Start Your A.A. History Group without a Hassle

“I want to start an A.A. History and Old School A.A. Bible Roots Group!”

Where do I begin?

Dick B.

Copyright 2012 Anonymous. All rights reserved.

Keep It Simple!

We’ll write three of four short articles that give you some practical suggestions and some hints for avoiding controversy and blockades.

Become a Student First, and then Become the Leader

If you think about it, almost every good group, good meeting, and A.A. conference you have attended, and every good A.A. speaker, sponsor, and A.A. individual student studied first to learn the facts. So. First, become the leader of the proposed A.A. History and Old School Bible Roots Group. Do it by learning A.A.’s own conference-approved materials. To become a leader, master A.A. Conference-approved literature – Alcoholics Anonymous, 4^th ed, 2001; DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, 1980; and The Co-Founders of Alcoholics Anonymous: Biographical Sketches Their Last Major Talks (A.A.’s Pamphlet  P-53).

Gather a Group of Your A.A. Friends. Pray together. Decide together. Conduct a Written informed Group

Conscience together. Vote together on What You will do. Record the Minutes in Writing

Unfortunately, many good potential A.A. leaders and A.A. groups start at the wrong place. They go to some person in a Central or Intergroup Office; ask what they can do and how to go about it; and then are told by this self-appointed governor that they are not permitted to organize such a meeting, list it, or study or even mention the Bible and our history.

So don’t start that way.

Choose a name for the group that will be inviting to AAs. Possibilities include: “A.A. Study Group.” “A.A. History Group.” “A.A. Roots Group.” Or “The Meeting!”

Gather a group of friends. Ask God to guide your group in its decisions. Propose a name, a location, a time, and a Secretary. Propose a format and the literature to be used at your meeting.

Agree on how to conduct the meeting.Vote. Record the subjects and vote and decision in

writing, signed by your Secretary. And keep that group conscience available at every meeting.

Now you have all you need: 1) A petition to a loving God to express Himself in your informed group conscience. 2) A written, dated, signed informed group conscience. 3) A decision to “go!”

You are an A.A. group. You have an A.A. meeting. And you are autonomous, informed, and agreed.

dickb@dickb.com