
There it was credited to American theologian Reinhold Niebuhr (1892-1971). Many AA members were first exposed to the prayer in 1948, when it was quoted in the Grapevine, an AA periodical. The Serenity Prayer has been variously attributed to an ancient Sanskrit text, Aristotle, St.
#Serenity prayer in the bible full#
The full Serenity Prayer text has stronger religious overtones.Īlso there are conflicting accounts of the prayer's origin. There are several versions of the Serenity Prayer, each with slightly different wording that support groups have adopted. And, although the origin is thought to be Christian, the Serenity Prayer is applicable to your daily life regardless of religion or spiritual belief system. The Serenity Prayer meshes perfectly with the spirituality of AA's Twelve Steps. In fact, these 25 words are heard in most every AA meeting and widely taken as a succinct statement of a path to sanity and sobriety. Members of Alcoholics Anonymous have enthusiastically embraced this prayer-known as the Serenity Prayer-almost from the moment they discovered it. AA, the Twelve Steps and the Serenity Prayer So that I may be reasonably happy in this lifeĪmen. The Full Serenity PrayerĪccepting hardships as the pathway to peace Below, we provide the full Serenity Prayer along with an examination of its history, meaning and importance so that we all might carry its lessons closely and transform common hardships into a calming surrender. The Serenity Prayer serves as a focal point for the very spirit of AA, anchoring its members to its quintessential teachings about surrender and acceptance. Although its origins are a bit unclear, its impacts are not. This often used AA prayer is an excerpt from a longer prayer commonly attributed to Reinhold Niebuhr. God grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change, These simple words ring clear through the hearts and minds of Alcoholics Anonymous members across the world:
