The Passing of Ken Wampick

The Foundation for Inner Peace reported over the weekend the passing of Dr Kenneth Wapnick. This quote from The Disappearance of the Universe, is dedicated to him:

Today, whenever the Course is translated into a foreign language, it's Ken's job to make sure that the translator truly understands every single line of the almost 1300 pages. That doesn't mean that Ken is the only teacher of the Course, but he will be viewed in the future as the greatest one. He's the one whom students and scholars will still be reading hundreds, even thousands of years from now.

Here's what Gary Renard had to say about Ken's passing:
 

     I was sitting watching a movie I had gotten from Netflix last night when Cindy came into the room. She had a very serious look on her face. Cindy doesn't usually have a very serious look on her face. She's usually light and breezy. She told me she had some sad news, and I knew immediately that someone we loved had passed away. The only question was who? Then she told me that Ken Wapnick had made his transition. I was a little surprised, not that it happened but that it had happened so soon. I guess I thought we had more time.

     I met Ken about a half dozen times, including a few private meetings, and exchanged about 20 letters with him, which I still have. I'm not going to write a lot about my experience of Ken right now. I think that would be more appropriate for a book. I know I'm going to be thinking about him for a long time, and that things will come to me that I want to share with you. So for now I'll just say something about the first time I met him, because it speaks volumes about the kind of person he was. Arten and Pursah had guided me that I should meet Ken and learn everything I could from him. I can't say I learned everything I could from him, but I certainly learned a lot. I had driven ten hours to Roscoe, New York in June of 1998 to see Ken give a presentation called "Time and A Course in Miracles." Ken spoke about ten hours on the subject over the weekend and I was dazzled by his brilliance. I got to sit down and talk with him in private because I had requested to do so, and he had consented. I wanted to tell him about the book I was writing and that I wanted to use a lot of quotes from the Course, but that I would make sure to credit the Course correctly. I was nervous, and Ken knew it.

     I'll never forget how kind he was to me. Eventually Ken would be the first person to read The Disappearance of the Universe. But more importantly, as the years went on, I would sometimes hear him say, "Be kind." I already knew from experience that Ken didn't just say things, he lived them. He was the kindest person I ever met, and he inspired me to remember to be kind to people. Of course there is much more to say about the person who Arten and Pursah described as the Course's greatest teacher. But for now what I'm thinking about the most is what a beautiful person he was, and how he went out of his way to be kind to me when he didn't have to.

     Cindy and I joined hands last night, and I spoke to Ken and expressed my gratitude to him. I know that he's having a very good time right now, and that we are the ones who still have to deal with what's in front of our face. Fortunately, we will always have Ken's work to help us do that. I love you Ken.