When I first stepped into an Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meeting I must admit, I was timid at best. I had no idea what to expect and had pre-conceived notions of holier-than-thou people holding hands and chanting religious prayers. Thankfully, that was not my experience upon my arrival. What I found instead were pretty normal people struggling with extraordinary issues in a safe non-religious environment.

AA provided me with a forum to speak my truth, and the pain and suffering that came along with that truth, in a loving, nurturing and non-judgmental place. This was critical for my sobriety and my personal healing.

As I continued to attend meetings and began reading the literature it was abundantly clear that in order to maintain sobriety, a belief in a Higher Power was very important. AA is very cautious in not attempting to define what that is for people. It is very clear in all AA literature that you are to seek a God of your understanding and that can be whatever you feel is appropriate. AA makes no bones about needing to believe in something, but it completely leaves that quest up to the individual. Personally I was incredibly relieved by this, as my spiritual journey had been pretty rough up to that point. I would not have been served well had the literature attempted to define what my God was to be. I would have left the rooms and never come back to AA had God been placed in the usual cramped boxes that most denominations attempt to cram God into.

I wholeheartedly believe that AA is as effective as it is because it does not adhere to the same confining rules as most churches and places of worship. It allows individual choice and freedom of religion and spiritual process. The literature in AA provides a set of guidelines but does not in any way dictate what our spiritual journey must look like.

Most meetings open and close with the group forming a circle, holding hands and saying a prayer, the Serenity Prayer. The Serenity Prayer is a wonderful non-denominational prayer that has become the backbone of AA and the majority of other recovery programs.

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can; and the wisdom to know the difference.

It is simple and poignant and while it is a prayer, it holds firm to the notion that AA is a non-denominational place. However, in many meetings that I have been to recently I have noticed a trend that I find quite disturbing. People in meetings have begun replacing the Serenity Prayer with the Lord’s Prayer, a widely used and commonly known Christian prayer.

I have no personal or philosophical issue with the Lord’s Prayer, in fact, I think it is a beautiful prayer and has special meaning in my own personal story. However, I feel strongly that it totally violates the founding principles that AA was built upon. We are a non-denominational program for a reason. We want to welcome all those who seek recovery from the horrendous nature of addiction without forcing religion upon them. The Lord’s Prayer is not mentioned in any of the AA literature, so then why is it suddenly showing up in AA meetings all over the country?

I find it very disturbing that a person coming into a meeting for the first time may be subjected to a more religious environment than I first encountered and this perceived religiosity could force them out of the meeting. Had I come to my first AA meeting and heard the Lord’s Prayer, I would have been out the door faster than you could repeat the last sentence. What made me feel safe in AA was the very fact that there were no religious components to the meetings. I was free to choose a Higher Power of my understanding and given time to develop that relationship. I had a safe place to develop my own course of spiritual enlightenment and growth. In addition, I could freely discuss my process in meetings without being judged for my personal beliefs.

However, now I feel extremely uncomfortable when I stand in meetings and hear the Lord’s Prayer being recited. I do not participate with the group, and I feel incredibly violated that it has become routine in a place that should be non-denominational.

Suddenly I feel like an outcast in a room where I use to feel free and safe. I wonder what is going on in the minds of the newcomers at these meetings. How can someone not question why when our literature clearly states we are non-denominational we are ending our meetings with a Christian Prayer? The hypocrisy speaks volumes. I know I am not alone in thinking this is wrong as I see the confused faces of others when the prayer is thrust upon them and I have spoken to many in the meetings who feel similar to myself.

We cannot allow AA to deviate from one of the core principles upon which it was founded, and that is that participants are not required to adhere to any religious sect, denomination or belief. In a time where it seems like Christianity is leaking into the confines of so many places that were once safe and free from religious intent; I cringe at the thought of AA allowing this to happen. Having this freedom of religiosity is the very reason AA has worked for so many years and much like the United States Constitution; it was created that way for a reason. Our founders knew that you cannot attempt to define God and that spirituality is a very personal process. AA must provide a safe place for that deeply personal relationship to develop for people to grow and change. I fear the message we are sending as members of AA when we allow this infringement upon our foundation and the unintended consequences of our actions.

Jennifer Storm is the real-life voice of millions of girls and young women today who are growing up in a nightmarish vortex of addiction, abuse, despair, and spiraling self-destruction. Addicted to alcohol by age twelve, Storm now serves as Executive Director of the Victim/Witness Assistance Program in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. In 2002 she was appointed commissioner to the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. Jennifer Storm has appeared extensively on national television and has been profiled in Rolling Stone, Time, Central Penn Business Journal, and many other national and local publications. She is the author of Blackout Girl: Growing Up and Drying Out in America. www.JenniferStorm.com