AA without religion

[graywarrior]

{snip}

At the session’s end an hour later, however, as the participants clasped hands, instead of reciting the Lord’s Prayer in usual A.A. fashion, they said together, “Live and let live.”

This meeting, as the parting phrase suggests, is one of a growing number within A.A. that appeal to nonreligious people in recovery, who might variously describe themselves as agnostics, atheists, humanists or freethinkers. While such groups were rare even a decade ago, now they number about 150 nationally.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/22/us/alcoholics-anonymous-without-the-religion.html?_r=0

[OriginalGeek]

1. 12 steps

in the right direction.

[Trajan]

2. RR ... Rational Recovery

Last edited Tue Feb 25, 2014, 01:09 PM - Edit history (1)

Squash thoughts of usage when they emerge ...

Tell that hungry beast-brain NO! ...

NO NO NO NO NO!

Doesn't work so well for cigarettes and ice cream sundaes ... but it's worked for me for years ...

I'm not diseased ... I'm a normal human being with a significant appetite for mood alterants, which I CAN control ...

[Tuesday Afternoon]

3. if it works, keep working it.

[Arugula Latte]

4. That's cool, but, I want to defer to a Higher Power --

My kitties. The problem is, that probably won't be a good plan when I have to start going to Cataholics Anonymous.

[pipi_k]

5. That was always

what I liked best about the 12 Step groups I went to (Al-Anon and ACoA).

No God stuff.


In fact, I had remarked one time to a family friend (alcoholic and long time member of AA, also a religion fanatic) that the non-God concept worked so well that it would be nice to see people around the world just give up GOD and religion altogether and choose a Higher Power instead.

He was disturbingly adamant in telling me a big fat "NO!!!" although he couldn't explain why people having Higher Powers would be a bad idea whereas people fighting over whose god/religion was bigger/badder/better than someone else's is OK.

[geardaddy]

6. I thought they did the Serenity Prayer

at the end of the meetings, not the Lord's Prayer.

"instead of reciting the Lord’s Prayer in usual A.A. fashion" I'm not sure that's the usual A.A. fashion.

[Lil Missy]

7. In this area it's usually the Lord's Prayer.

However the meeting I chair we do the Serenity Prayer.

G.O.D. to me means Good Orderly Direction - my Higher Power

[irisblue]

8. different meetings can end how they want to. nt

[geardaddy]

9. OK, thanks

I sometimes got to ACA meetings (Adult Children of Alcoholics) and it's the Serenity Prayer.