We hear a lot about the importance of living in the present. Books have been written about that topic. And, in A Course in Miracles (ACIM), Jesus has a lot to say on that matter. In Chapter 13 of the Text there is a whole section entitled Finding the Present, in which he says that the only way we can be free is if we let the past go.

“Time can release as well as imprison, depending on whose interpretation of it you use. Past, present and future are not continuous, unless you force continuity on them…The miracle enables you to see your brother without his past, and so perceive him as born again. His errors are all past, and by perceiving him without them you are releasing him. And since his past is yours, you share in this release…” T251

There are two key components to that passage. Our brother’s past is seen as our past, because, according to ACIM and to many other teachings, there is only one of us, appearing as many. So, in forgiving another, we are freeing him and ourselves. The second key component is the need to see others without their past. In practical terms this means that when some offends or upsets you in some way, you overlook this the next time you meet him. This isn’t always easy because we tend to remember the faults and errors of others. That seems to be human nature. But ACIM is asking us to rise above our human nature.

If we are able to live in the present moment, which we are told is the only real moment in time, then it should be fairly easy to wipe the slate clean. If someone upset us in the past, it doesn’t necessarily follow that he will do so again in the future. “If you remember the past as you look upon your brother, you will be unable to perceive the reality that is now…When you have learned to look on everyone with no reference at all to the past, either his or yours as you perceived it, you will be able to learn from what you see now. For the past can cast no shadow to darken the present, unless you are afraid of light.”