What hope can there be of finding common ground between Judaism (which maintains that the Messiah has not yet arrived) and Christianity (which maintains that he has)? Or between Christianity (which asserts the reality of the physical world) and Buddhism (which denies it)? Or between any of these religions and Program itself, which seems to leave the definition of a Higher Power up to us?

In fact there is a common link: the suppression of ego, ego deflation at depth. All three of these religions subscribe to this common theme -- as does Program, of course. So why is it that we hear so much in meetings about finding God, and so little about losing ourselves?

To some extent at least, it's because we're Westerners. Our entire Western way of thought is predicated on the vital importance of the self, on my freedom to be what I want to be and do what I want to do. It's one of the reasons that Buddhism is regarded in the West as odd ... because Buddhism places the subjugation of self at the top of its agenda.

So does Program. The suppression of the ego runs as a constant sub-text throughout the AA Big Book, for it is difficult to do God's will if I am constantly trying to synthesize it with my own. This deflation of the ego lies at the core of Steps 10, 11 and 12. No wonder that these Steps are not exactly popular -- which is a pity, because working on our ego is the best preparation for whatever religion we may choose to espouse.