WEEK 23 - TRADITIONS 10 & 11
Before we go any further [Name] will read out the long form of Tradition 10 from
the appendix at the back of the Big Book......Thank you.
This Tradition is unusual in that it wasn't included because of what
happened within AA, but because of what happened to another organisation that was
successful for a while in stopping people drinking, and then collapsed. The literature
tells us of a 19th-century temperance movement called the Washingtonians. More than
100,000 people sobered up. However, giddy with success, it decided to turn its
attention to other matters and got involved in campaigning on the slavery issue and as
part of the temperance crusade. The process of trying to decide exactly what the
Washingtonians stood for caused so much disunity that within very few years, amidst
all the squabbling, the organisation had destroyed itself. Most of those thousands
drank again. Learning from this example, AA doesn't comment on any outside issue,
and AA groups don't form opinions on anything except those things that pertain to
their own primary purpose, or affect AA as a whole. However, those who enjoy a
good argument, will be pleased to learn that there is still lots to disagree about in AA.
Any visit to a group conscience or service committee, such as Intergroup, will quickly
demonstrate that we have differences of opinion on almost any service matter. And
those disagreements are not always expressed graciously. This sort of disagreement
does not represent disunity. The difference is that all the discussions are about how
we can best carry the message. For all the disagreement, we are united behind the idea
that we should carry the AA message. It might seem at times to be an uncomfortable
state of unity, but it is unity nonetheless.
It is worth noting that as individuals we are entitled to hold opinions on any
outside issues and for the most part we can express them freely. It is not always
appropriate to share them in an AA meeting and we should clarify, if there is any
chance of confusion, that we are not speaking for AA as a whole.
AA does not avoid all communication with the rest of society: it can talk to
others about itself. But when it does so, it is vital that it does so in a spirit of humility.
We cannot rely on any of us doing anything with humility if left to our own devices,
so that's what Tradition 11 is there to help us with.
[Name] will now read the long from of Tradition 11...... Thank you.
There are a number of considerations regarding personal anonymity. First,
people shouldn't break others' anonymity at any level unless they are sure that they
have permission to do so. And we should not break our own or anyone else's
anonymity ever at the level of radio, TV, film, publishing, and the internet. If we do
either of these it discourages new people from seeking help, for they are afraid that we
couldn't be trusted to protect their anonymity too.
It is often argued that AA should make more use of its famous members and
indeed, there are occasional high-profile anonymity breakers. Some do so because
they mistakenly think they are helping AA. Others appear to be trying to gain
publicity for themselves by trying to kick start flagging showbiz careers on the back
of AA. Often, when famous people break their anonymity, the telephone office does
receive more calls. But in the long run, the bad publicity of some just-as-high-profile
subsequent relapses, always outweighs the previous good publicity.
The principle of attraction rather than promotion is the one, more often than
any other, that people want to change. They argue that humility is a handicap in
public-information work. We should be much more active in saying what a great job
we do, they say. However, whenever we feel this it is worth remembering that the
Traditions are guidelines that will enable us harness the power of a loving God. So the
best way to get people coming to the fellowship is to adhere to the Traditions as
closely as possible, and trust God to do the work for us.
According to this tradition, AA can advertise but only to let people know
that it has helped its members to overcome alcoholism and to supply contact details. If
we were giving a PI talk, we might, depending upon our audience, include a little
more detail about how we have stayed sober, perhaps even talking about the steps. But
at no time should we make claims about what we think it might do for anyone else in
the future.
Just to illustrate, we have heard that there was a case in America where there
was an advertising campaign planned which included a slogan that ran something
like:
"Drinking Problem? Try Alcoholics Anonymous, It Works". After much
deliberation, the last phrase, "It Works", was dropped. It was felt that to include the
phrase would have been showing off. They trusted in the traditions.
We can let our friends praise us, however. And the Big Book itself encloses
a non-alcoholic doctor's recommendation of AA and reference to an award given to
AA in the US by the medical fraternity called the Lasker Award. However, even in
reproducing these, the writers are very careful to do so in a spirit of humility. We
never want to come across as bragging about what we do, even when quoting others.
We said earlier that we should aim to follow the traditions and let God do
the rest. It might be worth considering just how God does work for us. As with many
other things He seems to work through people. All the surveys show that the single
greatest reason for people coming to AA is personal contact with a recovering
alcoholic, or a recommendation based upon such contact. This shows that as we go
about our daily lives we should be looking for opportunities to break our anonymity at
the right level. People can't know we are in AA unless we tell them. And provided we
don't do it at the level of press and broadcasting, we are not breaking the traditions.
When the opportunity presents itself, many of us quietly mention that we used to have
a drinking problem and AA solved it. Sometimes they want to ask questions and talk
about it. Often they say little or nothing. That is fine. We have sowed the seed. We
hope that by trying to live our lives according to the principles of the AA programme,
we can be an example that will attract others to the fellowship.
That concludes the talk for this week, now I am delighted to hand over to [Name]
who will share experience, strength and hope for about fifteen minutes.