Note: This post was originally titled "Ask an Atheist". That day is gone and it's now "Common Questions to an Atheist in AA". Originally published on July, 21, 2021
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It's National Ask an Atheist Day. So, use the the comments and Ask an Atheist in AA. I'll try to respond in a timely manner.
First a few very common questions;
Yes, I do have a Higher Power. As Jim B . put it;
For the new agnostic or atheist just coming in, I will try to give very briefly my milestones in recovery...
1. The first power I found greater than myself was John Barleycorn.
2. The AA Fellowship became my Higher Power for the first two years.
3. Gradually, I came to believe that God and Good were synonymous and were found in all of us.
4. And I found that by meditating and trying to tune in on my better self for guidance and answers, I became more comfortable and steady.
Jim B
Sober For Thirty Years
A.A. Grapevine, May 1968
My HP resides in the essence of Number 4. It's me. My conscience. My knowledge and sense of right and wrong. Most of us have one. Some don't. That's unfortunate.
The key is the tuning-in part. Listening. And putting desire in it's proper place. Always second. Right and desired is great. Right and undesired is to suck it up and do it anyway. Wrong, either desired or not, is to be abandoned.
That brings us to; Do I pray?
Yes, I do. Only I call it "Talking to myself". And answering. Sometimes an entire conversion might take place. When Alan Shepard, sitting in the Mercury 7 and about to become the first American in space, uttered his Prayer, he wasn't talking to God. he was talking to himself. And he listened to himself. And he didn't. I can do no less.
How can I follow the Steps without God?
I do. Only not exactly the ones written in the BB. Remember, those are suggestions. Every secular member of AA ends up modifying them in some way as to eliminate the God aspect. Many have written them down (See Here and Here). the removal of God, HP, or some other controlling supernatural force, doesn't matter. It's the results that matter.
The comments are open and unmoderated.
