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                      A.A. IS NOT A RELIGION

       

                       (No Kool Aid served at Meetings, either.)

"Oh, man! Did you know she has gone and joined that AA thing? I've heard it's some kind of a religion that makes people quit drinking. How weird is that?"

"You've done what? You are going to AA meetings to stop drinking? You know it's a cult, right?"

Such were some of the comments made behind my back and to my face when I surrendered my drinking problem to the higher wisdom of you folks in Alcoholics Anonymous. 

I'm sure there were other comments made then, too, but that religious cult belief is still circulating around in society and - sadly - it keeps a lot of frightened people from investigating what AA has to offer.

The dictionary states a religion is a personal or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices.

A cult is defined as a group held together by a shared commitment to a charismatic leader who offers answers to all life's questions, but demands specific rules be followed. 

Although the term cult has negative connotations through buzzwords over tragedies as when "They drank the Kool Aid," several of today's powerful world religions began as cults. 

AA isn't one of them.

But newcomers run right into that God Word at their very first meeting when they hear read out the "suggested" steps of recovery. There's no doubt that the God Word is all over the place, but so is that word "suggested."  

Novitiates are "suggested" to find a God of their Understanding to help them stay sober, but nowhere are they told they must find one.

 

And our literature also tells us to make use of what others have to offer, while plainly stating AA isn't the only path to sobriety even though we do have the best track record in that arena. 

So clearly, AA is not a religion nor a cult.

AA began when two low-bottom alcoholics (but very intelligent men) discovered they could stay sober by helping other alcoholics stay sober - and then they set about doing so, with gusto. 

Over time these newly sober alcoholics figured they were really on to something and, supported and encouraged by their doctors, shrinks, ministers, nuns, priests and doubting Thomases, they cobbled together a written program of recovery that rapidly spread to the entire world. 

Both of AA's founders were Christians and believers in God's power to get and keep alcoholics sober, but they never - ever - pushed that down anyone's throat.

 

Even though the language used in the Big Book of AA is often very Christian in tone, those who wrote it knew their target audience. They knew no one could make an alcoholic do one single thing they didn't want to do, "Stubborn" being our collective middle name.

So AA gently nudges us toward faith by assuring us prayer and meditation will help us have a better life. In meetings we learn how others have applied these - and all the other tools in the AA toolbox - to reduce or eliminate their life problems.

The purpose of prayer is to give our Higher Power the opportunity to bestow the gifts He will give us when we are ready to accept them.  

Meditation is a more advanced spiritual act than merely saying our prayers. It eliminates from our life the things that hinder our union with God. 

Meditation is also more difficult than prayer - after all, prayer involves talking and meditation involves listening, and we alcoholics are great talkers! 

But if I have one regret along my AA journey it is in not getting serious about regular meditation much sooner. My monkey mind takes a lot of settling down and for a long time I wasn't convinced the effort was worth it. 

How wrong I was. Now that I meditate daily I wouldn't willingly give it up for any reason. The benefits have been far too surprising, encouraging, inspiring and powerful. 

So, once again, AA's founders knew exactly what they were promoting when they promoted prayer AND meditation. They also knew drunks would continue in both once they'd discovered the benefits to themselves and others. It wasn't about rote and ritual, it was - and is - all about results.

In their age of letter writing and not twitter, Bill W. and Dr. Bob shared their thoughts with one another, and others, on far-ranging topics, including religion and AA. Here's are a couple of samples written in the early 1950s:

"Beyond a Higher Power, as each of us may vision Him, A.A. must never, as a society, enter the field of dogma or theology. We can never become a religion in that sense, lest we kill usefulness by getting bogged down in theological contention."

"The really amazing fact about A.A. is that all religions see in our program a resemblance to themselves. For example, Catholic theologians declare our Twelve Steps to be in exact accord with their Ignatian Exercises for Retreat, and though our book reeks of sin, sickness, and death, the Christian Science Monitor has often praised it editorially. Now, looking through Quaker eyes, you, too, see us favorably. What happy circumstances, these!"

A.A. offers us a spiritual program. The fundamental basis of A.A. is belief in some Power greater than ourselves.

If you are still wondering, however, what AA actually is, since it is neither cult nor religion ...

"Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of people who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from alcoholism  ... "

You know the rest of this above quote by now - and if you don't, you might consider getting yourself to a few more meetings.