Higher Power

Preach to the choir Religion

Crux of the matter

Christianity Judaism Islam Hinduism Buddhism Zoroastrianism Sikhism Jainism

Speak of the devil

Satanism Atheism Antitheism Agnosticism Deism Secularism Humanism Paganism

An act of faith

Excommunication Suppressive person Infidel Theosophy Theocracy Messiah Omnipresence v - t - e

Higher Power is a euphemism for God, the supernatural, or the godhead.

The term was first coined by Bill Wilson, the spiritualist founder of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), and features heavily in AA's sobriety program.

Although a former governor of Oklahoma once claimed that a Higher Power could be something as corporeal as a tree and members of AA cite other Higher Powers such as doorknobs, closet doors, and toilet seats, numerous U.S. court rulings have held that "Higher Power" is definitely a religious term referring to a supernatural entity, and thus it is unconstitutional to force convicts to attend AA meetings.

In this vein, "Higher Power" sees use as a code word by Christians who are trying to be "inclusive" or deceptive and thus refrain from saying which Higher Power they mean; however, although these people may sing the praises of "a relationship with a Higher Power", they are not exceedingly enthusiastic about relationships with a certain other Higher Power.

For additional vagueness or casual convenience, one can abbreviate "Higher Power" as "HP".

See also

• Spiritual but not religious
• Spirituality