I love it! Joining my Dao community in 2010 and my first (VERY structured) 12 step program (for food fixated addiction/disorders) in 2015 helped me to establish a (virtually) daily 30 min meditation Practice! It’s VERY very helpful; especially towards the Goal of tapping into my own INNER Guru or God of my personally experienced understanding (ie in terms of adherence to the broader shared 12 step fellowship’s aims and traditions).

@Lucia M. Indeed! Well said!

@Chuen Gerber Greetings! I just stumbled across this Atwill jewel! To me, his below-quoted sentiments hit the nail on the head in terms of this group’s initial founding quest(ion) [bracketed comments and all-caps added by me for emphasis / clarification]: https://youtu.be/2zmkHLGdiH8 1 hour 53-54 min in “… The Flavian authors [aka the Pauline school of Xian thought; thus pivotally-including Constantine’s (intentionally complex & nonsensical) Nicene creed] appear to have discovered principles of social psychology that transcend any particular political system. They learned how to create religious beliefs that serve political structures generally, rather than just Roman imperial interests specifically. [^Cult-Resistant Implications] Understanding these Principles becomes CRUCIAL for anyone seeking to maintain intellectual and spiritual independence in contemporary contexts. [^Rationale] The same techniques that made Xianity effective as a tool of imperial control continue to operate in modern political, economic and social systems. [^THUS] Learning to recognize these techniques can help us distinguish between authentic spiritual wisdom [ie the aim of true Sanghas/Ashrams/Tariqas] and sophisticated psychological manipulation [ie Cults masquerading as sanghas etc] …”

Bottom Line: IF it’s appropriate to interpret Justin Peach’s founding quest in starting this page as “Maintaining intellectual and spiritual independence (vs Cult-like codependency)” THEN Lines of reasoning exemplified in the above analysis, thesis, and advice bares consideration. As painfully awkward and identity-splitting as it might be (note: the accumulated wisdom of 12 step fellowships like Alanon, Adult Children of … Dysfunction…, and Codependents Anonymous can definitely help)

Awesome discussion points! Bravo!

Greetings, I generally identify as an appreciative former-member of the Bahai Faith (thus a ‘Nuri’ aka friend thereof), and a Dao-Buddhist Sufi Mystic. Per my Sufi Path, under the guidance of Prophet Noble Drew Ali, I’ve found deep Spiritual meaning in embracing the Timeless Creedal-Principles of Islam (see Quran Ch2:285), as summarized as Love, Truth, Peace, Freedom and Justice. Upon joining the Sufi-aligned Moorish Movement (of Noble Drew Ali) in 2011, I was soon Called to the 12 Step Recovery Movement (2015). And having grown immensely therefrom — including recently completing step work in Recoveries Anonymous (which affirms that the steps can be effective towards ALL life challenges) — I’ve become very interested in cultivating (12 Step?) Spiritual community around the following question: Q: How might we members of post-colonial era humanity cultivate lasting and effective Spiritual community AND avoid the (cult-breeding) legacy of *codependency, inherited from our collective past-era trauma? *Note: Codependency here (per Codependents Anonymous) equates to an inability to (establish/) maintain healthy relationships.

@Justin Peach Gratitude! 🙏🏾

The plot of The Truman Show (Jim Carey) did a lot for me