Chapter X - Religious Conversion as a Cure, part 2
Chapter X - Religious Conversion as a Cure, part 2

Psychology of Alcoholism, The by George Barton Cutten (1874 - 1962)

The chapter examines religious conversion as a comprehensive cure for alcoholism, focusing on inner psychological change, loss of craving, and renewed purpose. It discusses self-surrender, faith, subconscious processes, and how altruism and hope can support lasting sobriety.

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39:40•1 Apr 2026

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Religious Conversion as a Cure for Alcoholism: A Psychological View

Episode Overview

Religious conversion is described as a shift in a person's centre of energy, making religious aims the driving force of life.
Self-surrender and faith form one continuous process that replaces old motives with a strong desire for a new, sober life.
Conversion is said to affect the whole person, including the subconscious, which may help explain sudden loss of alcohol craving.
The experience often brings feelings of newness, joy, hope, and courage, giving the alcoholic confidence to remain abstinent.
A genuine conversion is linked with reduced selfishness and increased concern for family, community, and moral duty.

“"The fact is marvelous, but none the less true, and may be shown by references to many cases... The appetite is gone without a trace."”

What drives someone to seek a life without alcohol? This chapter of **Psychology of Alcoholism** looks at religious conversion as a psychological and spiritual response to chronic drinking, with a strong focus on what actually changes inside a person who quits.

Drawing on thinkers such as Professor James, the text explains conversion as a shift in a person's "habitual centre of his personal energy" – religious ideas move from the edges of the mind to its core, reshaping motives, desires, and behaviour. For someone trapped in alcohol, this is described as a sharp break with an "enslaving habit" and a move from being "serf" to "ruler" of their own life.

You'll hear how self-surrender and faith are presented as two sides of the same inner process: handing over the old life and embracing a "new life" so strongly that "all baser motives or ideas" are driven out. The chapter describes how this can bring an almost overwhelming sense of "newness", joy, and optimism – the alcoholic may feel like a prisoner "released from his bonds" and suddenly see beauty and goodness everywhere.

The author also spends time on the less romantic side: the subconscious mind, temperament, suggestion, and even hypnotic-like elements in dramatic conversions. Rather than dismissing these, the argument is that true conversion reaches "the whole man, conscious and subconscious", which helps explain why, in many cases, "the appetite is gone without a trace". Family, citizenship, altruism, and renewed willpower all appear as practical outcomes.

The alcoholic's selfishness is said to shrink as "altruistic feelings and impulses" grow, giving fresh reasons to stay sober and to act as a "natural husband and father" again. If you're curious about the older psychological and religious arguments for why some people lose the craving for alcohol altogether, this chapter offers a detailed and sometimes surprising perspective. How does this picture of sudden inner change compare with modern ideas you’ve heard about recovery?

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