RE: you ever been harassed for being an atheist?
July 13, 2014 at 10:55 pm
(This post was last modified: July 13, 2014 at 10:57 pm by vorlon13.)
I've never had any blow back at 12 Steppers for talking about having huge problems with a 'Higher Power' figuring prominently in my recovery, and the enormous conflict I feel when other 12 Steppers are so on board with 'Higher Power' (usually your standard issue Judeo/Christian version) and I have had such a rough go with only (knowingly) losing a single friend to AIDS prior to sobriety, and then losing 39 more while in the program.
Part of that might be me being a high timer (I'm 2 weeks short of 28 years, and yes, we are definitely not supposed to say it that way. Correct way to phrase it is 'over 27 years' or '27 years, 11 months') and it does garner some street cred, and that I am, so far, still first pass.
I do readily acknowledge folks there that have endured things I consider as bad or worse than what I've experienced and maintained the 'plug in the jug', but it is difficult to hear of newcomers having a tough go at a wedding reception, for instance, and relapsing there.
Being a flat out atheist at 12 Steppers is, as they say, contraindicated, and I actually concur. If some/many/most of the newcomers have something other than themselves to hang their success on, the whole 12 Step things works so much better for them. The ones that self-attribute success feel they have learned to be able to control their addiction, and then relapse and it doesn't end well.
Most religions don't stroke out over their members being in a 12 Step program, but a few do, and have their own 'in-house' 12 Step variant instead. AFAIK, the knock offs work as well (or as poorly) as the 'real' thing.
That most religions don't have a problem with 12 Stepping, BTW, IMO does not reflect well upon them theologically. If 12 Stepping is a 'one size' fits all adjunct to whatever specific faith a particular member is, it can't be, by definition, an aspect of the (mythical) One True Faith, regardless of what that might be, but most religions do acknowledge their primacy in the rankings.
Part of that might be me being a high timer (I'm 2 weeks short of 28 years, and yes, we are definitely not supposed to say it that way. Correct way to phrase it is 'over 27 years' or '27 years, 11 months') and it does garner some street cred, and that I am, so far, still first pass.
I do readily acknowledge folks there that have endured things I consider as bad or worse than what I've experienced and maintained the 'plug in the jug', but it is difficult to hear of newcomers having a tough go at a wedding reception, for instance, and relapsing there.
Being a flat out atheist at 12 Steppers is, as they say, contraindicated, and I actually concur. If some/many/most of the newcomers have something other than themselves to hang their success on, the whole 12 Step things works so much better for them. The ones that self-attribute success feel they have learned to be able to control their addiction, and then relapse and it doesn't end well.
Most religions don't stroke out over their members being in a 12 Step program, but a few do, and have their own 'in-house' 12 Step variant instead. AFAIK, the knock offs work as well (or as poorly) as the 'real' thing.
That most religions don't have a problem with 12 Stepping, BTW, IMO does not reflect well upon them theologically. If 12 Stepping is a 'one size' fits all adjunct to whatever specific faith a particular member is, it can't be, by definition, an aspect of the (mythical) One True Faith, regardless of what that might be, but most religions do acknowledge their primacy in the rankings.
