What Can A Church Learn From AA?

Philip Yancey, noted Christian author, recently survived a near-tragic car accident. Born of this and other experiences, Yancey did what any journalist would do — He wrote about it.

He recounts his story in What Good Is God? Yancey writes that three questions guided his life at that time: who will I miss, how have I spent my life, and am I ready for what happens next?

In a wide-ranging interview with CNN about the book, Yancey suggests that churches could learn some things from AA (Alcoholics Anonymous): radical honesty and radical independence.

Alcoholics Anonymous members can spot a fraud, hypocrite, or liar the minute he or she walks in the door. They know the only path to healing begins with a frank self-assessment of failure.

When we go to church we like to look good and gain the respect of others. A married couple may fight all the way to church, but when they pull into the parking lot they’re all smiles, “We’re just fine, Mrs. Jones, how about you?” You’d never get away with that at AA.

AA also forces each person to admit their dependence on God (or at least a Higher Power) and on each other. Most AA members freely admit they could never make it on their own. People of faith believe that, too, yet how many of us practice it as passionately as those in a twelve-step group?

Do we admit our dependence on God and on each other? Good question.