Michael744
Thank you for your reply and your offer to discuss this off forum. Perhaps my feelings, beliefs and understanding of this topic (if limited) are relevant as I am both a recovering alcoholic and a pilot who flew commercially for some years so for that reason I would be more than happy to discuss any issues 'on' forum in the hope that it might help others.
I know that without the help which I reveived from AA I would never have been able to put down the bottle and I firmly believe that it was a higher power that led me to AA. AA in turn enabled me to not just believe in a higher power but moreover to have faith in that power. I have also learnt that, for some, alcohol sets off a reaction within the body which in turn leads to both an obsession and further craving. When this reaction is strong enough an alcoholic loses control of his power over alcohol and thus begins a decline that for many can only end in death. If a belief in a higher power (and for that some might read God) can relieve anyone of their powerlessness over alcohol then who am I to question their understanding.
I will not bore you with the gory details of where my alcoholism took me but I can assure you that thanks to my Faith and to the love and kindness of AA I need never drink again and therefore need not repeat the harm that I have, in my times of drinking, done to others.
Ollie