49. Prayer and "quiet time" recommended for Holidays

By Tom O'Connell

December is the time of year in our society when spirituality actively comes out into the open as we move toward the celebration of the Holidays. There's nothing wrong with this, but in addiction recovery programs the emphasis is on "one day at a time" and the need to make each day a spiritually fulfilling day.

The programs of AA and other mutual support groups based on the Twelve Suggested Steps don't just have a "spiritual part," they are wholly spiritual. In their very essence these programs are based on the spiritual principles of honesty, purity, unselfishness, and love. And their aim is to heal the human spirit...one day at a time. Nobody has a spirit in more need of healing than a person recovering from addiction.

Even though all of the Twelve Steps are essentially spiritual, the Eleventh Step zeroes in on the heart of the matter: "Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out."  

In Hazelden's "Little Red Book," which is subtitled "An Orthodox Interpretation of the Twelve Steps," recovering alcoholics are reminded: "In reality we are on a daily reprieve, that our reprieves are contingent upon our spiritual condition."

As living proof for this statement, the anonymous author says that "backsliders who returned to drinking" had become "off the beam" spiritually. "Their trouble invariably begins with neglect of prayer." Vulnerability is also mentioned. "We overlook the fact that our nervous systems are still those of alcoholics. We seem to forget that as alcoholics we are susceptible to moods and emotions that we formerly appeased with alcohol."

Then the point is made that "complacency obscures the knowledge that our recovery from alcoholism was granted by a Power greater than ourselves." This is followed by the observation that "without contact with God, reversion to our old low physical and spiritual levels is probable."

Using powerful spiritual logic, this book recommends prayers of appreciation at the beginning and end of the day, and during the day. "They kill egoism and awaken us to life's true values." Urging recovering people to try to remain relaxed and composed, the text reminds readers that prayers act as "stabilizers to the restless nature of the alcoholic."

Because the "restless disposition" of alcoholics leads them into overactivity and  "intemperance," the Little Red Book says, "We recommend relaxation as an aid to prayer and suggest that a quiet time, aside from prayer, will be beneficial to all alcoholics."

So there it is. Silent meditation, treasured by virtually all spiritual disciplines, is also highly recommended by Twelve Step programs which grew out of the Christian Oxford movement and whose advisers included an Episcopalian priest and a Jesuit.

"Relaxation practiced during quiet times at intervals throughout each day is exactly what we need," says the Little Red Book. Referring to the "miracle" of being "freed from alcohol and compulsive drinking," the book stresses the need to safeguard the miracle through "humility, faith and prayer." May you enjoy your quiet times of prayer and meditation during the Holidays...and all other days too.

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