Asking for a friend. 
In AA, which is a great program, there are a lot of references to God, but they say God can be anything you want, as itâs the âGod of your understandingâ and doesnât have to be religious.
I won't post all of the 12 Steps here but they can be googled.
Also, in each meeting they open and close with a prayer. While it seems this is more about fellowship and support than religion, sometimes all the references to God (or Him) and a higher power can be off putting for an Atheist.
Does anyone have suggestions or examples on an alternative to a God or gods that could be substituted here? I know this is supposed to be a personal decision, but Iâm struggling with this one. I once heard God referred to as âGood Orderly Directionâ but Iâm not sure that completely applies here.
Thanks.
0
Enjoy being online again!
Welcome to the community of good people who base their values on evidence and appreciate civil discourse - the social network you will enjoy.Create your free account
8 comments
Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.When I go to AA meeting I always mentally replace god with Mother Nature.
It's easy it believe that Mother Nature is a higher power that can help you get/stay sober. When I need someone to lean on, going out and into nature helps.
Mohakrockstar
Level 2
Apr 18, 2018
1
Worship whatever the F you want. I got sober and it saved my life. I am not sober now because I kinda did learn how to just smoke pot and not do hard stuff and alcohol- which is against the rules so I don't pretend im sober. I used to think of my God being the fearsome GALACTUS the world eater- long time foe of the Fantastic Four. It was no less silly than Jesus and it kept me focused on the part of the program that I needed- which was how to get my shit together after so long of having it not so together. I still pop by a meeting every now and then and have a LOT of friends who are in the program and always enjoy seeing them.
Pick whatever it is you need to stop focusing on the God part and learning the program and hearing the message. That makes life a lot easier. I hope this helped
HOTROD213
Level 4
Mar 16, 2018
1
Maybe seek a Secular Recovery Group if one is available or maybe appeal to a "Higher Power" which Can be the Brain as a whole, because it controls so much more that you do consciously and so you are wanting this "Higher Power" to aid in the Recovery since it needs to be rewired to function correctly.
Humanity4all
Level 6
Mar 15, 2018
1
I had that same thought tonight! Thanks.
A family member got away with "other people" as their higher power. By which they mean, devotion to helping others. The idea is a higher purpose, not so much a "power" in the sense of some deity.
However, I've been told the amount of "flexibility" for this concept depends a great deal on who is running a particular AA group.
mordant
Level 8
Mar 15, 2018
1
I have good friend in AA. She has said the same things as you. While the program has definitely helped her get off drink - they seem to replace that addiction with one of sugar - by bringing desserts and candy to the meetings. And the god references get to be too much, causing her to leave early.
evergreen
Level 8
Mar 15, 2018
1
I hope I didn't just flag this by mistake. Sorry if I did. I wish I could substitute sugar...but I'm diabetic.
@JulieBFree Replacing alcohol with sugar is a bad idea anyway - we were surprised that they encouraged it.
AA has been debunked for many: [theatlantic.com]
My ex was required to go through the program in order to be released from his DUI probation. He, also an atheist, was troubled by the references to "god" which are clearly referring to the Xian god. They tell everyone that it's personal.... but if you tell them you're an atheist, well, "we got trouble, my friends."
poetdi56
Level 7
Mar 15, 2018
3
Enjoy being online again!
Welcome to the community of good people who base their values on evidence and appreciate civil discourse - the social network you will enjoy.Create your free account
Share this post
Categories
Agnostic does not evaluate or guarantee the accuracy of any content. Read full disclaimer.