-By Eric J. Webber, M.A.

     Addiction is a disease, not a weakness of will or moral fault.  It is chronic, progressive, and potentially lethal, like any other disease.  It is not caused by particular willful actions but rather is developed through a combination of predisposition and response to environmental and psychological influences.  It cannot be cured but can be managed through particular mechanisms, which in turn can lead to tri-holistic (mind-body-spirit) health and growth.

     Sin is a condition in man like a disease in that it exists by predisposition and response to various factors.  It is chronic, progressive, and potentially lethal, but it can be managed and its harmful effects reduced, leading to increased tri-holistic health and growth.

     The first step could then be revised to “We admitted we were powerless over our sin, that our lives had become unmanageable.”  We cannot control that we are afflicted with sin; this is the nature of the human condition.  Only Christ was
perfect and without sin; all other humans carry some amount of sin in them.  We are powerless over this fact.  Furthermore, when mired in sin, our lives become unmanageable.  Sin and sinful desires manage our lives: the need for this and that, specifically that which refocuses us away from God.  Sin then manages our lives more and more, and going unchecked, it leads to spiritual death.  This is the chronicity, the progression, and the lethality of sin in the human condition. 

     In order to confront and deal with our sin, like any issue, we must first admit the existence of it, own it as ours in order to be able to take responsibility for it, and then we will be able to make decisions in order to better manage it.

     What is sanity?  Better yet, what is insanity?  Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.  Insanity is being unable to operate effectively and healthily in the world as we know it, being constantly at odds with the world, constantly feeling discord and dissonance.  Sanity is operating and existing in a harmonious nature with the world.  Sanity is about having one’s faculties and being able to adjust with the changing nature of one’s life, being in accord with that which is around us and being in touch with reality, or Reality.  Ultimately, sanity is true health.

     The second step recognizes that our diseased (sinful) thinking and actions put us in discord with the rest of reality, that we put ourselves at odds with others, and that only God can help get us back on the right track.  We are not yet on the right track but only have the notion and realization that something greater than us has the ability to do that which we cannot, i.e., restore us to true health.  This is the first step out of our own egos, recognizing that there is something beyond our own fragile, little selves.

     Furthermore, if sin produces insanity (i.e., sin causes one to be out of whack with the rest of the world; by sin one moves away from God and his creation and is in conflict with it) and God can return us to sanity, then God has the power to erase our sin, at least for the moment when we recognize, acknowledge, and accept that power.  Step 2 is the realization of the power of God’s forgiveness; it is the acceptance of Jesus Christ in our lives in order to restore us so we might have life over death.

Step 3:  “Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.”

     Making a conscious decision to turn our will and lives over to God is to make a conscious decision to relate to God, to attempt to live our lives according to His Will.  This is plainly stated in the Lord’s Prayer: “Your Will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”  This step also begins to reduce our self-reliance on our own ego and places our conscious desire to do God’s Will on the forefront of our agenda.  By making “a decision,” the implication is that it is a conscious volition and not just ingrained in us.  It is by freedom of choice that we come to God and to submit ourselves to His Will, not by his Omnipotence over us; it is our voluntary submission to His Will, which in turn reduces our ego.  The benefit is to be able to see past our own self-importance to the power of that which is beyond us, which can then lift us up and beyond where we presently are. 

Step 4:  “Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.” 

     By taking a deep look inside of ourselves, we can look into the depth of our souls and begin to see that which is there.  By taking an inventory, we make a list of that which we find inside of ourselves and carry with us each day, that which weighs us down, that which we hold in an effort to protect ourselves.  We make a list which allows us to see more objectively that which we are.

     A moral inventory includes what he we have done: the good, the bad, and the ugly.  It includes what we feel: the love, compassion, and joy we have, as well as the anger, pain and resentments we carry with us over the course of our lives.  It includes who we are and what makes us so.  From the point of healing, it is important to make a full list and to reconcile it with the truth of our lives. 

     A moral inventory is necessary before the Sacrament of Confession.  One must search one’s depths and soul before going before God to present his or her inner being. 

Steps 5-7 represent the full extent of the Sacrament of Confession:

Step 5:  “Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.”

Step 6:  “Were entirely ready to have God remove our defects of character.”

Step 7:  “Humbly asked Him to remove our short-comings.”

     Importantly, steps 5-7 require that one allow God to enter into one’s life and begin work.  It requires a surrender of sort: that one surrenders one’s ego and presents oneself to God for healing.  The importance of the preparation for steps 5-7, using steps 1-4, cannot be overemphasized.  Careful self-examination and preparation for a full experience of confession is of the utmost importance.  In the AA tradition, step 4 actually is comprised of 4 specific lists: resentments; fears; sexual harms; harms to others.  The 4th step inventory is a combination of these four lists.  The 5th step is an admission of these lists, and, more importantly, an analysis and discussion of the nature of the personal shortcomings.  Step 6 requires that one admit one’s shortcomings, realize room for improvement, and be open for such improvement.  This step is harder than it sounds as many people have difficulty giving up those things to which they have become very accustomed, including anger, resentments, and self righteousness.  These are defenses of the personal identity and ego which help people get through the difficult times in life before turning their lives over to God.  However, it is a powerful and necessary step in order to facilitate spiritual growth and healing. 

Step 8:  “Made a list of all the persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.”

     Another list!  As well, it is another chance to be honest and to be courageous.  This is further work from the 4th step, but it is not exactly the same.  This list reflects on other people’s feelings more than our own, though we are intimately involved with the list because we are responsible for the hurt represented on the list.  The 4th step list can be used as a starting point for this list.

Step 9:  “Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.”

This step is an opportunity to offer reconciliation of the wrongs we have committed. It is a chance to make good the bad we have done, a chance to make wrongs right.  As well, steps 8 and 9 are about reconciling the past so that the present is not soiled by our sins.  We may now right the wrongs of the past so that the present and the future can be clean and untouched by our own soiled past.

Step 10:  “Continued to take a personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.” 

     Step 10 implies not going backward but moving forward.  It implies that we are presently continuing on the path set forth to be conscious of our nature to sin and make us aware of it every day.  It provides a mechanism by which we can continually work on reconciling our sins daily and not letting them fester and get worse, that we can daily come closer to God by our admission of our fallacies, as well as our growth in connecting with others.  This is achieved by daily prayer and reflection in quiet and peace.  When we do not feel peace, we need to reflect on this and begin to make the wrongs we have experienced, right.  It is important to remember that this is an action step, and upon completion of meditative contemplation, one need to take further action to right any wrongs.  From a very practical and concrete approach, journaling is an excellent exercise to help facilitate this step.

Step 11:  “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.” 

     This step gets down to the point of life as we know it—to be close to God and be in contact with Him daily.  We have already accepted and decided that we will turn our wills and lives over to the care of God (step 3).  Step 11 is step 3 in action on a daily basis.  It is the action of turning our lives and wills over to God and having a reception to his interaction with us. 

     We seek His Will for us and do our best to follow it.  We ask for an awareness of His Will so we know which direction to follow, and for power, or inner strength, to do that which carries out His Will.  He provides us with the direction and the strength; we need to take the responsibility to put it into action and see it through. 

Step 12:  “Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.”

     Substitute “sinners” for “alcoholics” and one finds the mission of Christians.  We carry the Good News of Christ to those suffering and wanting in their sinful lives, those who are seeking, searching, and needing to reach out and connect with others.  We apply the principles of these steps to each aspect of our lives, so each of us is an integrated whole rather than having a fragmented existence.  We are honest, caring, open, and helpful in all of our endeavors; we meditate on God’s Will for our lives and in every aspect of our lives; we contemplate our actions, do our best to act on God’s Will, and reflect upon our actions afterward.  We do not differentiate our personal affairs from our business affairs, and we do not live with separate codes of conduct depending on the situation.  We live with what is frequently referred to as integrity.  That is, we follow the same code with all whom we come into contact, displaying Christian ideals in every endeavor.

     Thus we have the 12 steps for the Christian.  We have an approachable and realistic method for dealing with sin by acknowledging it and its effects on us and how we can begin to loosen sin’s grip on our lives.  By acknowledging God in our lives, by making a decision to turn our lives and will over to the care of God, and by taking particular actions in order to facilitate our decision, we have accomplished that which we are to do—be in communion with God to the best of our abilities in all aspects of our lives.

Eric J. Webber is a professional therapist working with the nationally acclaimed Caron Foundation to help in the rehabilitation of those struggling with substance abuse.  Eric embraced the Orthodox Christian faith and has been a member of St. Matthew’s for the past four and a half years.

Saint Matthew's Greek Orthodox Church
Fr. Demetrius Nicoloudakis, Pastor
P.O. Box 12589 ● Reading, PA 19612 ● 484-955-1334

O Holy Apostle and Evangelist Matthew, intercede to our merciful God,
that He may grant our souls forgiveness of sins.