[Avodah] 12 Step Programs

[Micha Berger]

I was recently discussing 12 Step programs with someone, and I wasn't 100%
comfortable. Does anyone know of a specific pesaq about the permissability of
12 Step programs? Other than R' Avraham Twersky, who is obviously in favor, I
don't know of anyone discussing their halachic or basic hashkafic merits /
problems.

Here's a version anotated with my concerns:
> 1.   We admitted we were powerless over our addiction - that our lives had
become unmanageable
> 2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to
sanity
> 3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as
we understood God

So far a little ecumenical ("as we understood God"), but seems okay.

> 4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves
> 5. Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature
of our wrongs

And who would think I would complain about a cheshbon hanefesh or vidui?

> 6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character
> 7. Humbly asked God to remove our shortcomings

And here's where things bother me.

It just smells Xian. Something about turning to a deity for salvation rather
than one redeeming oneself. Hakol biydei Shamayim chutz meyir'as Shamayim. We
could and should ask for Hashem's help, that our efforts succeed, that we face
situations that foster improvement and don't pose challenges we can not
surmount. But to ask Him to do it for us?

> 8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make
> amends to them all
> 9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so
> would injure them or others
> 10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly
> admitted it
> 11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact
> with God as we understood God, praying only for knowledge of God's will for
> us and the power to carry that out

Another sore point. This focus on personal revelation rather than turning to
our mesorah smells a bit Xian Fundamentalist.

> 12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried
> to carry this message to other addicts, and to practice these principles in
> all our affairs

Another seeming import, although more mild than the last -- this is a bit of
Xian missionizing culture.

Then my 2nd tier of concern. Much of this is overtly religious. Even if it
could be fused with Judaism, should we? I'm reminded of our "women as rabbis"
discussions. The conclusion they led me to is that even when something can be
fit to halakhah, the very question of should we allow such accretion of values
from other sources may be more fundamental to the nature of Yahadus. (Not to
discuss the basis of how I reached the conclusion, and whether you believe the
idea of ordaining women is the product of an "external value", just the
conclusion itself.)

Would a pesaq depend on what the person is addicted to? Some kind of sechar vs
hefseid analysis? Or is it more clearly back or white?

Tir'u beTov!
-mi

-- 
Micha Berger             One who kills his inclination is as though he
micha at aishdas.org        brought an offering. But to bring an offering,
http://www.aishdas.org   you must know where to slaughter and what Fax: (270)
514-1507      parts to offer.        - R' Simcha Zissel Ziv