Assumptions About Spirituality

At the time AA arose from the collective consciousness, the predominate religion was almost exclusively Christian in the USA and most of the Western world. Any source of spiritual renewal other than that was looked upon with suspicion or as exotic This drove thinking people towards atheist or agnostic beliefs, and, by the time AA came along, those who found themselves doubting were relieved when they saw that AA did not insist on a singular concept of God. Today, we sit in AA meetings free of the assumptions about spirituality and concepts of a Higher Power but are bound by the language of eighty years ago. For instance, we still use the masculine pronoun and refer to that transcendent ideal as “Our Father” in our literature. I feel that such resistance is not only presumptuous but hinders our ability to pass on what we have found that lifted us from the tyranny of alcoholism. If we are closed minded about this the outsider would have to ask, what else are we unable to accept? I have no bone against the Christian faith but I do harbor a mild resentment to the Lord’s Prayer when it is employed at the end of a meeting. If I feel this after thirteen years, how much resistance must a newcomer's sensibilities be provoked along these lines?

---

geo, 4,640