Big Book Study
 

Big Book Study - Post #1

Welcome everyone to the newest cycle of our Big Book Study! We'll be
examining the book very closely throughout the coming weeks. It is
important to note that we will examine this book from the standpoint
of a textbook.

I always like to note at this juncture that the title page has the
following subtitle:

"The Story of How Many Thousands of Men and Women Have Recovered from
Alcoholism"

Yes - Recovered! Now that usually opens a seething couldron of
debate ie: "Recovering" vs. "Recovered". The reason I bring this up
here is it is important to note that lasting recovery--i.e., having
recovered from a hopeless state of mind and body--is the result of
what our book presents. Whether one calls him/herself a recovered or
recovering alcoholic is of no consequence in this study. We will
limit our discussion to the text. That debate rages on at from time
to time at:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/we_have_recovered

(That is, if you care to get involved in it.)

Turning the page to Roman Numeral v, the Table of Contents, let's
see how the book was laid out. Bill was an educated and intelligent
man. He was taught to avoid repeating himself. However, he knew that
he would have to make the same point repeatedly, but in several
different ways, in order to get the point across. The format of our
book is very much like that of a textbook in this way.

The Doctor's Opinion and Bill's Story identify what the problem is:
Powerlessness, and they cover Step 1. The Doctor's Opinion, written
by Dr. Willam D. Silkworth, the doctor who treated Bill at Towns
Hospital (293 Central Park West at 89th Street in Manhattan) was a
part of the main text in the first edition of the book. It was put
into the Roman Numerals in the second edition on the advice of
literary experts of the time. (And, unfortunately, who reads those
Roman Numerals anyway!?!) The letter he provided was unsigned at the
time of the first edition as well. Dr. Silkworth was concerned about
his medical standing back when the book was being written--the ideas
were so radical at the time that he was concerned about being
ridiculed and ostracized about his ideas on alcoholism.

Chapters 2, 3, and 4 identify The Solution, that we need Power and
cover Step 2.

Chapters 5, 6, and 7 identify the Necessary Actions to find that
Power and go into the detail of Steps 3 thru 12.

With our next post, we will begin on Roman Numeral xi - The Preface to the Third
edition.

Please e-mail any questions to me at jknyc@... or you can
reach Karen at honey_dot_com@.... Please pass it on so that
others may enjoy what you have found!

Jim

Big Book Study - Post #2

Good morning everyone!

Let's turn to page xi, the Preface to the Third Edition, and look at
paragraph #2. This book is identified as "the basic text for our
Society." A basic text is a book which can convey knowledge ? in
other words, a text book.

Turn to page xiii, the Foreword to the First Edition. The first
paragraph is where we want to draw our attention. Bill realized that
there is strength in the collective voice. Hence, "... are more than
one hundred men and women who have recovered..." (There's that word
"recovered" again!) The fact of the matter is that we are more likely
to listen to one hundred than to just a single voice.

"To show other alcoholics PRECISELY HOW WE HAVE RECOVERED is the
main purpose of this book." A powerful statement! Note that the
capitalized words in the sentence above were capitalized in the
first edition of the book. Subsequent editions italicized these
words.

This is where I usually share my story about my Aunt Pat's strawberry
shortcake. It goes something like this:

"My Aunt Pat makes a wonderful strawberry shortcake. I look forward
to it every time I see her out in Newton, New Jersey. After years of
visits I finally asked her for the recipe which she gladly gives to
me. I went home, followed the directions as they were written and
viola! the strawberry shortcake I have always loved!

"Then my ego gets involved. I think a little more sugar in the
whipped cream would improve it. Maybe frozen strawberries. Or let's
use Cool Whip instead of real whipped cream. I make the cake using
my version and it isn't as good, in fact I am disappointed."

The Big Book shows us a specific recipe for sobriety and, if we
follow it carefully, we will get all the benefits of The AA Program.
If we change the recipe we will get something else and we will be
greatly disappointed.

With our next post we will go to page xv - the Foreword to the
Second Edition. Thanks again, and don't forget to pass it on!

And by the way, the Big Book online with page numbers can be found at
http://www.aainsa.org/bigbook/ .

Have a great day!

Jim

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group...g/message/8372

Big Book Study - Post #3

Good morning everyone, and welcome to those who have just joined us!

Turning to *page xv* and reading through to the end of the foreword to the
second edition, we have a brief history of AA presented. At the top of *page
xvi* the "alcoholic friend" was *Ebby Thacher*, sober two months in the *Oxford
Groups*. The *Oxford Groups* were a fundamentalist Christian movement that
sought to practice the principles of first century Christianity. Vestiges of
this movement survive to this day, although the movement has experienced
many transformations and is no longer called the Oxford Groups or Movement.
*Dr.* *William D. Silkworth* is the physician who introduced Bill to the
allergy theory and the mental obsession of alcoholism.

Bill and Dr. Bob Smith met at *Henrietta Sieberling's* house (of the
Sieberling Rubber and Tire family) through an introduction by *Rev. Walter
Tunks*. When Bill was pacing up and down the hotel lobby of the *Mayflower
Hotel* *in Akron* he was trying to choose between going to the bar and
scraping up an acquaintance or search for an alcoholic to help. Fortunately
for all of us, he looked at the church register. He picked Rev. Tunks' name
because it was an unusual name and he had a thing for unusual names. Turns
out that Rev. Tunks was a member of the Oxford Group in the Akron area and
steered Bill toward Dr. Bob Smith through Henrietta Sieberling.* Dr.
Bob*was also involved with the Oxford Group, though still unable to
stop
drinking. The first time the two of them met they spoke for five hours, and
this after Bob had elicited a promise from his wife *Anne* that the meeting
would last no more than 15 minutes.

*Paragraph 1, page xvii* - AA number three was named *Bill Dotson* - "the
man on the bed". When Bill and Bob approached Bill Dotson in the hospital
they had him moved from the open communal ward to a private room known as
"The Flower Room". The only people who had private rooms in hospitals in
those days were the rich or, in the case of "The Flower Room", the people
about to die. Bill D., being destitute, thought he was dying after being
brought to "The Flower Room", maybe it helped Bill and Bob carry the message
to him.

Keep in mind that the book hasn't been written yet and Bill and Bob would
work through the next couple of years carrying the message. They used the
Oxford Group's *Four Absolutes Absolute Love, Purity, Unselfishness and
Honesty*. Tall order for any alcoholic. It wasn't until the "Drunk Squad" of
the Oxford Groups separated from the Oxford Groups, starting in New York, in
*1937-38* that AA itself became a separate entity. The first meeting to be
called "a meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous" was held in *Cleveland* under the
auspices of *Clarence S.* in *1939*.

More on the foreword to the second edition and the beginning of the Doctor's
Opinion with our next post.

Karen H.

Big Book Study - Post #4

A BIG Thanks! to karen for posting for me - problems with my DSL at home!

Good morning everyone!

We're still on page xvii of the foreword to the second edition. The
book describes two centers of activity around 1936. AA's group
number three was founded in Cleveland, Clarence S. was a major
factor in the success of AA in Cleveland (he started the first group
to use the name "Alcoholics Anonymous"), and by late 1937 there were
40 members sober in this nameless group of drunks. Bill returned to
Akron and, with 18 others, decided to: (1) open a chain of
hospitals, (2) use paid missionaries to spread the word, and (3)
write a book.

Up until this time the society was nameless. In the process of
writing the book and naming it (1938), our Fellowship received its
name. There were several titles being considered for the book: "The
Way Out," "100 Men," "Comes the Dawn," among others. (We could have
been known as "Way Outs" instead of AAs!) They settled
on "Alcoholics Anonymous" and our society took the title of the
book to be the name of our fellowship.

Turning to page xix, paragraph 1, the evolution of the 12 Traditions
is described and confirmed in 1950. At the top of page xx we see the
statistics of success: "Of those alcoholics who came to AA and
really tried 50% got sober at once and remained that way; 25%
sobered up after some relapses...". Can we boast of such numbers
today?

The Doctor's Opinion - page xxiii (page xxv in the 4th Edition) was
originally found on page 1 of the main text in 1939 when the first
edition of the book was published. It was moved to the section
preceding the main section of the text in the second edition because
of comment from literary figures. The patient described in paragraph
2 of the letter is Bill Wilson in November of 1934 at Towns
Hospital. The doctor is William D. Silkworth, "the little doctor who
loved drunks," who treated cocaine addicts and alcoholics.

`````````````````````````````````````````````````` ```````````
"We of Alcoholics Anonymous believe that the reader will be
interested in the medical estimate of the plan of recovery described
in this book. Convincing testimony must surely come from medical men
who have had experience with the sufferings of our members and have
witnessed our return to health. A well known doctor, chief physician
at a nationally prominent hospital specializing in alcoholic and
drug addiction, gave Alcoholics Anonymous this letter:

To Whom It May Concern:
I have specialized in the treatment of alcoholism for many years.

In late 1934 I attended a patient who, though he had been a
competent business man of good earning capacity, was an alcoholic of
a type I had come to regard as hopeless.

In the course of his third treatment he acquired certain ideas
concerning a possible means of recovery. As part of his
rehabilitation he commenced to present his conceptions to other
alcoholics, impressing upon them that they must do likewise with
still others. This has become the basis of a rapidly growing
fellowship of these men and their families. This man and over one
hundred others appear to have recovered.

I personally know scores of cases who were of the type with whom
other methods had failed completely.

These facts appear to be of extreme medical importance; because of
the extraordinary possibilities of rapid growth inherent in this
group they may mark a new epoch in the annals of alcoholism. These
men may well have a remedy for thousands of such situations.

You may rely absolutely on anything they say about themselves.

Very truly yours,

(Signed) - - - - -M.D."
`````````````````````````````````````````````````` ```````````

At the end of the letter on page xxiv, Dr. Silkworth DID NOT SIGN
the letter in the first edition of the book. With our next post
we'll discuss why he didn't sign that letter. Then we'll finish the
Doctor's Opinion.

Jim

Big Book Study - Post #5

Good morning! Welcome back!

While we continue to study the forewords and the Doctor's Opinion,
remember that we are using the 4th Edition. (The page numbering
prior to Chapter 1 differs from edition to edition, since forwords
are added.)

We're at paragraph 1, page xxiv, right after the first letter
written by Dr. Silkworth.

"...the body of the alcoholic is quite as abnormal as his mind."
This was a radical idea for 1935. The primary reason for the lack of
signature by Dr. Silkworth was his reluctance to face his peers with
such radical ideas. It was the Depression era, and Dr. Silkworth was
lucky to have a position. No sense jeopardizing it. Further down, it
is restated: "...any picture of the alcoholic which leaves out this
physical factor is incomplete."

Throughout the book, notice that Bill expressess certain points in
several different ways to reinforce the importance or significance
of that point. He does this with the allergy theory. Having
an "allergy" means that we react abnormally to something. In our
case, we react abnormally to alcohol.

(Some drunks claim to break out in handcuffs when drinking. Other
claim to break out in strange spots ? a strange town, a strange
neighborhood, or jail.)

Dr. Silkworth continues to expand on his ideas on page xxvi.
Paragraph 2 is important here:

"...the action of alcohol on these chronic alcoholics is a
manifestation of an allergy; that the phenomenon of craving is
limited to this class and never occurs in the average temperate
drinker."

We are different than other people. Normal drinkers do not develop
the phenomenon of "craving." We metabolize alcohol in a different
way than the normal drinker. They don't experience the physical
craving which comes after the first drink is taken. They can have
the one or two that we, as a class, cannot. They don't suffer from
the mental obsession that precedes the first drink.

Paragraph 3, at the bottom, is where "...restless, irritable and
discontented" comes from.

Continuing at the top of page xxvii, "the sense of ease and
comfort...drinks they see others taking with impunity" (without
repercussions). Normal drinkers don't have this physical malady;
they can drink "with impunity" and we can't.

The last sentence of the top paragraph gives us an example of what
we will see throughout the book ? what the spiritual awakening is:
"...unless this person can experience an entire psychic change (also
known as a "spiritual awakening") there is very little hope of his
recovery."

Strong words. Over and over we will see that CHANGE is the hallmark
of recovery from alcoholism.

Turn to page xxviii. Silkworth describes five types of alcoholics:

"the psychopaths who are emotionally unstable..."
"There is the type of man who is unwilling to admit that he cannot
take a drink..."
"There is the type who believes that after being entirely free from
alcohol for a period of time he can take a drink without danger."
"There is the manic-depressive type..."
"Then there are types entirely normal in every respect except in the
effect alcohol has upon them."
Here's the important point: "All these, and many others, have one
symptom in common: they cannot start drinking without developing the
phenomenon of craving...the manifestation of an allergy..."

That first drink gets us drunk.

With our next post, we'll start with Chapter 1 - Bill's Story.

Until then think about this: there is only one place in the main
text of the Big Book where the word "pot" appears. No, it isn't the
kind you smoke. What is it's meaning? We'll reveal the meaning with
our next post.

Have a great day!

Jim

Big Book Study - Post #6

Good morning!

First, let's answer the question posted yesterday concerning "Pot"
in the Big Book. Here it is, on the old doggerel--the way Bill
remembered it (an abbreviated version):

"Here lies a Hampshire Grenadier
Who caught his death
Drinking cold small beer.
A good soldier is ne'er forgot
Whether he dieth by musket
Or by pot."

Beer or ale was sold by the "pot" or small cask hundreds of years
ago.

Bill's Story, page 1 - Bill's Story was put into the book as a means
of identifying an example of the disease in action and to outline
the spiritual experience.

Bill was born in East Dorset, Vermont in 1895 and was brought up
primarily by his grandfather. You can visit the Wilson House in East
Dorset and actually stay there. Bill and Lois are buried nearby.

Bill served in World War I. Then, during the Roaring 20's he
discovered Wall Street. The profit he speaks of on page 3 was a
sizable sum in those days. At this point in his story, he still has
no clue of his alcoholism. He begins to have an inkling near the
bottom of page 3:

"My drinking assumed more serious proportions, continuing all day
and almost every night. The remonstrances of my friends terminated
in a row and I became a lone wolf." His friends questioned his
drinking: that's a sin in every alcoholic's book! Who needs them,
right? He began to drink alone.

Bill continued to ride the bull market of the 1920's, but in 1929
the market crashed. He was disgusted by those jumping out of the
windows of high finance. He was better than that -- he would just
get drunk.

In the last paragraph of page 4, Bill is handed an ego puncturing:

"We went to live with my wife's parents." [At 182 Clinton Street in
Brooklyn]. That would crush most egos and Bill had quite an ego when
he made all that money. By now Bill has no illusion. He is a drunk
existing to drink.

By the second half of page 5, Bill has lost all control. He knew he
couldn't "take so much as one drink." He marshaled his willpower and
what happened? He drank again! No effective mental defense against
the first drink. Willpower is no match for the mental obsession to
drink.

At the top of page 7, it is now the summer of 1933. Bill's brother-
in-law is Dr. Leonard Strong. The hospital was Towns Hospital at 293
Central Park West (at 89th Street) on the Upper West Side of
Manhattan. The Belladonna treatment refers to treatment with a drug
derived from the nightshade family of plants and similar in effect
to valium. Hydrotherapy is shower and bath therapy (you do get
a clean alcoholic that way).

Providentially, Bill meets Dr. William D. Silkworth for the first
time. Bill begins to gain an insight into his disease, and a little
self-knowledge.

Did it work? During the summer of 1934, it did not. He got drunk
again and it got even worse. Bill is without hope?powerless. The
miracle is just around the corner?

With our next post we'll start on page 8 with paragraph 1.

Have a great day!

Jim

Big Book Study - Post #7

Good Morning everyone!

We're at the top of page 8, paragraph 1:

"No words can tell of the loneliness and despair I found in that
bitter morass of self-pity. Quicksand stretches around me in all
directions. I had met my match. I had been overwhelmed. Alcohol was
my master."

That sounds like someone who has been defeated (Step 1). Bill leaves
the hospital in September and stays dry until the beginning of
November of 1934.

Armistice Day rolls around -- November 11, 1934. Bill took a bus to
go golfing on Staten Island (see "AA Comes of Age," page 56). The bus
he was riding on was involved in a fender-bender. Being the kind of
guy Bill was, he and a new acquaintance left the bus to wait for the
next one. Bill had already told his drinking experiences to this
fellow: the allergy, his newly-found knowledge, etc.

They got on the next bus, and then disembarked at a country tavern
near the golf course. His friend suggested a sandwich, so in they
went.

Since it was Armistice Day, the bartender bought a round for the
house. Bill threw back a drink without hesitation -- no effective
mental defense whatsoever.

His new friend was mortified! "Are you crazy?!" he asked Bill in
astonishment.

Bill answered, "Yes, I am."

Bill stayed drunk for another month after that escapade.

A couple of weeks later, Ebby Thacher, a boyhood friend, came to
visit. Ebby's father was the mayor of Albany.

Ebby was a true drunk and was always in some scrape or another. He
had been in trouble in Vermont.

Turns out Ebby had been painting a barn. (Honestly?how much trouble
can someone get in painting a barn?) He was drunk and had just
finished one side when a group of pigeons flew in and perched on top
of the barn. The pigeons began to crap on the side of the barn, which
infuriated Ebby. He got a shotgun and started firing away at the
pigeons. The incident ended when Ebby got arrested.

Two men appeared at Ebby's hearing -- Roland Hazzard and Cebra
Graves, who were members of the Oxford Group, a Christian religious
group that sought to practice 1st Century Christianity. They appeared
in court to prevent Ebby's commitment to a mental hospital (which is
what they did to drunks in those days). They brought Ebby to the
Oxford Group's NY headquarters at the Calvary Mission in Manhattan,
where he got sober. (We're at the bottom of page 9.)

Ebby had been sober since September when he came to visit his friend
Bill. In the last full paragraph of page 9:

"They told him of a simple religious idea [Step 2] and a practical
program of action [in essence: Steps 3 thru 12]." Bill was
already "...hopeless" (top of page 10).

Page 11, paragraph 3: "But my friend sat before me, and he made the
point-blank declaration that God had done for him what he could not
do for himself. ...He had admitted complete defeat." [Ebby had Step
1.]

Bill also has Step 1, and was beginning on Step 2 but there was a
sticking point. Turn to page 12, paragraph 2:

"My friend suggested what seemed a novel idea. He said, "Why don't
you choose your own conception of God?" This is the spiritual (rather
than religious) message. This is the root of Step 3's "...as we
understood Him." This is the great turning point. It is important to
note that this was NOT the Oxford Group message. They had a very
definite idea of a Christian God that they preached about.

In the next 2 paragraphs, Bill is able to take what would become Step
2. In paragraph 5, he begins to describe a spiritual structure that
will be built throughout the remainder of the book:

"Upon a foundation of complete willingness I might build what I saw
in my friend." In several places in the book, he will refer to this
spiritual structure, painting a mental picture of recovery.

With our next post we will begin at the top of Page 13 - the last
drink for Bill.

Have a great day!

Jim

Big Book Study - Post #8

Good morning everyone!

We're at the top of page 13 -

Bill went again to Towns Hospital to be separated from alcohol for the last
time. This is at the beginning of December 1934; he had stayed drunk for a month
after Armistice Day.

Bill's sobriety dates from December 11, 1934.

Paragraph 2 describes Steps 3, 4, 6 & 7:

"There I humbly offered myself to God, as I then I understood Him, to do with me
as He would. I placed myself unreservedly under His care and direction (3). I
admitted for the first time that of myself I was nothing; that without Him I was
lost. I ruthlessly faced my sins (4) and became willing to have my new-found
Friend take them away, root and branch (6, 7). I have not had a drink since."

The first sentance of paragraph 3 describes Step 5, and the remainder of
paragraph 3 describes Steps 8 and 9, (also known as "restitution" by the Oxford
Groups):

"My schoolmate [Ebby Thacher] visited me, and I fully acquainted him with my
problems and deficiencies (5). We made a list of people I had hurt or toward
whom I felt resentment (8). I expressed my entire willingness to approach these
individuals, admitting my wrong. Never was I to be critical of them. I was to
right all such matters to the utmost of my ability (9)." [Remember this sentence
when we talk about amends in Chapter 6.]

Paragraph 4 - The first sentance describes Step 10 and the remainder of the
paragraph goes into Step 11. The last paragraph on this page discusses the first
part of Step 12:

"My friend promised that when these things were done, [not by osmosis I would
guess], I would enter upon a new relationship with my Creator; that I would have
the elements of a way of living which has answered all my problems." That sounds
like a Spiritual Awakening, doesn't it?

But don't we want all our problems solved first? It is through that spiritual
awakening that they are solved.

Page 14 - Bill's "White Light Experience" in found in paragraph 2. One of the
reasons that Appendix II -"Spiritual Experience" was added to the book was that
many people were confused; they thought that they had to have the same type of
sudden transformation that Bill had.

The concept of "carrying the message" was born with Bill while lying in that bed
in Towns Hospital (see paragraph 5). The last part of Step 12 is described in
the following paragraph continuing to the top of page 15:

"My friend [Ebby Thacher] had emphasized the absolute necessity of demonstrating
these principles in all my affairs." A bit of step 12 here! For us, that means
not just in the rooms of AA, but everywhere.

Going on to paragraph 1 on page 15, Bill describes the dangers
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." Perhaps there is something to this "carrying the
message" stuff after all!

Bill went on to work with drunks and barely earning a living. Not only was he
not making any money, he also had no success in sobering up drunks. Lois was
working at Macy's. Ebby moved from Rev. Sam Shoemaker's Calvary Church mission
and in with Bill and Lois at 182 Clinton St. in Brooklyn at this time.

It wasn't until May, 1935 (six months later) that Bill had any success at all --
he carried the message to Doctor Bob Smith -- aside from staying sober himself.
More details are available in "AA Comes of Age," pages 52-77, which tells Bill's
story in greater detail; how he met Bob, how they helped Bill Dotson (AA number
3) get sober, and the early days of what was to become AA.

With our next post we will begin Chapter 2 on Page 17: "There is a Solution."

Have a great day!

Jim

Big Book Study - Post #9

Good Morning!

We're on page 17 - Chapter 2 - "There is a Solution."

One of the literary devices that Bill employs on this page relates to
events that are familiar to the reader. Remember that the book was
published in 1939 when the Titanic was still a relatively recent
memory for many.

"We are like the passengers of a great liner the moment after rescue
from shipwreck when camaraderie, joyousness and democracy pervade the
vessel from steerage to Captain's table. Unlike the feelings of the
ship's passengers, however, our joy in escape from disaster does not
subside as we go our individual ways."

"Steerage" was the bottom of the ship - the cheap seats -
accommodations for lower-class passengers. Of course, the elite
gathered by invitation only at the glamorous "Captain's table." The
two extremes would never mix with one another. But to those who were
miraculously rescued from the icy, terrifying ocean, these
differences became nothing more than unimportant details.

Now here's the message -- the WARNING -- that Bill and the first one
hundred wanted to pass on: "But that in itself would never have held
us together as we are now joined."

So, what is it that binds us together? Look at the following
paragraph:

"...we have discovered a common solution [a spiritual awakening
through the 12 Steps]. We have a way out on which we can absolutely
agree, upon which we can join in brotherly and harmonious action."

It is The AA Program of action that binds us together.

Page 20, paragraph 1:

"Doubtless you are curious to discover how and why, in the face of
expert opinion to the contrary, we have recovered from a seemingly
hopeless state of mind and body."

The top of the next paragraph is the answer:

"It is the purpose of this book to answer such questions
specifically."

In other words, we should be using this book as a text book or set of
directions for in these pages we will be shown how to get, and stay,
sober.

The following four paragraphs go on to describe the misconceptions of
alcoholism held by the public at large and to describe people who
have drinking problems but who are not real alcoholics: moderate
drinkers and certain types of hard drinkers.

Page 21: "The real alcoholic" - In paragraph 1, Bill discusses the
craving and lack of control that the real alcoholic develops. This
repeats ideas presented in "The Doctor's Opinion."

Turn to page 22, paragraph 2 - Here the powerlessness and insanity of
alcoholism
is defined.

"What has become of the common sense and will power that he still
sometimes displays with respect to other matters?"

In short, the human will is not operative. We drink, continuing to
expect different results. Alcoholics do not have the power of
choice ?
common sense and willpower are useless.

What is it that causes alcoholics to drink when they don't want to?
Broken shoelace? Not enough meetings? Page 23, paragraph 1 -

"These observations would be academic and pointless if our friend
never took the first drink, thereby setting the terrible cycle in
motion. Therefore, the main problem of the alcoholic centers in the
mind rather than in his body."

It is our struggle with the mental obsession that we will lose that
causes us to drink; the circumstances themselves matter little.

Turning to page 24, we have italicized writing, used sparsely in the
book, always used to emphasize a point ?

"The fact is that most alcoholics, for reasons yet obscure, have lost
the power of choice in drink. Our so-called will power becomes
practically nonexistent. We are unable, at certain times, to bring
into our consciousness with sufficient force the memory of the
suffering and humiliation of even a week or a month ago. We are
without defense against the first drink."

The following paragraph - "There is the complete failure of the kind
of defense that keeps one from putting his hand on a hot stove."

Let's pause here to consider this: How many times has this point, the
lack of common sense regarding alcohol or the lack of defense against
the first drink, been made?

We must also note that in the last paragraph on page 24 we are told
that the alcoholic "...has probably placed himself beyond human
aid... ." Is fellowship enough? Going to meetings morning, noon, and
night? Talking to a sponsor everyday? Daily telphone calls?

Here's our situation: The mental obsession to drink is relentless;
human power is ineffective against it. What will help us to overcome
this obsession and prevent us from picking up the first drink?

More with our next post!

Jim

Big Book Study - Post #10

Good morning!

Turning our books to Page 25, lets look at paragraph 2:

"The great fact is just this, and nothing less: That we have had
deep and effective spiritual experiences* which have revolutionized
(changed) our whole attitude toward life, toward our fellows and
toward God's universe. The central fact of our lives today is the
absolute certainty that our Creator has entered into our hearts and
lives in a way which is indeed miraculous. He has commenced to
accomplish those things for us which we could never do by
ourselves."

This is the solution and this is what the solution has done - we
have changed our entire outlook. The asterisk (*) refers us to
Appendix II which was added to the book after the first printing of
the first edition to clarify the spiritual experience.

The text goes on - paragraph 2: "If you are as seriously alcoholic
as we were, we believe that there is no middle of the road solution."

Let's review for a minute: "no middle of the road solution" - we
aren't doing this thing "cafeteria style" or taking what we like and
leaving the rest.

"We were in a position where life was becoming impossible, and if we
had passed into the region from which there is no return through
human aid, we had but two alternatives: One was to go on to the
bitter end, blotting out the consciousness of our intolerable
situation as best we could; and the other, to accept spiritual help.
This we did because we honestly wanted to, and were willing to make
the effort."

We're given two choices: Keep drinking or accept spiritual help. So,
will meetings everyday suffice? Therapy? Calling a sponsor everyday?
Daily exercise? Yoga? Probably not.

Page 26 paragraph 1: The certain American business man was Roland
Hazard. He worked with Dr. Carl Jung for an entire year.

It's interesting to note that Carl Jung was Roland's third choice -
Sigmund Freud (a one time cocaine proponent) was too busy and Alfred
Adler was too sick to work with him.

Jung tells him he is hopeless, (paragraph 3), but the doctor also
knows what he needs (paragraph 3 on page 27):

"...here and there, once in a while, alcoholics have had what are
called vital spiritual experiences... They appear to be in the
nature of huge emotional displacements and rearrangements (change).
Ideas, emotions, and attitudes which were once the guiding forces of
the lives of these men were suddenly cast to one side, and a
completely new set of conceptions and motives begin to dominate
them."

Another description of the spiritual awakening from Dr. Carl Jung
with "change" being the overall theme.

So, this chapter was aptly named "There is a Solution" and it has
been hammered home to us that the solution is CHANGE. That change is
the spiritual awakening. Go to the top of page 60 for a minute:

"12. Having had a spiritual awakening as THE result of these steps,
we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these
principles in all our affairs." (Emphasis is mine.)

The solution is a spiritual awakening (see Chapter 2), the result of
these steps is a spiritual awakening (Step 12), so the steps are the
solution! It's simple, it really is.

With our next post, we will begin with Chapter 3 "More About
Alcoholism" on page 30 -- the chapter I rely on heavily to define
powerlessness and unmanageability.

Have a great day!

Jim

Big Book Study - Post #11

Good morning all!

We're at Page 30 - Chapter 3, "More (Truth) About Alcoholism". This
is where we will discuss--in depth--the state of mind that preceeds
the first drink.

Let's take the time to examine what "insanity" means in this
context: less than whole; not necessarily crazy, but rather an
inability to see the truth in life. "Sanity" on the other hand means
with a complete or whole mind -- an ability to see the truth in life.

"No person likes to think that he is bodily or mentally different
from his fellows." This is a truth most of us had been unwilling to
accept. Now here is the real insanity: "The idea that somehow,
someday he will control and enjoy his drinking is the great
obsession of every abnormal drinker." This is the great lie that we
pursue; this is the mental obsession. To accomplish this we try a
myriad of different formulas with the same result. An inability to
see the truth in life? - you bet! "The persistence of this illusion
(untruth) is astonishing. Many pursue it into the gates of insanity
or death."

Next paragraph - "The delusion (untruth) that we are like other
people, or presently may be, has to be smashed." Non-alcoholics
don't break out in handcuffs when they drink. They are able to
metabolize alcohol where the alcoholic can't.

On pages 32 to 43, four examples of the state of mind that preceeds
the first drink will be illustrated. Bill's writing style is one
where the same point will be made repeatedly to reinforce that
idea. It is important to note that he is spending an entire chapter
on Step 2's insanity. It is very important that we understand the
state of mind that precedes the first drink - the insanity of
alcoholism.

Paragraph 2, page 32 - Example #1 is "A Man of Thirty." The points
Bill brings up are these: "Once he started he had no control
whatever." Using will power he quit but here was the insane
idea: "Then he fell victim to the belief which practically every
alcoholic has - that his long period of sobriety and self-discipline
had qualified him to drink as other men." This man was dead by
the next paragraph.

At paragraph 1 on page 33 Bill utilizes his other literary device -
he summarizes: (this is the "Pickle theory") ...once an alcoholic,
always an alcoholic. "Commencing to drink after a period of
sobriety, we are in a short time as bad as ever. If we are planning
to stop drinking, there must be no reservation of any kind, nor any
lurking notion that someday we will be immune to alcohol." You can
make a pickle out of a cucumber but the process cannot be reversed.

Page 34, paragraph 2 - Here is the paragraph which discusses the
efficacy of using willpower to stop drinking. The cunning, baffling
and powerful nature of our disease usually torpedoes any effort
based on willpower.

In our next post, we will start out with the second of the four
examples "Jim the Car Salesman" and we'll begin on page 35 -
paragraph 2.

Have a great day!

Jim

Big Book Study - Post #12

Good Morning all!

I'll be posting the book studies while Jim is away on vacation.

Paragraph 2 - Page 35: *"Jim the car salesman"* is example number 2 of
alcoholic insanity. Reading through paragraph 3 on this page: "We told him
what we knew of alcoholism and the answer we had found. He made a
beginning."

"Making a beginning" means he had completed the first three steps. "His
family was re-assembled, and he began to work as a salesman for the business
he had lost through drinking."

There is a situation ripe for a resentment. "All went well for a time, but
he failed to enlarge on his spiritual life." He didn't continue on with the
rest of the program - Steps 4-12. He got drunk again, and here's how, as
recorded on Page 36 paragraph 1:

"I remember I felt irritated (resentful) that I had to be a salesman for a
concern I once owned. I had a few words with the boss..." (expressing his
resentment no doubt!) He continues in this paragraph to be sane, but watch
out!

Next paragraph - all italics. The insane thought: "SUDDENLY THE THOUGHT
CROSSED MY MIND THAT IF I WERE TO PUT AN OUNCE OF WHISKEY IN MY MILK IT
COULDN'T HURT ME ON A FULL STOMACH."

The insane idea was followed by action. Paragraph 4: "Thus started one more
journey to the asylum (treatment center) for Jim... HE HAD MUCH KNOWLEDGE
ABOUT HIMSELF AS AN ALCOHOLIC (which did him no good whatsoever). YET ALL
REASONS FOR NOT DRINKING WERE EASILY PUSHED ASIDE IN FAVOR OF THE
FOOLISH(insane) IDEA
THAT HE COULD TAKE WHISKEY IF ONLY HE MIXED IT WITH MILK!"

Page 37: "Whatever the precise definition of the word may be, we call this
plain insanity. How can such a lack of proportion, of the ability to think
straight, be called anything else?"

This is where the Big Book defines the "insanity" of Step 2 as the *state of
mind that precedes the first drink.
*
Our next example starts at the bottom of page 37, paragraph 4: *"The
Jaywalker."* Read it through to the end of the second paragraph on the
following page. Although it seems ridiculous it is a fine example of our
state of mind.

Our last example is *"Fred the Accountant".* Go to page 39, paragraph 2. At
the bottom of the page: "Fred would not believe himself an alcoholic, (Step
1) much less accept a spiritual remedy (Step 2) for his problem."

Reading through to the end of this paragraph at the top of page 40 it is
clear that he also believes in self-knowledge. He tells what happened
beginning at paragraph 3 on page 40. Almost immediately he is wrestling with
the mental obsession.

Page 41, paragraph 1 - Here is the insane idea: "I went to my hotel room and
leisurely dressed for dinner. AS I CROSSED THE THRESHOLD OF THE DINING ROOM,
THE THOUGHT CAME TO MIND THAT IT WOULD BE NICE TO HAVE A COUPLE OF COCKTAILS
WITH DINNER (and return to the mental hospital). THAT WAS ALL. NOTHING
MORE."

Next paragraph "...I HAD MADE NO FIGHT WHATEVER AGAINST THE FIRST DRINK." Self
knowledge fails again. He clearly demonstrates that we have no effective
mental defense against the first drink.

Bill's summary, last paragraph on page 43: "Once more: The alcoholic at
certain times has no effective mental defense against the first drink.
Except in rare cases, neither he nor any other human being can provide such
a defense. His defense must come from a Higher Power."

This is a very important point. This means that we can have all the self
knowledge we can get but still drink. It also means that human power, our
own or others (i.e., the fellowship), will not help us. Finding God will.

With our next post we start my favorite chapter in the Big Book: Chapter
4, "We Agnostics" on page 44.

Have a great day!

Karen H.

Big Book Study - Post #13

Good Morning and welcome back!

Today we are at *Chapter 4 - We Agnostics, Page 44*.

We should start by defining some terms. *"Agnostic"* is comprised of two
parts: "A" which is the Greek prefix for "Without" and "gnostic" which is
"Knowledge." With this in mind our definition of "Agnostic" is: *Without
Knowledge of God.*

Although used interchangeably, "agnostic" and "atheist" mean two very
different things. To be *"Atheist"* is to *claim that there is no God*, as
opposed to being without knowledge of God (agnostic).

How many times have we seen lists of questions that will allow you to
diagnose your own alcoholism? Ten, twenty, fifty question each? Starting at
paragraph 1 on page 44, we find that there are two questions:

Question 1: "If, when you honestly want to, you find you cannot quit
entirely, or

Question 2: "if when drinking, you have little control over the amount you
take, you are probably alcoholic."

Reading through to the top of page 45 several powerful statements are made:

"Our human resources, as marshaled by the will, were not sufficient; they
failed utterly."

What does that mean? What does that tell us about willpower? About human
resources (fellowship) alone? About our ability to win in hand to hand
combat with the alcoholic obsession?

At the top of paragraph 1: "Lack of power, that was our
dilemma(powerlessness). We
had to find a power by which we could live, and it had to be a POWER GREATER
THAN OURSELVES. Obviously. But where and how were we to find this Power?"

Now we come to the purpose of the Big Book and the desired result of the AA
program:

"Well, that's exactly what this book is about. Its main object [and the
object of the AA Program] is to enable you to find a Power greater than
yourself WHICH WILL SOLVE YOUR PROBLEM."

Let's turn back for a second to the foreword to the first edition. The
second sentence says the following:

"TO SHOW OTHER ALCOHOLICS PRECISELY HOW WE HAVE RECOVERED IS THE MAIN
PURPOSE OF THIS BOOK." (This sentence was written in ALL CAPS in the first
edition of the book).

To recover from alcoholism, we need to find a Power greater than ourselves
which will solve our problem. This book has all of the directions necessary
to bring about permanent recovery from alcoholism, which is our common
problem. The answers are within the text and throughout the coming weeks we
will continue to delve into the solution.

One of the things I was thinking about regarding this chapter is the name
"We Agnostics", not "The Agnostics." I mean, it's almost if they assumed
that everyone was an agnostic. Anyone care to explore why they named this
chapter the way they did?

With our next post we will continue on Page 46. Have a great day!

With love,
Karen H.

Big Book Study - Post #14

Good morning everyone!

***Here's a good exercise for Chapter 4. Read through and count how many
times the word "prejudice" in it's various forms appears. Also count
synonyms such as "preconceived ideas" etc. You'll be surprised to see how
often we are asked to lay aside prejudice against spiritual concepts in this
chapter.***

We are at *page 46.* The first full paragraph here speaks of
open-mindedness: "Yes, we of agnostic temperament have had these thoughts
and experiences. Let us make haste to reassure you. We found that as soon as
we were able to lay aside prejudice and express even a *willingness* to
believe in a Power greater than ourselves, we commenced to get results, even
though it was impossible for any of us to fully define or comprehend that
Power, which is God."

Reading through to the top of *page 47,* we see the important idea expressed
again:

"When, therefore, we speak to you of God, we mean *your own* conception of
God. This applies, too, to other spiritual expressions which you find in
this book. Do not let any prejudice you may have against spiritual terms
deter you from honestly asking yourself what they mean to you. At the start,
*this was all we needed* to commence spiritual growth, to effect our first
conscious relation with God as we understood Him. Afterward, we found
ourselves accepting many things which then seemed entirely out of reach.
That was growth, but if we wished to grow *we had to begin somewhere*. So we
used our own conception, however limited it was."

In paragraph 2, we find another reference to the spiritual structure we are
building:

"It has been repeatedly proven among us that upon *this simple
cornerstone*a wonderfully effective spiritual structure can be built."

The "*cornerstone" is* *belief*, and on page 12 we found that *"complete
willingness"* *is our foundation*. All that is important will rest on the
foundation and the entire structure is squared up from this cornerstone.
More elements of this spiritual structure will be revealed throughout the
text.

In the following paragraph we see that belief comes before faith: "That was
great news to us, for we had assumed we could not make use of spiritual
principles unless we accepted many things on faith (indicating knowledge) which
seemed difficult to believe."

So we begin with a belief, and it is through the knowledge that supports
this belief that we begin to have faith.

With love,
Karen H.

Big Book Study - Post #15

Good Morning Everyone!

Appendix II - "The Spiritual Experience" is found on page 567.

"The terms "spiritual experience" and "spiritual awakening" are used many
times in this book which, upon careful reading, shows that the personality
change sufficient to bring about recovery from alcoholism has manifested
itself among us in many different forms.

"Yet it is true that our first printing gave many readers the impression
that these personality changes, or religious experiences, must be in the
nature of sudden and spectacular upheavals. Happily for everyone, this
conclusion is erroneous."

This appendix was added after the first printing of the first edition of the
book. There was significant confusion regarding the transformation that Bill
experienced and the rest of the main text of the book. This appendix was
added to clear some of the confusion. Alot of people were expecting the
"white light experience" of the nature of what Bill had on December 11, 1934
at Towns Hospital. Here it goes on to explain that the "educational variety"
was no less important or vital.

The real gems here are the reinforcement of "change" as the central theme of
the experience. The following four terms mean essentially the same thing:

-Spiritual Experience
-Spiritual Awakening
-Personality Change
-Psychic Change

What we'll do here is identify how many times "change" or a synonym of
"change" appears in the text, it may surprise you!

-Paragraph 1 - "personality change..."

-Paragraph 2 - "personality changes..., spectacular upheavals."

-Paragraph 3 - "revolutionary changes..., immediate and overwhelming
'God-consciousness'..., a vast change in feeling and outlook."

-Paragraph 4 - "transformations,... the difference...a profound alteration
in his reaction to life."

So, let's see, that's eight "changes" on a single page. I guess they have
made a point - the people we bring to AA must change. Not drinking and going
to meetings is not enough. Through the 12 Steps we have the transformation,
in the guise of a spiritual awakening or experience or psychic change, etc.,
that is "...THE result of these steps..." (from Step 12, emphasis added).

With our next post we'll go further - Chapter 5 - How It Works (Not "how it
happens" or "how we get it through osmosis").

With love,
Karen H.