Extracts
from our forum: http://forums.delphiforums.com/aacultwatch
under thread: “aacultwatch forum daily reflections”
“Ebby
had told his story simply, without a hint of evangelism.
Although Bill continued to drink, Ebby’s visit caused something to
change inside him." (Pass It On page 115)
“I
saw that my friend was much more than inwardly organised. He was on a
different footing… … …The word God still aroused some
antipathy. When the thought was expressed that there might be a God
personal to me this feeling intensified. I didn’t like the idea. I
could go for such conceptions as Creative Intelligence, Universal
Mind or Spirit of Nature but I resisted the idea of a Czar of the
Heavens… … My friend suggested what then seemed a novel idea “Why
don’t you choose your own concept of God?” – Bill W.
(Alcoholics Anonymous “Big Book” page 12)
"A
few days later, Ebby returned, and he brought Shep C with him. Shep,
an active Oxford Group member, delivered himself a forthright message
- as Bill put it: ‘He gave me the Oxford Group boast,
aggressively and with all the punch he could pack. I didn’t like it
at all. When they were gone, I took to the bottle and really punished
it.’ ” (Pass It On page 116)
“Thank
God for that. And I never pushed A.A. on anyone. Dr. Bob used to
always say to me ‘Madeline, whatever you do, whoever you talk to,
don’t push’…… ‘Don’t push. Just tell them that you
found yourself in A.A. and how grateful you are and how things have
changed. Talk about yourself. Then tell them If you need help, want
help, Join A.A.” – Madeline V. (
Dr. Bob and the Good Old Timers page 284)
“1939
“Early
in 1939, Jack D. one of Bill Wilson’s New York pigeons, who had
sobered up and gone home to Cleveland, and went to Youngstown to see
an old buddy. This was Norman Y., who was totally blind from bootleg
liquor and had lost his wife, family, and job. 'I was living in the
basement of an apartment building, and had a mattress on the floor.'
Norman said in 1977, ' I knew I was a alcoholic, but it took two
hours before Jack could get me to admit I was powerless over
alcohol... ... ... They talked a little bit about the Oxford Group, a
little bit about Dr. Bob and Bill. They were using the Lord's
Prayer... ... ... .... ... They all had jobs.' Norman said. 'Later
one of the men came up to me and said, 'Let me tell you something,
you blind old bat. You got no more intention of staying sober than
the man on the moon. The only reason you come here is to get
acquainted with these people so that you can beg. The thing for you
to do is stay the hell away.' ' That was my first A.A. meeting. I
went back to that mattress and I lay down and said, 'I'm gonna get
drunk and go out and kill that bastard. I'll kill his wife, then kill
him. No I wont. I'll kill the whole damn A.A.'... ... ...... ...
....'Then something said to me, 'You go, and go there regular. And
don't take any material help from any of them'... ... In fact, when
Norman finally got a job, in 1940, helping other blind people, he
started to put aside ten percent of his salary to pay for speaking
trips, contributions at meetings, and other A.A. expenses." (Dr. Bob
and The Good Old Timers page 182-183)
“ Yet another minority was the handicapped. Norman Y., the blind A.A., had the Big Book done in Braille in 1940 and sent out from the Cleveland Library to other blind members,'There were 19 of us corresponding back then,' he said. The odd thing is, Norman never read the book himself. ‘I never read a word in A.A.’ he said. ‘You don’t have to read. You don’t have to have all these pamphlets they put out. You can learn to live this program by learning to think. A.A. is a wonderful thing to know and apply.’ he said, ‘- but in your life. You’ve got to live it out in the street. You see somebody having a little problem, help them, no matter who they are. That’s A.A.” – Norman Y. (Dr. Bob and The Good Old Timers page 249-250)”
“The
Oxford Groupers had clearly shown us what to do. And, just as
importantly, we had learned from them what not to do as far as
alcoholics were concerned. We had found that certain of their ideas
and attitudes could not be sold to alcoholics. For example,
drinkers would not take pressure in any form, excepting from John
Barleycorn himself. They always had to be led, not pushed. They
would not stand for the rather aggressive evangelism of the Oxford
Groups. And they would not accept the principle of ‘team guidance’
for their own personal lives.” (A.A. Comes of Age page 74)
"Neither
Dr. Bob nor Sister Ignatia ever recorded the exact time they started
treating alcoholics at St. Thomas Hospital." (Dr. Bob and the Good Old
Timers page 185)
“Bob
and Sister Ignatia began to work more and more closely through the
fall of 1939 in getting drunks into St. Thomas for treatment. One
thing worried her, however: Alcoholics Anonymous seemed closely
connected with the Oxford Group. ‘At the time, I feared we might
become involved with a religious sect of some kind,’ Sister
Ignatia recalled. She then asked Father Vincent Haas, a newly
ordained priest, to investigate the meetings for her… … …
Fortunately, the group had moved to Kings School by this time, and
father Haas was favorably impressed.” (Dr. Bob and the Good Old
Timers” page 189)
“On
the second day of the New Year, 1940, Dr. Bob wrote Bill: ‘Have
finally shaken off the shackles of the Oxford Group.’" (a choice
of words indicates his attitude then) (Dr. Bob and The Good Old
Timers page 218)”
(Our
emphases)
Cheerio
The
Fellas (Friends of Alcoholics Anonymous)
