Expert: Griff Ruby - 3/1/2011

Question
Hello and thankyou for taking my question. I am a recovering drug addict and alcoholic. What I am wondering is this: In AA we are taught that we have to believe in a power greater than ourselves to get us sober. I personally believe in Jesus Christ and have stayed sober. What I am wondering why God honors the request to stay sober for people in my group who pray to Allah and gods other than the real God? A catholic friend of mine told me that God is not  honoring their god, but honoring the fact that they at least searching for the truth = even though they are "Stuck," on this lesser truth. Is that the answer or is there some other answer?

Answer
God is the hearer of prayer, and as Scripture says, "He causes it to rain on the just and the unjust."  I have long noticed that even prayers of those who plainly do not belong to God (or even in some cases don't even believe in Him, so long as they are still willing to pray to the God they don't believe in) will often be responded to.
I think it could go something like this.  A person can only be stuck being content with some limited and flawed conception of God if their belief in God is only "nominal" and not a serious belief that there really is a God.  Anyone can go through the motions and that does not mean that they seriously understand or accept the meaning or value of their actions (if they have any).  For example, most of us Americans go to vote, even though we know that our vote will not have any real effect (except for the absurdly rare case in which the person we vote for wins only by the one vote we cast), yet we do it anyway.  Or again, we all follow the rules about wearing safety belts when driving or riding in a car, perhaps dimly aware of what good it would do if there were an accident, but not for a moment actually considering the possibility that such an accident would actually happen to us.  There is nothing like our chosen candidate actually winning by the one vote we cast, or our life actually being saved in an accident by the seat belt we were wearing to really appreciate the value of what we have been doing.  So a person does "religious things" on the off chance that there might be a God.
But then an actual answer to prayer shows there to really be a God (this would be what the Church calls an "actual grace," to be distinguished from "sanctifying grace" which is the state of actually be at peace with God) and now we must take our religious obligations far more seriously, and that would lead (if seriously and honestly pursued) to the truth.
I have just one other very minor point regarding a phrase you used that might imply some mistaken and unintended assumptions:  I don't think it appropriate to refer to any other religion as a "lesser truth" since in fact it is not a truth at all.  A real "lesser truth" would be some minor (but quite true) detail far less important than the big ticket truths that really matter the most.  "Who God is" would be a "big truth" while "what God thinks of safety belts in cars" would be a "lesser truth."  I would have phrased what you said thus:  "they are "Stuck," on something less than the truth."
Hope this helps, sorry for the delay, God bless!