AA Religion?
So many folks I hear say AA is religous?
If it is then a few questions if I may ask them.
1. What religion does AA practice?
2. What religion allows aethiest to openly participate?
3. What religion does not care if you believe in Buddah, Krishna, Christ, Agdistis or Angdistis, Ah Puch, Ahura Mazda, Alberich, Allah, Amaterasu, Anansi, Anat, Andvari, Anshar, Anu, Aphrodite, Apollo, Apsu, Ares, Artemis, Asclepius, Athena, Athirat, Athtart, Atlas, Baal, Ba Xian, Bacchus, Balder, Bast, Bellona, Bergelmir, Bes, Bixia Yuanjin, Brahma, Brigit, Camaxtli, Ceres, Ceridwen, Cernunnos, Chac, Chalchiuhtlicue, Charun, Chemosh, Cheng-huang, Cybele, Dagon, Damkina (Dumkina), Davlin, Dawn, Demeter, Diana, Di Cang, Dionysus, Ea, El, Enki, Enlil, Eos, Epona, Ereskigal, Farbauti, Fenrir, Forseti, Freya, Freyr, Frigg, Gaia, Ganesha, Ganga, Garuda, Gauri, Geb, Geong Si, Hades, Hanuman, Hathor, Hecate (Hekate), Helios, Heng-o (Chang-o), Hephaestus, Hera, Hermes, Hod, etc. ?
4. What religion is practiced that in one place they may say no prayer at all, in another place the may say a Christian prayer, in another place an Islamic prayer, etc. ?
5. What religion does not promote worship of some type of Diety?
6. What religion beleives that one should find a Higher Power of thier own choosing and understanding?
7. If a person of the Jewish faith had written the BB would one not expect them call thier HP Yhwh when writing of thier HP?
8. If a person of the Islamic faith had written the BB would one not expect them call thier HP Allah when writing of thier HP?
9. If a person of the Buddist faith had written the BB would one not expect them call thier HP Buddah when writing of thier HP?
10. Would not simple logic lead one to beleive that the primary reason the word God is used in the BB is probably due to the fact that the writers of the BB were Christians?
11. Is there any religion that has no rituals they practice?
12. What Church, Mosque, Temple, etc. do AAs practice this religion in?
Please I am not trying to start an argument, all I am doing is asking those that claim it is religous to answer the above questions and see what conclusion they come to. I have been to several thousand AA meetings and several conventions as well. Here are the answers for the above questions in regards to AA from my experience at several thousand AA meetings.
The main purpose for this post is to try and clarify that AA is not religous, spiritual, yes, religous... no.
I do not care what the topic is, when one pulls religion into it, people are going to get POed.
1. None, I have NEVER heard one person in AA state that if you are not of a certain faith you can not get sober.
2. AA not being a religous orginization at all could care less if you are an athiest.
3. None that I am aware of. (I could be wrong on this) I do know for a fact that AA as a whole could care less what an individuals HP is or is not, in reality the entire program if one reads the BB is strictly SUGGESTED, nothing is mandantory.
4. No religion that I know of allows prayers of another faith in thier services, if one is a Christian, no matter where the Christian church is located Christian prayers will be said there.
5. None that I know of, I do know that AA does not push worsip of any type, they do suggest one maintain a conscience contact with thier HP of thier choosing & understanding.
6. None that I know of, each religion I know of preachs that the followers should worship the HP of thier particular faith. AA instead encourages each member to find a HP of thier choosing and understanding.
7. I would.
8. I would.
9. I would.
10. It is spelled out in the BB that is the very reason that the word God was used in the BB.
11. None that I am aware of.
12. None, because AA as a whole does not pratice ANY religion at all.
There is not a doubt in my mind that some AA meetings are religous in nature, but AA as a whole is in no way shape form or fashion religous or a religion, AA is a spiritual progam, not a religous program.
There is a program called "Celebrating Recovery" which is a Christian based off shoot of AA, I have never been to one of thier meetings, but I know a guy who has gone, he said it is basically AA with Christianity thrown in for good measure.