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Serenity Prayer - Definition |
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The Serenity Prayer is a prayer written by Confessing Church figure and Union Theological Seminary professor Reinhold Niebuhr in 1926 or 1932, according to records from Alcoholics Anonymous as the ending to a longer prayer. It is used in Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous and other Twelve-step programs.
The version used by Alcoholics Anonymous et al leaves out the overtly religious material and may be more acceptable to Freethinkers.
The short version that most people are familiar with goes as follows:
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
The courage to change the things I can,
And the wisdom to know the difference.
One criticism of this prayer is over what the word 'accept' means. Some argue that while it is impossible to change the fact that crimes such as rape and murder happen, it would be inhumanly callous to accept them. Supporters of the prayer sometimes counter by saying that 'accept' does not mean 'condone', which satisfies some critics but not others.
Alternate versions of the Serenity Prayer exist. Some are parodies and some are serious.
External links
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:
Serenity Prayer
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