I've come across some long time AA members who claim to be agnostic or atheist. I've also seen so called "secular" AA or agnostic "AA" group meetings advertised on the Intergroup website. I, being an AA literature enthusiast, had become interested in this phenomenon and like so much misinformation that tends to infiltrate the AA fellowship misinformation motivates members who consider themselves atheist or agnostic to think they need to create a separate type of AA. ( think this may go against tradition, since AA is just AA) I believe organizations using the AA name like "Secular AA" may be going against AA tradition and misusing the AA name.
One such member shares that "because AA says you have to believe in God" I've needed to adjust the program to suit myself. I feel bad for this man. He's somehow never got the message that AA doesn't insist any members believe in God.
No where in the AA 12 step program outlined in both the Big Book and the 12 and 12 does it say you have to believe in God. It never says you have to.
Simply and open mindedness to a have spiritual experience by going through and doing the steps. This spiritual experience amounts to contact with Higher Power, Power Greater, Spirit of the Universe etc etc personal to the individual. A Power Greater of ones own understanding.
It makes me chuckle but also kind of sad to see that "agnostic" or "secular" groups start up when they really don't even need to. All they needed to do is actually study carefully the Big Book Chapter "We Agnostics" and notice a couple simple directions. They jump to conclusions when they see the word God, keep their minds shut clinging to prejudice and write AA off as all about the conventional idea of God.
This is from my blog post extracting the specific instructions found in the program portion of the Big Book (first 164pgs)
Step 2: Information/Directions: Chapters: "There is a Solution" (from page 25 on) and "We Agnostics"
Direction 1: Pg 46: We found that as soon as we were able to lay aside prejudice and express even a willingness to believe in a Power greater than ourselves, we commenced to get results, even though it was impossible for any of us to fully define or comprehend that Power, which is God.
Direction 2 Page 47: We needed to ask ourselves but one short question.“Do I now believe, or am I even willing to believe,that there is a Power greater than myself?’’
Nowhere does it say you HAVE TO believe. Even a willingness to believe is enough to do step 2. If someone isn't even willing to believe than that is nothing but closed mindedness and holding on to old ideas. Something that we see in "How it Works" as being a big warning!
At some of these we balked. We thought we could find an easier, softer way. But we could not. With all the earnestness at our command, we beg of you to be fearless and thorough from the very start. Some of us have tried to hold on to our old ideas and the result was nil until we let go absolutely.
It seems most of the staunch agnostics and atheists that hang around the fellowship (of course they are allowed to and never discouraged from attending due to tradition) have made a mistake.
They appear to rely on themselves to try to understand the AA program and seem to rely on themselves to stay sober instead of surrendering to the simple program. Id be curious, since these secular or agnostic AA groups are around and how much success they actually have in producing long term sobriety results. How many actual members are there in this fringe sect of AA and are they staying sober?
