Search Results for: when religion goes bad

by Dale S. Ryan and Jeff VanVonderen It is probably obvious to most people reading this that religion can “go bad.” Nothing too surprising there. You don’t really have to go further than the morning newspapers these days to learn that sometimes religious conviction can become horribly twisted and abusive. Many of us are personally familiar with the misuse of religious ideas to support domestic … [Read more...] about When Religion Goes Bad: Part 1

by Dale S. Ryan and Jeff VanVonderen In the first part of this series we introduced the idea that religion can “go bad.” This might not be a difficult or threatening topic for some people. If our experiences with religion have been neutral or positive, we may even find it difficult to imagine that religion can ever go bad. Many of us, however, have been exposed to environments where “religion … [Read more...] about When Religion Goes Bad: Part 2 — Religious Addiction

by Dale S. Ryan and Jeff VanVonderen In the first installment of this series we introduced the idea that religion can "go bad." In the second installment we talked about religious addiction. In this installment we want to discuss religious codependency. To understand religious codependency it's important to first understand some of the basic dynamics of codependency in … [Read more...] about When Religion Goes Bad: Part 3 — Religious Codependency

There is a lot of truth in an old slogan you sometimes hear in twelve step fellowships: "Talking about the spiritual part of the program is like talking about the wet part of the ocean". Recovery is an inherently spiritual journey. What people do when they do the twelve steps, for example, is a series of spiritual practices -- all of which have long histories in the Christian tradition (e.g … [Read more...] about Center for Spirituality and Recovery

AUDIO ARTICLES SUPPORT GROUPS/NETWORKS Substance Abuse Sex Addiction Gambling Food There are also many groups that welcome any member of an addicted family. For example: … [Read more...] about Resources for Codependents

by Jeff VanVonderen In recent years the phenomenon of intervention has caught the eye of the broadcast media. And thanks to them, what people envision when they hear the word intervention usually falls into one of four categories. The first is the "Sopranos"-style intervention, where at the end the "good fellas" beat up on their fellow fella and threaten to ice him if he doesn't go to rehab. … [Read more...] about Crisis Intervention and Mistakes Families Make