I may be a good spokesman for A.A. since my religious views are, at a surface level anyway, not particularly consonant with the Judeo-Christian preconceptions that inform much of the spiritual discussion in A.A. literature. First let me say that belief in a God is not a requirement for membership in A.A. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. The founders of the program were actually quite far advanced in their thinking when they decided the program shouldn't have any connection to any particular religion. To be fair, the program does mention God, and synonymously talks about a Spirit of the Universe, and also a Higher Power. But Bill Wilson makes clear that there are a wide variety of spiritual approaches, unique to each individual, not any one more correct than any other. He specifically references William James's book "Varieties of Spiritual Experience" in this regard. A.A. has no specific agenda to promote. It consists of people passing on the methods that worked for them to stay sober. The newcomer must then take these suggestions, use common sense, think about them, test them out, and apply what seems to fit in his or her life. One common suggestion which makes good sense to me is to find someone in the program who seems to have what you want. (Contentment, joyfulness? I guess that's up to you.) Then try to emulate them, and perhaps ask them to be your sponsor. (The term "sponsor" is a relic from the days when new members wouldn't be allowed into a group until someone (a sponsor) vouched for them. It's really a good thing that that tradition was scrapped decades ago.) A sponsor is kind of like a mentor. You can ask them for advice, and the good ones are willing to help you out in a moment of weakness. If you crave a drink, they can talk to you on the phone about it, or come over and hang with you until the urge abates.
Anyway, just a public service announcement in case anyone who thinks they might be an alcoholic is reading this. I'm happy to give more info to anyone who wants it!
2 comments:
Good post. Just a word of caution: AA has no official spokesmen, though it does "speak" through conference-approved literature and through garden-variety alcoholics sharing their experience, strength and hope (and opinions) anonymously in the hope perhaps of aiding a fellow sufferer.
I like the slogan we hear in the fellowship that AA is not about religion but about spirituality.
Also, I find that sometimes there is a strong prejudice against Jesus in the fellowship and that sometimes we need to remind folks that it is OK to believe in Jesus and be a member of AA. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking, as you say. -- s29
I haven't encountered any anti-Jesus prejudice in A.A. meetings in my neck of the woods. The point is: whatever path works for you, that's the one you should utilize. If it's the Christian path, that's okay. If it's not the Christian path, that is also okay.
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