Our A.A. Legacy – 12 Step Guide

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Our A.A. Legacy – 12 Step GuideA 12 STEP GUIDE FOR THOSEWHO WANT TO RECOVERE- mail: steve@cametobelieve.orgWebsite: cametobelieve.org

Came to Believe Publicationswww.cametobelieve.orgFourth Printing March 2015Printed in the United States of AmericaThe publication of this volume does notimply affiliation with nor approval orendorsement of Alcoholics AnonymousWorld Services, Inc. The viewsexpressed herein are solely those of theauthors. A.A. is a program of recoveryfrom alcoholism. Use of the TwelveSteps in connection with programs andactivities that are patterned after A.A.,but which address other problems, doesnot imply otherwise.

ContentsFOREWORD . 1THE PURPOSE AND PLAN OF THIS GUIDE . 2INPUT FROM DR. BOB—CO-FOUNDER OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS . 2INPUT OF THE BIG BOOK AND THE TWELVE STEPS . 3UNIQUE ROLE OF CLARENCE SNYDER AND THE CLEVELAND AAS . 3THE SIGNIFICANCE OF CLARENCE’S LATER SPIRITUAL RETREATS FOR AAS AND THEIRFAMILIES . 5THE AUTHORS OF THIS GUIDE . 6WHAT IT MEANS TO “TAKE” THE TWELVE STEPS . 7HOW IT WORKS: BACKGROUND, INSTRUCTIONS, AND QUALIFYINGQUESTIONS FOR “TAKING” THE TWELVE STEPS—AS INSPIRED BY CLARENCEH. SNYDER . 8THE ADMISSION PHASE . 13STEP ONE . 13THE SUBMISSION PHASE . 15STEP TWO . 15STEP THREE . 20STEP FOUR . 29STEP FIVE . 36STEP SIX . 39STEP SEVEN . 41THE RESTITUTION PHASE. 45STEP EIGHT. 45STEP NINE . 48THE CONSTRUCTION, MAINTENANCE, AND RELAPSE PREVENTION PHASE . 51STEP TEN . 51STEP ELEVEN . 57STEP TWELVE . 66APPENDIX ONE: SOME HISTORY . 71APPENDIX TWO: SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL ON THE STEPS . 76(1) 1944 A.A. SPONSORSHIP PAMPHLET BY CLARENCE SNYDER . 78(2) RESENTMENT INVENTORY PROMPT SHEET . 83(3) FEAR INVENTORY PROMPT SHEET . 84(4) DAILY DIET: 10 LIFE-CHANGING ATTITUDES FOR KING’S KID LIVING . 85APPENDIX THREE: STUDYING THE STEPS AND LOOKING AT SAMSHOEMAKER’S LANGUAGE. 86APPENDIX FOUR: LEADER GUIDE . 93APPENDIX FIVE: STARTING YOUR OWN RETREAT . 97BIBLIOGRAPHY. 101

ForewordThree A.A. old-timers and their wives tell precisely what they learned from theirsponsor, Clarence H. Snyder, who was sponsored by A.A. co-founder Dr. Bob Smith.Clarence later became the member of Alcoholics Anonymous with the most years ofsobriety.These authors have taken hundreds through the Twelve Steps of AlcoholicsAnonymous, faithfully following the basic ideas passed to them by Clarence.These Old-timers have carried on the spiritual retreats for AAs and their families thatSnyder founded in the 1960’s. And, in those retreats, they have presented the spiritualhistory of pioneer A.A., the materials AAs borrowed from the Bible and the OxfordGroup, and have taught participants how to take the Twelve Steps in an afternoon.Since 1980, they have led retreats in Florida and Wisconsin, and helped start more inthe United States, England, Scotland, and Australia. And their ideas have also beenpresented in what was formerly called the USSR.They have shown, and here demonstrate for you, how people can with certainty “cometo believe” what the Creator can and will do in curing alcoholics and their families ofalcoholism’s “curse.”Dick B.Kihei, Maui, HawaiiFebruary, 20051

The Purpose and Planof This GuideInput From Dr. Bob—Co-founder of Alcoholics AnonymousThere is little doubt that the founding and attractiveness of early A.A.’s spiritualprogram of recovery was due to the leadership of Dr. Robert H. Smith of Akron, Ohio.It was Dr. Bob and his wife Anne who awed Bill Wilson with their spiritual readingand knowledge. Both Dr. Bob and Anne had done an immense amount of readingrecommended by the Oxford Group. It was Dr. Bob who had, by his own statement,received excellent training in the Bible as a youngster. It was Dr. Bob who consideredit necessary, and who took the action, to refresh his Biblical knowledge in the pre- andearly A.A. days—to the extent of reading the entire Bible three times. And it was Dr.Bob and Anne who believed that the guidance of God, through prayer and listening,should be utilized in every phase of early A.A. activity. It was the principles that Dr.Bob had learned in his youth—particularly from Christian Endeavor—that formed theheart of early Akron A.A.’s Christian Fellowship (as Dr. Bob called it), stressing beliefin God, acceptance of Christ, study of the Bible, obedience to God’s will, prayer, QuietTime, the reading of Christian literature, fellowship, and witness.Early members of the fellowship in Akron spent many hours with Anne Smithteaching and reading from the Bible. Fortunately for us, she kept a journal of thesedays and lessons that we can appreciate today. Robert Smith, son of Dr. Bob and AnneSmith, wrote in the foreword to Anne Smith’s Journal, First Edition, by Dick B.,that “Dick B. has painstakingly researched the.notebook Anne kept so faithfully,and, in doing so, has made the spiritual depth of that astonishing, lovely personavailable to all of us.” (p. ix)It was Dr. Bob who was the acknowledged leader of the Akron program. It was Dr.Bob who was interviewed along with other Akronites by Frank Amos asrepresentative of John D. Rockefeller Jr. It was Dr. Bob who received the ‘TripleA’ rating for the Akron program of cures. It was Dr. Bob’s program, with its 75%success rate among seemingly hopeless “medically incurable” alcoholics, thatreceived headlines all over the United States as the new cure for alcoholism theAAs had developed, with God as their “medicine.” And it was Dr. Bob, with hiswife Anne, who ultimately worked—personally and without charge—to help overfive thousand alcoholics in their steps toward recovery.2

The Purpose and Plan of This GuideInput of the Big Book and the Twelve StepsNotwithstanding the Smiths’ vital role, it was the basic text of AlcoholicsAnonymous (affectionately called “the Big Book”) that laid out the accepted stepsto becoming a ‘recovered’ alcoholic. And it was that same Big Book whichspecifically described what was to be done to take the Twelve Steps and achievewhat A.A. co-founder Bill Wilson called the solution: a ‘spiritual experience,’ laterto be called a ‘spiritual awakening.’Through its various editions since 1939, the Big Book has stood for the program ofrecovery (as distinguished from the fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous). Andthose in A.A. who profess to have recovered from the disease of alcoholism allstand, virtually as one, claiming that their recovery came as the result of theirtaking the Twelve Steps.Those who think that ‘not drinking,’ or ‘going to meetings,’ or participating inA.A. conferences and events amount to recovery work are simply out of the loop.The helpful ideas of A.A.—abstinence, fellowship, and service—are appealing butnot representative, even today, of recovery, of having recovered, or of cure.Regrettably, however, the message of how to take the Steps has been blurred byprivate interpretations; endless and diverse methods; inadequate coaches;inexperienced counselors and therapists; new philosophies about the nature ofalcoholism; and a growing antipathy toward religion, church, the Bible, God, JesusChrist, and a Scriptural believing and healing emphasis.Unique Role of Clarence Snyder and the Cleveland AAsSince the Big Book’s publication in the spring of 1939, A.A. has done lots ofrockin’ and rollin’. Significant personal stories in the First, Second, and ThirdEditions have been eliminated. New stories and more Big Book editions seem to bethe promise of the future—with battles yet to come over foreign language editions,copyrights, trademarks, gender-free language, godless emphasis, “singleness ofpurpose” viewpoints, and splinter groups for police, attorneys, physicians, airlinepilots, atheists, gays, and others.That being said, what of the original program? It began with the Bible. It flirtedwith and eventually codified the life-changing ideas of the Oxford Group. Itachieved uncommon success in the Akron and Cleveland area. But solid teachingand examples like those available in the earliest days have become a thing of thepast. These were replaced by any number of diverse pamphlets, basics, programs,offshoots, and a host of other diluting forces.This guide represents our effort to teach the “roots”of early A.A., as taught in the Akron/Cleveland area.3

The Purpose and Plan of This GuideThe formation of A.A.’s first alcoholics-only group occurred in Cleveland, Ohioonly weeks after the Big Book was published. It started from dissent. RomanCatholics from Cleveland were uncomfortable with the Protestant leanings ofOxford Group ideas and literature, as well as their emphasis on the original Akronprogram. The Big Book had not eliminated the hostility over fellowship with nonalcoholic religious people. And Clarence H. Snyder, though new in the programand loyal to Dr. Bob as his sponsor, insisted on starting a new group in Cleveland,Ohio. The group was to include alcoholics and family members only. ThoughAkronites objected, Cleveland adherents persisted.Cleveland AAs began wholeheartedly embracing the Big Book and the TwelveSteps. Clarence Snyder became the leading promoter of hands-on alcoholicmeetings. He publicized A.A. He personally chased newcomers out of theiralcoholic holes. He placed advertisements for A.A. using his own name. He waslargely responsible for the growth of Cleveland A.A. from one group to thirty in ayear. And this was acknowledged to be the fastest-growing A.A. area in existence.Newcomers, attracted by A.A. success, publicity, and aggressive activities pouredinto the society. They and their spouses were given Bible emphasis, the OxfordGroup’s “Four Absolutes,” baseball teams, newsletters, real growth vitality, andthe Big Book and Twelve Steps. In fact, as numbers grew, it became impossiblefor individual sponsors to take individual newcomers through the Steps. So classesbegan. Groups were taken through the Steps in a day or so. And the result was adocumented 93% success rate in Cleveland.4

The Purpose and Plan of This GuideThe Significance of Clarence’s Later Spiritual Retreatsfor AAs and Their FamiliesAs the A.A. years rolled on, A.A. began growing and expanding to its present levelof about one million in-and-out members in the United States at any given time.But the emphasis on the spiritual waned and diminished. The emphasis ontreatment, therapy, endless recovery books, separate groups for family members,and dealing with outside issues played a large part in the fact that A.A. actuallystopped growing.As these same years rolled on, Clarence Snyder not only became the longest livingsober person, in point of years of sobriety, but he also—though he had encounteredmuch hostility—became a champion in his own right of twelfth-step work; BigBook emphasis; stress on God, Jesus Christ, and the Bible; and sponsorship of newmembers.Clarence faithfully adhered to the A.A. Big Book and its directions for taking theTwelve Steps. He took thousands through the Steps over the years. He neverflinched on mentioning that the Bible and the Oxford Group were the real sourcesof A.A. ideas. He planted his feet on 2 Corinthians 5:17 (“Therefore if any man isin Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new thingshave come.”) as the key to recovery. He said he had learned the verse from A.A.pioneer William Van Horn, author of the Big Book, First Edition story, “A Wardof the Probate Court.”In his earlier years, Clarence spoke little of Bible specifics, but often to what hecalled ‘rummy stories’ in the Bible. He claimed that the first rummy was Noah,“since he planted a vineyard and got drunk as his first act.” (See Genesis 9:18–21.)The second was the story of the Prodigal Son, who “squandered his estate withloose living.” (See Luke 15:11–32.) The third was The Good Samaritan, in that hemade, according to Clarence, “the first A.A. Twelfth Step call on record.” (SeeLuke 10:30–37.) Clarence felt that these stories maintained interest in what AAscalled “the Good Book.”In the 1960’s, his beliefs were translated into action by the spiritual retreats thatwere and have been founded in many places. And a paramount feature in theretreats is taking willing participants through all twelve steps in an afternoon, tothe end that they may come to believe and receive the truth, healing, and recoveryavailable through A.A. and the Good Book.By the mid 1970’s Clarence was to marry Grace Moore—a devoted Christian,Bible student, and recovered AA. Thereafter, the Bible, bringing people to Christ,and prayer and healing became much larger factors in the contribution of the pairto A.A.5

The Purpose and Plan of This GuideThe Authors of This GuideFrom their home in Casselberry, Florida, during their later years, Clarence andGrace reached out to several dedicated Christian AAs, their spouses, and oftentheir children. Clarence sponsored them. He took them through the Steps, and heencouraged them to start their own retreats. Clarence helped Dale and Carol M.start a retreat in 1981 in Amery, Wisconsin.Just hours before he died in 1984, he anointed his wife Grace, along with Steveand Sue F., as shepherds of the Leesburg, Florida retreat. His sponsees continuedto conduct and encourage new retreats. Jack and BJ R. took over leadership of oneof the semi-annual retreats in Leesburg in 1990.More important for our purposes, these Old-timers stayed sober, stayed active,stood solidly on their Christian beliefs, and, by our definition, were fully recoveredand said so. They sought to preserve Clarence’s Step technique, his retreats, andthe successes he had achieved with his sponsees. And they introduced the practiceof taking all willing participants at the retreats through the Twelve Steps, exactlyas Clarence had taught and taken them through.Which brings us to this Guide. Here the somewhat varied approaches of the threeretreats have been combined into a single format for taking people through theSteps and helping them to believe, to change their lives, to recover, and to live themore abundant life that Jesus Christ came to make possible (John 10:10). Theseleaders have collaborated to produce this Step guide to the end that other leaders,retreats, one-on-one sponsor sessions, and newcomers may use it as the vehicle fortheir spiritual deliverance. You can use it with the knowledge that the authors haveendeavored faithfully to tell it just the way that Clarence told it to them.Each of the contributors to this guide is an A.A. old-timer. Each is a born-againChristian. Each has maintained active membership in Alcoholics Anonymous with25 to 41 years of recovery as of February 2005. Each was sponsored by ClarenceSnyder. Each has sponsored dozens of men and women, taking them through theTwelve Steps in the same manner that Clarence Snyder presented the program tothem. Each knew Clarence and Grace Snyder well. Each has been a churchgoerand Bible student. Each has traveled widely to all the Snyder retreats and hasconducted and continues to conduct spiritual retreats. Each has taken theparticipants through the Twelve Steps in an afternoon.Each is familiar with the question uttered frequently at these retreats upon dealingwith Chapter Five (“How it Works”) of the Big Book. They ask: “How does itwork?” And the participants always responded with a loud reply: “Real good!”And they believe it does. They believe that the Twelve Steps explain how it works.And they earnestly believe this Guide will help you to achieve the same cure andvictory that has characterized their lives.See Appendix One for a brief and accurate summary of the history, roots, beginnings,and founding of Alcoholics Anonymous.6

What It Meansto “Take” the Twelve StepsWhen Alcoholics Anonymous began, there were no ‘Steps.’ There was no ‘Big Book’and no Al-Anon. And the program in Akron was very different from the program laterused on the East Coast. Therefore, despite the language in A.A.’s basic text that “Hereare the steps we took, which are suggested as a program of recovery,” (BB, p. 59)there were no steps that had been taken.However, Bill Wilson, Dr. Bob, and Anne Smith had discussed the Bible together, andthey had discussed the principles of the Oxford Group. When A.A. was founded inAkron, the emphasis was on the Bible and, more specifically, some basic ideas in theBook of James, the Sermon on the Mount, and 1 Corinthians 13. And a very simpleand highly successful program was produced in Akron’s ‘old fashioned prayermeetings’ and Christian fellowship. Its basic ideas have already been discussed. Yetwhen Bill Wilson was commissioned to write a basic text, he fashioned its languageand program by adopting the language and codifying the life-changing program of theOxford Group as taught him primarily by the Rev. Sam Shoemaker Jr. (SeeAppendix Three.)In his basic text, Bill discussed in great detail the problem of alcoholism. He alsoattempted to enable alcoholics to find God and to est

Our A.A. Legacy – 12 Step Guide WHO WANT TO RECOVER . APPENDIX FIVE: STARTING YOUR OWN RETREAT . program of recovery was due to the leadership of Dr. Robert H. Smith of Akron, Ohio. It was Dr. Bob and his wife Anne who awed Bill Wilson with their spiritual reading and knowledge. Both Dr. Bob and Anne had done an immense amount of reading

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