If worship services were held by AA…

Day 11 of being sober. Today was Yom Kippur, a Jewish holiday for the Day of Atonement. I certainly feel like I have been atoning for the past 10 days this year, or at least re-examining my entire life. I didn’t make it to an AA meeting today because I was in Temple for several hours. I can only take so long of sitting on an uncomfortable pew listening to what God wants me to do with my life! However, I can think of many ways the Yom Kippur service would improve if it followed AA guidelines:

1. No one can talk for more than three minutes (esp. the rabbi, who tends to be long-winded)

2. Everyone who comes in late has to introduce themselves (this would cut down on latecomers)

3. Coffee is provided at every service (ok, so technically you’re supposed to fast today)

4. You can sit down the entire time (none of this standing and then sitting crap)

5. The service would only last one hour maximum (why do we have to be there for three hours??)

Of course, you probably would have to say the Shema (a traditional Jewish prayer) at the end instead of the Lord’s Prayer. I do feel a little weird saying the Lord’s Prayer at the end of every AA meeting. Everyone talks about God instead of Jesus at the AA meetings, but the AA book is clearly modeled after some Protestant version of Christianity.

The funny thing, though, is the Big Book is very similar in size and shape to the prayerbook I received for my Bat Mitzvah 11 years ago. I think they both have dark blue covers, as well. And the whole idea of making amends is similar to one found in Judaism, where you have to atone in person for your sins the past year during the High Holy Days. Or maybe I’m reaching here so I don’t feel guilty for adopting the AA prayers instead of traditional Jewish ones.

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