by Vincent Jones

Created on: June 11, 2009   Last Updated: June 13, 2009

An entire industry has made its living bashing Alcoholics Anonymous over the last 20 or so years. Whether it is on radio or late night television it is difficult to listen or watch for more than a few minutes without a commercial for some new and improved path to sobriety airing, dissing A.A. as the hook. In the twenty plus years of watching this phenomenon dozens have come and gone, yet the doors of A.A. remain open, quietly going about the business of recovery, just as they have for over 70 years. In the literature of A.A., they clearly state that theirs isn't the only way to recover, just the path that worked for them. Every five years A.A. holds a World Wide convention. These conventions have to be held in cities with large outdoor arenas in order to accommodate all the members who wish to attend the opening and closing meetings/ceremonies, which at the last convention (2005) surpassed 100 thousand. 100 thousand souls at a single meeting. Pretty impressive by any standard.

Don't misunderstand, we live in a free society and the hope is that those who have come up with a new path of recovery help those suffering, the issue is criticizing a way of life that has helped and is helping millions to draw a sober breath, one day at a time. Because of the structure and traditions of A.A. they do not and will never have any opinion on these new and improved methods of sobriety, other than to wish them well. Having witnessed first hand some of the damage done by these fly by night purveyors of recovery, it is unfortunate that they can make unsubstantiated claims of success, often promising results beyond any reality, akin to throwing a life saving ring to a drowning man, his hope rising, only to discover that the ring melts not long after hitting the water, leaving them bereft of hope, drowning once again in the sea of alcoholism, addiction and despair.

The Spiritual Basis for living at the heart of the 12 step path of recovery is simple but not easy to do. A price has to be paid, and that price is the surrendering of self. Looking at ones self and taking responsibility for things done in the past and becoming willing to set right past wrongs is a tall order for anyone, let alone an individual crawling out of the pit of despair that the alcoholic/addicts life is when they finally decide they are sick and tired of being sick and tired. What has made and keeps A.A. successful is true fellowship and laughter. The next time you are in a movie theater and a handful of people laugh at a seemingly inappropriate time, it is because they are relating to the tragedy on the screen and demonstrating their joy at having lived through it. It works, it really does. Peace.

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