AA is Spiritual?!?

CNN just wrote this article about AA members spirituality.

Its funny, because the media seems to know AA more for its ‘pop culture’ than for what it actually is. Our meetings, our introduction (“I’m Horace and I’m an alcoholic…..”, “HI HORACE!!” ) and for other characteristics that aren’t requirements of AA. After all, the spiritual program was outlined and published in Alcoholics Anonymous in 1935. The fact that AA is about spirituality being written about like its news in 2010 is somewhat disappointing.

It is nice to see that its still possible to get favorable press in this day & age when controversial press seems to be more prevalent.

Recently I went to a meeting where the subject was pgs 84-88 of Alcoholics Anonymous; steps 10 & 11. Those pages (mainly 86-7) outline our 24 hour plan. “Upon Awakening….When we retire at night….throughout the day….” As far as what I hear “around the tables” is less about the spiritual steps and more about going to meetings. That wasn’t always the case. Even though the number of AA meetings in the US has dramatically increased since the “old days” of AA, our message really shouldn’t change–within AA or in the media.