Recovery Spirituality

Abstract

Abstract:There is growing interest in Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.) and other secular, spiritual, and religious frameworks of long-term addiction recovery. The present paper explores the varieties of spiritual experience within A.A., with particular reference to the growth of a wing of recovery spirituality promoted within A.A. It is suggested that the essence of secular spirituality is reflected in the experience of beyond (horizontal and vertical transcendence) and between (connection and mutuality) and in six facets of spirituality (Release, Gratitude, Humility, Tolerance, Forgiveness, and a Sense of Being-at-home) shared across religious, spiritual, and secular pathways of addiction recovery. The growing varieties of A.A. spirituality (spanning the "Christianizers" and "Seculizers") reflect A.A.'s adaptation to the larger diversification of religious experience and the growing secularization of spirituality across the cultural contexts within which A.A. is nested.

Is Alcoholics Anonymous religious, spiritual, neither? Findings from 25 years of mechanisms of behavior change research

“…With a pragmatism perhaps borne of desperation teetering on the precipices of permanent mental disability (e.g., through Wernicke-Korsakov syndrome) and death, AA appears to have latched onto the utility of this “God idea”, and opened the door to anyone who wanted to make use of it. Given the enduring challenges related to defining what “spirituality” actually is, one of AA’s key strengths aiding its growth and survival for the past 80 years may be this pragmatic willingness to use the “God idea” but accept that each member self-defines what “God” and spirituality means to them, including not to self-define as spiritual at all (52). …”

“…Without any formally agreed-upon definition of what 'spirituality' actually is, AA's focus on gratitude, hope, forgiveness and compassion might be considered spiritual in essence. It has facilitated a self-defined notion of spirituality, including even a non-spiritual, secular spirituality [55] if one chooses, to ensure that everyone has a chance to make use of its 'protective wall of human community' and all that it has to offer. Therefore, circling back to the original question posed at the outset, is AA religious, spiritual, neither?…”

The Role of Spirituality in Treating Substance Use Disorders

“…Kurtz & White [4] further develop the concepts of "beyond and between" (pg. 58-81) with regards to addiction, saying that Spirituality helps individuals move beyond the bondage of self, and toward a connection between self and others, which they found to be fundamental to the existence of those studied.…”

Commentary: Remembering Ernie Kurtz

“…He and I spent those final months completing his final contribution in defiance of the pancreatic cancer that was devouring his body. Our final collaboration was an invited essay for the journal Religions on the subject of secular spirituality (Kurtz & White, 2015). We suggested in this essay that there was a form of spirituality shared across religious, spiritual, and secular styles of recovery within AA We noted that this embracing spirituality was reflected in the experiences of beyond (horizontal and vertical transcendence) and between (connection and mutuality) as well as in six facets of spirituality (release, gratitude, humility, tolerance, forgiveness, and a sense of being-athome).…”