warrens

Hey y'all-

An interesting article in today's New York Times on the origin of the Serenity Prayer. Let me know if this link doesn't work for you:

Serenity Prayer Stirs Up Doubt - Who Wrote It? - NYTimes.com

There is apparently some controversy regarding it's origin.

As for me, I don't really care if Niebuhr created it or adapted it. It just bloody works for me. After all, there's really nothing new under the sun, is there?

BTW, as many of you know, I've been going through a particularly rough time and haven't been posting much. I abhor self pity and do not want to write anything that smacks of it.

But I've received many PM's from some truly remarkable people. Words of kindness and support. Makes one truly humble and grateful for the magic that happens here.

I think we each gain different things from SR. For me, it isn't about working through pain, but a place in which to be positive about the joy of recovery. Helps keep me serene...

I'm working on it and am making progress. Right now I am drawing on the strength of others here by reading all the success stories. Particularly those by folks with a year or less. The serenity to accept and the courage to change...

warren

CarolD

Well....
I understood it was part of an
obit in the NY Times that brought it
to the attention of early AA members.

I checked and found more
information on its orgin here

Search results - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Thanks for sharing Warren...
You too can win over alcohol

laurie6781

The most IMPORTANT thing about The Serenity Prayer to this alcoholic is that YOU CANNOT WEAR IT OUT.

I know I have used it now, in tough situations, in times of stress, etc for over 27 years.

Works for me.

J M H O

Love and hugs,

LogCabin

I don't care where it came from. It is the comfort of the words that help me deal with my own brain, and the situations that come up in my days.

The prayer calms me down, and that is what I always seek. To feel calm and secure in my life..for when I don't...and the world tilts...is when I start to crave a drink to calm me down and take the anxiety away.

I agree with this statement:

Mr. Shapiro, who edited “The Yale Book of Quotations,” said in an interview, “Reinhold Niebuhr was a very honest person who was very forthright and modest about his role in the Serenity Prayer. My interpretation would be that he probably unconsciously adapted it from something that he had heard or read.”

This does not bother me a bit. I really don't care HOW it got to me, or WHO originally wrote, or rewrote it. IT WORKS for me. I alter it too as a matter of fact. I take out the first word. And start with "Grant me..." and I really think about the words when I say them to myself.

CarolD

I first saw the Serenity Prayer hanging in the kitchen
of my Great-Grandmother Carolines home.
We also said it...kneeling.. ...along with the Lords Prayer before bed.

When my 9 year old Great - Grandson returns to FL. later
this summer.....I will send a copy for his bedroom along.

He proudly told me he knew it by heart from Sunday School.
He was really tickled when I knew it too!

Yes...from the early 40's to tonight
I too find much comfort in the Serenity Prayer.

I have no doubts that is true for many
aside from the AA usage.

Rusty Zipper

carol being in the antiques business, i find them, and give them away to friends...

lol, i found a mint and boxed unused 1950's one...

that my keeper!, and it gets good daily use on my wall!

thanks warrens

Thy Will Not Mine be Done

Jersey Nonny

Much ado about nothing, me thinks. Not concerned about how it came to be, just very grateful to have it in my life.

For those who may not be familiar with it:

Quote:

An expanded version exists, but its origins are unknown; it is certainly not by Niebuhr, who invariably cited his original version.

God grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
And wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world
As it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right
If I surrender to His Will;
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life
And supremely happy with Him
Forever and ever in the next.