2-4-23

Reply: a4fv

Step 9 is where we may demonstrate ATONEMENT. The beauty of Living Amends expresses the fact one has evolved... which is the ultimate purpose for earthlings, isn't it?

Heed the "Questions To Be Honest About".
See what you write on them.

For the Love of Truth

Criminals & Gangmembers Anonymous

STEP NINE
WE MADE DIRECT AMENDS AND RESTITUTION WHENEVER POSSIBLE TO THE PERSONS WE INJURED, EXCEPT WHEN DOING SO WOULD CAUSE FURTHER INJURY OR HARM.

TOPIC: The importance of healing, the victim and the offender.

The CGA Twelve Step journey represents Recovery, Healing and Spirituality, which all merge into one's ability to live and do God's will.
RECOVERY: The CGA Twelve Steps guide us into becoming responsible for ourselves as individuals and accountable for our behavior and actions. Recognizing our human flaws and accepting the mistakes we've made in judgement is not easy. Evil and wrongdoing awaken pain, fear, anger and resentment. These feelings hold us trapped in guilt, shame or self-pity. Through recovery we identify why we often feel uncomfortable, why we do wrong and what we can do to correct our behavior if we make a choice and decision to recover.
HEALING: The CGA Twelve Step recovery process outlines specifically what we need to do to heal our broken human characters. As we remove the evil from within us (through understanding how destructive evil can be and how it impacts lives) we become motivated to sincerely practice compassion and live more caring toward others while being decent to ourselves. We understand too, the powerful force of addiction and how it was ignited by defects in our character that ultimately damaged or destroyed relationships with others we have an obligation to make amends and restitution for. We realize we have the capacity to change, a reliable process to utilize in changing for the support of CGA.
SPIRITUALITY: Recovery and healing both intermix and blend comfortably into development of a true spiritual manner of living in thoughts, words and actions. Through a combination of the three, we come to establish a private, personal relationship with God and begin living our lives to serve God through a commitment of love.

QUESTIONS TO BE HONEST ABOUT:
1. How has CGA recovery helped you to become responsible for yourself and accountable for you actions?
2. Why is forgiving ourselves important and then seeking forgiveness from those we have offended important?
3. Do you feel amends and restitution is important to your personal spiritual journey? If so, please explain why.
4. Is it necessary to continue an amends and restitution process, or should it only be done once and forgotten?
5. Do you feel that your efforts toward amends and restitution are important to your victims?

KEY WORDS DEFINED:
RESPONSIBLE: Involving accountability, obligation or duties; able to distinguish between right and wrong and to think and act rationally and hence accountable for one's behavior.
ACCOUNTABLE: Obliged to account for one's acts; capable of being accounted for.
AMEND: To make better; improve; to remove the faults of; to improve one's conduct.
RESTITUTION: A giving back to the rightful owner of something that has been lost or taken away; a return to a former condition or situation.

Criminals & Gangmembers Anonymous

STEP NINE

WE MADE DIRECT AMENDS AND RESTITUTION WHENEVER POSSIBLE TO THE PERSONS WE INJURED, EXCEPT WHEN DOING SO WOULD CAUSE FURTHER INJURY OR HARM.

No one has the right to use violence against another human being, regardless of the circumstances. That's the difficult part for us as criminals, because through our warped beliefs we believe and justify our negative and destructive actions. For years we have lived in a state of denial, never taking full responsibility for our crimes even when our crimes have created much pain, harm, suffering and yes, even caused death to innocent people. Have we for one second stopped to realize the impact of our crimes? The collateral damage behind our crimes are widely spread out causing us to unknowingly harm and create pain upon the family and friends of those we directly victimized. How much longer will we be blinded by our selfish and foolish actions? Today we should remember our victims, because we have left countless victims behind during the path of our destruction to illegal activities.

QUESTIONS TO BE HONEST ABOUT:
1. What are you doing today to make amends to your victims?
2. Have you fully realized the impact of your crime(s)?
3. What steps are you taking to ensure you will not create any more victims?
4. Are you aware that there is no such thing as a 'victimless' crime?
5. Have you recognized the betrayal and lack of trust that others have in you because of your crimes? (Please explain).

ONE LESS CRIMINAL
IS ONE LESS CRIME
THEREFORE
ONE LESS VICTIM...