The Traditional Catholic and Twelve-Step

Programs

Sean Romer
This article is for Catholics who hope to learn whether they could benefit from twelve-step programs
like Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.). Space restrictions do not permit an analysis of all twelve-step
programs, so the focus of this article is on A.A., which is:
• The original twelve-step program
• The largest twelve-step program
• The inspiration for hundreds of other twelve-step programs.
Because the main subject of this article is the religious underpinnings of A.A., most of what is written
here is applicable to other twelve-step programs.
The idea for this article had its genesis in a letter from Fr. Peter Scott, U.S. District Superior, (reprinted
here with his permission):
It is certainly true that the religious content of the 12-step A.A. meetings is abominably
liberal and indifferentist, and that it will always shock and disturb a traditional Catholic
with strong convictions. However, it cannot be denied that these meetings truly do work,
for psychological reasons, and that they really do help alcoholics to acknowledge, confront,
and come to terms with their personality disorder and drinking problems. It is the only easy,
common way which truly does work.

Consequently, there is a sufficiently grave proportionate reason to bear with the evil of
indifferentism, provided that there is no danger to the Faith.1

Fr. Scott's observation is echoed by that of Fr. Ed Dowling, S.J., an early influence in A.A. circles, who
wrote, "Catholics are in a vastly worse spiritual danger in drinking than they are in A.A."2
The purpose of this article, then, is to address a delicate and prudential question: how does a Catholic
who needs the help afforded by A.A. twelve-step meetings prepare himself to benefit from what is
advantageous while mitigating dangers to his faith? The answer is that he does so by:
• Obtaining direction from his confessor. The recovering alcoholic should speak with a priest and
obtain the necessary spiritual advice, without which the indifferentism of A.A. could endanger
his faith.
• Increasing his prayer life. The interior life must be proportionally more intense as one exposes
oneself to such an occasion, even if it is a necessary occasion.
• Knowing what to anticipate and preparing for the risks. By describing A.A., its methods and
influences, this article attempts to provide sufficient knowledge for Catholics to make informed
decisions.
Treating Alcoholism
Alcoholism deprives a man of control over his life by destroying his peace of mind, his body, and his
spirit. The will to live is diminished, hope is poisoned by despair, and the world becomes a joyless
place. An alcoholic feels alone and trapped: though he may have been guilty of irresponsibility and
gluttony early in his drinking career, at the advanced stages he no longer exercises free will–he is
effectively enslaved by the bottle. Such a man sees little prospect for improvement after experiencing
many drunken episodes followed by failed efforts to control or stop his drinking.
It is small wonder, then, that alcoholism is a common source of unhappiness, poverty, birth defects,
deterioration of mind and body, impaired leadership, collapse of moral values, abuse, unstable homes
and family disruptions, divorce, violent crime and other public disorders, imperiled highways, disease,
insanity, suicide, and death.3
Remedies for alcoholism have varied through the ages, but even the most promising ones have
delivered only short-term or limited success. Representative cases include:
• The Washingtonians, a temperance fellowship with an evangelizing Protestant outlook,
begun in Baltimore in 1842. At its peak it boasted 4,000,000 members, but it faded from
view by 1860.4

• The Pioneers, founded in 1898 by Fr. James Cullen, S J., and inspired by the temperance
work of Fr. Theobald Matthew. The Pioneers is a Catholic temperance movement formally
approved by Pope St. Pius X in 1905; its most well-known member was Venerable
Matthew Talbot. The group was begun in Ireland and is present in a number of countries
around the globe, but its members remain few in number.

There is a group, however, that claims success in enabling large numbers of alcoholics to attain and
maintain sobriety: Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.). Founded in Akron, Ohio, in 1935 by two alcoholics,
Bill Wilson and Robert Smith, M.D. ("Dr. Bob"), A.A. reports to have helped over 2,000,000 men and
women in over a hundred countries since its inception.
 

Overview of Alcoholics Anonymous

Alcoholics Anonymous is a society of alcoholics who meet to reinforce one another in their efforts to
become and stay sober. The A.A. fellowship takes its name from its text Alcoholics Anonymous. Known
affectionately by A.A. members as the "Big Book," it was compiled by Bill Wilson in 1939 from the
experiences of original A.A. members.
This preamble, read aloud at A.A. meetings, describes A.A. from the viewpoint of A.A. members
themselves:
Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience,
strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help
others to recover from alcoholism.

The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. There are no dues or fees
for A.A. membership; we are self-supporting through our own contributions. A.A. is not
 allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organization or institution; does not wish to
engage in any controversy; neither endorses nor opposes any causes. Our primary purpose
is to stay sober and help other alcoholics to achieve sobriety.5

The primary purpose of the A.A. program is recovering from alcoholism, a maladaptive habit
manifested in certain people for reasons that are not very well understood. Many other recovery groups
have emulated the A.A. technique, and participants report success in using the Twelve Steps to conquer
ills such as drug addiction, compulsive eating, and gambling obsessions.
The focus of twelve-step programs is overcoming the malady that members share in common.
Membership is open to anyone with the same problem, without regard for religion, nationality,
economic status, sex, or education. With such a mélange, it is not surprising that points of difference
are de-emphasized or even suppressed for the sake of unity.
For the traditional Catholic, this policy of uncritical tolerance can make a twelve-step meeting a hazard
to his faith. For example, he might be tempted to use the term "Higher Power" when referring to God
simply from repeated exposure to it, or so as not to offend the agnostics and atheists present. The
failing can be even more severe: this author knows a woman who quit the Catholic Church because she
wanted to just "worship God in A.A." Though many members of twelve-step programs would protest
that their meetings are not a substitute for religion, many, too, describe A.A. as their "church." In any
event, clearly there is at least a risk of syncretism stemming from a premise that makes a virtue of
heterogeneity.
 

Meeting Format
Though the exact format for conducting an A.A. meeting is left to the discretion of the groups, the
following arrangement is the norm for speaker meetings.
1) The meeting is called to order by the chairman.

2)  Members observe a moment of silence followed by the Serenity Prayer.

3) The chairman reads excerpts from the Big Book, and then introduces the speaker.

4) The speaker talks for about 45 minutes, describing a) his alcoholic drinking, b) how he
attained sobriety in A.A., and c) how he remains sober in A.A.

5) The chairman makes closing remarks, passes the basket to collect money for rent, and
observes the sobriety birthdays of members.

6) The meeting closes with the protestant Lord's Prayer.

Meetings typically last for about one hour. Members often come early and stay late to chat with friends;
some go out afterwards for a meal or coffee.
Some components of the meeting deserve further explanation.
 
Group Prayers in A.A. Meetings
The two prayers known and used by most A.A. members during the meetings are the Serenity Prayer
and the protestant Lord's Prayer.
The popular form of the Serenity Prayer is:

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the
things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

The origins of the Serenity Prayer are not known. Possibilities include Protestant theologian Reinhold
Niebuhr, pietist Friedrich Oetinger, rationalist and pantheist Baruch Spinoza, and the Roman
philosopher Boethius.6 Though the origins of the prayer are uncertain, what is certain is that A.A.
quickly popularized it, members observing that "Never had we seen so much A.A. in so few words."7
The protestant Lord's Prayer is too well known to be repeated here. Like the Serenity Prayer, there is
nothing inherently un-Catholic about it. A stumbling block for Catholics, however, is the practice of
standing, holding hands, and reciting this prayer in common with persons of other religions. A.A.
members view this activity as a testimony to the common bond among members. Not only Protestants
and Catholics, but Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and members of other religions join in with this group
prayer. A.A. members who participate assert that this activity is not an endorsement of a particular
religion per se, but is something that lets members feel as if they really belong.8 In short, the reasons
are primarily emotional and psychological.
Such a naturalized approach to spiritual matters ought to be avoided by Catholics. Further, some
chairmen become a bit too clever when they invite members to participate in the closing prayer. Some
merely suggest a moment of silence for the alcoholic who still suffers; a more unusual invitation,
though, begins, "Who drove us home when we couldn't? 'Our Father, Who art in Heaven,...'" When
confronted with such activity in A.A. meetings, Catholics are well-advised to simply stand back while
the prayers, hand-holding, and other novelties take place.
 

Readings from the Big Book

The Big Book is so named because A.A.'s founders reasoned that alcoholics, characterized in A.A. as
"egomaniacs with inferiority complexes," would be more likely to believe they were getting their
money's worth with a large, bulky book. Thus, the book was printed on the printer's cheapest, thickest
paper, with text surrounded by unusually large margins. The gimmick worked.
A portion of the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous is read at the beginning of most meetings as an
introduction for newcomers and a reminder for old timers.
Rarely have we seen a person fail who has thoroughly followed our path. Those who do not
recover are people who cannot or will not completely give themselves to this simple
program, usually men and women who are constitutionally incapable of being honest with
themselves. There are such unfortunates. They are not at fault; they seem to have been born
that way. They are naturally incapable of grasping and developing a manner of living which
demands rigorous honesty. Their chances are less than average.

There are those, too, who suffer from grave emotional and mental disorders, but many of
them do recover if they have the capacity to be honest.
Our stories disclose in a general way what we used to be like, what happened, and what we
are like now. If you have decided you want what we have and are willing to go to any
length to get it–then you are ready to take certain steps.

At some of these we balked. We thought we could find an easier, softer way. But we could
not. With all the earnestness at our command, we beg of you to be fearless and thorough
from the very start. Some of us have tried to hold on to our old ideas and the result was nil
until we let go absolutely.

Remember that we deal with alcohol, cunning, baffling, powerful! Without help it is too
much for us. But there is One who has all power-that One is God. May you find Him now!

Half measures availed us nothing. We stood at the turning point. We asked His protection
and care with complete abandon.

Here are the steps we took, which are suggested as a program of recovery:

1)  We admitted we were powerless over alcohol, that our lives had become unmanageable.

2)  Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.

3)  Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood
Him.

4)  Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

5)  Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our
wrongs.

6)  Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.

7)  Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.

8)  Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them
all.

9)  Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would
injure them or others.

10)  Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.

11)  Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as
we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry
that out.

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.
 Many of us exclaimed, "What an order! I can't go through with it." Do not be discouraged.
No one among us has been able to maintain anything like perfect adherence to these
principles. We are not saints. The point is, that we are willing to grow along spiritual lines.
The principles we have set down are guides to progress. We claim spiritual progress rather
than spiritual perfection.

Our description of the alcoholic, the chapter to the agnostic, and our personal adventure
before and after make clear three pertinent ideas:

a) That we were alcoholic and could not manage our own lives.

b) That probably no human power could have relieved our alcoholism.

c) That God could and would if He were sought.9

The Speaker's Talk

After being introduced, the speaker tells his A.A. story. This practice of sharing one's "experience,
strength, and hope" has its roots in the shared confessions made at the early Oxford Group meetings
(discussed later), and also carries shades of a tent-revival testimony. In A.A. parlance, the speaker
describes "what I was like, what happened, what I am like today." He typically mentions his sobriety
date, when he took his first drink (most alcoholics have an uncanny ability to remember this event), and
his experiences working the Twelve Steps.
The purpose of the story is to edify listeners by encouraging them in efforts to practice the A.A.
program and so stay sober. It really is astonishing to listen to former skid-row alcoholics who once
lived in cardboard boxes beneath bridges describe how they overcame their alcoholism, patched up
matters with their families, repaid debts, returned to church, became responsible citizens, and then
turned their attention to helping the next alcoholic.
Frank descriptions of the life of an alcoholic are not for weak stomachs, however. Non-alcoholics are
routinely shocked to listen to alcoholics laughingly recount tales of family quarrels, run-ins with police,
criminal activity, immorality, divorce, jail time, and a host of other nightmarish activities frequently
punctuated with winks and nods and foul language. Just as astonishing is when other alcoholics laugh
at these accounts, which are sometimes jokingly called "drunkalogues." One is well-advised to
remember that the alcoholic is telling a story that other alcoholics can identify with; this shared
experience, humor, and esprit de corps creates a common emotional and psychological bond that helps
alcoholics overcome feelings of isolation and difference, and so take the daunting actions prescribed in
the Twelve Steps.
Even so, practicing Catholics will be scandalized by some of what is said in meetings. This author
recalls a Catholic woman who described getting a tattoo to remind her of the son she had aborted when
her husband left her; almost as shocking was the subsequent congratulations the speaker received from
the audience for successfully overcoming her difficulties. Catholics, of course, can in no way give the
impression they condone such activity. It is not rare (but not sufficiently common, either) for audience
members to leave meetings when they take exception to a speaker's comments.
 
Sobriety Birthdays
Alcoholics with a sense of humor have observed that congratulating an alcoholic for staying sober "is
like congratulating a hobo for not jumping from a moving train." Even so, A.A. members celebrate the
anniversary of their last drink: such a commemoration is an act of gratitude for the blessing of sobriety,
and a testimony to the newcomer that they too can live without drinking.
At A.A. conventions–large gatherings of alcoholics–it is customary to conduct Sobriety Countdowns:
the audience stands, and as the chairman counts off the increasing years of sobriety participants take
their seats and clap and cheer until only the alcoholic with the most years of sobriety is left standing.
By the end, the event has become something like a sporting event pep rally.
 

How It Works
A.A. emphasizes a remedy to alcoholism based on the "moral and spiritual regeneration" of its
members. Reduced to a simple formula, the A.A. approach looks like this:
Problem: the alcoholic lacks the personal power to control his drinking.

Solution: there is an external source of power that can remedy the problem.

Action: the Steps provide a means for tapping into that power.

One assumption in A.A. is that "two people with the same wound by telling their stories can heal each
other."10 Alcoholism nearly always leaves a man feeling isolated and hopeless. By listening to the story
of a kindred suffering spirit, an alcoholic's sense of "terminal uniqueness" is sufficiently diminished for
him to take actions he does not yet believe in-i.e., the Twelve Steps.
Here is one account of this identification between alcoholics:
It seemed to Tom that he felt a (new) sense of assurance....He didn't feel alone now; and he
didn't feel altogether helpless. His attention reverted to the newcomer just a few feet away
from him, and the thought struck deep into his mind: this man was as Tom K. had been only
a few hours ago.... That thought had meaning: it meant that Tom was now different than he
had been. He did not feel superior to his companion but he experienced a feeling of
maturity and of quiet strength. Something had happened to him, something that made for a
changed outlook. Then Tom surprised himself. He said very quietly, "Tell me about
yourself."11

What does it take for an irritable, restless, and discontent alcoholic to forget the turmoil inside his own
head and reach out to help another suffering alcoholic? What brings him to the point of finally being
willing to, in the words of A.A. members, "trust God, clean house, and help others"? Bill Wilson said it
was "deflation (of ego) at depth, and more of it."12 An alcoholic who has reached a personal low and is
willing to go to any lengths to relieve his suffering will be willing to attempt the way of life described
in the Twelve Steps.
 
Taking the Steps
An A.A. old-timer observed that "the Twelve Steps are twelve tools that will fit any nut." The
philosophy behind the Twelve Steps supposes that alcoholics are spiritually and emotionally cut off
from the God of their understanding, and that they must repair the harm they have done to that
relationship and so re-establish that connection. The Twelve Steps, then, are the means by which that
relationship is mended. There is more than a hint of the New Age mantra that "the journey to the true
self is the core of the recovery process"13 embodied in such a philosophy. That hint is no accident
(more on that point follows later).
1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol, that our lives had become unmanageable.
The alcoholic admits he lacks the power needed to control or stop his drinking. Essential to this
admission is the notion that his dilemma is in fact a form of illness, a sort of allergy–"that the body of
the alcoholic is quite as abnormal as his mind."14 This concept was novel in 1939 when A.A. was
conceived; in fact, the physician who first consistently advocated it, Dr. William Silkworth, did so
anonymously for fear of being derided by his colleagues. Today it has evolved into the proposition
accepted by most psychological professionals that alcoholism is a type of disease.
2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
The alcoholic concedes that there is a power outside himself that will enable him to achieve sobriety.
Alcoholism had been a greater power, one that destroyed lives; the task now is to accept the idea of a
healing power that can reverse the damage. If insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting
different results, then sanity is attempting a new solution.
3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
The alcoholic embarks on the Twelve Step way of life. The qualifier "as we understood him" was an
early A.A. concession. Bill Wilson said, "We have to deal with atheists, agnostics, believers,
depressives, paranoids, clergymen, psychiatrists, and all and sundry. How to widen the opening so it
seems right and reasonable to enter there and at the same time avoid distractions, distortions, and the
certain prejudices of all who may read, seems fairly much of an assignment."15
The Big Book suggests that members use this prayer to accomplish Step Three: "God, I offer myself to
you–to build me and do with me as you will. Relieve me of the bondage of self, that I may better do
your will. Take away my difficulties, that victory over them may bear witness to those I would help of
your power, your love, and The Way of life. May I do your will always!"16
4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
The alcoholic examines his life, looking for instances in which he harmed others, and patterns of
behavior that were unhealthy or destructive. The inventory is not the same thing as an examination of
conscience; rather, it focuses primarily on resentments, fear, and anger, and why those emotions popped
up (e.g., threats to self-esteem, security, money, ambitions, relationships). Further, the goal of the moral
inventory is not reconciliation with God as the Catholic understands it, but removing the mental and
emotional blocks that shut off the alcoholic "from the sunlight of the Spirit."17 In short, the motivation
is natural, not supernatural–proper in its own sphere, but no replacement for the Sacrament of Penance.
5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
Admitting one's failings to another human being helps instill a sense of humility, without which
sobriety is in elusive phantom. Even so, this step in no way gives absolution, though it does mirror the
Sacrament of Penance. Alcoholics are usually encouraged to take their Fifth Step with an A.A. sponsor,
but this is not a strict requirement. Some people have, however, been discouraged from going to a
clergyman, being told that "he doesn't understand alcoholism–he can't keep you sober." Catholics
should avoid sponsors of this ilk like the plague.
6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
An alcoholic who has been thorough in his inventory will inevitably be entirely ready. If he is not ready
for God to free him of his failings, it is an indication that he has not been sufficiently painstaking in the
five prior steps–in which event this step is an invitation to return to Step One and begin anew.
7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
Having accomplished Step Six, the alcoholic offers this prayer: "My Creator, I am now willing that you
should have all of me, good and bad. I pray that you now remove from me every single defect of
character which stands in the way of my usefulness to you and my fellows. Grant me strength, as I go
out from here, to do your bidding. Amen."18
8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
The next action for the alcoholic is to make reparations for the harm he has caused others. The form the
reparations must take is also identified in this step. It is usual to discuss Step Eight with one's sponsor,
who provides feedback and advice. For a Catholic, consulting one's confessor is very prudent.
9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them
or others.
Step Nine is what separates the long-term, sober A.A. member from the A.A. member who relapses
into drinking. Alcoholics often have done horrible and criminal things, and have much to atone for; if
they balk at making reparations, however, they will likely drink again.
10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it
Step Ten mirrors a Catholic's daily examination of conscience, but instead of using a guide like the
Decalogue, the A.A. member uses questions from the Big Book: Where have I been selfish? Where
have I been irritable?
11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we
understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
For the A.A. member, if prayer is talking to God, meditation is listening to him. The highest form of
prayer, A.A. maintains, is to be completely submissive to the Divine Will, wanting only what God
wants, asking for nothing unless He wants it.
The wording of this step is sufficiently elastic that it can be employed by a Catholic.
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.
A spiritual awakening involves four things: 1) surrender to the A.A. program, 2) prayer to a God of
one's understanding, 3) companionship with other alcoholics, and 4) carrying the A.A. message to other
alcoholics.
Bill Wilson thought of "spirituality" as reliance on the Creator. The spiritual awakening mentioned in
Step Twelve is the restoration of the relationship between the alcoholic and God. Continued sobriety–
the alcoholic's litmus test for being connected to God–is contingent upon continuing in A.A., and
carrying the A.A. message to other alcoholics.
 
Sponsorship
Sponsors are A.A. members who tell newer members how to stay sober in A.A. A sponsor, then, is very
much like a coach.
A.A. sponsors are the people who take the 2:00 a.m. phone calls from an alcoholic who cannot sleep
because he wants to take another drink; normally hear an alcoholic's Fifth Step inventory; meet
newcomers at meetings; and encourage the alcoholic when he is at his emotional lows and scold him
when he is being egotistical or unreasonable.
A sponsor is not, however, a replacement for a priest: only a priest can give a Catholic sound spiritual
advice and absolve him from his sins. A sponsor is also not a licensed therapist–he is very much an
amateur in the matter of alcoholism, and he has no legal protection or obligations should a man he is
sponsoring confess a crime or some immoral activity.
A sponsor is, however, a person who has worked the Twelve Steps himself, and can help the newcomer
by answering questions about the A.A. program. Sponsorship is a valuable aid to the recovering
alcoholic, but it has definite limits.
 

Literature
The A.A. World Service Office in New York publishes literature that explains the program the Twelve
Steps, the history of the fellowship, and other topics of interest to A.A. members, alcohol treatment
professionals, family members, and other parties. Most A.A. books are sold at A.A. meetings, typically
at lower cost than can be found at local booksellers.
Several popular titles are:
• Alcoholics Anonymous (a.k.a., the "Big Book")
• Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions
• Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age
• As Bill Sees It (The A.A. Way of Life)
• Dr. Bob and the Good Oldtimers
• Pass It On: The Story of Bill Wilson and How the A.A. Message Reached the World
• Daily Reflections
• The A.A. Grapevine
•

The Slogans
The slogans are bite-sized pieces of the A.A. program. When an alcoholic is too hungry, angry, lonely,
or tired to formulate a coherent thought, a slogan will remind him to quit trying so hard, and to open
himself to the sunlight of the Spirit–which cannot be effective in a soul filled with grim determination
or angst.
Typical slogans include:
• "Easy Does It"
• "Live and Let Live"
• "Let Go and Let God"
• "First Things First"
• "One Day at a Time"
 
The Role of Anonymity
An alcoholic can be haunted by the ignominy of alcoholism long after he has attained sobriety. Keeping
his membership in a Twelve Step group, then, is a way to shield him and his family from being socially
stigmatized.
Another reason A.A. is anonymous is that anonymity is an antidote to an alcoholic's overdeveloped
ego. Should one member come to view himself as indispensable, or appoint himself spokesman for
A.A., he might begin to think he is different from his fellow alcoholics–and for the alcoholic, being
different is lethal.
Finally, anonymity protects the A.A. program. Should a public figure who is an A.A. member drink
again, it could undermine the good reputation A.A. has established in a community.

 
The "Group Conscience"
With thousands of meetings attended by hundreds of thousands of members, A.A. must face a number
of administrative tasks, even on the level of a single A.A. group. Enter the group conscience: a
consensus of members reached after all sides of an issue have been considered. This is an extension of
the democratic principle that typifies numerous A.A. initiatives, traditions, and policies. Many A.A.
members, though, believe that the "God of recovery"19 makes his will known through these group
conscience discussions; in such manner, simple pragmatic decisions sometimes take on an aura of
inviolability (and remember that A.A. was conceived over 25 years before the beginning of Pope John
XXIII's council).
 

Influences and Personalities

A.A. is an amateur synthesis of elements from religion, medicine, and psychology. It was developed
through trial and error efforts, many of them painful, over a period of several years. Early on it was
essentially a Protestant fellowship with strong Catholic components. Later it was modified to
accommodate different religions and philosophies. The A.A. of today has gone through numerous
permutations since 1935.
It is beyond the scope of this article to describe all the influences on A.A. A few of the more significant
ones, important when A.A. was conceived and laying the groundwork for much that followed, should
be mentioned–particularly the religious influences.
 

Bill Wilson
A New York speculator, Bill Wilson was a Vermont-born Yankee and one of the two co-founders of
A.A. Raised with almost no religion, he married Lois Burnham in her family's Swedenborgian Church
in 1918.20 Known among its members as the Church of the New Jerusalem, Swedenborgianism is a
naturalized version of Protestant Christianity; well-known adherents included John Chapman (a.k.a.
Johnny Appleseed), Helen Keller, and Robert Frost.21
In 1947 Wilson took instruction from Archbishop Fulton Sheen, but later broke off his investigation
into Catholicism with the quip, "The thing that irks me about all religion is how confoundedly right
they all are."22 Wilson later added that, had he converted, it would have been perceived as an
endorsement of Catholicism by a co-founder of A.A., which he believed would jeopardize the
fellowship.23
Wilson was an avid reader of Professor William James of Harvard, whose The Varieties of Religious
Experience provided silage for many of the naturalistic concepts later embodied in A.A.–in fact, though
James was long dead, Wilson called him a "co-founder" of A.A.24 Wilson also read Glen Clark, Mary
Baker Eddy, Charles Filmore, Fosdick, Emmet Fox, Gerald Heard, and E. Stanley Jones.
Bill and Lois were very interested in psychic phenomena. Bill's wife Lois recorded that she and Bill
regularly experimented with extra-sensory perception (ESP).25 Wilson described–as if it were an
everyday event–visitations from a spirit-guide who introduced himself as Boniface, an 11th century
English Benedictine bishop and missionary to Germany, Bavaria, and France. Wilson said that, in
addition to The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, he was helped in writing the squel to the Big Book,
The Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, by this spirit-advisor.26 After being warned about Boniface by
his Jesuit advisor Fr. Dowling, Wilson agreed that he should use caution, but that he did not want the
Catholic Church to limit his conversations with the other world. Wilson writes candidly of his interest
in spiritualism and seances in Pass It On.27 The records of these sessions, however, have been closed to
public scrutiny.28 As part of medical experiments to treat chronic depression–which was a result in part
of his extramarital affairs–Wilson took part in LSD experiments to see if it would cure him. Between
the spiritism and experimentation with hallucinogens, Wilson exposed himself to all manner of
demoniac influences, a gravely sinful act.29
Wilson believed in Divine intervention that could be confirmed by experiences, such as the
Resurrection and miracles of healing. What he would not accept were miracles that he said were
beyond human experience–what could not be demonstrated inductively–such as the Virgin birth, the
True Presence, and papal infallibility.30
Wilson was, for a short time, a member of the Oxford Group, from which he derived many ideas later
implemented by A.A. His primary spiritual advisors were Rev. Sam Shoemaker and Fr. Ed Dowling,
SJ.
 

Dr. Bob
Robert Smith, or "Dr. Bob," was a proctologist and surgeon in City Hospital, Akron, Ohio, and the
second co-founder of A.A. A Vermont-born Yankee like Wilson, Smith repeatedly devoured the Holy
Bible–he was particularly fond of the Epistle of St. James, the Sermon on the Mount, and I Corinthians
13–and the writings of Emmett Fox and William James.
A stern, straight-forward, practical, and humble man, Smith and his wife Anne were, like the Wilsons,
fascinated by ESP and other occult practices. Smith was also a member of the Oxford Group. He
worked regularly with Sister Mary Ignatia, an Akron nun who provided great help in the hospitalization
of alcoholics, and who was the source of much spiritual advice that made its way into the Big Book.
 
Rev. Sam Shoemaker
Rev. Shoemaker was an Episcopal clergyman, the rector of Calvary Protestant Episcopal Church in
New York during A.A.'s formative years. Rev. Shoemaker was a close friend of Frank Buchman, the
founder of the Oxford Group movement. Bill Wilson attended Oxford Group meetings at Shoemaker's
Calvary House. Wilson asked Rev. Shoemaker to write the Twelve Steps themselves, but was turned
down. Rev. Shoemaker spoke at many A.A. meetings, and his writings were printed in numerous A.A.
publications.
 

Fr. Ed Bowling, S.J.

A gentle, charming man, Fr. Dowling used A.A.'s Twelve Steps to help overcome his problems with
obesity. Recognizing Ignatian components in the Steps, he sought Bill Wilson out, only to learn that
Wilson had never heard of the founder of the Jesuits (Wilson had not known of the humble Sister
Ignatia's influence on Dr. Bob). Afterwards Fr. Dowling introduced Bill Wilson to the Spiritual
Exercises of St. Ignatius.
A graduate of St. Mary's Academy and College in St. Marys, Kansas,31 Fr. Dowling voiced the opinion
that alcoholism leaves an invisible, indelible mark on the man inflicted with it, just as Holy Orders
leave an invisible, indelible mark on a priest's soul.32 Though Fr. Dowling encouraged Wilson to
consider becoming Catholic, he never pressed the point. A personable and humble individual, in light of
some of his statements and actions (e.g., at Wilson's request, Fr. Dowling participated in one of
Wilson's LSD experiments), one wonders how orthodox his example could have been. There is no
doubt, however, that Bill Wilson admired Fr. Dowling, with whom he took his Fifth Step.
 

Sr. Ignatia
Compassionate, Irish-born Sr. Mary Ignatia of the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine worked in the
admitting office at St. Thomas Hospital in Akron, Ohio. A sensitive soul who had weathered a nervous
breakdown of her own, she was able to alternately offer tough demands and tender care to offset the
emotional highs and lows that often served as harbingers of her patients' drinking episodes. Fifteen
thousand alcoholics became sober under her attention, and for her efforts she received a presidential
commendation.33 In co-operation with Dr. Bob, Sr. Ignatia was largely responsible for St. Thomas
becoming both the first hospital and first religious institution to open its doors to Alcoholics
Anonymous.
Sr. Ignatia immersed herself in Thomas a Kempis's The Imitation of Christ and in The Spiritual
Exercises of St. Ignatius, St. Augustine, St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, St. Francis of Assisi,
and St. Therese of Lisieux. She influenced the thought, development, and content of Dr. Bob's
contributions to the Big Book and to the Twelve Steps contained therein.34
 
William Silkworth
Dr. Silkworth worked at Towns Hospital in New York, where Bill Wilson was one of his frequent
alcoholic patients. To Wilson the doctor shared his opinion that alcoholism was not just a malady of the
mind and emotions, but of the body as well; Wilson was at once amazed, and set about to sober up his
fellows with this bit of news that had been missing from prior efforts to help alcoholics.
 

Carl Jung
Bill Wilson was introduced to the Oxford Group by an old boyhood friend in November of 1934.
Wilson's friend, in turn, was introduced to the Oxford Group by "Rowland H.," a patient of Carl Jung's.
Jung told Rowland that there was no hope for curing alcoholism of his extreme type–no hope that is,
unless he were to experience a "vital spiritual experience." As a result, Rowland joined the Oxford
Group in search of his spiritual awakening. In the Oxford Group meetings he passed along Jung's
message to his friend, who later carried the message about a spiritual renewal to Bill Wilson.
Jung's peculiar philosophy morphed psychoanalysis and religion–in fact became a kind of religion.
From Jung, Wilson received reinforcement in his thinking that religion of any sort was a tool for
delving into one's self and removing impediments to the Divine influence.
 

William James
William James was a professor of psychology at Harvard University and an advocate of that American
contribution to philosophy called pragmaticism. His The Varieties of Religious Experience was read by
Bill Wilson, Dr. Bob, Rev. Shoemaker, Oxford Groupers, and many early A.A. members. James's
philosophy was essentially Emersonian Transcendentalism married to practical Protestantism. One
result was the notion of a sort of elusive God that James called a "Higher Power," a phrase appropriated
by the A.A. program.
 

Emmet Fox
Emmet Fox was a New Thought minister who wrote and lectured on the philosophy of how a God-
oriented mind changes the circumstances in one's life. This philosophy emphasized cultivating a
conscious awareness of God through techniques such as reasoning, intuitive realization, affirmation,
and visualization. God, to the New Thought advocates, was in you, and you were in God; you became
aware of this phenomenon by regularly uniting your own mind with the Universal Mind.
Seminal New Thought members included Phineas Quimby (an expert in mesmerism, which is a form of
hypnotism involving animal magnetism) and Mary Baker Eddy (who later started the Christian Science
religion). Drawing on many Western and Eastern sources, New Thought is one of the sources of the
present-day New Age movement.
New Thought contributed a great deal to the beliefs of A.A., particularly through Fox's lectures (Bill
Wilson and other early A.A. groups often attended them)35 and books, his Sermon on the Mount being
the most influential.
 
The Oxford Group
The Oxford Group was a nondenominational evangelical movement founded in 1908 by a disillusioned
Lutheran preacher from Pennsylvania named Frank Buchman.36 Also called Buchmanism, the Oxford
Group changed its name to Moral Re-armament in 1938 when England's Oxford University protested
the use of its name.
The goal of the Oxford Group was to change the world "one person at a time." At Oxford Group House
Parties, members "surrendered" on their knees and publicly described their deliverance from sins of
alcoholism, smoking, and other vices. Its precepts were: surrender your life to God; take a moral
inventory; confess your sins to God and to another human being; make restitution; give of yourself to
others with no demand for return; pray to God to help carry out these principles. There were also four
Absolutes: absolute honesty, absolute purity, absolute unselfishness and absolute love–moral standards
by which every thought and action could be tested. There was no cross or shedding of blood;
illumination came directly to the individual, who merely quieted his mind and his life so as to hear the
voice of inspiration.37
Fr. John Ford, S J., wrote of the Oxford Group and A.A.: "The differences between the fundamental
attitudes of the early A.A.'s and the Oxford Groupers were so pronounced that there never was a real
integration of A.A. into that movement. There was initial inspiration and association rather than
integration. A.A. sprang from the Oxford Groups but almost immediately sprang away from them."38
Though the association might have been brief, Wilson insisted that after Step One (which he attributed
to Dr. Silkworth and the influence of Jung), all the remaining Steps were extensions of Oxford Group
teachings. The split between the two groups stemmed from the Oxford Group's aggressively
evangelical approach, which did not suit A.A. members. There was also strong resistance to the
coercive authority exerted by Oxford Group leaders, who claimed to have received inspiration on how
newcomers should conduct their lives.
 

The Question of Religion

Wilson's own astonishing recovery from alcoholism left him convinced that the Twelve Steps came
from God, and that A.A. was a divinely instituted agent for channeling God's grace into the world.
Wilson was also encouraged in this belief–for example, his long-time advisor Fr. Dowling saw Wilson
as "possessed by truth, and stumbling toward greater truth." In a letter to Wilson, Fr. Dowling wrote,
"Historically, there have been superhuman interventions–yourself, Horace Crystal, the Incarnation."39
At the same time, the founders of A.A. denied that they had begun a new religion. To the contrary, they
repeatedly and consistently stated that they merely used material readily available from religion,
medicine, and psychology–the common property of mankind, they maintained–to outline a manner of
living that would help alcoholics. Wilson believed that institutions like the Catholic Church had the
spirituality to heal alcoholics, but didn't have the method to reach them: one alcoholic talking to
another.
As a society we must never become so vain as to suppose that we have been the authors and
inventors of a new religion. We will humbly reflect that each of A.A.'s principles, every one
of them, has been borrowed from ancient sources....Let us constantly remind ourselves that
the experts in religion are the clergymen; that the practice of medicine is for physicians;
and that we, the recovered alcoholics, are their assistants.40
From a Catholic perspective, there is no denying that A.A. relies on naturalistic means to solve the
problem of alcoholism–this in spite of the insistence of its members that it is a spiritual program.
Though there is hope for sobriety through working the Twelve Steps of A.A., there are also risks which
are inherent in the program's principles and assumptions. These risks, however, are not readily visible
to the casual observer because A.A.'s ultimate principles are seldom revealed: efforts to delve into them
are usually dismissed with a remark like, "The Twelve Steps got me sober–that's all I care about." As a
result, one must extract from A.A.'s moods its ultimate principles. Its members are usually not
conscious of any such principles, however. When presented with them, they will often, and honestly,
deny them to be held–their sincerity making their uncritical acceptance more of an obstruction than an
enemy. It is something like going over difficult terrain, composed of a number of attitudes, affections,
assumptions, and gaps in understanding and knowledge under which Catholicism is indirectly
menaced, smothered, sidetracked, and undermined.
Here are a few manifestations.
• The Gnostic assertion that knowledge arises in the heart in an intuitive and mysterious manner
is alive and well in A.A. Deliverance is attained through a certain intuition of the heart, by
which A.A. members immediately and directly, without the aid of an intermediary, attain the
reality of God.
• Catholics sometimes receive from their sponsor specific guidance at odds with the requirements
of the faith, perhaps infusing them with the idea that their Church needs to be "changed." When
alcoholics are told that their Church "won't get them sober," Catholics are put in a false position
where they are made to feel they must choose between sobriety and their faith.
• When one is directly inspired by a Higher Power, all revealed knowledge gained from authority
is suspect. This flies in the face of what the Council of Trent declared: that justifying faith is
primarily an intellectual assent to divinely revealed truths.
Such is the nature of the human mind, so limited are its intellectual powers, that, although by means of
diligent and laborious inquiry it has been enabled of itself to investigate and discover many divine
truths; yet guided solely by its own lights it could never know or comprehend most of those things by
which eternal salvation, the principal end of man's creation and formation to the image and likeness of
God, is attained.41In such manner the Council of Trent laid the groundwork for why a loving God
would not abandon us to our own devices, but gave us Revelation.
• The indifferentism common in A.A. is manifested in erroneous assertions like God's "call is
bigger than organized religion."42 Wilson wrote, "It was agreed that the book should present a
universal spiritual program, not a specific religious one, since all drunks were not Christian."43
Sobriety, not truth, is the real arbiter.
• A.A. members are encouraged to accept what is a false distinction between "religion and
spirituality." Though A.A. is officially non-dogmatic, in practice religion is described as the
man-made accretions like liturgies, rituals, and all external sources of control; while spirituality
is the internal, spontaneous, happy, and energetic consequence of being in personal contact with
God. A typical declaration is, "religion is for people who are afraid of hell; spirituality is for
people who have already been there."
• For the Catholic, when human efforts fail, the power needed to overcome alcoholism is divine,
coming from the Blessed Savior. In A.A., however, the power can be anything with more
strength than the individual alcoholic–A.A. endorses no particular notion of God. Thus, it can
be the Sacred Heart. It can also be the loving support from the A.A. meeting itself, an undefined
Universal Loving Spirit, or (as one member claimed) a Bekins moving van. It is up to the
individual to decide what God means to him; the only condition is that it must help the alcoholic
 stay sober.
• Value attached to suffering is denied, though the well-trained A.A. member will concede that a
loving God can turn suffering to good. The focus on relieving suffering is good provided it
springs from a supernatural motive; the typical A.A. member, however, has no such motivation:
his goal is to avoid pain, and to be happy in life. Thoughts of the hereafter are tolerated
provided they do not interfere with sobriety. Thus, a non-alcoholic Catholic can understand
Sebastian, who is a baffling and sinister mystery to the non-Catholic A.A. member:
"Poor Sebastian!" I said. "It's too pitiful. How will it end?"

"I think I can tell you exactly, Charles. I've seen others like him, and I believe they are very
near and dear to God. He'll live, half in, half out of the community, a familiar figure
pottering round with his broom and his bunch of keys. He'll be a great favourite with the
old fathers, something of a joke to the novices. Everyone will know about his drinking; he'll
disappear for two or three days every month or so, and they'll all nod and smile and say in
their various accents, 'Old Sebastian's on the spree again,' and then he'll come back
dishevelled and shamefaced and be more devout for a day or two in the chapel. He'll
probably have little hiding places about the garden where he keeps a bottle and takes a swig
now and then on the sly. They'll bring him forward to act as guide, whenever they have an
English-speaking visitor; and he will be completely charming, so that before they go they'll
ask about him and perhaps be given a hint that he has high connections at home. If he lives
long enough, generations of missionaries in all kinds of remote places will think of him as a
queer old character who was somehow part of the Hope of their student days, and
remember him in their masses. He'll develop little eccentricities of devotion, intense
personal cults of his own; he'll be found in the chapel at odd times and missed when he's
expected. Then one morning, after one of his drinking bouts, he'll be picked up at the gate
dying, and show by a mere flicker of the eyelid that he is conscious when they give him the
last sacraments. It's not such a bad way of going through one's life."

I thought of the joyful youth with the Teddy-bear under the flowering chestnuts. "It's not
what one would have foretold," I said. "I suppose he doesn't suffer?"

"Oh, yes, I think he does. One can have no idea what the suffering may be, to be maimed as
he is–no dignity, no power of will. No one is ever holy without suffering. It's taken that
form with him..."44

 
The footwork taken to prepare this article included attending twelve-step meetings, reviewing literature on the
topic, and speaking with members and critics of twelve-step programs. Any mistakes are the author's sole
responsibility. The author feels compelled to point out that he is not a member of any group with the word
"Anonymous" in the name. He is a parishioner of St. Michael's Catholic Church in Roswell, Georgia.

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH and

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS
 
By Robert E. Burns, C.S.P.
Whether a man or woman is an alcoholic is not determined by how often or how
much he or she drinks, but rather by reaction and control (or lack of control) to
the use of alcoholics beverages. Thus, there are many persons who drink who are
definitely not alcoholics, some who occasionally overindulge in drinking but yet
cannot be classed as alcoholics. To use an old expression, the alcoholic is a
person who, once having turned on the tap, cannot turn it off.
Until recent times, the ordinary way in which society dealt with the alcoholic was
to have him incarcerated in some jail or workhouse as a penalty for his anti-social
conduct. The mentality back of this procedure was that the alcoholic is an enemy
of society and should, therefore, be taken out of circulation.
Alcoholics Anonymous, an organization founded by Dr. Smith and Bill Wilson, two
former alcoholics, completely disagreed with and disproved this theory. It was
their contention that the alcoholic is a sick man and should be treated as such.
Modern social workers, more and more, are coming to appreciate the point of
view of Alcoholics Anonymous.
The question frequently asked, "Why does the alcoholic drink?" is answered by
Alcoholics Anonymous in these words: "The alcoholic drinks to escape." The
alcoholic is definitely an escapist. He is seeking to escape from some reality or
imagined reality. It may not always be easy to put one's finger on the cause of
the escape complex, but it is there none the less. It may rest fundamentally in an
inferiority complex and frequently it is accompanied by a feeling of resentment or
self-pity. The Alcoholics Anonymous philosophy says one of the objects of
Alcoholics Anonymous is to straighten out the kinks in his mental processes and
thus remove the causes of his escape mechanism.
The Alcoholics Anonymous program is divided into twelve steps. The alcoholic-
seeking sobriety is expected to mentally and spiritually live up to each step as it
is presented to him.
The first step of the A.A. is nothing more than a recognition of the fact that one
has been powerless over alcohol, and that one’s life has become unmanageable.
This may be very obvious to the general public, but often it is not appreciated by
the alcoholic himself. The A.A.'s have an old saying that you may have to hit
bottom before you realize it is time to quit, but smart is the man who can come
to his true senses before he does. Where there is smoke, there must be some fire
and generally the friends and intimates of an alcoholic know it before he himself
does. Sometimes, even a bartender will advise a man time and time again to quit,
all to no avail. While it is never too late to get the program, it is better to get
sobriety before one's home and family life have been destroyed.
Then, you are ready to contemplate the second step - that a higher power can
restore you to sanity. This is a difficult step for some with no belief in God, but
experience has proven that it is absolutely essential. While there are a small
number of atheists and agnostics in the ranks of A.A. - men who either deny the
existence of a God or deny that we can know of His existence - it is doubtful if
their dryness is due entirely to A.A.
The second step speaks of a higher power, not of a Supreme Being or a personal
God. Theoretically, this allows for the inclusion of Pantheists, who associate God
with nature, and Deists, who believe in a Supreme Power but deny the validity of
Revelation. However, the following steps of A.A. make sense only if one believes
in a personal God, that is, a God possessed of intellect and will.
The Third step, following from the second, is a resolution to turn our lives over to
this Supreme Power as we understand Him. If we visualize God as a force only, it
is ridiculous to talk of turning our lives over to blind force. It is absurd also to
make a confession and promise restitution to a blind force. To have any meaning,
this Supreme Power must be a personal God.
The Fourth step of A.A. calls for a searching and fearless moral inventory. This
personal inventory should be a familiar thing to a Catholic who, from the time of
First Holy Communion, has been taught to examine his conscience regularly. This
examination should apply not only to lapses from sobriety but to all moral
failings. This leads to the fifth and most difficult step of all - admitting to God, to
ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
In general, the Fifth step of A.A. has brought about greater respect for the
Catholic confessional, very frequently a stumbling block to the non-Catholic mind.
However, it has also been the cause of some misunderstanding and confusion.
True is the old saying, "Confession is good for the soul." But this does not explain
the existence of the Sacrament of Penance in the Catholic Church. We Catholics
go to Confession because we firmly believe that this is the ordinary way in which
Christ intended that sins be forgiven. That is why He appeared to His apostles on
the evening of Easter Sunday and conferred upon them the power to forgive sin.
To say that this A.A. confession should be more intensive or complete than the
sacramental confession is to misunderstand entirely the place of confession in the
Catholic Church. It is possible for one to perform any of his religious duties in a
routine manner, but this is the fault of the individual, not the sacrament. For
intensiveness and completeness, it is not possible to improve on the sacramental
confession rightly understood.
The penitent who approaches the Sacrament of Penance is expected to have a
firm purpose of amendment to avoid all sin. He may well have had this good
intention in the past but because he was not concentrating at that time on his
alcoholic weakness he may not have had the results he now obtains with the help
of A.A. The fault however, was not with the sacrament but with the failure of the
individual to take proper advantage of the confessional.
The Catholic priest, by his training and experience, is better qualified than any
person in the world to hear confession and give advice, but the Catholic priest,
who sits in the confessional week after week, is there primarily to forgive sin, not
to operate an alcoholic clinic. Thus, in order to obtain helpful advice in dealing
with his problem, it is desirable that the alcoholic select a priest who understands
the alcoholic mind and has a fair degree of sympathy for the alcoholic.
From the fourth and fifth steps, it may be gleaned that, while alcoholism is a
disease, it is a disease involving moral implications. A person may acquire some
diseases through no fault of his own and be in no way responsible for the
progress of the disease. But alcoholism is a disease, the progress of which can be
checked by the will power of the individual; and all who are capable of exercising
free will are responsible. Nor, is it true to say that alcoholics in general are
persons with weak wills. It takes a great deal of will power to put in a day's work
when one has had little or no rest the previous night; yet, alcoholics do this very
thing time and time again.
In the Sixth step, the alcoholic expresses a willingness to have God remove all
defects of his character, and in the Seventh step he humbly asks Him to remove
the same. This, of course, means that prayer is absolutely necessary and, like St.
Francis of Assisi, the sincere alcoholic seeks to make himself an instrument in the
hands of God.
In the Eighth step, the alcoholic makes a list of the persons he has harmed and
expresses a desire to make amends. Certainly this list should include the
members of his immediate family and all those who have befriended him during
his periods of drinking. In the Ninth step, the alcoholic proceeds to make amends
to all such persons whenever possible, except when to do so would injure them or
others. Thus, the Eighth and Ninth steps can be seen to be nothing more than a
process of restitution demanded by every sincere confession. By the Tenth step,
he continues to take personal inventory from time to time. The Eleventh step is
an effort, through prayer, to seek to know God's will, and the Twelfth step is a
determination to carry the message to others.
The alcoholic is urged to pray to God. The Catholic knows that God has revealed
Himself to us principally through His Only Begotten Son. Most of the prayers of
the Mass are directed to God, the Father, "through Christ Our Lord," and the
Catholic seeking help from God would do well to carry his petitions to the Father
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The A.A. program cannot be digested with one swallow. The A.A. program is a
philosophy of life; as such, it must become part of one's make-up. That means
that it must be absorbed gradually. It takes time to tear down the old mentality
and replace it with the new.
The neophyte to A.A. will be assigned a sponsor, or, very likely, the sponsor will
introduce him to A.A. No one is eligible to sponsorship until he has proven by
time and experience that he has a firm grasp of the program and the ability to
stay dry himself. It is desirable that the sponsor have some common interest with
the new member, e.g., a railroad man should make a good sponsor for a fellow
railroad man. The sponsor should also live in close proximity to the new member,
so that he can call for him in person and take him to meetings. It is estimated
that it requires at least three months for the A.A. program to sink in, so to speak,
and meantime, the newcomer to A.A., with his alcoholic thinking, is very apt to
seek excuses for missing meetings. Some sponsors make a practice of calling
their subjects on the telephone every day just to bid the time of day and ask him
how things are coming. It is no exaggeration to say that the interest of a real
sponsor in his subject is comparable to that of a mother in her child.
And so the newcomer is introduced to the A.A. set-up. For more effective results,
the large A.A. group is divided into squads. A squad is generally composed of
from fifteen to twenty members. When it becomes too large, it will be split in two,
one of the older members assuming leadership of the new squad.
The squad meets once a week, either in the A.A. clubhouse or in the home of
some member. The squad meeting consists of a discussion of the A.A. program
conducted by the chairman of the evening. The purpose of the squad meeting is
to deal with present difficulties confronting the members in their efforts to live the
program. It is no place for delving into past escapades, however conducive these
may be to humility. The operation of the squad is nothing more than the
submission of individual problems to a treatment of group therapy.
Since most alcoholics drink as an escape, the squad affords an excellent
opportunity for this mental twist in one's make-up to be brought out into the
open and straightened out accordingly. The alcoholic is suffering from some
variety of frustration. The squad meeting endeavors to discover it and eliminate
it. Phenomenal success has been achieved by the medical profession in the use of
a new drug sodium pentathol. This is used in mental cases to obtain a
subconscious confession. The patient under the influence of this drug will talk
about the thing that is bothering him. After being thus relieved, a new personality
is constructed.
In a similar way I the squad endeavors to reconstruct the personality. However,
there may be some tender points too delicate or too personal for squad
discussions. These should properly be treated in confession. Herein, the Catholic
has the added safeguard of the sigillum, or seal of confession, which binds the
priest to absolute secrecy. Archbishop Murray has stated that A.A. endeavors to
bring into the open all of the alcoholics good points and bad points, then suppress
the bad and develop the good. The squad discussion ends at an appointed time
and is followed by light refreshments usually served by wives of the members.
The social element of A.A. is of vital importance. The A.A. program is a serious
thing; it needs something to lighten it. If a man takes A.A. too seriously, with no
sense of humor, he becomes a dry drunk. He does not drink but he is not happy
about his condition. Many an individual has tied up his fun with drinking. The A.A.
program should enable him to enjoy himself without drinking. Many an A.A. will
testify that he has made his truest friends through this organization. Common
interests and personalities that coincide with his may be the basis of his selection.
The happiness of the individual is vital not only for his own well being, but also for
the happiness of his family.
In addition to the squad meetings, the newcomer is asked to attend primary
classes, usually one a week, where the twelve-point program is explained by
veteran members of the organization. Many of the larger groups, from time to
time bring in an outside speaker, such as a doctor, clergyman, or judge, who will
speak to the entire membership on some subject of practical interest. Thus, it can
be seen that A.A. activities, social and otherwise, will consume a great deal of the
alcoholic's free time. Even after one has been dry for some time, it is important to
keep in close contact with the A.A. groups - although this is more imperative in
the first stages – and so any position that keeps a man on the road or working
nights is hardly conducive to the A.A. program because it makes regular
attendance at meetings well-nigh impossible.
At first, it is more or less necessary for an A.A. to concentrate on himself; but
gradually he should branch out in his viewpoint and see how it is affecting his
relations with others in order to complete the picture as he wants it - namely, a
normal happy life. He might ask from time to time, "Am I using the fact that I am
dry as a defense against personal criticism? Do I fly off easily as I did when I was
drinking? Do I harbor the same petty resentments as before?" This might well be
a matter of personal inventory.
The newcomer to A.A. may discover that some prominent members of the
organization make no serious effort to keep the twelve steps, but this does not
militate against the soundness of the twelve steps any more than the presence of
hypocrites militates against the soundness of the Christian religion. He should
bear in mind the fact that not every A.A. who remains dry does so because he
has faithfully adhered to the program. The A.A. program leaves no place for bitter
resentments and hatred, yet some A.A.'s holding these resentments manage to
stay dry. Their dryness may be due to the fact that, owing to their prominence,
they have been placed on a pedestal by their fellow members. Thus, human
respect or self-pride is the impelling force in their dryness. Others may stay dry
through fear of consequences brought on by a doctor's warning or the threat of a
wife or employer. Nevertheless, the experience of most Alcoholics Anonymous
has been that you don't stay dry very long if you stray far from the twelve steps.
Obviously, A.A. does not have 100% success. Some individuals will just not make
the effort to cooperate with the help which the A.A. program offers. It may be
that a judge has given an alcoholic the choice of either submitting to A.A. or
doing a stretch in the county jail or workhouse. It is not difficult to make a choice
between these alternatives. Here the A.A. members are faced with the task of
selling their program to one who has little or no interest in A.A. and has come to
it only because he regards it as the lesser of two evils. Furthermore, A.A. has no
screening process so that many persons find their way into the group simply
because, along with other evils, they have engaged in excessive drinking. This
drinking may only be an external symptom of a far deeper-rooted ailment which
in many cases will require institutional treatment of a specialized nature. Despite
these factors, A.A. has had phenomenal success, and it is estimated roughly that
about 75% of its members have remained permanently dry from the time they
entered the organization.
The importance of the Eleventh and Twelfth steps can not be overemphasized.
The A.A. member is urged to spend at least fifteen minutes a day in sincere and
humble prayer, asking guidance from that Supreme Power without which it is
impossible to get this program. The A.A. program is a twenty-four-hour-a-day
program. No one of us has a long-term lease on life. We live one day at a time.
So the A.A. every morning asks God for twenty-four hours of dryness and every
evening gives thanks for the same. If he keeps this up the rest of his life, he can
truly say, "I got the A.A. program."
In this respect, at least, A.A. is preferable to the pledge method of combating
alcoholism. The alcoholic who took the pledge frequently managed to stay dry for
a definite period of time but, when the time was up, his old weakness was back
again. I know of one alcoholic who for fourteen straight years has taken the
pledge and kept it, but this is exceptional indeed. Usually, it is a case of looking
forward like a child to Christmas or Easter when, after a period of fasting, he is
able to eat his candy again with renewed vigor. The candy in question is poison to
the alcoholic.
This, incidentally, helps answer a question frequently asked: "How does it happen
that an A.A. after a long period of dryness sometimes slips?" It is often due to the
fact that he has maintained a mental reservation that someday he will be a
controlled drinker, that some sweet day he will be able to take that first drink
again without courting disaster. What an ambition to carry through life! It is the
firm conviction of A.A. that the alcoholic can never become a control drinker, that
he should seek his recreation in other pursuits. This is part of the A.A. procedure,
a battle of no mean proportions for one who travels in society where highballs
flow freely.
The Twelfth and last step of A.A. is an effort to change the alcoholic, by nature an
introvert, into the finest type of extrovert. That is, indeed, a radical personality
change. The psychiatrists say that the happiest people in the world are those who
forget their own troubles and concentrate their energies upon the troubles of
others. Christ has expressed the same thought in the words, "He that saveth his
life shall lose it, and he that loseth his life for My sake shall save it." Next to the
mental reservation mentioned above, the greatest enemy of the alcoholic is the
element of self-pity. One who has constantly before his eyes the spectacle of
those whose miseries are greater than his own is not likely to be carried away by
a contemplation of his own heartaches.
Yes, the alcoholic is a sick man, but the prescription that has enabled thousands
to check this disease consists of straight, honest thinking, will power, and divine
assistance.
The patient entering freely into discussion with fellow alcoholics, giving helpful
advice to others, and receiving the same in return, regains confidence in himself.
Because he had lost that confidence, he sought, through drink, to escape from
reality. Through the sacrifices other alcoholics have made for him, he realizes that
he realizes that he is no longer an outcast of society but a worthwhile individual.
Praying and seeing his prayers answered, he realizes the significance of the
words, "Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be
opened unto you."
We Catholics believe that salvation is not a momentary impulse but the work of a
lifetime. Sobriety, like every virtue, is a lifetime job, for Christ has said: "He that
perseveres to the end, shall be saved."
Clear thinking should enable a Catholic to see that there is very little in Alcoholics
Anonymous which the Catholic Church has not had for centuries. Trust in God,
Meditation, Examination of Conscience, Confession of Faults, Purpose of
Amendment and Restitution are nothing new to Catholic theologians. Matt Talbot
and others, who had an alcoholic problem, straightened out their thinking without
the aid of the twelve steps in written form, but they used the twelve steps
because the twelve steps of A.A. are hidden in the conscience of every man. They
can solve the problem of alcohol; they can solve many other problems as well.
The Church teaches us the dignity of the individual soul, the superiority of the
spiritual over the physical, the concern of Almighty God for His creatures, and the
need of our dependence upon Him. The saints of God urge us to pray as if all
depended on God, and work is if it all depended upon ourselves. This is the
pathway to sobriety, this is the pathway to every Christian virtue.
The great contribution of A.A. to the solution of the alcoholic problem is in helping
the alcoholic by scientific analysis of his make-up to answer the question, "Why
do I turn to drink?" Some may think that the remedies applied are newly
discovered in this Twentieth Century, but actually they have existed for centuries
in the moral principles of the Catholic faith.
Columbia©, 31: 15-16, May 1952.

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Return to the A. A. History Page
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1. Letter from Fr. Scott to the author, November 8, 2000.

2. Fr. Robert Fitzgerald, S.J., The Soul of Sponsorship: The Friendship of Fr. Ed Dowling, S.J. and Bill
Wilson in Letters (Hazelden Press, 1995), p. 27.
3. The Catholic Encyclopedia online, http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/ 01274a.html.
4. Online at http://www.historyofaa.com/Washingtonians/wash2.html.
5. Copyright The AA Grapevine, Inc. (A.A. Central Office, 1947).
6. Online at http://www.barefootsworld.net/aaserenityprayerorig.html.
7. Bill Wilson, Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age: A Brief History of A.A., 3rd edition (A.A. World
Services, 1957), p. 196.
8. Speech by Sister Mary Ignatia to the Catholic Hospital Association (Philadelphia, 1951).
9. Bill Wilson, et al., Alcoholics Anonymous, 3rd edition (A. A. World Services, 1976), pp. 58-60.
10. Fitzgerald, The Soul of Sponsorship, p. 42.
11. John Reese, But for the Grace of God (Vantage Press, 1957), p. 51.
12. Bill Wilson, Three Talks to Medical Societies (A.A. World Services, 1958), p. 15.
13. Roseann Lloyd and Merle Possum, True Selves: Twelve-Step Recovery from Codependency
(Hazelden: 1991).
14. Wilson, Alcoholics Anonymous, p. xxiv.
15. A.A. World Services, Pass It On: The Story of Bill Wilson and How the A.A. Message Reached the
World (A.A. World Services, 1984), p. 354.
16. Wilson, Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 63.
17.Ibid., p. 66.
18. Ibid., p. 76.
19. Mary C. Darrah, Sister Ignatia: Angel of Alcoholics Anonymous, 2nd edition (Hazelden Press,
1992), p. xvii.
20. Fitzgerald, The Soul of Sponsorship, p. 10.
21. Lois Wilson, Lois Remembers: Memoirs of the Co-Founder of Al-Anon and Wife of the Co-Founder
of Alcoholics Anonymous (Al-Anon Family Group Headquarters, 1979), p. 2.
22. Fitzgerald, The Soul of Sponsorship, p. x.
23. Letter from Bill Wilson to Joe Dingles, October, 1957.
24. Samuel Shoemaker, Courage to Change: The Christian Roots of the 12-Step Movement (Baker
Book House Company, 1994), p. 44.
25. L. Wilson, Lois Remembers, p. 139.
26. Fitzgerald, The Soul of Sponsorship, pp. 59, 81.
27. A.A. World Services, Pass It On: The Story of Bill Wilson, pp. 275-85.
28. Ernest Kurtz, Not God: A History of Alcoholics Anonymous (Hazelden, 1979), p. 344.
29. Rev. Francis J. Connell, C.SS.R, S.T.D., Baltimore Catechism No. 3, 3rd edition (Seraphim
Company, 1995, originally by Benziger Brothers, 1949), Questions 212, 253.
30. Fitzgerald, The Soul of Sponsorship, p. 51.
31. Ibid., p. 14.
32. Fr. John Ford, S.L., Alcoholism: A Source Book for the Priest, an Anthology (i.e., The Blue Book,
minutes from the proceedings of the National Clergy Conference on Alcoholism or NCAA, 1960), p.
167.
33. Darrah, Sister Ignatia, pp. 6, 38, 264.
34. Ibid., pp. 28, 39.
35. Igor Sikorsky, Jr., A.A.'s Godparents: Carl Jung, Emmet Fox, Jack Alexander (CompCare
Publishers, 1990).
36. Darrah, Sister Ignatia, p. 31.
37.L. Wilson, Lois Remembers, p. 92.
38. Ford, The Blue Book, p. 395.
39. Letter from Fr. Dowling to Bill Wilson, October 1947.
40. Wilson, Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, pp. 231-32.
41. The Catechism of the Council of Trent, trans. Rev. J. Donovan (The Christian Book Club of
America, 1985, originally by W. Folds and Sons, 1829), Preface, p. 1.
42. Fitzgerald, The Soul of Sponsorship, p. 53.
43. L. Wilson, Lois Remembers, p. 113.
44. Evelyn Waugh, Brideshead Revisited (Back Bay Books, 1944), pp. 308-09.
 

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