Question
1:
“Would
the Fellowship share experience and make recommendations on how to
make AA more visible to the general public, particularly by
increasing awareness and understanding of how the AA programme
works?"
Extracts
“Suggestion
8
In
view of the exploitation of the fellowship by outside organizations
publishing sponsorship guides which elevate the sponsor to an
unqualified authority over the newcomer as some kind of amateurish
teacher/counsellor /mentor/spiritual advisor; and which are ripping
apart the fellowship’s spiritual foundation, I suggest Dr. Bob’s
policy against “glorification of the individual” and
“sponsor worship” is given a general airing in meetings.
Extract
from “The Fundamentals -- In Retrospect.” by Dr. Bob (AA Grapevine
September 1948):
“We
have found it wise policy, too, to hold to no glorification of the
individual. Obviously, that is sound. Most of us will concede that
when it came to the personal showdown of admitting our failures and
deciding to surrender our will and our lives to Almighty God, as we
understood Him, we still had some sneaking ideas of personal
justification and excuse. We had to discard them but the ego of the
alcoholic dies a hard death. Many of us because of activity have
received praise not only from our fellow A.A.s but from the world at
large. We would be ungrateful indeed to be boorish when that happens
yet it is so easy for us to become, privately perhaps, just a
little vain about it all. Yet, fitting and wearing halos is not for
us.
WE'VE
all seen the new member who stays sober for a time, largely
through sponsor-worship. Then maybe the sponsor gets drunk and
you know what usually happens. Left without a human prop, the new
member gets drunk too. He has been glorifying an individual
instead of following the Program.
Certainly
we need leaders but we must regard them as the human agents of the
Higher Power and not with undue adulation as individuals. The
4th and 10th Steps can not be too strongly emphasized here--"Make
a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves . . . continue
to make personal inventory . . . promptly admit it when we are
wrong." There is your perfect antidote for halo-poisoning.
So
with the question of Anonymity. If we have a banner, that word,
speaking of the surrender of the individual--the ego--is emblazoned
on it. Let us dwell thoughtfully on its full meaning and learn
thereby to remain humble, modest, ever-conscious that we are
eternally under Divine direction.”
I
also suggest a section is added to the pamphlets “Questions and
Answers on Sponsorship” and “Sponsorship Your Questions Answered”
(Great Britain), under the section title: “Avoid Sponsor Worship”
This section to consist of the above words of Dr. Bob.”
and:
“Suggestion
9
Suggest
the pamphlets “Question and answers on Sponsorship” and its British equivalent
“Sponsorship Your Questions Answered” [still not available
online?] are made a little more comprehensive by adding a page index
of suggested further readings in AA literature which cover
sponsorship:
Big Book, Chapter 7: Working with Others pp 89- 103
Living
Sober chapter 11: Availing Yourself of a Sponsor pp 26-30
The Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, Traditions One
and Five.
The Twelve steps and Twelve Traditions p 62 [page 61,
as published by AA World Services, online version; or p 62 in
re-print by General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous (Great
Britain)]
As Bill sees it p14
As Bill sees it p14
As
Bill sees it p144.
As
Bill sees it, pages listed for reading in the discussion reading
guide, under “Sponsorship; see Twelfth- stepping.”
Alcoholics
Anonymous Comes of Age p 13, 67-68, 74
Pass
It On p 171-173
The
Language of the Heart pp 8, 39, 51-52, 98, 76-77, 198-199, 244-247,
252-253, 332-333, 346
Dr.
Bob and the Good Old Timers pp 226-227, 284
The AA Service Manual Combined with the Twelve Concepts for World Service
p 40 (Concept IX, last paragraph)
A brief guide to Alcoholic Anonymous pamphlet, pp10-11 What does
A.A. NOT do?
Members of the Clergy ask about A.A. pamphlet, What does A.A. NOT do?
AA Tradition How it developed pamphlet p 12”
(our
emphases)
For
the next batch of conference questions we will be including a section
on the aacultwatch forum specifically devoted to these but with considerably fewer
constraints on members' contributions, and with considerably more
licence to cite sources directly in support of their arguments
(currently not possible on the AA website). Moreover members will be
able to to exchange private messages via our forum (a facility which
is currently denied on the AA website). Anyone may join in the
discussion.
Cheers
The
Fellas (Friends of Alcoholics Anonymous)
PS Also see our AA literature section for other publications
