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Do you think Alcoholics Anonymous was Christian based and successful also.?

November 5, 2011 By Lance 7 Comments

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  1. Clive says:
    November 5, 2011 at 4:56 am

    No, and sometimes. It operates like a cult, very controlling, but alcoholism is such a horrible character disorder that I’m for anything that works. But it’s not Christian.

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  2. irkt says:
    November 5, 2011 at 5:01 am

    AA was started over 70 yrs. ago and yes, it was and is (successful). It HAS adapted over time.

    In NA, we stress a higher power of your understanding and are a “spiritual, not religious” program.

    It’s easy to get stuck on that god piece; many people do. Most of all, a 12-Step program helps one to alter deeply-entrenched addictive behaviors with the help of the only people who actually GET us, others with the same issue.

    “The therapeutic value of one addict helping another is without parallel.”

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  3. I am says:
    November 5, 2011 at 5:13 am

    I do not think AA is Christian based, it is successful in some cases but not all.

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  4. ? says:
    November 5, 2011 at 5:25 am

    I don’t drink, but I do believe that AA was based on Christian
    principles and as far as I know, it is very successful. I have
    heard testimonies from people that said it saved them from a
    miserable existance. I do know you have a sponsor, who is your
    contact, and helps you when you feel tempted to drink, and tries
    to keep you from slipping. That’s about all I know, but May God
    bless you and if you have a drinking problem, it would be a good
    place to go. Best wishes.

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  5. So-Crates Back AGAIN MoFos says:
    November 5, 2011 at 6:18 am

    Based upon Christianity – somewhat. They make you pray to a Higher Power – not exactly naming Jesus, but it can be considered religion based.

    Successful? That depends upon how you define “success”. If you define success by the amount of participants, then you must also acknowledge that many members are forced to attend due to being caught in a criminal act involving alcohol (such as myself, who was given a ticket in a park for having a beer when I was 20 years old. I was forced to take “classes” on alcohol, which was really attending AA meetings – when all I was doing was being sociable with a single beer – heck, I hate beer!! Of course, the fact that the white cop did not ticket the white girl who was the only person present and over the age of 21, and instead choose to focus on the young Hispanic guy [yeah, thats not me in the avatar!] probably contributed to my disdain for being forced to attend AA meetings. Waste of friggin time.)

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  6. E-ma says:
    November 5, 2011 at 6:44 am

    I don’t know if it was. The meetings I have went to seemed to make more reference to the group as a whole being their higher power. Some selected the Christian God & used the group as His tool. — “It works if you work it” “a day at a time.”

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  7. raysny says:
    November 5, 2011 at 6:59 am

    AA evolved out of the Christian sect, “The Oxford Group”:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford_Group

    Both Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob Smith were involved with spiritualism, which is warned against in Christianity:
    “Author Richard Burns, better known as Dick B., has been churning out books and articles on the alleged Christian origin of Alcoholics Anonymous for years. The prolific author has written ‘Anne Smith’s Journal,’ ‘Dr. Bob and His Library,’ and many, many others. Regrettably, in his nearly thirty books Dick B. has never acknowledged the influence of spiritualism upon the creation of the 12 Steps.

    His books, however, have deeply influenced the Body of Christ. People frequently justify A.A. attendance with statements like, “Well, Alcoholics Anonymous was originally Christian.” Or, “The 12 Steps are based on the Bible.” A common misconception is that one or both Alcoholics Anonymous co-founders, Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob Smith, were Christians.”
    http://www.worldviewtimes.com/article.php/articleid-4026

    Wilson claimed that he received the steps from a 15th century monk named Boniface:
    “Wilson combined the Oxford Group practice of guidance with spiritism or channeling, and this appears to be the process he used when writing the Twelve Steps.”
    AA: Christian or Occult Roots?:
    http://www.rapidnet.com/~jbeard/bdm/Psychology/codep/aa.htm

    Successful how? AA enjoys a near monolopy in the treatment industry; it is ingrained in the government agencies that dictate policy on alcohol and drug treatment.

    Not so successful for the individual members. 95% of all new members drop out within the first year. Most studies give AA a 4-7% success rate.

    Other studies:
    1) Dr. Brandsma found that A.A. increased the rate of binge drinking, and
    2) Dr. Ditman found that A.A. increased the rate of rearrests for public drunkenness, and
    3) Dr. Walsh found that “free A.A.” made later hospitalization more expensive, and
    4) Doctors Orford and Edwards found that having a doctor talk to the patient for just one hour was just as effective as a whole year of A.A.-based treatment.
    5) Dr. George E. Vaillant, the A.A. Trustee, found that A.A. treatment was completely ineffective, and raised the death rate in alcoholics. No other way of treating alcoholics produced such a high death rate as did Alcoholics Anonymous.
    1) http://www.orange-papers.org/orange-effectiveness.html#Brandsma
    2) http://www.orange-papers.org/orange-effectiveness.html#Ditman
    3) http://www.orange-papers.org/orange-effectiveness.html#Walsh
    4) http://www.orange-papers.org/orange-effectiveness.html#Orford
    5) http://www.orange-papers.org/orange-effectiveness.html#Vaillant

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