSION AS THE CREATIVE PROCESS. "FIRST IS MIND, THEN MIND EXPRESSES ITSELF IN IDEAS, THEN THE IDEAS MAKE THEMSELVES MANIFEST" (JC/121).
HUMANKIND IS CO-CREATOR WITH GOD OUR FUNCTION IS TO CONSCIOUSLY UTILIZE THE DIVINE IDEAS INHERENT IN THE CHRIST OF OUR BEING AND ALLOW THEM TO BECOME MANIFEST IN A UNIQUE AND PURPOSEFUL WAY.
ALL CAUSE IS IN THE REALM OF MIND. EFFECTS ARE THE RESULTS OF THOUGHTS HELD IN MIND.
THROUGH THE POWER OF THOUGHT, WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO SHAPE AND FORM OUR WORLD. (IN THIS CONTEXT THE TERM "THOUGHT" REFERS TO THE POWER GENERATED BY BOTH OUR THINKING AND FEELING NATURES).
THE "WORD" or "LOGOS" IS A METAPHOR THAT REFERS TO GOD AS CREATIVE PRINCIPLE. OUR SPOKEN WORDS ARE VEHICLES THROUGH WHICH THIS CREATIVE PRINCIPLE BECOMES MANIFEST.
OUR SPOKEN WORDS DO NOT HAVE POWER IN AND OF THEMSELVES. WORDS CARRY THE ENERGY OF THE THOUGHTS WHICH THEY REFLECT. THEREFORE, TO EFFECT CHANGE IN OUR LIVES WE NEED NOT ONLY TO CHANGE THE WORDS WE SPEAK, BUT THE THOUGHTS THAT THE WORDS REPRESENT.
TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION
- Describe your understanding of the creative process and tell how it has meaning in your life.
- Share a time in your life when you were aware of your power of thought. What did you learn from this experience?
THOUGHTS FOR REFLECTION AND MEDITATION
"Your mind is your Kingdom. It has no boundaries. The free flow of ideas and creativity is your inheritance It is a wellspring that is inexhaustible" (Eric Butterworth In the Flow of Life 47).
SUPPLEMENTARY READING
Fillmore, Charles, Atom Smashing Power of Mind, chapter 11, "The Only Mind.
Wilson, Ernest C, The Emerging Self, chapter 4, "Thinking."
Transcribed by Allen Watson on December 2, 2015.
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