What
are the ideas embodied in the Twelve Traditions?
Answer
That,
touching all matters affecting A.A. unity, our common
welfare should come first; that A.A. has no human authority
- only God as He may speak in our Group conscience;
that our leaders are but trusted servants, they do not
govern; that any alcoholic may become an A.A. member
if he says so - we exclude no one; that every A.A. Group
may manage its own affairs as it likes, provided surrounding
groups are not harmed thereby; that we A.A.'s have but
a single aim - the carrying of our message to the alcoholic
who still suffers; that in consequence we can not finance,
endorse or otherwise lend the name 'Alcoholics Anonymous'
to any other enterprise, however worthy; that A.A.,
as such, ought to remain poor, lest problems of property,
management and money divert us from our sole aim; that
we ought to be self-supporting, gladly paying our small
expenses ourselves; that A.A. should forever remain
non-professional, ordinary 12th step work never to be
paid for; that, as a Fellowship, we should never be
organized but may nevertheless create responsible Service
Boards or Committees to insure us better propagation
and sponsorship and that these agencies may engage full-time
workers for special tasks; that our public relations
ought to proceed upon the principle of attraction rather
than promotion, it being better to let our friends recommend
us; that personal anonymity at the level of press, radio
and pictures out to be strictly maintained as our best
protection against the temptations of power or personal
ambition; and finally, that anonymity before the general
public is the spiritual key to all our traditions, ever
reminding us to place principles before personalities,
that we are actually to practice a genuine humility.
This to the end that our great blessings may never spoil
us; that we shall forever live in thankful contemplation
of Him who presides over us all. (Tape - Twelve Traditions,
Cleveland, July, 1950) .
Another
Answer
We
sometimes congratulate ourselves on the Traditions as
though they were a list of virtues singular to us. Actually,
they are a codification of the lessons of our past experience
during the early days of A.A.
These Traditions are not fixed absolutely. There may
be room for improvement. However, they should not be
lightly cast aside, since they bear on our unity, survival
and growth under Gods grace."
We are entering a new era of growth with vast forces
tearing at the world. The problems and difficulties
of the future may be greater than those we have already
survived. Still, there is a love among us that passeth
all understanding and that will sustain us through all
the trials that lie ahead, no matter how formidable."
(Transcribed from tape, GSC, 1968)
GO
BACK
GO
BACK