Thomas McGuiness

Recovery, Spirituality and Reasons to Smile

Tag: Christianity

Having Had a Spiritual Awakening as the Result of…

June 25, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Every day we have an opportunity to grow spiritually. “Spiritual awakenings” are far less common, and are often memorable for their impact. I’ve had two spiritual awakenings: One in Alcoholics Anonymous and one as a Christian.

The First Awakening

Even though I was raised Catholic, by my late teens, I had walked away from organized religion and ran toward a life of alcohol, drugs, occasional sex and a bachelor’s degree from a state university.

The only contacts I had with religion while in college were from an evangelical neighbor in my dorm and a screaming lunatic named Jed Smock, who spewed hell and brimstone a couple of times each year on visits to the university.

Neither contributed to a spiritual awakening in me.

Years later when I admitted I was powerless over alcohol and my life had become unmanageable, I experienced a spiritual awakening in which I became acutely aware of the presence of my Higher Power, whom I call God. That awakening led to me actively communicating through prayer, meditation and everyday conversations with God.

My trust in God increased as I saw people receiving guidance, encouragement and purpose from their Higher Powers. If God did it for them, he could and would do that for me, I reasoned.

In the mid to late 1990s, my wife and I attended church in our hometown. That church had a retreat ministry which we attended. At the second retreat I attended, my Catholic background knowledge of Jesus was refined and became real to me. I knew that day that Jesus did indeed rise from the dead and his life was the way I could receive forgiveness for my sins.

That was my second spiritual awakening. Both are important to me, and my experience is my own—every A.A. member will find their own path to a spiritual awakening. A.A. has no opinion on outside issues and does not affiliate with any sect, denomination, religion or belief.

While my experience is my own, I do hope that everyone reading this is open to examining the concept of a spiritual awakening. Mine opened my eyes and heart. I wish you a similar experience.

World religions are all welcome in A.A., and A.A. is a spiritual program, not a religious one.
Religions of world, religious symbols and posters, vector retro. Different religions Buddhism, Christian church and Judaism star, Orthodox and Hindu, Muslim Islam mosque and Jewish religion center

Separating Religion from Spirituality

November 30, 2022 / / 0 Comments

Organized religions and their members infuse spirituality into their worship practices and traditions. Twelve Step programs like Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.) differentiate themselves from organized religious movements by considering themselves purely “spiritual” programs. What is the difference?

The A.A. pamphlet, “Many Paths to Spirituality,” states “With sharing that reflects the boundless range of belief (and non-belief) among A.A. members — including Buddhism, Islam, Native American faith traditions, and atheism and agnosticism — this pamphlet shows how Alcoholics Anonymous is a spiritual organization, rather than a religious one.”

How do Twelve Step programs and their members separate spirituality and religion while incorporating the former into their programs? By creating an environment where no one viewpoint is held above others and everyone has the freedom to decide how to incorporate spirituality into their individual programs.

My journey from religion to spirituality

My parents were Catholic and raised me in that religion. I respect their beliefs but while I do consider Jesus Christ to be my lord and saviour, many of the traditions and beliefs of that religion differ from what ring true to me. I also am a recovering alcoholic and drug addict whose life was saved by A.A. a few years before my soul was saved as a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA).

Because I was well acquainted with the concept of God growing up, I easily accepted the need for a “Higher Power” (God as I understand him) like the A.A. program suggests. Unlike the Christian religion, in which everyone believes in one triune God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit), A.A. members are free to choose their own conception of a Higher Power.

I’ve known atheists and agnostics who chose their A.A. group, nature, even a door knob as a “Higher Power.” In that way, they put their belief in something outside of themselves—and each had a different concept.

My journey to spirituality began when I stopped believing that my efforts impacted my relationship with my Higher Power. Rather than trying to be “good” to be accepted, I realized that God already loves me completely. So I find ways to connect with God to increase our connection like I do with family, friends and coworkers.

Spirituality in A.A. is much more complex than connecting with a Higher Power. We see the way that the program developed and spread as being influenced by some force greater than the sum of the people who helped to launch and maintain it.

I am the same spiritual person whether I am in a Christian worship service or in an A.A. meeting. I’ve been able to incorporate both into my life, while keeping the line well defined between the practice of religion and the working of the A.A. program.

Do you see a difference between religion and spiritual programs like A.A.?

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