Repentance: From Guilt to Imagination

Introduction

Repentance is one of those words that carries a lot of weight—usually heavy. In traditional religious settings, it often conjures images of guilt, sorrow, and begging for forgiveness. It's typically understood as a turning away from sin, a remorseful confession followed by moral correction. But Neville Goddard offers something radically different: a version of repentance not grounded in guilt, but in the creative power of consciousness.

This post explores the contrast between the traditional view of repentance and Neville Goddard’s teaching, which reframes repentance as a psychological shift—a change in mindset, assumption, and self-concept.

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Traditional Repentance: A Moral Duty

In mainstream Christianity, repentance is usually tied to morality and sin. The Greek word metanoia, often translated as repentance, literally means “a change of mind,” but it’s often interpreted through the lens of behaviour: stop sinning, turn your life around, and seek forgiveness from God.

Repentance is preached as a requirement for salvation. It's framed as a kind of transaction: you acknowledge your wrongdoing, feel deep regret, and as a result, God extends mercy. The emphasis is often on external behaviour—what you’ve done wrong and how you plan to make it right.

This view can lead to cycles of guilt and striving, especially when people struggle with the same issues again and again. The focus stays on the past—what you've done—and how far you are from being "good enough."

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Neville Goddard’s Repentance: A Creative Act

Neville Goddard flips this entirely. For him, metanoia truly means a change of mind—not a feeling of remorse, but a literal shift in consciousness. Repentance is not about grovelling before a God outside of you. It's about turning your attention away from the current reality and assuming the feeling of the wish fulfilled.

According to Neville, the only “sin” is to miss the mark—to not imagine wisely. Repentance, then, is simply the act of imagining differently. You change your state of consciousness by revising what you accept as true about yourself and the world. It’s not about feeling bad for your past; it’s about choosing a new future and embodying it now.

In “The Power of Awareness,” Neville writes:

“Repentance is a radical change of attitude. It is not a confession of sin but a forsaking of sin. The Bible says, ‘Test yourselves and see.’ What is it that you believe about yourself? That is your test.”

For Neville, the Divine is your imagination. So repentance is less about pleasing God and more about aligning with your true power—the power to assume and create through inner conviction.

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Two Paths, Two Outcomes

• Traditional repentance emphasises unworthiness, guilt, and forgiveness. It can lead to spiritual dependency—always needing mercy from something outside of you.

• Neville’s repentance empowers you. It puts the responsibility and the power in your own hands. It’s not about what you’ve done—it’s about what you’re now choosing to be.

Where traditional teachings often say, “You are a sinner, try harder,” Neville says, “You are God imagining—repent by changing the assumptions you live by.”

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Conclusion

Repentance, when seen through Neville’s framework, becomes a liberating, creative act. It’s not an emotional breakdown over sin, but a disciplined shift in self-perception. It moves you from being a passive sufferer of circumstances to the conscious author of your reality.

So the next time you think of repentance, don’t ask: What did I do wrong? Instead, ask: What am I imagining to be true of myself right now—and what would I like to be true?

That is the real turning point.