It's apparent, not far into the text of A Course in Miracles, who the author is. Jesus speaks of himself in first person throughout the text, an exception being at the very end, in Clarification of Terms, which is written more as a reference for students of the Course (and which I will quote in the next post). Followers of traditional Christianity have often been critical, to say the least, of the portrayal of Jesus and God in the Course, because many of the ideas presented are so foreign to its belief system. Aside from those who may see the Course as evil, some have refered to it as "Gnostic" or "Eastern" (i.e. Buddhism/Hinduism). It's highly unlikely that those who are traditional in their Christian beliefs will embrace the Jesus who speaks from the pages of the Course.

With that in mind, there are also many similarities. He is the embodiment of the Love of God, infinitely patient and kind, and available to all who call on him for help in times of trouble. He desires only that we know what he knew, and still knows today: that we are all One and cannot in any way be separate from that Oneness. By using Christian terminology, he enables some of us to bridge the gap between what we know in our
heart to be “true” and what we have been taught by the church.
Jesus makes a distinction between himself and the "Christ," which is within all of us. It is only because he identified totally with the Christ, or Oneness, that he was able to transcend the ego (in other words, to "overcome the world" as scripture tells us). He is not in anyway different from us, he says, “except in time, which does not exist..” He also says that he has been portrayed as a "bitter idol, who would only be friend to the world." We can think of him as a model for our evolution, or as an elder brother who would take our hand and lead us to the Love of God, where he joins us as an equal. The idea of sacrifice and sin is a concept “totally foreign to God,” according to him. We are a part of God, perfect and whole, and it is only our own thoughts that stand in the way of our recognition of who we are.

It would be impossible to catalogue every discrepancy between the image of Jesus in the Course vs. the image of Jesus in Christianity. To address all the differences one would have to post the entire Course itself. Jesus cites and corrects concepts that have been misinterpreted for centuries on the basis of scripture. Those of us who have sensed that
something was “wrong” in the thought system proposed by Christianity have found many
of our questions answered by the Course.

There are other paths, to be sure, and Jesus says that the Course is "but one way in which some may find their Inner Teacher." So it’s not the “only way.”. But if you desire to sort out some thoughts about Christianity or just want some company along the way, I can attest that there is great solace in having a Friend by your side.

As the Course itself states, ultimately, Jesus is not a “person” at all (because none of us are truly bodies)…. he is a what we shall all become. But until we have that realization, he offers himself as a symbol of God's Love and a companion on the journey towards our true home.

JESUS - CHRIST

(quoted from Clarification of Terms, A Course in Miracles)