Throwback Thursday AA history post - Bill W. and Dr. Bob speak at the Central Atlantic Regional Assembly - Washington, DC, January 31, 1948 Bill and Dr. Bob, Jan 1948
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AA history and literature together - A 1948 Bill Wilson Grapevine article on Tradition Two: Tradition Two Copyright © The A.A. Grapevine, Inc., January 1948 Sooner or later, every AA comes to depend upon a Power greater than himself. He finds that the God of his understanding is not only a source of strength, but also a source of positive direction. Realizing that some fraction of that infinite resource is now available, his life takes on and entirely different complexion. He experiences a new inner security together with such a sense of destiny and purpose as he has never known before. As each day passes, our AA reviews his mistakes and vicissitudes. He learns from daily experience what his remaining character defects are and becomes ever more willing that they be removed. In this fashion he improves his conscious contact with God. Every AA group follows this same cycle of development. We are coming to realize that each group, as well as each ...
Throwback Thursday AA history post - a 1944 Grapevine article by Lois Wilson on early AA: Bill’s Wife Remembers When He and She and the First A.A.’s Were Very Young Copyright © AA Grapevine, Inc, Christmas Issue, 1944 As the wife of an early A.A., some of our experiences and my reactions to my husband’s changed life may be interesting to other wives. Bill was an alcoholic, I believe, from the first drink he ever took, just a few months before our marriage. From then on, for seventeen years, I did everything I could think of to keep him away from liquor. I will tell a little of our life before A.A. to help explain some of my later emotions. Bill and I had no children, so I soon felt that my job in life was to help Bill straighten himself out. As time went on, he earnestly tried to stop drinking. He was alway...
Thoughts on Tradition Two from the Shropshire (UK) Intergroup of AA (More HERE ): Short form For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority—a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern. Long form For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority— a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Unusually this is the only 'long form' tradition that is shorter than the short form! Tradition Two Discussion Questions In group conscience meetings am I looking to find God’s will or am I secretly trying to push my own agenda? Am I in sufficient contact with my Higher Power to consider myself able to try to speak on Its behalf? Am I too trusting of AA leaders? Do I take enough responsibility for my own understanding or simply parrot what I’m told? Do I try to save face in group discussion, or can I yield in good spirit to the group conscience and work cheerfully alo...
"Obsession" in the Twelve and Twelve and Big Book: In our literature this word almost always means the obsession to drink. The 12 & 12 has many passages in which the solution to the problem involves removing, relieving, etc this obsession. This is, in fact, the second most common term for the solution other than 'recovered.' A few other uses related to alcoholism from the Big Book are shown at the bottom. 12 & 12: “A.A.’s Twelve Steps are a group of principles, spiritual in nature, which, if practiced as a way of life, can expel the obsession to drink and enable the sufferer to become happily and usefully whole.” Page 15, Foreword “It is truly awful to admit that, glass in hand, we have warped our minds into such an obsession for destructive drinking that only an act of Providence can remove it from us.” Page 21, Step One “Our sponsors declared that we were the victims of a mental obsession so subtly powerful that no amount of human ...