Introduction to 12-Step Spirituality

I am not being flippant when I say that all of us suffer from addiction. Nor am I reducing the meaning of addiction. I mean in all truth that the psychological, neurological, and spiritual dynamics of full-fledged addiction are actively at work within every human being. The same processes that are responsible for addiction to alcohol and narcotics are also responsible for addiction to ideas, work, relationships, power, moods, fantasies, and an endless variety of other things. We are all addicts in every sense of the word.

–Gerald May, Grace & Addiction, p. 3-4

Someone has said that
“God does not have grandchildren”
—suggesting the notion
that each of us is called
to be a first generation copy of Jesus.

Unfortunately,
there are too many living off of distorted, grainy copies instead of the original.
(“Dear, sweet Aunt Sally,”
no matter how good a Christian
and dear a Saint,
is no replacement
for the original which is Jesus.
In fact, the better she was
or is as a Christian,
the more she would tell you the same!
“Copy me,” wrote the Apostle,
“insomuch as I copy Christ!”)
Our mission, then, in the Church should be to produce 1st generation [or “Master”] copies of Christ rather than 2nd or 3rd or 4th generation reproductions of reproductions!

Drawing upon the seminal works of Gerald May, Celebrate Recovery, and Richard Rohr (cf., Breathing Under Water), this series works to unpack and reclaim the dynamics behind the 12 Steps [in part, through the lens of the Beatitudes] as the basis for renewal and recovery of all souls… and communities.

Titles/Foci can include:

  • “Restoring a First Generation Faith: Do You Want to Get Well” (John 12:24)
  • “Blessed are the Poor in Spirit: A People of Humble Honesty” (Matt. 5:3)
  • “Blessed are Those Who Mourn: A People of Affirmation” (Matt. 5:4)
  • “Blessed are the Meek: A People of Belief” (Matt. 5:5)
  • “Blessed are the Pure in Heart: A People of Confession” (Matt. 5:7)
  • “Blessed are Those Who Hunger for Righteousness: A People of Repentance” (Matt. 5:6)
  • “Blessed are the Merciful Peacemakers: A People of Reconciliation” (Matt. 5:7,9)
  • “Blessed are Those Who Sit at the Feet of Jesus: A People of the Journey” (Matt. 5:1,2)
  • “Blessed are the Persecuted: A People of Outreach” (Matt. 5:10)

To register your desire for more information about this “exploration” and options related to it, click here.