The Trinity Stars Doctrine
The Trinity Stars is a doctrine and a system for recovery from alcoholism.
It is built firmly on my own recovery, which has at its center:
- Surrender to my Catholic creationist God.
- Time in Alcoholics Anonymous Rooms (“the rooms”).
- A therapist helping me map the application of Polyvagal theory to the way I live.
- The proprietary adaptation of core business commercialization and operational principles, learned through a 35‑year successful business career.
- Reading and listening to books and podcasts with a spiritual bent.
- And, above all, trial and error.
The doctrine and system for recovery that emerged from this serendipitous and divine mash‑up is The Trinity Stars Doctrine. It proposes that the most effective path to recovery is through three guiding stars:
1. God
Surrender to Him. Pursue the mission He has willed for you. Use the gifts He has given you. Recovery begins and ends with God — the compass point that never shifts.
2. Applying Business Principles to Recovery
Apply business‑born strategic and operational system frameworks to recovery. The Business to Recovery Framework (B2R SOS Framework) sets out nine business principles and three sub‑principles that can be seamlessly ported from business into recovery.
They equip you to:
• Formulate strategies and operational systems.
• Improve your strengths.
• Overcome your weaknesses.
• Leverage opportunities.
• Mitigate threats.
In short, it is a framework to manage your sober and spiritually enriched life like a business — with traction, discipline, and resilience.
3. The Pursuit of Grace
Continually improve your conscious contact with God and build spiritual traction by pursuing grace through three channels:
- Formal: Structured practices of faith. For me, that means Mass and the sacraments. For others, it may mean prayer, meditation, or rituals within their own tradition. The point is discipline — a rhythm that anchors you.
- Semi‑formal: Therapy, AA rooms, rehabs, retreats, scripture study groups, meditation, books. These are organized but flexible spaces where recovery and spirituality intersect.
- Everyday: Glass‑half‑full interactions with all of God’s creation — people, animals, nature, the universe. Be kind. Take an interest in the cashier’s day. Be a shoulder to lean on. Help others. Learn something new.
The Pursuit of Grace favors the bold. It favors the odd route, the willingness to swing the bat more — to fail, to miss, to hit, to try again, to learn without limits.
Most of all, it favors action. The act of doing.
Grace does not respond to standing there like a stunned mullet with a sense of entitlement. Not bobbing in the sea of life, drifting wherever the current takes you. But swimming like crazy toward the light on the horizon.
As my recovery progressed, these stars became my compass. They are my compass today and will remain my compass for the term of my natural life.
They did not just guide me out of addiction.
They gave me a system to live by.
And a doctrine and system to share..
This doctrine is built to move. And it’s open to all who are ready to move with it.
About Jason Bresnehan
Jason is a writer and recovery advocate whose work explores the intersection of Catholic faith and the lived experience of addiction. His books and essays weave scripture with the rhythms of everyday life, showing how grace can surface in the most ordinary encounters.
Through A Catholic Gospel Journey – Through the Lens of Alcohol Recovery and related projects, Jason offers reflections that connect the Sunday readings to the struggles and victories of recovery. His approach is rooted in clarity, rhythm, and respect for tradition, while remaining accessible to those navigating the challenges of addiction and renewal.
Founder of the Hadspen Foundation, Jason is committed to building frameworks for spiritual recovery that are both repeatable and personal. His writing is guided by discernment, narrative cadence, and the belief that doctrine should support—not overshadow—the human story.