The Traditions Are Requests, Not Rules – AA Speaker – Brian H.

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Whether you join us in the morning or at night, there's nothing better than a sober sunrise. We hope that you enjoy today's speaker. >> I'm an alcoholic.

My home group is the Thursday night study group in Sunrise, Florida. My name is Brian. >> Hi everybody.

Thanks for having me. Um it's obvious that most of you thought that the step series was starting over tonight. Uh, usually usually there's not usually there's not this kind of a turnout for a traditions meeting.

So, I'm assuming that I'm assuming you thought Pat was doing step one tonight. Um, I uh um it's a privilege to talk anytime in Alcoholics Anonymous. And so, thanks thanks for having me.

Um, I I owe my life to the fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous. I um uh and uh and and this group has um you know plays a part in my sober sober history. Um I uh I guess it must have been 16 years ago.

I think the very first time I ever led a step meeting was at this group uh right here. Uh I was coming up with my sponsor John. We were uh dragging newcomers.

is I was picking up a couple of newcomers, going and picking up John and driving up here and he was doing the steps and then uh when he was done with his series, the group asked me to to do it. It was the first time I had ever had the opportunity. Uh matter of fact, the book that you gave me, I still I still have I keep in this uh nice big book cover that I bought.

Uh you're welcome to have a look at it. Uh I um so thank you um for being a a part of my sobriety, a memorable part of my sobriety. Um I um I got sober February 24th, 1988.

And when I came to AA um I could care less about traditions. Um uh I um I you know this was AA was like was like the perfect place for me because there was like no rules. There was nobody here to enforce these nonrule things you call the traditions.

And uh and I was a belligerent, defiant, self-willrun riot alcoholic. And so this was like a a match made in heaven for a guy like me. And uh given that I have addictions other than addictions to alcohol, um I you know trampled and could care less about the distinctions and and and all of that stuff.

And in many ways could care less about the traditions because I didn't understand any of it. It didn't really make sense to me. It all just, you know, sounded, you know, it all just made mush in my brain.

I think um I um I don't think I ever really had any appreciation for the 12 traditions. Um until I started to have the promised spiritual awakening, until I actually started to recover from alcoholism and recreate my life, then I started to reflect on how valuable this fellowship is and what and think about what I could do to possibly help preserve it. Um, and it's in that light that I'd like to talk about the traditions because I'd like to talk about the traditions maybe.

Um, I don't know how different it will be from how you're used to hearing about it, but I'm not going to talk about a lot of the history of Alcoholics Anonymous that created the traditions. If you want that, it's in the 12 and 12 and AA Comes of Age and some other history books. And it's it's it's great reading and it's it's um it's just not how I'm going to approach talking about the 12 traditions.

Um I um I I'd like to talk about the 12 traditions. I think as they're in I I I think this intent is implied in them as as 12 requests as requests that the fellowship makes of all of us individually and collectively uh in order to preserve the fellowship in order to in order to best preserve as a matter of fact when when Bill first introduced the 12 traditions he he introduced them as the 12 points to assure our future. they were they were really 12 principles to make sure that Alcoholics Anonymous would be here for generations of alcoholics to come who would need help.

Um, and I think there so I look at them as requests as as AA's way of asking me as as a small favor for me having the opportunity to recreate my life in this fellowship as a small favor to consider making some personal sacrifices along the lines that we're going to discuss tonight. Um, so that AA can continue to exist. Not that like there's anything I could do that could cause AA not to exist.

I mean, I think it would be presumptuous for us to think that we couldn't kill AA, right? I mean, we certainly I think we could. I It'd be hard, though.

2 million people sober plus there's, you know,und 100,000 groups, you know, in in how many countries? 127 that I mean, it it'd be pretty hard to kill it. But even if we couldn't hurt Alcoholics Anonymous, even if we couldn't destroy its being here, we can have an impact on its effectiveness.

uh and so following the traditions can help us remain effective at helping alcoholics and uh by sticking to our purpose etc etc and so uh in that light that we're being asked to do certain things to preserve the effectiveness of our fellowship and quite literally our group you know our groups are more effective at carrying the AA message when we're following the 12 traditions when we're informed about the traditions and and uh and I still can't get over how few people are here to he'll listen to somebody talk about the traditions. I don't know that I would go. No, I'm just kidding.

Um so, um there the the way I'd like to set up the traditions, the way it was taught to be by that same sponsor, John, um is there there's a rhythm to the to the 12 principles of of recovery. So, I'm going to talk about the 12 steps for a brief minute. um problem, solution, program of action, result.

There's uh the steps are are set up in this in this rhythm. The first step is a statement of the problem. We're powerless over alcohol.

The second step is a statement of the solution to that problem. Power is obviously the solution to powerlessness, a power greater than ourselves. Uh and the rest of the steps are a set of actions that we take in order to find this power which of course is indicated in the result in step 12 having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps.

And so it's problem solution action result. Um the 12 traditions can be looked at in the same way. The first uh tradition is a statement of the problem.

The problem is unity. Our common welfare should come first. Personal recovery depends upon aa unity.

If we can't stay together, then nobody recovers. You know, the new person will have no place to go to find AA in order to find what we have enjoyed. And if my recovery depends on working with other alcoholics, then there go I can't stay sober because I wouldn't have any new alcoholics to work with.

And so all of our recovery, sobriety begins with this group staying in place. If we can't stay together, then then there's no such thing as recovery from alcoholism. It's hard to fathom that sometimes.

You know, I I've never I've never been alive during a time when there was not such a thing as recovery from alcoholism. I can't Sometimes I don't stop long enough to appreciate that miracle. Like I hit the lottery.

I was alcoholism has been around for thousands of years and I was born in the century where there was such a thing as recovery from alcoholism, right? Um, and we can go back to there being no such thing as recovery from alcoholism if we can't stay unified, if we can't keep this thing together. Um, and so that's the problem.

The problem is unity. How do we keep this band of self-will dominant type A per? How do we keep all of that, you know, together?

How do we work it together in effectively at helping other alcoholics? That's the problem. The solution to that problem is in tradition too.

For our group purpose, there is but one ultimate authority, a loving God, as he may express himself to our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants. They do not govern.

Just like in the steps, the solution to alcoholism is God, in the traditions, the solution to group unity is God. God speaking through our group conscience. My recovery depends upon my conforming to spiritual principles, my seeking for seeking God's will, God's direction for my daily life.

If each of us is seeking God's will for our daily lives and we bring that together in our group conscience, then we can each seek God's will for our group conscience as well. And in that spirit, we can solve all of our group problems by coming together and asking what would God's will be for our group whenever we have a situation that that seem that we seem to be divided on. Um, this rest of the 12 steps are a set of actions that we take in order to bring about recovery from alcoholism.

The traditions in contrast are a set of inactions or sacrifices that we make in order to have the result which we'll talk about in tradition 12. Uh and so the rest of the 12 traditions are asking us to give up something so that we can remain unified to give up something so that there wouldn't there there are certain things that would just pull us apart and it's inevitable. So in order to keep the group conscience focused on only relevant things, let's let's just make a decision that we're going to come into agreement about certain core things.

And if we can just agree upon these things and all come down on the same side of these things, then our group would have nothing left to fight about that could possibly pull it apart. We could solve all of our other problems by seeking God's will in our group conscience. The very first of those requests is tradition three.

The only requirement for AA membership is a desire to stop drinking. So the very first thing we're asked to do is to not make membership rules for our groups, right? Um, the long form of that tradition reads, "Our membership ought to include all who suffer from alcoholism.

Hence, we may refuse no one who wish to recover, nor ought any AA membership ever depend upon money or conformity. Any two or three alcoholics gathered together for sobriety may call themselves an AA group, provided that as a group they have no other affiliation. So, there is a requirement for membership hidden and assumed in all of that, isn't there?" Right?

Does everybody detect what the requirement for membership is hidden and assumed in all of that language? The requirement for membership is that you're alcoholic. That is a requirement for membership in Alcoholics Anonymous.

There is a requirement that you're an alcoholic or at least you believe that you have a severe drinking problem or you believe that you potentially are an alcoholic. There there is there is that subtle requirement for membership that we're alcoholic. Um I'm an alcoholic.

I also happen to be a cocaine addict. Um, but I qualify for membership in alcoholic synonymous because when I take a drink, I can't control how much I drink and I cannot quit drinking no matter how bad I wanted to. Um, those that's alcoholism by definition in the in the text Alcoholics Anonymous.

So, by definition, I'm an alcoholic. You can't keep me out because I have other problems. You can be alcoholic and schizophrenic and you're entitled to membership in Alcoholics Anonymous.

We can't keep you out. You can be alcoholic and an and and we we can't keep you out because of the latter. Um, you know, the the requirement for membership is that we're alcoholic and once we satisfy that or at least we think we are or we're looking for we may not know that we're alcoholic, but if you have a drinking problem and you want help for it, you're entitled to membership in Alcoholics Anonymous.

Um, I'm, you know, I say all of that. I'm I'm sometimes we sometimes those of us that understand that take a too hard of a line for that. We have to remember that these traditions are requests and not rules.

We can't compel anybody to do anything. And so I'm not saying that we should have checks at the door for and keep all of the drug addicts out of AA or or uh anything like that. I'm just saying if we all understood what the tra what understand what the traditions are then and and we all understand that the requests that were that are being made of us in order to preserve the unity of our fellowship then hopefully we will all comply willingly but we can't compel compliance to any of these things.

We we can't force anybody in AA to do anything. We can't we can't even force you to work the steps out of our own big book. You can you can take it or leave it and still be a member of AA.

Um, I'd ask why you were here if you weren't going up to the steps of a big book, but you know, you're you're welcome to or not as as you see fit. Um, and so AA's singleness uh AA's uh uh sole requirement for membership is that you're we're an alcoholic and and and we're just asked not to make any other rules about membership whatsoever. Uh and if we don't make any rules about membership, then we won't have that to fight about.

Uh, tradition four, each group should be autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or AA as a whole. My group, the Thursday night study group, has a group conscience. What that group conscience decides about its affairs is what it decides about its affairs.

The uh what's the name of this group again? >> Steps and traditions. >> The steps and traditions group at Advent Lutheran Church has no authority to tell my group what to do.

The Broward County Intergroup Office, uh, my group meets in Broward County. My Broward County Intergroup has no authority over my group. Can't tell it what to do, what not to do.

General Service District 9, no authority over my group. New York, no authority over my group. My group can decide to do what it wants and how it wants.

I was a a member of the Wednesday night study group and uh my sponsor John was the chairperson of that group week in and week out. We never rotated chair people ever. It was just that was their group conscience.

And I was a member of that group several times while that topic came up in our group conscience meeting. and several times our group conscience decided after some debate with substantial uh unonymity I might add. We wanted him to chair our meeting every every uh every week.

There were very few people that dissented from that ever. Um I don't necessarily believe that that's the smartest way to run a group today. But but at the time that was our group conference.

That was the way that it was. We had lots of people coming in and out of our group telling us we couldn't do it that way. Lots of them.

Uh it's just not true. Uh even even the bit about rotating committees and the spirit of rotation has to do with group officers, secretary, treasurer, the pe the order. Not necessarily the group can can have its meeting chaired by whoever and however it wants to have its meeting chaired.

Um I also came into um contact with this tradition personally um by um by the way not I'm going to try to avoid one of the one of my least liked phrases in Alcoholics Anonymous. I'm going to try to avoid the term violating a tradition u because usually most of us in Alcoholics Anonymous the very first time we ever hear about the traditions is when somebody says you can't do that that's a violation of extradition and um and most of us by the time we ever hear something like that we've heard the preamble read you know a dozen or two dozen times and we've heard people list the steps and the traditions in the beginning of the meeting or the end and and we go, there's just something not right about that statement. You can't do that.

That's a violation of the extradition. We we automatically know that there's no such thing as rules. You can't compel anybody to do anything.

There's nobody in authority that can that has the right to say that. So So we automatically know that that's not the case. And so when I say that these are requests, that's kind of what I mean as a as a in um contrast to uh being rules that are violated.

there be there are requests that we're being asked. Uh and and the request of tradition 4 is that we run our group affairs. We can do in our group we can conduct our meeting however we want to provided that we're not affecting another group or AA as a whole.

That's the request that we're being made. Um I'm a I'm a very many of you in this room don't know me. I have a little I'm a little bit of a luxury here.

Um and I say that because some people who know me don't like me. Um, I um I'm pretty opinionated when it comes to uh Yeah. Do you find that surprising?

Um I'm I'm I'm pretty opinionated in the circles in Alcoholics Anonymous in in which I run. I'm I'm pretty outspoken. I I um you know, I have very strong feelings about Alcoholics Anonymous, about our fellowship, about what our purpose is, and about how we ought to be conducting ourselves in AA.

uh very strong feelings about making sure that newcomers are introduced to the steps and and the big book of Alcoholics Anonymous and um I abhore groups who don't talk about those things in their meetings. Um and so and I'm fairly outspoken about all of that. Um and so um one time I got a really bright idea.

The I live in Broward County and and the Broward County um intergroup website is aabroward.org. Um, and I discovered that a broward.com was available. Um, and so I registered it.

Um, and I did more than register it. I I put up my own website with some of my own opinions about what AA should be. Uh, listed some groups that I thought were doing a great job.

Um, and um, I think the only the only real disparaging mark remark I made was that I felt my it was my opinion that AA and Broward County was watered down. Um, now this is a public website and I am speaking as a person on behalf of or it could be easily implied. I wasn't I was speaking for myself, but it could be easily implied that I was speaking on behalf of the listed and named AA groups in our area.

Um, that would be considered outside of the spirit of tradition 4. Um, uh, it seemed like a really good idea at the time. Uh, and I and I had a lot of people come to my defense on the issue.

I mean, I had a lot of people tell me that there was nothing wrong with what I said. It was absolutely right. It was my website, not theirs.

I was within my right to do it. But, you know, none of that really really matters when you see the truth about something. It you did, you know, you guess you have to do the right thing.

And the right thing was obviously to pull the website down. And I actually gave the name a broward.com to to Broward County Intergroup um as a as an attempt to try to make amends for the issue. Now, now you've never heard of this little thing because there was only about 21 people that ever hit the website.

So, it's not like and and eight of those were people from the groups that were listed. So, it wasn't like anybody ever really saw it. But, uh um but that would be something outside of the spirit of the tradition because I was saying something defamatory about AA in our county.

And and by listing only group only a select number of groups, I was kind of implying that the rest of the groups were really uh matched the description of my disparaging remarks. So, um, not really not really okay. Now, I I can have that opinion all I want to.

Um, but publicly displaying it on a website would be would would be, um, outside of that spirit of that tradition. Um, tradition five, each group has but one primary purpose, to carry its message to the alcoholic who still suffers. So, that's our primary purpose, to carry AA's message to the alcoholic who still suffers.

Right. Um, we're not here to help. I as was said in the beginning of the meeting, we're not here to help drug addicts.

It's sad because there's a lot of drug addicts who get sober in EA. There's AA can help drug addicts. There's no question about it.

Um we're we're just we're being asked in Alcoholics Anonymous to limit the people that we help to alcoholics. Do you know does that mean we're going to kick the drug addicts out of all of our meetings and tell them they they can't come? Not no necessarily.

I mean the AA, you know, AA is a very generous organization. It said, "Here world, here's our 12 steps. Here's our 12 traditions.

Here's our experience. How we recover. Go start another fellowship that focuses on your particular problem." Because we would fall apart if we tried to include trying to help everybody in Alcoholism.

How would the alcoholic identify with the person speaking if the person speaking wasn't alcoholic? They didn't have a story that shared how they tried to control their drinking unsuccess unsuccessfully and how they tried to quit and were, you know, were were dismayed and and and uh defeated by the fact and the reality that they couldn't. I mean, that story is what an alcoholic hears that goes, "Wow, what that's my problem.

Maybe I can find help here, too." Um, and if that story was so different because the substance that they were using was different, I'm not so sure. I I want to share with you that I I you know I I do this traditions talk at a couple of groups and I've done it a half a dozen of times or so and and one of the things I hear about this and by the way any and I'm giving you my opinion obviously of the 12 traditions. I'm not reading it verbatim out of a book because I don't I want you to stay awake.

Um so if if if you agree or disagree or have any comments for me I'm I'm glad to listen to you after the meeting. I'm open to the fact that I might be wrong about some of my assumptions and interpretations of the tradition and I'm always glad to listen to uh another point of view because I'm quite sure that what I'm giving you is my opinion. It's it's how I think the traditions apply rather than exactly what the traditions are.

Uh and I'm always open to to um um you know to hear some feedback about it. Uh and some of the feedback that I hear is that there's no such thing as a true alcoholic anymore. That everybody is dual diagnosed that everybody coming to us has more than one problem.

And um I happen to know for me in my own life I happen to know that that's not true. Um I have a couple of family members uh who um I don't believe are alcoholic but they they drink more now than they ever have in their life and they're uh they're you know getting along in in years. And I happen to know a little bit about alcoholism.

I know that that that alcoholism the physical part of it is is based on metabolism and that the enzymes necessary to metabolize alcohol uh become deficient over time just because the body is becomes deficient over time. And the other leading contributor to the deficiency of these enzymes is actually drinking. And so because these people are drinking more now than they ever have and they're getting a little along in years, it's possible from my point of view that they could cross that line one day into alcoholism and find that they can't control or quit their drinking.

Um I and I know for both of these individuals that they've never touched a drug. Well, I don't know that for actually for a fact, but I I don't believe that they've ever tr touched a drug in their lives. And so if they walked into a meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous and were listening to a fellow tell a story or a gal tell a story that had nothing to do except but drugs and prison and probation officer and you know if if that was the story they were listening to I don't know that they'd identify and and I think we have to remember that Alcoholics Anonymous is here and what the traditions are asking us is to pres is to preserve Alcoholics Anonymous for the alcoholic who comes in the future.

That's our job. That's what we're being asked to do. I was given a free gift, Alcoholics Anonymous.

I I mean, I was able to recreate my life in Alcoholics Anonymous. My life was in the toilet when I got here. And and I live a pretty cool life today because of Alcoholics Anonymous.

Alcoholics Anonymous only asked in return that I complied to certain principles so that it would be available for the next alcoholic who comes here uh 10, 20, 30, 40 years later. Uh and so this is a small thing that they're asking. Our primary purpose is to help the next alcoholic who needs help.

Nothing else. Um I would also, this is where my opinion gets in a little bit. Um AA's message is clear.

You know, it's it's a spiritual awakening as a result of the 12 steps. An alcoholic is powerless over alcohol because of a physical and mental condition. We learned that God can be the answer to that problem or a power greater than yourself if you like.

And we have and if and if you're if if you believe you're an alcoholic and you believe that perhaps there is a power that can restore you to sanity, you can make a decision and take some action and get the results that Alcoholics Anonymous offers. Um there's it's a very um defined program. Now, we all take liberties with how we practice the program.

I'm not saying you got to do your fourth step exactly the way that the big book lays it out, but there are certain principles. inventory, confession, repentance, amends, prayer, and meditation. These are the core principles of Alcoholics Anonymous.

This is AA's message. We're being asked to carry AA's message to the next alcoholic in AA. If you've got a better idea for how to get sober, go start your own fellowship.

Really, we don't need you here. If you if you really think that you're that smart and you know another way to get sober, go do it. AA's request is simply that you don't do it under the AA umbrella.

AA has a program and it works really well and if we can if we stick to it and keep sharing it with the next newcomer then AA will continue to perpetuate itself. Some of the reasons why I think AA is watered down is because we seem to talk about everything and anything under the sun other than recovery from alcoholism and alcohol is anonymous. We're not therapists.

Since when did group therapy become a means by recovering from alcoholism? It's not. It's not.

So again, my opinion um but but Alcoholics Anonymous has a program of action that works. It's magnificent. Our job as AA members is to make sure that when the newcomer comes into the door, they're hearing AA's message, not my own opinions about that, which I'm sharing with you now.

Tradition six, an AA group ought never endorse, finance, or lend the AA name to any related facility, or outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property, or prestige divert us from our primary purpose. Um, since I'm on the kind of a track of saying how I think we do, we if if we read actually I'm going to read the long form of this tradition because this one it makes it makes a difference. Um, problems of money, property, and authority may easily divert us from our primary spiritual aim.

We think therefore that any considerable property of genuine use to AA should be separately incorporated and managed thus dividing the material from the spiritual. An AA group as such should never go into business. Secondary aids to AA such as clubs or hospitals which require much property or administration ought to be incorporated and so set set apart that if necessary they can be freely discarded by the groups.

Hence such facilities ought not use the AA name. Their management should be the sole responsibility of those people who financially support them. For clubs, AA managers are usually preferred, but hospitals as well as other places of recuperation ought to be well outside of AA and medically supervised.

While an AA group may may cooperate with anyone, such cooperation ought never go so far as to affiliate or endorsement, actual or implied. An AA group can bind itself to no one. Um, what one of the ways I think that I mean this isn't really a big problem today in AA is it?

Um, I mean for the most part hospitals and detoxes are pretty well set apart. AA's name is not attached to them. Even when AA groups meet to meet in them, they're not um, you know, everybody seems to be aware of the distinction.

An AA group comes in for an hour, they leave for an hour, the group the groups that they're doing in the treatment are very different from that AA group, etc. And so that the distinction seems to be clear. until we get to some of these groups that run clubs in my opinion.

Um, we have we have I don't know if you have any in Palm Beach County, but in in Broward County, we have some groups where the group themselves has the facility and the group's name is on the door of the building. Um, I mean, this is actually, you know, again, a tradition requests. So what we hope to do is have this conversation openly and honestly with as many people that will listen and hopefully good members of Alcoholics Anonymous if they see that their group might might not be within the spirit of it will make some changes.

But we can't compel anybody to do anything. Um but it is my opinion that that some of our groups who put their name on the door of the building the bottom line group um you know I I it is my opinion that the tradition is asking us not to do that to the outside world it's an it's you know it said actual or implied to the outside world that group is in business uh the group has its own name on the building and the guidelines for clubs that AA uh box 459 publishes they specifically asked that the group's name and the club's name or the facility's name be different. These are specific the so it's not I mean you can it's sometimes it's questionable whether something is you know but this you know our our literature actually very specific along these lines that we not marry the name of the AA group to the facility in which it meets.

It's just a simple request. Call the building a club. Call the group a group.

Problem solved. Problem solved. And that's the only place where I think that this tradition really, you know, intersects.

We're not, you know, we don't have, you know, in the in the history and the traditions they're talking about people coming out and, you know, getting AA members to run their AA education in in uh in a distillery or something like that. And, you know, those are just things we don't run into anymore. But but in this place where some of our groups operate clubs, you know, it it's not the group's decision to decide on tile or lenolium for the floor and a Coke or a Pepsi machine and how are we going to fix the air conditioning.

The group's purpose is to help the next alcoholic who comes in the door. And so there's reason for the separation. There's there's a there's a there's a a a clear purpose for the a a separate body that manages the facility and the group conducts only the business only the affairs that have to do with helping other alcoholics.

There's a there's a very clear purpose and reason for that separation. So that's tradition six. Tradition seven, every AA group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions.

Simple enough, right? We support ourselves. We, you know, pass the hat.

Uh we collect some money. We pay our rent and we buy some coffee and literature and medallions and and chips and we we cover our expenses. And then we have a responsibility to pay our small small part of the local intergroup office that serves our area that manages a uh a telephone and an office and a bookstore and prints a a meeting list for the county, etc.

Right. uh to send a little bit on to the uh district. I think you're district eight here in Palm Beach County.

Was there Yeah. Garrett? Yeah.

Yeah. General general service guy. Um um you know to send a small portion to district 8 so that they can help meet their expenses.

Send a small portion to uh I don't know if in Broward County we have a very large institutions committee uh that requires money in order to buy literature to bring into the jails and hospitals that they go to. And so these are all things that we get to pay for as as responsible AA members. Now, if you're new to Alcoholics Anonymous or I don't care even if you've been around for 20, 30, 40 years, if you if you don't have money, I mean, there are times there's several times a month probably I go to a meeting and I don't have any money in my wallet and you know what?

I don't put anything in the basket and I don't think twice about it. Alcoholics Anonymous is free and and it it costs nothing. And you should never feel if you don't have a couple of bucks in your pocket, you should never even feel like you owe AA anything if you didn't put anything in the basket because that's not why we're here.

We're here to help each other, especially in times when we're down on our luck and and not doing very well. So So you should never really think twice about that. But when you're doing well, you know, I mean, I'm enjoying certain success in my life because of the program of Alcoholics Anonymous.

I've I've I have some things in my life and I usually do have a few bucks in my pocket and a buck doesn't buy anything anymore. A buck doesn't buy anything anymore. They put a dollar in the basket since the 1950s.

I mean, put as much or as little as you can afford to give. I'm just telling you, we're starving our services because we're not contributing at least two or three dollars in the basket when it goes around. we can't do the things that our our offices are a you know we go to a in Broward County we go to the intergroup meeting once a month we ask them to do certain things and then we don't give them enough money to do it you know it's silly you know and and if we all if everyone who could afford it would drop $3 in the basket instead of being stuck on a buck then then they could afford to do everything that they needed to do and then some they probably could lower the price of big books so that we can get more of them in the hands of of newcomers uh if we were contrib contributing enough.

Uh even our own general service offices raised the price of a big book because group contributions are down and literature is the only way they can make up for it. Um and so we as a fellowship I think are are we we do a great job. We really do.

We send a lot of money to New York and our services, but it's not as much as they need. And I think if we all kicked in a little bit more, you know, also even though it it's not specifically money, we also get to help out. you know, intergroup meets once a month usually and the district 8 meets once a month.

District nine meets once I mean once a month they have a quarterly every now and again and and you know they don't just need our money, they need our bodies. There are certain things that we do as a fellowship in order to make sure that Alcoholics Anonymous is here for the next newcomer that comes in the door. uh we organize in ways that coordinate these efforts so that so that we're reaching out to the community in in in various ways.

And we get to not only financially support that, but but to show up and and be accountable and responsible to our fellowship. Um if we all did just a little bit, it would be all covered. We shouldn't have months where there's nobody to go into the jail.

We should be fighting over going into the jail and over who, you know, we should be on there should be a waiting list for the jail meeting, you know, not the other way around. If we all were doing just a little bit, there would be nothing left to do. We'd be waiting in line to do it.

Um, and so I think that falls under the spirit of self-sport. And this is our fellowship. This is our fellowship.

We get to support it with our time and with our money. Eight. Tradition 8.

Alcoholics Anonymous should remain forever non-professional, but our service centers may employ special workers. Um, I don't get paid to do 12step work. Um, other than the money Kimberly's going to give me for showing up here tonight.

I'm Oh, you're not? Oh. Um, we don't get paid to speak in AA meetings or to do 12step work.

I don't have the guys I sponsor painting my house and cutting my grass to say thank you. Um um I I know I just busted some sponsors in this room, but uh uh I mean it's just it's you know freely you receive, freely we give. I mean that's the spirit of this whole thing.

I mean in reality that's the reason why it works, right? Because we come into alcoholics anonymous and as soon as we get past alcoholism, you know, God is the answer. Step three, we go, oh my problem really is selfishness and self-centerness, right?

So my path to God comes through reduction of self-centerness. Well, you know, in AA there's plenty of opportunity to work on reduction of self-centerness because because AA is asking me to show up to to be responsible to a group to make put my hand out to help newcomers to give people rides all with no nothing in return. The only thing I get in return is the joy of having done so.

Uh and that for most of us takes a little while to learn. Um but but that's the spirit of this tradition. We're not to be paying people to do this kind of stuff.

Um I know at our at our inter but but on and on the flip side of that, our intergroup offices usually have paid staff and you scratch your head and go, "Oh, why?" Well, because they're they're not doing 12step work. They're doing things that professional people have to be hired to do. Um the fact that we hire alcoholics to do it is irrelevant.

Alcoholics understand our fellowship better than anyone. So why not hire alcoholics not to do alcoholics to do it? but they're doing professional tasks.

They're bookkeeping tasks and organizing tasks. They're not doing 12step work. Um we go to great lengths in Broward County to make sure that we have volunteers manning the phones all of the time so that our paid help is not answering the phone because it would be it would be improper for for somebody who's being paid to sit in the office to answer 12step calls, which is what most of those calls are, right?

So, we we um you know, we keep those two things separate. We're not paying people in AA to do 12step work, but there are certain tasks that New York and our local intergroup offices etc have to do. And so we do pay people to do those things.

Tradition nine, AA as such ought never be organized, but we may create service boards or committees directly responsible to those they serve. We talked a little bit about this in tradition 2. I think you know we're we're not organized in the traditional sense.

Nobody can compel anybody to do anything. We have, you know, district 9 and general service in this area and that district 9 is answerable to you, not the other way around, you know. So when your GSR or your DCM comes to your business meeting and starts telling you, oh, you can't do that in AA, you can tell them to shove it because that's not their job.

Their job is not to come police your group on the traditions. you their job is to find out what it is that your group conscience is so that they can take it back to their body. Uh now should you listen to somebody who might have some advice for you about following traditions?

Yeah, you probably you probably you probably want to listen to that. If you if you want if you want to conform with the traditions if you want to adhere to the spiritual principles that are the traditions that help preserve our fellowship, you probably should listen to that feedback. But the general service office and your intergroup office can't tell you what kind of meetings you can have and on what nights and how you should conduct them, etc.

That's not their job. That's not their job. Um we we um when I was on the steering committee for the Broward County Intergroup Office one time, we had a gal who who wanted to um she wanted to take a group out of the wear and win because they were giving away chips for clean time instead of sobriety.

They literally were saying clean time on a repetitive basis and and uh they felt that that was outside of the spirit of the fifth tradition and the third tradition, the only requirement for membership and our singleness of purpose. And she thought that group doesn't deserve to be in our wear and win. They're trying to help people other than alcoholics.

And you know, we're the steering committee for the Broward County Intergroup office and so should we take that group out of the where- was the question being asked. Should we have? >> No.

>> No. Can we go to that group and and try to help them understand what the principles of the traditions are? Yes, we can.

Can we make a request of them that they use the words sobriety and try and make sure that they're complying with the third and the fifth tradition? Yes, we can. But we're not but but but but organization in that sense what this tradition is specifically asking is that our bodies these bodies that we create to serve us that we don't ask them to govern us.

That's not their job. We they don't tell us what to do. We tell them what to do.

A it's an upside down triangle, right? And so we tell them how to run their affairs. They don't come down and tell us how to run our affairs.

Right? Um now so so a group has a right to be wrong even with respect to other traditions and I think it's a good thing that we would call each other up on it and bring it to each other's attention and ask each other to conform to the 12 traditions. I don't think there's anything wrong with that.

But trying to compel a group to in or trying to you know threaten a group by taking it out of the where if it doesn't conform to spiritual principles that is way outside of the game way outside of the spirit of the ninth tradition. uh these bodies are are there to help serve us to help carry out certain tasks. They're not there to govern us.

We're not organized in a traditional sense. Tradition 10, Alcoholics Anonymous has no opinion on outside issues. Hence the AA name ought never be drawn into public controversy.

I have lots of opinions on outside issues. I'm full of opinions on outside issues. Right, Pat?

Um, my group's not though and I am not in the name of my group and when it comes to some of these outside issues actually, you know, it's funny because studying for one of these little traditions things. I'm I'm I'm plugged into politics from time to time and um um and politics gets pretty controversial and debatable and and you it was always easy to find people on different sides of an issue and uh and it was pretty common for me to be having these debates with people right outside of of the doors while we were waiting for our group to start. Uh and I and I thought the spirit of the tradition was well as long as it wasn't in the group it's okay.

Uh, and it was actually studying for one of these traditions things that I learned that it actually specifically asked to have that conversation nowhere near the group. You know, these are, you know, page 17 of the book Alcoholics Anonymous talks about people who ordinarily would not mix. We come from all different backgrounds and different careers and different social and religious structures and and and there's there's not a hell of a lot that we can talk about in Alcoholics Anonymous that would keep us together.

Most things that we could talk about would actually pull us apart. And so the tradition is really asking that we leave all of that stuff outside. That our groups take no positions on it.

That individually as and individually we can have those positions and take those positions but not as AA members and certainly not publicly as AA members. Um and that's the spirit of the tradition that we keep outside issues and outside opinions to themselves. Am I doing all right on time?

I just now checked in with him. Um, so that's simple enough, right? Tradition 11.

Our public relations policy is based on attraction rather than promotion. We need always maintain personal anonymity at the level of press, radio, and film. Um, plainly enough, my name is Brian and I'm an alcoholic.

I'm not anonymous to you. There's no press here. There's no radio here.

There's no TV here, right? There's no Is there any reporters in the house? If there are, please keep my name anonymous.

Um, that's the that's the level of anonymity that we're that we're to respect is the level of press radio films. My friend Pat over there is doing the traditions here starting or doing the steps here starting next week. There isn't anything wrong with that.

I know his name. He's a member of Alcoholics Anonymous. There might be 20.

We might know 12 Pats. If I wanted to tell a member of my group that Pat's doing the doing the steps up here, it's okay for me to refer to him as his full name. It's not it's not in a newspaper.

It's not on television. It's not in the radio. And it's not on the internet.

Right? That's the level of anonymity. Dr.

Bomb believed it was as much outside of the spirit of the tradition not to introduce ourselves by our full names as members of the community in which we live. We're in Alcoholics Anonymous. It's not at the level of press radio and film.

We're not anonymous to each other um with some spillover if I may right now in tradition 12 where the name of our fellowship is Alcoholics Anonymous. And so there is a presumption that you can remain anonymous when you come here. So if you come here and you don't give your full name or you are kind of you know quiet and don't give people details about your life and I might happen to know you and know some things about you.

Yeah, it would be appropriate for me to respect your desire to be anonymous in that respect. That's what Alcoholics Anonymous is and that's what we do. Uh but this tradition is dealing with the level of press radio and films.

We're it's it we're allowed to use each other's full names in Appalas. If you don't want your full name used in Appalas, don't give it. Don't give it.

Simply don't give it, you know, and and and you won't. And Pat introduces himself by his full name when he speaks. So, I feel it's I feel it's okay for me to use his full name in the fellowship.

Um if you don't, then I probably would never know yours and could never repeat it in the fellowship. So, you you you you set the level of your own anonymity. But in Alcoholics Anonymous, we're not anonymous to each other.

Right, Garrett. >> Um, I think it's important to mention that with respect to anonymity at the level of press radio and films, um, some of our literature talks about how the press does this for us. Well, no longer.

They don't do this for us any longer. It it was a time in in in history when the press, even if you gave them your full name, would not print it because they understood and respected AA 12 traditions and and wanted to preserve it the anonymity principle. Um, but that's not the case anymore.

I have a magazine article right here about a group in um um oh shoot, it's been a while since I've read it, so now I for I forget, but it doesn't matter. It's in Maryland. Um full of a it's a group.

It's a an article about an AA group full of the AA's full names. Uh they talk to reporters freely. Uh it's you know this is not a it's not an obscure magazine by any stretch of the imagination.

It's a copy of Newsweek magazine. Um and it's we we we're the ones that are responsible for the anonymity principle. We're the ones that are responsible for keeping our anonymity at the level of press radio films.

We can no longer expect the press is going to do us do it for us like they used to. Uh and so our literature actually indicates that the press would do this for us and we need to be aware that no they won't. My own sponsor talked to a reporter when one of our members was shot and killed in in Pompo a couple years ago.

Uh and uh he gave his full name in the interview and they printed his full name. Uh and I think he expected that they would not. Um, and so it's it's not it's not appropriate for us to reveal our full names or and and you can simp even that if the reporter knows your full name, by the way, you can simply ask that they not include it.

Just say, "Look, my full name is off the record. You can refer to me as Brian, a member of Anonymous." Done. You know, the a reporter worth his um badge will honor that request.

Um or they won't have any credibility in the in the community in which they serve. Um tradition 12. Anonymity is the spiritual foundation of all our traditions ever reminding us to place principles before personalities.

Uh we started off talking about problem, solution, program of inaction and then results. Spiritual anonymity is the result of the 12 traditions. Um actually the 12th tradition says it better than I could ever say it myself.

The first paragraph of tradition 12 says, "The spiritual substance of anonymity is sacrifice. Because AA's 12 traditions repeatedly ask us to give up personal desires for the common good, we realize that the sacrificial spirit well symbolized by anonymity is the foundation of them all. It is AA's prude willingness to make these sacrifice that gives people their high confidence in our future." And so if we can just come into agreement on all of these other principles, if we can just agree that to sacrifice making membership rules, to sacrifice our desire to govern or be governed by other groups or committees, to sacrifice our temptation to help with problems other than alcohol within Alcoholics Anonymous, sacrifice our desire uh to uh tie our AA groups to the facilities in which they meet and name them accordingly.

sacrifice our desire to uh receive gifts from outside of Alcoholics Anonymous instead of paying our own way. Uh to sacrifice, you know, being compensated for 12step work, to not take money or favors for that. Um the favors needs to be emphasized today for some reason.

Um sacrifice our desire to uh complicate things if we can just keep things simple and not have organization and not and not have committees that are that are trying to govern or or um um you know, handle our groups. uh the sacrifice marrying an AA group to other causes, outside issues, and to sacrifice our desire to seek uh to to break our anonymity at the level of press, radio, and films. If we can just make those sacrifices, if we can just come into agreement not to do those things, our group can solve all of its problems in our business meeting.

If all of us are seeking God's will for our personal lives and we bring that together in our business meeting and ask what is God's will for our group, all of other problems, we'd have nothing left to fight about. We could simply handle the affairs of our group very easily and manageably without much dis without much disscent if we can just simply come into agreement on all of those terms. We would be more effective as a groups at carrying the message to the next alcoholic if we all learned and adhered to what these what these requests are.

Uh these are just simply requests being made of us so that AA can remain here and remain strong at doing what it's doing. And so spiritual anonymity kind of indicates that the group is really an entity of itself. It exists despite any one of its members.

It really is God's expression of himself through the people involved and not dominated by any one person. Um I tend to wish my group was like that. Uh admittedly my group is a little bit dominated by me.

I'm I'm more of a bleeding deacon than I am an elder statements statesman. But saying acknowledging that and saying so is part of my effort to to get better at that. Um and and uh and and so I'm hoping to do better at applying the 12 traditions in my life and in my group's life.

Um um thanks for letting me share. Thank you for listening to Sober Sunrise. If you enjoyed today's episode, please give it a thumbs up as it will help share the message.

Until next time, have a great day. >>