Do you think Alcoholics Anonymous is really a cult?

Answer 1

Yes. They claim to be "spiritual, not religious" but insist you believe in the same micro-managing God as everyone else and that you must turn over your free will to Him. And if you leave you will die.

They claim you can choose whatever god you want, but it soon becomes apparent that your god must have the same attributes as everyone elses.

Their "Big Book" is treated like a Bible, they have Big Book meetings where they pour over every word. Many will say it was written BY God through Bill Wilson. The focus of the book is getting right with God, little is said about how to quit drinking. Wilson wasn't shy about making this clear: "Our real purpose is to fit ourselves to be of maximum service to God" BB, page 77.

If someone mentions "brainwashing", the standard response is, "My brain needed a good washing". There are standard responses to everything; the people in meetings speak in slogans. This is known as "thought reform", a good indicater of a cult.

Alcoholics Anonymous is an offshoot of The Oxford Group, a Christian cult from the 1930s that fell into disfavor when its founder, Frank Buchman, praised Adolph Hitler for running a country by "God-control".

Yes, it's a cult, but is it a dangerous one? I'd have to say yes. I've been working with people who have mental health and substance abuse problems for several years and I have seen many that were harmed by the program. AA teaches that ALL problems stem from alcoholism; if you quit drinking and get right with God, all your problems will magically go away. If they don't, THEN YOU MUST NOT BE WORKING A GOOD PROGRAM. If AA works for you, AA wants all the credit, but if you fail, it's all your fault. This is hard enough on anyone, for folks who are dealing with other issues, it is traumatic.

There is also a large faction of people who are anti-medication, anti-therapy. They believe that the use of medication means you'll really not sober.

According to AA's own statistics, the program only works for 5% of the people who go there. Coincidently (?), no program at all works for 5% of the people who decide to quit. However, AA has a MORTALITY rate that is 6 times higher than trying to quit on your own. George Valliant of Harvard and AA Board of Trustees calls this "apalling" and I'd have to agree. Yet members believe that AA is the only way to stop drinking. To have this belief in spite of all evidence, in spite of what they see with their own eyes in the rooms, in spite of common sense, is a sure sign of being a cult.

Answer 2

Yes-- the dictionary would indicate it. ALSO....After 1000's of meetings and 21 years mostly in aa I'd say it is based on conformity-- pure peer pressure. Ray is riteon; also google Orange Papers and More Revealed. Deprogramming from the "Program" is slow and frightening. Suicide rates are high. They say it is a disease for which one had better find God cuz no human power can solve the problem. AMA and others do not agree. This must be a god who directs, and you had better ask/pray...lots. Be sure to give thanks or be guilty. The feelings of inadequacy are rampant. I was forced to be dishonest with myself and others just to gain acceptance. Finding non-drinkers and belonging was everything for me. Especially after I got married to a "therapist in THE Program". It did not last and neither did I. The Catholic Church was the bully on the block at one time. AA is having its time with the recovery movement, and is prooving to be as unsuccessful as being told, "Just don't drink". Watch how the Europeans will be doing it without joining a Wilsonian cult.

Answer 3

The term "cult" is so emotive and means so many different things to different people I dont think it very helpful to use it, and also isnt an either/or concept and a matter of opinion.

Imo sociologically AA is best thought of as a "World Accepting Sect" as defined by Wallace. It is not explicitly Christian but clearly extremely Christian-derived, a spinoff from the Christian sect the Oxford Group Movement, later known as Moral Re-Armament. Generally World Accepting Sects are fairly benign, but there are aspects of AA that are concern-making as referred to by raysny.

Arguably the 12-step (i.e. AA based) rehabs are "World Affirming Sects" in that they charge fees for their services. Many ppl go through the same rehab repeatedly throughout their lives at enormous cost - sometimes without even returning to alcohol/drug abuse between!. Some sociologists call World Affirming Sects Cults, but the definition rests on the fee-paying aspect, not on the characteristics of the sect itself - Scientology is considered a "cult" for this reason. Isolationist sects often considered "cults" are called "World Rejecting Sects", like Heaven's Gate.

Although not officially fee-paying, several "non profit" AA-based corporations generate millions of dollars annually from sales of AA literature and recovery items such as sobriety chips. They have vigorously pursued prosecutions in Germany and Mexico to protect their copyright and income. Since passing AA's Big Book on to recruits is specifically advocated by their program, AA groups could be considered a form of MLM scheme for corporate AA, and hence perhaps AA is actually a commercial "cult" after all.

In addition, typically by policy the entire counselling staff, and often all other staff and the owners of rehabs are AA, NA or other 12-step members. Many of their intake are already AA/NA group members, and graduates are of course funnelled into the AA/NA groups. Arguably they are commercial AA groups that simply dont use the name "AA" - at very least they are in a symbiotic relationship with AA and hence collectively operate as a "cult" in the commercial sense.

Answer 4

Yes I do, it has every characteristic of a cult.

When I was having trouble with drinking back in my late 20's, my family (who were the cause of most of these problems to begin with), decided to have an 'intervention.' They convinced me to go to a 'treatment' program. I stayed there for 30 days. I was told that I was 'bipolar', 'crazy', and had a terrible disease. We played games, had group therapy and attended AA meetings every night. I was also told that I could not leave this place until I worked the first 3 steps, told my life story and got a 'sponsor.' I was also told that the answer to all of my life's problems where in
working AA's program. Of course, I didn't understand any of this stuff but went along anyway. I think the total bill for all this, was 30,000 dollars.

Before I left the 'treatement center' I was told to attend 90 meetings in 90 days, and call my sponsor daily. Again, I had no idea why but I went ahead. I worked the steps with my sponsor, and I didn't feel any better. He told me that I didn't do them right, and I had to start over again. So I started over again, and I got the same results again. So I had to start over again. He also told me, that If I took one drink that I had to start over again. I was also told that I could not achieve 'spirituality' without working these steps correctly. Now let me ask you, does this make any sense?

I spent years in AA and never understood what 'spirituality' was, nor did I achieve 'serenity'. In fact my life went from bad, to worse.

There is some good news here, I did start feeling better. First I left AA, then found a web site that explained what spirituality was in about 10 minutes for free.

Answer 5

Yes. I think it's a cult.

And it's profoundly, deeply dishonest. To get along in AA, I had to believe all sorts of false things, and become blind to what was really happening. I mean, I had to learn to lie to myself and not even see that I was lying to myself.

AA gives with one hand while taking away with another. To get the support to not drink, I had to allow myself to be undermined and invalidated. I had to believe I was permanently powerless for life, and that my thinking was stinking, and that I was incapable of managing my own life. No wonder I was depressed in AA!

AA is based on fear. Fear, fear, fear. Even when people are smiling and mouthing happy slogans, it's fear of the next drink that fuels the organization and keeps people coming back. This fear shows when steppers' beliefs are questioned. They panic and react explosively.

Even though it's possible to enjoy being in AA, and to use it as a kind of support system, it's seriously destructive.

It doesn't actually work, anyway. For a program to be considered effective, it has to produce results above and beyond the natural outcome of the condition. AA cannot do this. AA produces nothing beyond the natural rate of spontaneous remission.

Someone here expressed the opinion that AA is the only option out there, and that there's nothing else besides AA if you want to get sober.

Not so.

Spontaneous remission does happen.

And for those who want something to do, there's SMART Recovery, there's LifeRing, there's SOS, Women For Sobriety, Moderation Management, and for some people, there's RR.

Answer 6

The two "A"s are suppose to help,in oder to help they some times go over board with things they do and the manner they try.Do u think they are a cult?And why do u say that?

Answer 7

It's not, IME, organised enough to be a real cult, but there are certainly plenty of people in it who treat it as their religion and will not tolerate any expression of thought or opinion whatever.

Answer 8

I think without it people would have no were to go for help.

If they needed someone to talk to sometimes its best to talk to people who have gone through the same problem's.

Plus you meet friends there some have gotten married i know.

Sometimes people take religion is because they try to get you to focused on something else in life.

Religion is your choice.

People will never stop talking it, preaching it, and so on!

Answer 9

I think it can help some people,,, but for the most part--people that attend to b a little righteous and over bearing.... Pushier than a door to door salesman or obnoxious telemarketer.

Answer 10

yes it is a tool used to get people into the clutches of the christian cult

Answer 11

No,take what you can and leave the rest behind I don't go all the time but my way of thinking is for the better