DESCRIPTION: The process of recovery from addictions is almost universally understood to involve a substantive spiritual transformation. There is, however, little agreement about the nature of the spiritual dynamics of this process. For example, "spirituality" is sometimes understood to refer to internal transformational processes, and sometimes the word is used to refer to external activities requiring a social context. This course will explore this and many other issues related to the meaning of spirituality in the context of twelve step traditions. The theological and biblical foundations for the spiritual disciplines that are embedded in the twelve step process will be explored.

SIGNIFICANCE FOR LIFE AND MINISTRY: The spiritual dynamics of the twelve step tradition has had a powerful impact on public discourse about spirituality in American culture. The rapid expansion of Alcoholics Anonymous and similar programs represents what is possibly the most spiritually significant popular culture social movement in America since the beginning of the twentieth century. A working understanding of the dynamics of twelve step spirituality is increasingly understood as a basic element of pastoral competency.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: This class has three main objectives: (1) to help students develop an understanding of the complexity and diversity of spiritual practice within the twelve step tradition; (2) to help students develop a better understanding of the spiritual disciplines that are structurally embedded in the twelve steps of Alcoholics Anonymous; and (3) to help students critically assess and develop personal perspectives about the relationship between spirituality in the twelve step tradition and other forms of spirituality that are common in contemporary American culture.

COURSE FORMAT: The seminar will meet for four hours a day for two weeks. Class will include lectures by seminar leaders, discussion, case-study analysis, and experiential processes.

REQUIRED READING:

Kurtz, Ernest, and Katherine Ketcham. The Spirituality of Imperfection: Storytelling and the Search for Meaning. Bantam, 1993. 304 pp. ISBN: 0553371320. List: $18.00 (Kindle: $9.00).

Miller, J. Keith. A Hunger for Healing: The Twelve Steps as a Classic Model for Christian Spiritual Growth. HarperOne, 1992. 288 pp. ISBN: 0060657677. List $15.00 (Kindle: $10.20).

Nelson, James B. Thirst: God and the Alcoholic Experience. Westminster/John Knox, 2004. 217 pp. ISBN: 0664226884. List: $29.95.

VanVonderen, Jeff, Dale Ryan, and Juanita Ryan. Soul Repair: Rebuilding a Spiritual Life. InterVarsity Press, 2008. 191 pp. ISBN: 0830834974. List $19.00 (Kindle: $9.99).

Yaconelli, Mike. Messy Spirituality. Zondervan 2007. 187 pp. ISBN: 0310277302. List $12.99.

Required daily discussion papers. (This is a partial list, a complete list will be distributed on the first day of class.)

Anonymous. "We Agnostics." Chapter 9 in The Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous. Available online: http://www.aa.org/bigbookonline/en_bigbook_chapt4.pdf.

Chesnut, Glenn F. The Higher Power of the Twelve-Step Program For Believers & Non-believers. Available online: http://hindsfoot.org/hp1hp.html.

Nikolaou, Aristotle, et al. Stories from Three Recovering People about Their Amends. Available online: http://www.nacronline.com/articles-on-the-twelve-steps/stories-from-three-recvering-people-about-their-amends.

R., William. Cleaning House: Confession and Sexual Addiction. Available online: http://www.nacronline.com/articles-on-the-twelve-steps/cleaning-house-confesson-and-sexual-addiction.

Radzik, Linda. "An Ethic for Wrongdoers." Chapter 1 in Making Amends: Atonement in Morality, Law and Politics. Oxford University Press, 2009.

Ringwald, Christopher D. "The Recovery Movement; Recovering God, Recovering Self." Chapter 9 in The Soul of Recovery: Uncovering the Spiritual Dimension in the Treatment of Addictions. Oxford University Press, 2002.

Russell, Matt. How a Jewish Drunk Challenged My Idea of the Church: Toward an Ecclesiology of Recovery. Available online: http://www.nacronline.com/misc-articles/how-a-jewish-drunk-challenged-my-ideaof-the-church-toward-an-ecclesiology-of-recovery.

Ryan, James. Four Kinds of Moral Inventory. Available online: http://www.nacronline.com/articles-on-the-twelve-steps/four-kinds-of-moral-inentory.

1. Required reading (1200 pages; reading log required; 10% of grade).

2. Class attendance and participation (40% of final grade).

3. Research papers: Two 5-7-page research papers. The first should examine in some depth the dynamics of a particular spiritual discipline that is part of twelve step process. The second should address the relationship between the normative spirituality in recovery culture and the normative spirituality in the student's current community of faith. Both the potential for synergy and conflict should be explored (25% each x 2 = 50% of grade).