http://www.RA-News.org/ The E-Newsletter of Recoveries Anonymous; the Solution Focused Twelve Step Fellowship en-us http://www.RA-News.org/RA-News.gif http://www.RA-News.org/ 86 78 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/11/NL__12-Dec11.htm It's a simple mistake, and it's easy to make. Many people make it every day. When they are asked to quote the Second Step, they say, "Came to believe in a Power greater than ourselves." However, the Second Step actually says, "Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity." December, 2011 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/11/NL__11-Nov11.htm In other programs, people are often told that they have nothing to give if they are not doing well in their own recovery. After all, how could someone who is plagued by waves of self-pity and resentment share a message of hope, sanity, and recovery? Sometimes a sponsor in another program will be told to let go of the people they are working with if that sponsor is no longer doing well. However, the program in the Big Book gives us a different perspective. For example, in the Big Book, on page 15, in the first paragraph, Bill writes, "I was not too well at the time, and was plagued by waves of self-pity and resentment. This sometimes nearly drove me back to drink, but I soon found that when all other measures failed, work with another alcoholic would save the day. Many times I have gone to my old hospital in despair. On talking to a man there, I would be amazingly lifted up and set on my feet. It is a design for living that works in rough going." November, 2011 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/11/NL__10-Oct11.htm There are two very simple words that are often misunderstood within the Twelve Step programs. They are "shortcomings" and "wrongs." At first look, it would seem as though the meaning of these words is clear. Failures, imperfections, deficiencies, and weaknesses are often used to define "shortcomings." Misdeeds, crimes, and sins are often used to describe "wrongs." Not understanding these simple words can become a roadblock to working the program because the Fifth Step says, "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." October, 2011 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/11/NL_9-Sep11.htm In other programs, well-meaning people will sometimes think that newcomers should not be told about the spirituality of the program. They believe this might scare them off. Other people believe that telling newcomers about the Twelve Steps might confuse them. However, the Big Book gives us explicit instructions for what we are to say on our first visit with a newcomer. In the top paragraph on page 93, it says, "Tell him exactly what happened to you. Stress the spiritual feature freely." September, 2011 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/11/NL_8-Aug11.htm The pamphlet, "The Co-Founders of A.A." contains Dr. Bob's last talk. On page 7, in the bottom paragraph, Dr. Bob describes why Bill, in program for five months, had been successful in his search for recovery, while he, Dr. Bob, in program for two and a half years, says he went home and “got tight every night.” Continuing on pages 8 and 12, Dr. Bob goes on to say that, “the one thing” Bill had “learned in New York and I didn’t learn in Akron until we met” was to work the program in an “attempt to be helpful to somebody else.” In other words he says that, “Bill had acquired their idea of service. I had not..." August, 2011 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/11/NL_7-Jul11.htm One of the basic foundations of the Twelve Step Program is the concept of carrying its message to others. We believe that this idea started with the original Twelfth Step. In the Multilith Big Book, the original manuscript for the Big Book, the original Twelfth Step says, "Having had a spiritual experience as the result of this course of action, we tried to carry this message to others, especially alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs." July, 2011 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/11/NL_6-Jun11.htm Many people do not know that the entire discussion of the Seventh Step in the Big Book is contained in one paragraph. On page 76, in the second paragraph, the Seventh Step Prayer says, "My Creator, I am now willing that you should have all of me, good and bad. I pray that you now remove from me every single defect of character which stands in the way of my usefulness to you and my fellows. Grant me strength, as I go out from here, to do your bidding. Amen." June, 2011 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/11/NL_5-May11.htm It may surprise some people to learn that the Big Book is not full of the pioneers' theories, dreams, or wishes. Instead, it is a book of their experiences. The pioneers of the program detail what had actually happened in their lives. After four years of working the program, they described everything that all of them had to do for them to recover. They wrote a book that they hoped would be so compelling that nothing else would be needed to encourage people to work the Twelve Steps. The pioneers thought that, once someone read their experiences, they themselves would be convinced." May, 2011 http://www.ra-news.org/Newsletters/11/NL_4-Apr11.htm The Fifth Step says, "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being, the exact nature of our wrongs." This step raises two interesting questions. First, what do the pioneers mean when they say the "exact" nature of our "wrongs"? Second, what do they mean by the term "wrongs"? While no one has to agree with us, in R.A. we believe that the pioneers give us the information we need to answer these questions. In the Big Book, on page 72, in the first paragraph, the pioneers say, "that we have admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being, the exact nature of our defects." April, 2011 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/11/NL_3-Mar11.htm In the Big Book on page 63, starting in the bottom paragraph, it says, "Next we launched out on a course of vigorous action, the first step of which is a personal housecleaning, which many of us had never attempted. Though our decision was a vital and crucial step, it could have little permanent effect unless at once followed by a strenuous effort to face, and to be rid of, the things in ourselves which had been blocking us. Our liquor was but a symptom. So we had to get down to causes and conditions." March, 2011 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/11/NL_2-Feb11.htm The pioneers, in the Big Book, make it clear that our defects of character—the flaws in our soul—cause us to hurt others and ourselves. They tell us that holding on to them can poison us. In the Big Book on page 66, in the second paragraph, the pioneers say that, "If we were to live, we had to be free of anger. The grouch and the brainstorm were not for us. They may be the dubious luxury of normal men, but for alcoholics these things are poison." February, 2011 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/11/NL_1-Jan11.htm Most of us in a Twelve Step program have heard the expression, "Take what you need, and leave the rest." However, the Pioneers of the program seem to have a different perspective. In the Big Book they repeatedly use the word "common" to describe their experiences. They talk about how they are bound by the "common peril" they shared. They escaped disaster together going on a "common journey." They also speak at length about how every one of them discovered their "common solution." January, 2011 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/10/NL__12-Dec10.htm Henrietta Seiberling is the Oxford Groups' member who introduced Bill Wilson to Dr. Bob. She is quoted in DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, on page 159. "In the early days," she recalled, "Bill said to me, 'Henrietta, I don't think we should talk so much about religion or God.' I said to him, 'Well, we're not out to please the alcoholics. They have been pleasing themselves all these years. We are out to please God. And if you don't talk about what God does and your faith and your guidance, then you might as well be the Rotary Club or something like that, because God is your only source of power.' Finally, he agreed." December, 2010 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/10/NL__11-Nov10.htm In the Big Book on page 62, in the first paragraph, it says, "Selfishness—self-centeredness! That, we think, is the root of our troubles. Driven by a hundred forms of fear, self-delusion, self-seeking, and self-pity, we step on the toes of our fellows and they retaliate. Sometimes they hurt us, seemingly without provocation, but we invariably find that at some time in the past we have made decisions based on self which later placed us in a position to be hurt." November, 2010 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/10/NL__10-Oct10.htm Sister Ignatia worked with Dr. Bob in the early days of the program. In DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, on page 194, she says that, "There was one thing that always irritated Doctor." In the same paragraph she goes on to say that, "Some people who were on the program for a length of time would come up to him and say, 'I don't get the spiritual angle.' I heard him say time and again, 'There is no spiritual angle. It's a spiritual program.'" October, 2010 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/10/NL_9-Sep10.htm We suspect that most of the people who have been in a Twelve Step program for a while have heard that it is dangerous if we "rest on our laurels." However, many people do not know that this is a quote from the Big Book. On page 85, in the first full paragraph, it says that, "It is easy to let up on the spiritual program of action and rest on our laurels. We are headed for trouble if we do, for alcohol is a subtle foe." September, 2010 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/10/NL_8-Aug10.htm Many people in the Twelve Step Programs are familiar with the saying, "Simple, but not easy." However, most do not know that this is a quote from the Big Book. Therefore, they don't know which part of the program the pioneers are saying is "simple, but not easy." On page 14, in the top paragraph, in the paragraph before this quote, it says that, "Belief in the power of God, plus enough willingness, honesty and humility to establish and maintain the new order of things, were the essential requirements." August, 2010 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/10/NL_7-Jul10.htm It must seem like common sense. Why else would someone joining most Twelve Step Programs be told that they must immediately stop whatever behavior has brought him or her to that program. Alcoholics must immediately stop drinking forever. Gamblers must stop gambling. Overeaters must commit to avoiding certain foods for the rest of their lives, etc. Everyone knows, or at least thinks, that the Twelve Steps require this. However, the pioneers found that this attitude, when presented to a newcomer, can often do more harm than good. July, 2010 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/10/NL_6-Jun10.htm "We are sure God wants us to be happy, joyous, and free." Many people are familiar with this quote from the Big Book. It is on page 133, in the top paragraph. Most people are also familiar with this next quote. It is from page 14, in the first paragraph. It says that developing a new relationship with God is "Simple, but not easy; a price had to be paid. It meant destruction of self-centeredness. I must turn in all things to the Father of Light who presides over us all." However, most people are not aware that Bill adapted these famous quotes from "The Sermon on the Mount" by Emmet Fox. This was one of the main books the pioneers read in the early days of the program, before they had the Big Book. June, 2010 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/10/NL_5-May10.htm Recoveries Anonymous is open to everyone, including family and friends. This is different from many of the other Twelve Step fellowships. They often have a separate branch or an entirely separate organization for family and friends to attend. However, R.A. prefers to go back to the founding days of the program. We do this in order to thoroughly follow the pioneers' path to recovery. For more than a decade family and friends attended the same meetings as the pioneers. They worked the same program and had the same recovery." May, 2010 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/10/NL_4-Apr10.htm Powerlessness! It is a simple concept. However, R.A.'s experience is that many people from other programs only give lip service to this concept. They readily say they are powerless. But, deep in their hearts, they still believe that they are responsible for controlling their problems and behaviors. This is not unusual. Bill Wilson, in his essay on the First Step in A.A.'s Twelve and Twelve on page 21, explains it by saying, "Who cares to admit complete defeat? Practically no one, of course. Every natural instinct cries out against the idea of personal powerlessness." April, 2010 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/10/NL_3-Mar10.htm In the Twelve Step program, people often discuss personal responsibility. They question what part of their lives they are responsible for, and what part of their lives God and the program are responsible for. While no one has to agree with us, in R.A. we believe that the pioneers of the program resolve this debate. In the Big Book, on page 85, in the first full paragraph they say that, "Every day is a day when we must carry the vision of God's will into all of our activities. 'How can I best serve Thee—Thy will (not mine) be done.' These are thoughts which must go with us constantly. We can exercise our will power along this line all we wish. It is the proper use of the will." March, 2010 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/10/NL_2-Feb10.htm When asked to quote the Eleventh Step, many people unintentionally abbreviate it. They usually say that this step is where we "Pray for knowledge of God's will, and the power to carry it out." They forget the first part of this important step. The full wording of the Eleventh Step, the way the pioneers actually wrote it, says that we, "Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out." February, 2010 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/10/NL_1-Jan10.htm In the Big Book on page 17, in the third paragraph the pioneers tell us that, "The tremendous fact for every one of us is that we have discovered a common solution. We have a way out on which we can absolutely agree, and upon which we can join in brotherly and harmonious action. This is the great news this book carries to those who suffer from alcoholism." January, 2010 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/09/NL__12-Dec09.htm In the Big Book on page 133, in the top paragraph it says, "We are sure God wants us to be happy, joyous, and free. We cannot subscribe to the belief that this life is a vale of tears, though it once was just that for many of us. But it is clear that we made our own misery. God didn't do it. Avoid then, the deliberate manufacture of misery, but if trouble comes, cheerfully capitalize it as an opportunity to demonstrate His omnipotence." December, 2009 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/09/NL__11-Nov09.htm In other fellowships, it is sometimes said that, "There are no 'musts' in the program." This misunderstanding is probably based on a quote from A.A.'s Twelve and Twelve. On page 129, in the third paragraph, we are told that the Twelve Traditions "repeatedly say 'We ought... ' but never 'You must!'" However, the Big Book and the program of recovery do tell us that there are certain "vital and crucial" things we "must" do to be successful in our search for recovery. While no one has to agree with us, in R.A. we have found that these "essential requirements" really are "vital to permanent recovery. November, 2009 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/09/NL__10-Oct09.htm Did you know that Dr. Bob said that there is more than one way to break the anonymity tradition? In "Dr. Bob and the Good Oldtimers," on page 264, in the third paragraph, Warren, an early A.A. member, says that, "He [Dr Bob] said there were two ways to break the anonymity Tradition: (1) by giving your name at the public level of press or radio; (2) by being so anonymous that you can't be reached by other drunks." October, 2009 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/09/NL_9-Sep09.htm In the Big Book, on page 53, it says, "When we became alcoholics, crushed by a self-imposed crisis we could not postpone or evade, we had to fearlessly face the proposition that either God is everything or else He is nothing. God either is, or He isn't. What was our choice to be?" In R.A., we take our cue from the way the pioneers of the program talk about powerlessness and God in the Big Book. September, 2009 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/09/NL_8-Aug09.htm In the Multilith Big Book on page 40, in the last paragraph it says. "There is action and more action. 'Faith without works is dead.' What works? We shall treat them in the next chapter which is entirely devoted to step twelve," which is all about working with others. In the Multilith Big Book on page 41, the very next words they wrote, the first words in the chapter "Working With Others," say that, "Practical experience shows that nothing will so much insure your own immunity from drinking as intensive work with other alcoholics. It works when other spiritual activities fail." August, 2009 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/09/NL_7-Jul09.htm The Big Book, on page 85, in the first paragraph, describes what we, in R.A., believe to be the essence of recovery. It says that, "What we really have is a daily reprieve contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition. Every day is a day when we must carry the vision of God's will into all of our activities. 'How can I best serve Thee—Thy will (not mine) be done.' These are thoughts which must go with us constantly. We can exercise our will power along this line all we wish. It is the proper use of the will." July, 2009 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/09/NL_6-Jun09.htm In some other programs, you may have heard it said that we have a progressive illness. However, in R.A., we find that we can have a progressive recovery. This simply depends upon which direction we are facing. If we face the problem, we may progress into the problem. If we face the recovery, we can progress into the recovery. We learn to live in the solution—we get better—we recover—by practicing the spiritual principles of the program. June, 2009 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/09/NL_5-May09.htm For various reasons, many people in the program do not work the Twelve Steps. Some of them prefer to work a physical program of going to meetings and making phone calls. They go to meetings and share about their lives. They choose to depend upon people and make phone calls asking for someone to help stop them from hurting themselves or others. While we are glad that this seems to work for some people, our experience is that this does not work for everyone. May, 2009 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/09/NL_4-Apr09.htm Almost everyone in the program has heard of the "Promises." Starting on the bottom of page 83 in the Big Book, the pioneers say that these promises will happen before we are halfway through the Ninth Step. They go on to say that these promises "will always materialize if we work for them." Many people also know about the Tenth Step's so-called "Hidden Promises" on the bottom of page 84. Among other things, they promise that as the result of working the steps, "sanity will have returned." However, we venture to guess that a lot of people are not aware that the Big Book has many other promises. All of these promises come as the result of following the pioneers' "clear-cut directions" for working the Twelve Steps of our program of recovery. April, 2009 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/09/NL_3-Mar09.htm The pioneers had an understanding of God that they shared throughout the Big Book. No one has to agree with what they wrote. However, we would like to share a few quotes from the Big Book that give insight into how the pioneers understood God. We believe that this can help someone come to their own understanding of God so they can work the Twelve Step program of recovery. March, 2009 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/09/NL_2-Feb09.htm "Suggest how important it is that [a newcomer] place the welfare of other people ahead of his own." This "clear-cut direction" is from page 94 in the Big Book. It is one of the first instructions that the pioneers give to a sponsor. While no one has to agree with us, we suspect that this simple sentence angers some people. February, 2009 http://www.RA-News.org/Newsletters/09/NL_1-Jan09.htm The phrase, "God helps those who help themselves," represents a commonly held belief. Some might find comfort in it. However, many may be surprised to learn that this concept is not in the Big Book or in any of our other program literature. It also might surprise people to find out that this phrase is not in the Bible. January, 2009