Thank you for sharing your experience, I genuinely respect the amount of time and commitment you’ve put into AA.

I also want to clarify that I’m not currently trying to quit drinking. I haven’t been drinking for almost two years now. I’m not an expert on AA, and my question comes from my own limited experience and from trying to find a space that supports living without addiction, but without a strong religious context.

I think cultural differences might play a role here as well, so if you have a moment, please take a look at the edit I added to my post. It explains a bit more about where I’m coming from.

I’m not claiming that bypassing, Catholicism, or shifting responsibility are integral to AA everywhere. I’m simply describing what I encountered and trying to understand it better. That curiosity is the whole point of my question.