Speaking of Faith® from American Public Media

An estimated one in 13 American adults abuse, or are addicted to, alcohol. Until the founding of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) in the 1930's, alcoholism was a ruinous and nearly always fatal affliction, immune to the best methods of psychology or medicine. AA made extended sobriety possible for the first time. It did so by analyzing alcoholism as a physical, mental, and spiritual disease.

The only requirement for membership in AA is a desire to quit drinking. Not every person who participates in AA recovers. But at its core, when it works, AA is a spiritual discipline and practice — a way of life that a recovering alcoholic undertakes in relationship with other alcoholics. It's possible to imagine, in such language, a quasi-religious movement, and there was a significant Christian influence in the formative years of AA. But the movement's power over several decades has lain in part in its remarkable ability to translate across the world's cultures and traditions.

Host Krista Tippett speaks with author Susan Cheever, who has written widely about her own experiences with alcoholism and recovery. She also talks with Basil Braveheart of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, a Lakota healer who reclaimed traditional Lakota spiritual practices in his recovery from alcoholism.

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Each week Krista reflects on her conversations with our guests, provides transcript excerpts from the previous week's show, and recommends books to delve further into each week's topic.

Exclusive Content

Web-Only Audio
Listen to intriguing conversations that took place behind-the-scenes of the radio program with Basil Braveheart, James Nelson, and Betty Davis-Reynolds.

Voices on the Radio

Susan Cheever
Cheever's the author of My Name Is Bill, a new biography of the co-founder of AA, and many other books.

Jung's Letter to Wilson
Read Carl Jung's reply (January 30, 1961) to Alcoholics Anonymous A co-founder Bill Wilson's letter about the power of spirituality over alcoholism.

Basil Braveheart
Braveheart is an educator and a Lakota healer on the Pine Ridge Reservation of South Dakota.