why was the 12 and 12 written?

[tomvlll]

I've heard a few explanations but I was wondering if any of you folks have some insights...
Was it simply to expound on the BB?

Was it for money?

[jimhere]

No, it was to sell the Traditions to the fellowship. Bill knew no one would buy a book about Traditions, so he included the essays on the steps.

[McGowdog]

Well I like the addition of the traditions in their long form which are in the back pages of our new edition(/s), but wish he didn't include the steps in that book.

We find it useless from a Program standpoint and don't use it at all. We find that it concludes, ducks experience and provides answers to questions... which the 164 doesn't do at all. The program is to be experienced we think. Not studied and answered. But... this is part of what makes us different.

Now, I go to other meetings here and there... where they read from the 12 and 12. I don't dislike it or anything. But from time to time, I hear things that don't jive with the Big Book. I don't know what Bill's deal was or where his head was at when he wrote that. I would have liked to have been a fly on Dr Bob's wall when he first glanced through it. "Billybillybilly!"

[Tommyh]

Tom,I believe Jim is right about the traditions but I believe Bill threw the steps in because the Little Red Book was used by many AA Groups back then and AA had nothing specifically on the steps but the Big Book.Then a lot of the Groups switched over to the 12x12.

[Rob B]

I've often wondered if a guilty conscious was driving his train of thought?

[jimhere]

Tommy is right. That is another reason Bill wanted to write about the steps, because the little red book was getting a slice of the pie.

While I think the 12 & 12 is OK, I don't believe it is that useful as a tool in taking the steps. Like McGowdog said, it complicates them. There is some good stuff in Steps Six & Seven, and some good stuff in Step 11, but the program is laid out in the Big Book.

Bill was in a black hole of depression and guilt a good part of the time when he was dictating the manuscript of the book, and it shows in his writing. He was seeing a psychiatrist, Dr. Harry Tiebout at the time and that shows up in his writings about Step 4, which is mostly psychological in its approach and devoid of any spiritual language. I think he was eaten up with guilt and remorse as well concerning his womanizingand his smoking, and his inability to stop those activities and lift himself out of depression. In fact, he was incapicitated at times, and had to use a ghost writer named Tom Powers. It was Tom who wrote the article called "Gresham's Law and Alcoholics Anonymous."

Bill's spiritual director was Fr. Ed Dowling, and his influence shows up in Steps Six, Seven, and Eleven. It was Dowling who said that Step 6 is what separates the men from the boys spiritually and who gave Bill the direction on meditation in Step 11, which is a form of meditation that The Jesuits use in their Spiritual Exercises. It is called active imagination and is also used by some Jungian analysts.

When I go to a meeting that uses the 12 & 12, I share my experience with the steps as I experienced them from following the course of action laid out in the book, except when it is a Traditions meeting. Even then, I find the long form of the Traditions more useful than the essays. I agree that sitting around studying the 12 & 12 is a rather pointless exercise unless one has already taken the steps as outlined in the Big Book.
Jim

[navysteve]

That is another reason Bill wanted to write about the steps, because the little red book was getting a slice of the pie

.

Well that is pure speculation, we can question Bill's motives if we want, but we weren't there and cannot know what his motive was. We do know that Bill was trying to get the fellowship to buy-into the traditions and no one seemed to be interested. Groups had no women rules, no gays, no blacks, no one that isn't a pure alcoholic. I do believe that Bill wrote the book to get AA to adopt the traditions, which he knew the fellowship needed because he needed to step out of the limelight (despite what his ego may have been telling him) which in my opinion, makes the book an act of humility. Where many of us ( myself included) have trouble with the step portion of the book is that it is Bill’s updated interpretation of the Twelve Steps. It is not the fellowship's view. If all of us were to write essays about the steps I am sure we would have differences in our interpretations. I am sure any of us who read the book with an open mind will find some incredible insight, we will also have a few WTF moments. But Bill put the book into a clear perspective on page 17:

Nevertheless, the infant Society determined to set down its experience in a book which finally reached the public in April 1939. At this time the recoveries numbered about one hundred. The book was called "Alcoholics Anonymous," and from it the Fellowship took its name. In it alcoholism was described from the alcoholic's point of view, the spiritual ideas of the Society were codified for the first time in Twelve Steps, and the application of these Steps to the alcoholic's dilemma was made clear. The remainder of the book was devoted to thirty stories or case histories in which the alcoholics described their drinking experiences and recoveries. This established identification with alcoholic readers and proved to them that the virtually impossible had now become possible. The book "Alcoholics Anonymous" became the basic text of the Fellowship, and it still is. This present volume proposes to broaden and deepen the understanding of the Twelve Steps as first written in the earlier work.

I think Billl had every right to propose this broadening. He never tried to replace the Big Book, or ever intended for this to be a step working book. And I personnaly don't think Bill was trying to out-shine the little red book. In fact:

Bill W. wrote Barry Collins about the Minneapolis book in November 1950:


The Little Red Book does fill a definite need and has wide circulation. Therefore, its usefulness is unquestioned. AA has a definite place for such a book. Someday I may try to write an introduction book myself which I hope might complement favorably with The Little Red Book. Here at the Foundation we are not policemen; we're a service and AAs are free to read any book they choose.

You can read more about this at:

Ed Webster and The Little Red Book

[Boleo]

Originally Posted by jimhere

No, it was to sell the Traditions to the fellowship. Bill knew no one would buy a book about Traditions, so he included the essays on the steps.

Ditto. Bill knew that "a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down"

[jimhere]

Ah Steve, what would we do without you? I mean that good naturedly, as we do need a devil's advocate.

The reason(s) Bill wrote the book may be speculation, but not my own. That idea came from Tom P., who was Bill's ghostwriter and was sponsored by Bill. No one here is attacking Bill. In fact I am fascinated by Bill's life. Despite his faults, I do believe he was a good and humble man.

However I do hold with the belief that the 12 & 12 has complicated the recovery process for many, despite Bill's right to write the book.

Years ago, before I got sober but was going to meetings, a lot of the groups around here used something called The Tablemate, which I have heard originated in this area. This little booklet was an interpretation of the steps. Funny thing is that in a lot of those meetings, I don't recall seeing any big books on the tables.
Jim

[Pagekeeper]

I have found the 12X12 to be a helpful text. Matter of fact, just read Step Six. Definitely helped me on some things I've been struggling with lately. It gave me a bit of a different perspective, and inspired me to start making some changes.

Personally, I don't care why Bill wrote it or what state of mind he was in during its creation. His personal life is not for me to judge; it was between him and the God of his understanding. If I were to discredit a book based on the author's frame of mind or ethics, I would be missing out on many a masterpiece. One would be pretty hard pressed to find a book in which the author's motives were entirely pure, as an author is only human, and falls short of perfection. Bill W. included. The danger, as I see it, is when Bill W is held to a higher standard simply because he was the author. This is not his fault--it's the reader's fault for idolizing him.

[McGowdog]

Or how about just looking at the whole of his life. The 12 and 12 ain't no big book. I have one or two laying around myself.

I have seen what groups have done with it and I'm glad I belong to a group that doesn't use it at all. If you get something out of it, great. Who can argue with St Francis' prayer? It's good stuff. But it's something I would rather refer to on my own. I do NOT use it to guide me in the steps... not anymore. I think Joe and Charlie and the whole Hazelton method stems from what he said in Step 4. I did a step 4 that way once. Don't think it harmed me... but I wouldn't do it that way again.

I like to know the whole story of a person of such interest... the good the bad and the ugly. Because in Truth... is God.

But to be true to the thread, "Why was the 12 and 12 written?" There ya go.

[navysteve]

The reason(s) Bill wrote the book may be speculation, but not my own. That idea came from Tom P., who was Bill's ghostwriter and was sponsored by Bill. No one here is attacking Bill.

I wasn't suggesting that anyone was attacking Bill's motives Jim, just simply what I said- that we cannot know what Bill's motives were, that includes Tom.


I agree 100% that the 12 and 12 has contributed to confusion about the program, but then again I think the confusion was inevitable. You and I have both know people to argue the difference between a shortcoming and a defect and you and I both no that there is no difference because we have read Bill's writings on that very subject, yet AA members have and will continue to complicate this simple process.

I do think each of us should expand upon our understanding of the steps, I cannot hold to the rigid orthodoxy that would demand we take the book off the shelf and sit for an hour ( maybe I need more than an hour? Maybe my book is on the end table?)

I have known sponsors to tell sponsees to put the book on the shelf and take it off and spend exactly one hour- no more- no less.

I need more than that.

And for all the books faults ( in my opinion) It re-connected me to the prayer of St Francis ( which many mistakenly call the 11th step prayer) and because of Bill's writing on the 11th step in that book, my personal 11th step has taken on new meaning and unlimited possibilities.

And as much as I love the Big Book I have to say that the twelve and twelve introduced me to some things that the Big Book didn't.

[Charmie]

i too am just reading the 11th step in the 12 and 12 and with the prayer and some other stuff have found it very moving.im not going to comment on the rest as i would be speaking for the sake of speaking. i am starry eyed at the moment i must admit.and very new to this amazing programme.i am just starting to live it all and apply it to everything in my life.all these threads i find very interesting.thanks.

[Boleo]

Originally Posted by navysteve

And as much as I love the Big Book I have to say that the twelve and twelve introduced me to some things that the Big Book didn't.

Ditto: While the 12&12 does not contain "How It Works" it does help explain "Why It Works".

[Mark75]

My experience with the 12 x 12 is that it helped me very much with step three. The analogy of the door, the key, willingness, opening the door again after it shuts, and... ...willingness.

Mark

[DaveBB164]

when I was dry about three months I asked a guy to sponsor me and we went to his house and he took out a copy of the 12x12 and said this is what we use, I was no wiser after a couple of weeks, there are obvious inconsistencies that contradict what the Big Book says but besides that the 12x12 does not tell you how or when to take a step, if memory serves me it introduces the Group Of Drunks idea as well.

[sugErspun]

I got a lot out of the 12x12 for step 6 and 7. It was the only time I have been advised to read any of the parts regarding the steps in that book.

Just my personal take..

[Puddy]

I like the 12 X 12 steps 6 and 7.

Some people sponsor in such a manner that use 6 & 7 out of the 12 and 12 as their "returning home for an hour" after the 5th step.

That is, return home for an hour, review the first five proposals out of the Big Book for a half hour, read 6 and 7 out of the 12 X 12 for a half hour, pick up the BB again and read the half page on 6 & 7, get down on their knees and do 7th Step prayer out of BB.

That's not how I was sponsored, nor is it the way I sponsor, but I'm hard pressed to find anything bad or risky about that approach. I do believe 6 and 7 are huge turning point steps, the difference between the men and the boys, and often a long process of letting go of all those non-lethal character defects. BB doesn't really address that process, but the 12 and 12 does wonderfully, I think.

[Ago]

I think Bill explains exactly why the 12 x 12 was written, to complement the Big Book, and I think it does an admirable job as exactly that, a complement to the Big Book to expand and enlarge on what he had learned about the steps in those intervening years, at least it wasn't written by newcomers such as the Big Book, The BB was written to tell us HOW to get sober, the twelve and twelve was written some years later to help show us how to stay that way, and be happy, joyous and free, it was written based on direct experience by someone who experiences many of the same pitfalls and difficulties that many of us experience in sobriety and he what he had learned based on his own experience and those around him, and an explanation of the traditions as they had evolved to that point.

I personally think that the 12 x 12 gets a bit more "in depth" about each step and asks many hard questions that many people don't like to ask themselves, so what they do is discredit the book as a whole.

What's the saying, "Instincts on rampage balk at investigation?" what's it say, "This perverse soul sickness is not pretty to look upon" and for example it says:

“But it is from our twisted relations with family, friends, and society at large that many of us have suffered the most. We have been especially stupid and stubborn about them. The primary fact that we fail to recognize is our total inability to form a true partnership with another human being.”


I have found that the 12 x 12 asks many hard questions many folks don't like to ask themselves so they discredit the entire book (this is purely opinion based on observation) but the questions it asks and the thought process it brings to mind is TO ME absolutely indispensable to "stage two recovery" which is long term happiness and contentment by addressing the "causes and conditions" mentioned with such mastery in the BB.

As a companion to the Big Book, personally I have found it an invaluable tool.

[McGowdog]

Originally Posted by Ago

...at least it wasn't written by newcomers such as the Big Book

...the twelve and twelve was written some years later to help show us how to stay that way, and be happy, joyous and free, it was written based on direct experience by someone

I personally think ...

I have found that ...

(this is purely opinion based on observation)

... personally I have found it an invaluable tool.

Now the way you set that up makes it hard for me to argue. So I won't.

But in my experience, I'm more than impressed with those 4 years and younger people who wrote that book. I'd rather do work with someone who has 1 year of sobriety and an experience with doing a set of steps or a two year sober person who has done 2 sets of steps or a three year sober person who has done 3 sets of steps or... than a guy with 30 years of sobriety who has done one or less sets of steps and acts like he's got 6 months repeated 60 times.

There is no A.A. totem pole that I can see.

That's Bill's experience... pretty much. I identify with Bill's Story... very much. But I like Dr. Bob's Story even better. I also identify with his life and path much more than Bill's.

In my own A.A. lineage is a guy who says, "If I say anything that you cannot reconcile with the Big Book, then I'm wrong."

That's it for us. The Big Book. Just the Big Book. We need a reference and something that we can "absolutely agree upon."

But, to each his own.

[jimhere]

As I have said, I am really pretty ambiguous about the 12 & 12. I see some good stuff in it, but it hasn't been all that helpful to me personally. If it helps someone else, great.

As for Bill's personal life, whether we want to acknowledge it or not, what he was experiencing while he was writing the 12 & 12 did influence it. Once again, not bad or good, just the truth.

And we shouldn't forget that whether Bill liked or not, his position as a founder and his being in the public eye, automatically put him the position of being held to a higher standard. Hell, Bill himself admitted that he was a publicity hound while at the same time hating it because he couldn't be just a member of Alcoholics Anonymous. Being known a member of Alcoholics Anonymous to the public in my workplace raises the bar for my own conduct. I didn't ask for it, it is just that most of the staff and many of our clients know me as an an AA member.

That being said, Bill's shortcomings and failures bring me closer to him as a manm a guy just like me.
Jim

[barb dwyer]

Just swinging by to soak up some of Charmian's pink cloud...LOL!



I'm glad there's a 12X12 ... it helped me a LOT when doing the steps for the first time.

[tkdan]

I like to get more indepth with everything I do. That is the way my messed up mind works. My sponser does not encourage nor discourage using the 12 & 12 for reference as I like to do. "It is your recovery, not mine" is what he tells me. He does not use the 12 & 12 in leading me through the steps. I do however read what it has to say on the step I'm on. If it helps me in even the smallest of ways, then it does me some good. To me the key is doing whatever it takes to stay sober, mentally, physically, and spritually, not debate how one achieves it.