Alcoholism Drives Man Beyond 12 Steps and Into

the Church (8007)

John Garcia shares his journey of healing.

by TRENT BEATTIE 10/14/2011 Comments (28)

John W. Garcia, founder of Sober for Christ, says Catholics who are alcoholic need more than the 12-step program.
Courtesy of John Garcia
John W. Garcia, known as Johnny to his friends, has seen the dark side of life. The 39-year-old California native

came from an abusive home and sought to alleviate his pain through alcohol.
He soon found that as his drinking increased so did his suffering.
Garcias attempts to overcome alcohol and eventual drug abuse included
Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, inpatient and outpatient treatment centers,
more than 10 medications and psychotherapy. He had periods of sobriety but
also many relapses, never finding true contentment.
Garcia even found that some of the means proposed for his benefit actually
made things worse, including the medications he was given. His breaking
point came in 2006, when he relapsed once again and was sentenced to 16
months in prison. It was here that he understood for the first time what the
Church has to offer those suffering from addictions, especially the healing
found in the sacrament of penance.
Today, Garcia embraces the Churchs means of healing and enthusiastically
shares them with others, as he explained recently to Register correspondent
Trent Beattie.
What was wrong with the way you attempted to deal with your addictions
before coming back to the Church?
My family background was lacking in faith formation. The most basic things
keeping the Ten Commandments, Mass attendance and going to
confession were simply not part of my life growing up. They werent
discussed and werent put into practice.
This spiritual void was filled with modern psychologys vision of man, which
does not include an immortal soul. Modern psychology deals with behaviors,
but does not deal with the cause of those behaviors, which is found in the
soul. Viewed from philosophical terms, psychology is the study of the soul,
as we can see from the etymology of the wordpsyche, the primary meaning
of which is soul.
However, modern psychology will tell us something different, as was the
case with me.
I was dual-diagnosed as being alcoholic and bipolar, put on many different
medications and went through various treatment centers, all the while not
realizing the real cause of my problems. I bought into the mindset that the
only cure for my problems was 12-step programs, including the first such
program, Alcoholics Anonymous.

The real source of my problems stemmed from a consequence of original sin

our concupiscence (or the tendency toward sin) that I did not control,
but gave in to by committing personal sin. I thought I had a personality
defect or disease that caused my misbehaviors, but finally realized it was my
own free will consenting to sin. Only after learning this truth could I really
strike at the root of the problem. This is done by totally giving oneself to
God through his Church. What follows is serious reception of the sacraments
and use of the sacramentals, along with prayer (the Rosary, in particular)
and cultivating the theological of virtues of faith, hope and charity in the soul
through sanctifying grace.
The 12 steps (which include admitting our wrongs and willingness to be
healed) seem very compatible with Christianity, so where does the problem
come in?
There is good to be found in the 12 steps, so its not as if they are entirely
opposed to all the Catholic Church teaches. Things such as sharing your
problems with another person and taking things one day at a time are great,
but they arent the whole story of how God wants to heal us. This is why the
12 steps should not be seen as the final destination, but as stepping stones,
so to speak, for someone coming into the Church.
The 12 steps can mimic what the Church has to offer, thereby misleading
people as to what is truly taking place. For instance, many people have told
me they dont have to go to confession because they talk with their sponsor.
Then I explain that sponsors can be helpful, but they cant forgive our sins;
only a Catholic priest can do that. This is how Jesus set up his Church, as
seen in John 20, when he says to his apostles, Whose sins you shall forgive,
they are forgiven them.
Theres relief in talking to a sponsor, but theres more relief not to
mention sanctifying grace in going to confession. This is where awesome
miracles take place all the time. St. Augustine says, It is a greater work to
make a just man out of a sinner than to create heaven and earth. This is
what Jesus does through his priests when they forgive mortal sins the
spiritually dead are raised to life.
But doesnt that qualify as being healed by the higher power mentioned in
the 12 steps?
When you say higher power to a Catholic, he would think of the Trinity
Father, Son and Holy Spirit. What he may not realize is that in the 12 steps
the higher power does not have to be the Triune God. It can be anything or
anyone, as long as its not you.
In my 10 years with AA, there were people who made a celebrity, their
sponsor or even a doorknob their higher power.
This contradicts the First Commandment: I am the Lord your God, who
brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall

have no other gods before me. In one sense, any sin could be thought of as
idolatry because were putting a created thing before God. However, to raise
it to a whole new level of formal idolatry is even worse. Unfortunately, many
people do just this. It can lead to all kinds of trouble because, as exorcist
priests have pointed out to me, demons are, in fact, higher powers.
Surrender to a god other than the true God actually opens the person up to
the possibility of demonic influence.
This surrender to gods is what addictions are, really, so anyone who has
lived in a state of sin for a long period of time would benefit not only from
confession but also deliverance prayer. I personally was transformed by
the deliverance prayer of Pope Leo XIII prayed over me by a trained
exorcist priest. If youve opened yourself up to demonic influence
through Ouija boards, tarot cards, horoscopes, [certain forms of]
rock music, drugs, alcohol abuse or any other means, I recommend
deliverance prayer. It can even be helpful to people who dont
remember having certainly committed such sins.
Many people would wonder why you refer to sin regarding alcoholism, which
is widely seen as a disease out of ones control.
It is true that we cannot control our behaviors whether they be drinking
or otherwise without Gods grace. Its not just a matter of sheer willpower
which saves us apart from Gods help. Its also true that there can be difficult
things to endure while giving up drinking, including withdrawal symptoms.
However, this doesnt mean alcoholism is a disease in the sense we would
use the term for cancer or malaria.
Archbishop Fulton Sheen said that alcoholics expect praise for sobriety but
not contempt for drinking. The first instance presupposes an element of free
will, while the second instance is a denial of free will. Its taking credit for
our virtues but shirking responsibility for our vices and by the way, even
more vices follow in the wake of drunkenness.
Drunkenness is repeatedly referred to as a sin in the Bible. In Galatians 5,
St. Paul lists the works of the flesh, one of which is drunkenness. He then
says, I warn you as I warned you before, that those who do such things will
not inherit the Kingdom of God.
Now if alcoholism were really a disease, why would St. Paul condemn
someone who has it?
Similarly, St. Peter expects us to be sober and vigilant, as seen in 1 Peter 5.
It would be extremely cruel for these great men of faith to expect a person
to change his behavior if he had no control over it. The solution is simple:
We do have the power, by Gods grace, to control our behaviors, and this
grace is experienced most fully in the Catholic Church.
Even after you returned to the Church, you were under the impression for
quite some time that you had a disease. When did that change?

I would still struggle after returning to the Church in 1997, not because
anything was lacking therein, but because of major misconceptions about
my situation. As stated previously, I was dual-diagnosed as alcoholic and
bipolar, and then put on a series of medications. Curiously enough, the
medications turned out to be more troublesome than the problems they
were supposed to be helping.
The pain and confusion worsened, hitting a peak in 2006. I spent large
amounts of money on my addictions, lost my job, and got into trouble with
the law. I was sent to jail the next year, which was an all-time low point. I
had been in lots of trouble before, but had never gone to jail. I was terrified
and, in my desperation, started praying the Rosary daily, asking for Marys
help. Shortly after this, I stopped taking medications and have not taken any
since.
It was also in jail that I read the Bible, cover to cover, in two and a half
months. I realized that up to that point I was reading Alcoholics
Anonymous (commonly known as The Big Book) more than I was reading
the Bible. When I started reading the written word of God more and more, I
learned the true nature of my problem, which was my own sin, not a
disease.
I realized that we are called to act becomingly as children of God, and
sobriety is an essential aspect of this. Its not an impossible goal, but a very
realistic one that can be done by the grace of God and a firm resolve to
make it happen. This is what is so great about understanding the cardinal
virtue of temperance, which is also known in the New Testament as sobriety.
It was such a relief to know that if I wanted to be sober I needed to practice
human virtue, which requires an act of the will.
From Bible reading, I delved into the Catechism of the Catholic Church. I
gained an even greater understanding of concupiscence, sin, free will,
prayer, Marian intercession, redemption and grace. Even though I had been
back in the Church for almost 10 years, it took that much time to let go of
the 12-step mindset and make full use of what Jesus Christ has to offer us.
That shows the tremendous importance of really knowing the truth, because
the truth will set you free. I had the greatest gifts imaginable right in front of
my face but couldnt make the best use of them until letting go of
fundamental errors in my thinking.
I was released early from prison on Oct. 17, which is the day St. Maximilian
Kolbe (the patron of prisoners) was beatified in 1971. A few months
afterward I consecrated myself and my family to Our Blessed Mother
through the Militia Immaculata, founded by St. Maximilian. We renew our
consecration every day as a family, placing ourselves under the protection of
the Mother of God, whose major goal is to reconcile sinners with her Son. My
wife, Laura, knows this, and, in fact, I wouldnt be here today if it werent for
her own intercessory prayers.

My time in prison was both the worst and best time of my life. Never had I
encountered so much evil, but never had I become aware of so much grace.
Its this same grace I want to share with others who are imprisoned, in a
sense, in the 12 steps, and in their own sinful habits.
How do you go about doing this?
I have a website that contains the basic resources for overcoming addictions
and becoming freer to practice virtue. Ive spoken at conferences and on the
radio programs Reasons for Faith Live and Straight Talk Catholicism and
have recorded talks on CD and DVD for St. Joseph Communications. Weve
also developed, through John Paul the Great Catholic University in San
Diego, a brand-new online course for those who want to overcome bad moral
habits. Its called How to Build Good Habits and Be Happy: A Course in
Thomistic Ethics.
Additionally, were very happy to say that Dec. 10 is the date for our second
Sober for Christ Conference in Covina, Calif. Its free of charge, and it will
also help to set those free whove been captive to sin. This is what we see in
the lives of the saints, many of whom have overcome problems such as
alcohol abuse, gambling and prostitution. St. Augustine, St. Mary of Egypt,
St. Margaret of Cortona, St. John of God, St. Camillus de Lellis and many
others have not only removed specific sins from their lives, but have totally
surrendered themselves to God. None of them went to 12 step meetings, but
received from the Church everything they needed to get straight and fly
right.
Jesus Christ came to save us from sin, so if the 12 steps were necessary to
do this, he would have given them to us. He didnt do this, but he did give
us his Mother, his Church and the sacraments the most important of which
is the holy Eucharist. Once youve fallen in love with Jesus in the holy
Eucharist, theres no need for extra-ecclesial organizations. Theres a deep,
abiding peace that fills the soul like no support group could ever do.
The 12 steps can help you get through the day, but what the Church has to
offer will enable you to see the day that never ends that is, eternity in
heaven spent with our loving Father. St. Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians
2 that no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor [has] the heart of man
conceived what God has prepared for those who love him.
Register correspondent Trent Beattie writes from Seattle, Washington

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