By bob k.
After a slow start, the Jack Alexander article in the March 1st, 1941 edition of the Saturday Evening Post made AA a national institution. The newish mutual aid society quadrupled in size by the end of that year. A period of impressive growth continued for several decades and the organization spread out to many other countries. AA has year-by-year estimates of its total membership numbers. In 1992, worldwide membership peaked at 2,489,541. Since then, Alcoholics Anonymous has been shrinking based on the group’s own figures which can be viewed at aa.org.
There have been new editions of the 1939 book Alcoholics Anonymous published in 1955, 1976, and 2001. Little has been changed other than the personal stories. Total sales of the Bigga Booka are in the range of forty million. The Forewords to the Second, Third, and Fourth Editions gush proudly about the society’s growth. Obviously, for a group dedicated to helping people, the more that are helped, the better.
Had AA been able to simply sustain its “market share” over the years since 1992 with an increase in the worldwide membership that matched the 30% increase in population, current numbers would be in the neighborhood of 3,500,000. Instead, we see an estimated membership of 1,967,613 in 2021. No figures have been released for 2022, 2023, or 2024. Given an undeniable pandemic effect, those numbers are not going to be good. It may be that the latest figures are being held back.
What are the most egregious of AA’s mistakes?
- If It ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It
The “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” attitude rests at the very core of AA’s troubles. The “ain’t broke” part is simply put forward as fact with no thought of examining possible evidence to the contrary. The sad truth is that Alcoholics Anonymous is broken. The “don’t fix it” part expresses the absolute resistance to any sort of significant alteration. In a club where much boasting takes place about members’ former state of selfishness, there’s an easily detectable “It’s working for me so screw you” sentiment coming from the “ain’t broke” crowd. “If X, Y, or Z drives them away, alcohol will bring them back.” What percentage actually comes back? Further, should we not be bending over backwards to not drive prospects away?
The explosive growth of secular AA in recent years demonstrates the benefit of not alienating large chunks of the target market with increasingly unpalatable chit. Rock on, Zoom Babies!
There’s a new edition of the Bigga Booka coming later this year, or in 2026. Given the twenty-five year life span of the last two editions, the Fifth will carry us to mid-century. Nothing will be changed other than several of the stories. Some much needed revenue will be generated but a great opportunity will be lost. The prospect in 2026, 2036 and 2046 will be expected to slog his way through a book crafted in the generation of his great-great-grandparents. What the heck is a “whoopie party?” What does it mean to be “as boiled as an owl?’
Those are minor problems in comparison to the condescending treatment of women in “TO WIVES” and of secularists in “WE AGNOSTICS.” “TO EMPLOYERS” and “THE FAMILY AFTERWARD” are increasingly out-of-date. It’s a Gawdly book being offered to an increasingly un-Gawdly audience.
A rewrite is probably impractical. We need a new book ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY. Given AA’s speed of getting things done, we could easily have that ready by the twenty-second century.
- One Size Fits All
The program as presented in the book Alcoholics Anonymous is purported to be the exact path for all alcoholics. Whether sixty or sixteen, male or female, straight or gay, power driver or shrinking violet, one and all are urged to follow the Bigga Booka’s precise directions. What’s offered is a single path to wellness. One size fits all.
If you think you are an atheist, an agnostic, a skeptic, or have any other form of intellectual pride which keeps you from accepting what is in this book, I feel sorry for you. Why, thank you so much Doctor Bob, AA co-founder, returnee to the flock, and devoted follower of JC. Perhaps some newcomer pissed on his corn flakes that day—he’s sounding a bit “dry drunk-ish.”
The world of the self-publishing era tells a story different from the “one size fits all” message. In We’re Not All Egomaniacs, Beth Aich asks if someone with a shame-based personality has the same need for ego deflation as an overly ambitious attention seeker such as Bill Wilson. That seems unlikely. The Bigga Booka was written by men for men – the working title was One Hundred Men.
Authors before Beth have suggested that women need to significantly modify the 12-step process. Others reject the formula in its entirety. For a variety of reasons, Quit Like A Woman by Holly Whitaker is an interesting read.
Secular translations of AA’s formula are plentiful. Never before has there been so much assistance in taking what one wants and leaving the rest. Although freethinking authors like Jeffrey Munn and Glenn Rader generally adhere to the number twelve for steps, the entire God business is jettisoned. Are people staying sober in the Higher Power-less world? Damn right they are.
AA has some good ideas hidden beneath the religious language. “Powerlessness” may not be the perfect word but many serious drinkers go to early graves because they refuse to accept the “total abstinence” solution. Quitting without help remains a solution with a low success rate. Having a support group is hugely beneficial. Self-examination seems a wise recommendation when coming from Socrates. An honest confession of foibles is at the heart of talk therapy and AA’s fifth step. Letting go is critical to anyone seeking peace of mind. What are making amends other than the exercise of the principle of justice? Helping others brings one into the community of mankind and supplies some much-needed self-esteem. Is connection the antidote to addiction? It certainly seems to play a critical role.
In the diligently researched Writing The Big Book : The Creation of AA, William Schaberg gets feisty in Chapter One by referring to Bill Wilson as a “mythmaker.” Possibly the most significant AA history book of all time was authored by an agnostic Buddhist. Isn’t that delicious!! The other contender for premier AA history publication is Not-God : A History of Alcoholics Anonymous. The book’s author, Ernest Kurtz (Harvard PhD in History) was a great supporter of the secular recovery movement and the AA Agnostica website.
- The Lawd’s Pray-uh
New thought author (The Sermon on the Mount) and early AA influencer Emmett Fox called The Lord’s Prayer: the most important of all the Christian documents. It was carefully constructed by Jesus with very certain clear ends in view… It is indeed the one common denominator of all the Christian churches. Every one of them, without exception, uses the Lord’s Prayer… its actual use probably exceeds that of all other prayers put together. Undoubtedly everyone seeking to follow the Way that Jesus led, should make a point of using the Lord’s Prayer, and using it intelligently, every day.
Given that Ernie Kurtz, mentioned above, stated that the average alcoholic would rather stay drunk than become religious, the use of Christianity’s Number One prayer in AA meetings is nothing short of ridiculous. Ridiculous.
It’s almost as if there’s some ludicrous prank being played out.
So, here’s what we’re going to do: First, we’ve tell everybody over and over again that “We’re spiritchewal NOT religious.” Then, get this, we’ll hold hands, bow our heads, and spew out (the Protestant version) of Christianity’s favorite prayer. Won’t that be a riot!! Hahahahaha!!
Will AA ever make significant changes? I predict that it will—approximately ten or fifteen years after it’s too late. The Sixth Edition may even have a chapter “TO SPOUSES.”
We may be nearing the time for sober secular folks to head for the door. The reality that we are still a relatively small group is unimportant if we continue to embrace the Zoom solution. It would be better to occupy a small life-raft than a huge sinking ship.
The author of today’s screed, bob k., has contributed many articles to AA Agnostica.org and has written three books – the latest being “Daily Reflections for Modern Twelve Step Recovery,” (January 2025) a reader specifically designed for secularists. “Key Players in AA History” (2015) has achieved sales twenty times that of the average self-published volume and is now in its Second Edition (February, 2023). “The Secret Diaries of Bill W.” (2023) offers a unique (fictional) look at AA’s principal founder.
For a PDF of today’s article, click here: The Mistakes That Are Killing Alcoholics Anonymous.
The post The Mistakes That Are Killing Alcoholics Anonymous first appeared on AA Agnostica.
