A small matter of honesty!

Extracts from the aacultwatch forum (old)

Thanks ….... I regard myself as a Christian, like Joe McQ and yourself, but I also try to be honest enough to admit that what I aspire to be in my thoughts and religious beliefs doesn’t always match my behaviour. Chapter Five of the Big Book starts with the matter of honesty. It gives the reason why some alcoholics fail to achieve sobriety; they may be constitutionally incapable of being honest with themselves. It is possible for someone to be a very dishonest Christian. It is also possible for an honest person to practice another religion or to be an honest agnostic or atheist. When it comes to being honest or dishonest it matters little what religion of philosophy a person aspires to follow. In terms of the alcoholic in Step Two, (Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions) it describes the alcoholic who is“ full of faith” in his religious belief, but with no real communication with a power greater than himself; his faith superficial, or wallowing  in emotionalism, mistaking this for true religious feeling. An atheist or agnostic alcoholic can go through the process of ego deflation and acquire the humility to be honest with himself and others, and to understand that there is a power or powers greater than himself. Conversely, an alcoholic who has his own idea of faith in God and Jesus can still be an alcoholic with an inflated ego; unable to comprehend this concept of God as a power greater than himself; and unable to acquire the humility of being honest. In such a case the exercise of prayer can simply be the alcoholic's time spent communicating to himself, rationalising his own self deceit into the will of God as imagined by him.  Honesty, ego deflation, are the most important things for an alcoholic to acquire and hold on to in order for him to maintain lasting emotional sobriety. His religious beliefs become irrelevant without these.

The Big Book is only the basic text of Alcoholics Anonymous written in 1938, published in 1939; the first A.A. book to be published in what was a developing program of recovery, based on only four years or so of experience. It was written at a time when most of the fellowship was under four year’s sobriety. Dr. Bob and Bill W. counted 40 alcoholics dry in 1937, so the remaining 60 of the first one hundred members at the time of writing the book in 1938 and publishing it in 1939, were under a year or two in continuous sobriety. Most were in the honeymoon period, yet to meet the acid test of their sobriety in living life’s successes and failures. The editor of the Big Book was drunk by the time it was published and others later fell off the wagon as well. For a brief period around 1939-1941 the fellowship was largely under direct leadership from Dr. Bob, Bill W. and the founding members. However, after large scale publicity such as the Jack Alexander article in 1941, the New York office mailed out big books all over the USA and new groups started without direct guidance from the rest of A.A.  It was soon found that the Big Book alone was not enough to sustain an alcoholic’s ego deflation in many cases, or to sustain unity in the fellowship. Egos ran riot, groups became dictatorships; local public relations went haywire. There were times which brought the fellowship close to collapse.

“From 1940 to 1950, we were beset by group problems of every sort, frightening beyond description. Out of these experiences the Twelve Traditions of AA were forged - Traditions that now protect us against ourselves and the world outside. This effort, requiring immense office correspondence and experience, finally resulted in a whole new literature dealing with AA's unity and services. Under these influences we grew solid.” (Bill W. “Guardian of AA: Our General Service Conference” AA Grapevine April 1958. The Language of the Heart pp 167- 168)

Therefore, in good time, I hope you don't mind me suggesting that you gently nudge …....... to read the Twelve Steps in the “Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions” as well as the Big Book. They go a little deeper into the understanding of ego deflation and the ways in which an alcoholic rationalises truth into deceit than does the Big Book.  I also suggest “As Bill Sees It” and “The Language of the Heart.” There are some good readings for personal recovery in “The Language of the Heart,” like “This Matter of Honesty” “This Matter of Fear” “What is Acceptance?” “The Next Frontier: Emotional Sobriety” “Take Step Eleven.” You might find he’ll be a much easier person to live with in the long run, than if he just bobs along with Joe McQ and the Big Book. 

There’s a good example of how an alcoholic rationalises his own idea of the truth into deceit on the acknowledgments page of “Carry This Message” by Joe McQ.  Some people might call it dishonest, others might call it fraud.

“The author and editors are grateful to the following for their contributions to this book: …. Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc., for permission to use the Steps.” (Extract from Acknowledgments. “Carry This Message” by Joe McQ. published 1990 by August House Inc.)

Extracts from “Big Book Study Guides Reviewing a Position Paper” (A.A. World Services Inc):“In 1977, faced with a rising number of requests from non-AA sources and some AA members to reprint portions of the Big Book and other material in study guides, the directors of AA World Services, Inc. took a hard look at the subject and appointed a committee to explore the question. Members of the committee unanimously recommended that the board not grant permission to outside entities to use excerpts from our literature in study guides, and that AA itself should not publish study guides… … … … … … … The AA World Services Board of Directors feels strongly that permission should not be granted to outside publishers or other parties to reprint AA literature for the purpose of study guides or interpretive or explanatory texts, etc. If such interpretive or study guides are to be prepared, they should be published by AA World Services, Inc.” (Box 459, Vol. 51, No. 6, December 2005.) (AA Service News 127, Summer 2006)

In my experience, alcoholic Christians seem to have just as much trouble in being honest with themselves as do non Christian alcoholics. And when an alcoholic tries to wear the halo of “Teacher or “Preacher” it sooner or later works its way down to his ankles. I keep my Christian religious beliefs out of AA meetings and sponsorship, because I understand the reasons why Bill W. wrote the following:

“If we recognize that religion is the province of the clergy and the practice of medicine is for doctors, then we can helpfully cooperate with both.” (Extract from Concept 12, warranty five)

“Nothing however, could be so unfortunate for A.A.’s future as an attempt to incorporate any of our personal theological views into A.A. teaching, practice or tradition.” (Bill W. footnote, Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age p 232)

“Beyond a Higher Power, as each of us may vision him, A.A. must never, as a society, enter the field of dogma or theology. We can never become a religion in that sense, lest we kill our usefulness by being bogged down in theological contention” (Bill W. Letter 1954, As Bill sees It p 116)

“Our Traditions are set down on paper. But they were written first in our hearts. For each of us knows, instinctively I think, that AA is not ours to do with as we please. We are but caretakers to preserve the spiritual quality of our fellowship; keep it whole for those who will come after us and have need of what has so generously been given to us.” (Bill W. “AA Is Not Big Business” AA Grapevine November 1950 The Language of the Heart p 124)

Like you say …...., all most newcomers want to do at first, is stay sober, nothing else; they can't cope with much else until their minds defog from alcohol. AA needs to be kept dead simple for the sake of the newcomer. The changes in the fellowship due to the influence of outside published literature which incorporates the authors’ personal religious beliefs are making it confusing and exclusive to some newcomers. I hope this newcomer on the AA Grapevine forum makes it. I have a feeling many just walk away never to return. They are being denied the traditional and gentle “Easy Does It,” “I came; I came to; I came to believe.” approach; and therefore denied their chance to defog from alcohol first before coming to their own understanding of the steps and a power greater than themselves; according to their own agnostic, atheist or other religious beliefs.

AA Grapevine I Say forum: New to AA?: “God, Booze and Food”: Anonymous, Fri, 2012-04-27 15:57 http://www.aagrapevine.org/forum/331

“I stopped drinking ten days ago, attended a couple of meetings, and now I'm feeling depressed and frustrated. I'm attending a meeting tonight, but at this point, I'm just listening and trying to get my bearings and the right kind of meeting. I realize that more than one group can help, but I'm reluctant to embrace a strong religious approach. I understand the idea of a higher power and I know I'm powerless over alcohol, but falling on my knees and praying to Jesus (and I'm sorry if I'm insulting some of you) isn't for me. Any advice? And,unfortunately, I've been replacing booze with food, but that's just adding to my plummeting self esteem. Please advise and many thanks.”

God Bless,

….......

P.S. Since this is not an AA website, I’ll incorporate a few more of my Christian beliefs into this post. I think these quotes from the Bible are good ones for any alcoholic Christian in recovery to remember. I have a sneaky feeling from Christian alcoholics in the fellowship that I know, that some of them spend about as much time reading the Bible as they do reading the Twelve Concepts for World Service. As the saying goes along with being “happy, joyous and free!” sometimes “Ignorance is bliss.”

“Not every one that says unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 7:21 (King James version 2003)

" For in much wisdom is much grief: and he that increases knowledge increases sorrow.” Ecclesiastes 1:18 (King James version 2003)”

Cheers

The Fellas (Friends of Alcoholics Anonymous)

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