Let's Go to Early A.A.
Revised and Updated in July, 2012
By Dick B.
Copyright 2012. All
rights reserved
Their Society’s Names and Varied Approaches
The phrase
"early A.A."—which I often now call “old school A.A.” -- refers to
the early fellowships and meetings held by AAs in Akron, Ohio, between 1935 and
1939. They called themselves a Christian Fellowship. They were frequently
likened to First Century Christianity because so many of their principles and
practices were similar to those of the Apostles as recorded in the Book of
Acts.
Some called them the alcoholic squad. Some thought A.A.
itself emerged from and was associated with "A First Century Christian
Fellowship" (also known as the Oxford Group). Some said they were the
"Alcoholic Squad of the Oxford Group." Most later wanted to call
their fellowship "The James Club"--so named for their favored Bible
book, the Book of James. On the East Coast a few AAs were regularly attending
Oxford Group meetings often led by the Reverend Sam Shoemaker, Rector of
Calvary Episcopal Church in New York. Shortly thereafter (in 1939 and the early
1940's), Cleveland AAs called their Fellowship "Alcoholics
Anonymous," naming it after A.A.'s newly published basic text Alcoholics Anonymous. Their founder
Clarence H. Snyder said that they took with them to Cleveland “most of the old
program” plus the Big Book, the Twelve Steps, the Oxford Group’s Four
Absolutes, and the Holy Bible. The Cleveland AAs quickly became the fastest
growing group in America, emerged from one group to thirty in a year, And were
actually recording a ninety-three percent success rate with alcoholics who
really tried.
The First Three AAs – Christians All
Bill W. could be called A.A. Number One, and he became a
Christian when he went to the altar at Calvary Rescue Mission in New York and
accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. Shortly, still drinking, he went
to Towns Hospital deciding along the way that he had better call on Jesus for
help (to whom he and many others referred as the “Great Physician”). Upon
arrival Bill cried out to God for help, instantly experiencing a blazing and “indescribably
white light” that filled his room. He sensed the presence of God. And he said
to himself, Bill, you are a free man. This is the God of the Scriptures. And
Bill never drank again.
Dr. Bob could be called A.A. Number Two, and he had been a
devoted Christian since his boyhood days in St. Johnsbury, Vermont. He met with
Bill W. after what he and others believed was an answer to his prayer for
deliverance. The two men hit it off. And Bob declared that Bill had been cured
by the very means he had been trying to employ, but he had never grasped
or used the “service to others” technique
which Bill had learned from his Oxford Group meetings in New York. In a short
time, Dr. Bob had his last drink, and the two men set out to find another drunk
to help.
A.A. Number Three, attorney Bill D., was the man they found.
Bill had always believed in God, been a deacon in his church, and a Sunday school
teacher. Bill W. and Dr. Bob told him he could be cured if he turned to God for
help and then started helping others.
Each of the first three AAs recovered and was cured at a
time when there were no Twelve Steps, no Twelve Traditions, no Big Books, no
drunkalogs, and no meetings as we know them today. All three declared in
writing that they had been cured of their malady. See Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th ed., pp. 179-181 and 191.
The Early A.A. Program the Pioneers Developed
Interestingly, all three of the original AAs believed in
God, had accepted Christ, and had studied the Bible. Their own techniques were
individually very simple: (1) Decide to quit drinking for good. (2) Turn to God
for help. (3) Begin helping others in turn. But all three wanted to be able to
pass the recovery idea along to others.
They drew on the early Christian techniques of their
Christian forbears—the Great Evangelists like Dwight L. Moody; the Gospel
Rescue Missions (where Bill himself had accepted Christ); the conversion
meetings of Young Men’s Christian Association lay brethren (who converted a
major portion of Dr. Bob’s boyhood village), the Salvation Army’s one-on-one
outreach to derelicts with Salvation, a Bible, and a call to join what some
called “God’s Army (as vividly portrayed
in Harold Begbie’s popular book Twice-Born
Men), and the intense meetings of the Young People’s Society of Christian
Endeavor (in which Dr. Bob had been
active as a youth)
Gradually, they
developed their own types of daily meetings. They fellowshipped together daily,
studied God’s Word daily, prayed together daily, sought God’s guidance daily,
read daily Bible devotionals, led others to Christ, and broke bread together.
By November of 1937, a small group of forty pioneers had
attained continuous sobriety, of both short and long duration. Bill and Bob
concluded that God had shown them how the message could be passed along to
others. And they claimed a 75% rate of success. This, in turn, caused Bill to
seek and obtain authority to write a book about the program. And the program
was investigated and then summarized by an agent of John D. Rockefeller, Jr.—Frank
Amos. You can find that summary on page 131 of A.A.’s own DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers. In The Dick B. Christian Recovery Guide, 4th ed., 2012, we
have laid out some sixteen principles and practices that the pioneers used to
implement the summarized program.
Some Key Features in the Old School A.A. Program
Unlike the
circumstances today, recovery often began when a distraught wife would seek out
A.A.'s co-founder Dr. Bob Smith in Akron with the desperate hope that he and
what he called the "Christian Fellowship" could "fix" the
seemingly errant alcoholic spouse.
As implied in A.A.'s textbook, there often followed a
preliminary investigation with the alcoholic's family of his behavior,
background, religious leanings, and degree of alcoholic sickness. And the
"pigeon" (as he was frequently called) was then usually hospitalized
in Akron City Hospital in the earliest days. He was "defogged" in a
process which involved tapering him off with paraldehyde and whiskey. He was
allowed only the Holy Bible as reading matter in his hospital room. And Dr. Bob
would visit the patient daily and also read the Bible with him.
Very soon, he was visited by a veritable army of recovered
alcoholics who told him of their own drinking history and recovery. They told
him that Dr. Bob had the answer to his problem, but the visiting drunks did not
disclose this "answer." Dr. Bob himself usually visited the newcomer
daily, explaining to him the medical aspects of his alcoholism problem.
Finally, after several days, Dr. Bob gave the man the "solution." The
patient was asked if he believed in God. And only one answer was acceptable if
the man wished to get well. If the man responded that he did believe in God, he
was told to get out of bed, get down on his knees, and surrender to God. This
meant accepting Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. This was accompanied by a
prayer led by Dr. Bob. And, having done this, the "pigeon" was discharged
from the hospital, often given a Bible, and then told to find drunks to
"fix."
In the Midwest, the newcomer's next move was frequently to a
home--the home of Dr. Bob, Wally G., Tom L., and later, Clarence S. and others.
In the East, drunks were housed in Bill Wilson's home, but (as Bill and his
wife said) not one ever got sober there through the year 1939. In fact, both
Bill and his wife acknowledged that they had not succeeded in getting anyone to
“stay sober” in Bill’s first six months of witnessing.
In the Midwest, the alcoholics lived Christian fellowship in
a very spiritual atmosphere. If you look at what the Apostles are recorded as
doing in the First Century, you will see the parallels between their principles
and practices and those of the A.A. Akron Christian Fellowship. And more than
one independent observer remarked, “Why this is First Century Christianity!”
Each morning, there was Quiet Time. And it was conducted by
Dr. Bob’s wife, Anne Ripley Smith. It was attended by AAs and their families.
Anne would begin the meeting with prayer, read from the Bible, lead the group
in prayer, and then have the assemblage get quiet and seek God’s guidance. Anne
also often shared from the journal she began in 1933 and continued to build
through 1929. The groups and individuals also frequently used daily devotionals
such as The Upper Room a Methodist
Bible study quarterly. They also used The
Runner’s Bible, by Nora Smith Holm; My
Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers; Victorious Living, by E. Stanley Jones; and Daily Strength for Daily Needs. There was frequent discussion of
every-day living problems in terms of the Bible's applicability to their
solution.
There was frequently counseling with Dr. Bob and his wife,
Anne Ripley Smith. Daily reading of the Scriptures was stressed. Daily individual
reading of devotionals such as The Upper
Room and The Runner's Bible, and
many other Christian books of the day was much encouraged. One A.A. historian
commented he felt the lives of A.A. pioneers and their families seemed to be
one continuous meeting.
There were daily meetings, just as the First Century
Christians fellowshipped together daily. Meetings themselves were not
considered essential, but not daily. Quiet Time was. Once a week there was a “regular
meeting.” Not actually like a typical Oxford Group meeting, it was even called
a “clandestine lodge’ of the Oxford Group. Regular meetings were Oxford Group
meetings, but not particularly in form and in substance because often the
drunks would meet in one room, and the Oxford Group people in another. One day
each week, a "setup" meeting was held. God's guidance was sought
through prayer and listening; and a leader for the regular meeting was chosen
as was a topic for that meeting. The regular meetings were, in Akron, held on
Wednesdays at the home of Oxford Group leaders T. Henry and Clarace Williams.
The Williams couple had dedicated their home to God and, with their Oxford
Group friends such as Henrietta Seiberling, were also dedicated to helping
alcoholics recover. The meetings rarely if ever involved discussion of drinking
or alcoholism. But they invariably involved surrenders for those new people who
had not already surrendered to God at the hospital or at Dr. Bob's home.
The “real surrender” was a must for newcomers. They were
taken upstairs with two “elders” praying over them. They accepted Jesus Christ
as their Lord and Savior, asked God to take alcohol out of their lives, and
strengthen them to live according to cardinal Christian principles.
There were frequent social gatherings, particularly on
Saturday nights, providing support and comfort for the alcoholic and family
members. Oxford Group literature was widely distributed in the Fellowship, and
T. Henry had tables in his furnace room where Oxford Group and other Christian
literature was available for the taking. Dr. Bob himself frequently loaned out
Christian literature to the alcoholics and their families. He kept a journal of
books he circulated; and he often questioned a borrower (when a book was
returned) as to what that person had read and learned.
Descriptions of the content of the weekly fellowship
meetings has varied. Variations seem based upon who was providing the account,
who had led a particular meeting, and what particular time period in the early
days was involved. But there were some common ingredients. Bill V. H. (who got
sober in early 1937) estimated the proportion of Oxford Group to non-Oxford
Group people in Akron at about 50-50. He recalled that Oxford Group literature
was passed out. And he specifically remembered: "How we all challenged
ourselves on the Four Absolutes of the Oxford Movement [sic]." Clarence S.
(who got sober in early 1938) said the pioneers' whole recovery program was
based on the Bible and the Oxford Group. Wally G. (who got sober in late 1938)
said: "T. Henry's meetings ran more or less along Oxford Group lines. . .
. Early meetings used Oxford Group terminology witnessing, stories,
restitutions, shared confessions." Dr. Bob's children said the little
group of recovering people formally met at the Oxford Group meetings but kept
in constant communication with each other at get-togethers in their homes. Dr.
Bob's and Anne's home was the hub. And there was also much colloquy by
telephone.
Meetings opened with prayer and with reading from the Bible
(or Scriptures mentioned in the Bible devotionals such as The Upper Room and My Utmost
for His Highest). Sometimes discussion topics would be on a Bible subject,
sometimes on a topic in the devotional, and occasionally on some other topic
vital to the lives of those present. There was Quiet Time with prayer and
listening for divine guidance. Frequently there was prayer in the meeting
itself or during a surrender upstairs to meet a particular person's needs. Dr.
Bob kept the meeting focused on the newcomer, usually making an announcement on
that topic. Arrangements were made to take a team to the hospital to see the
newcomers still hospitalized. Meetings closed with the Lord's Prayer in Jesus’
Sermon on the Mount (of which it was a part)—the Sermon itself being considered
the basic spiritual philosophy of the Fellowship. Names, phone numbers, and
addresses were exchanged. Social time followed. And, in the later days in
Akron, members went to Kistler's Donut Shop for sociality. They often broke
bread together in the homes.
Whether done at the hospital, at Dr. Bob's home, or at T.
Henry's, surrender was a requirement for every newcomer. This
"surrender" meant surrender on your knees to Jesus Christ as your
Lord and Savior. Particularly at T. Henry's, a new man was taken upstairs, was
told to get on his knees, was prayed for by Dr. Bob and others, and then became
born again through confession of Jesus Christ (See Romans 10:9). The man asked
God to take alcohol out of his life; and there is evidence that this surrender
process came from James 5:13-16.
Usually overlooked by A.A. histories has been the vital role
played by Dr. Bob's wife Anne Ripley Smith. Anne had been a teacher and was
well-versed in the Bible. She was legendary in her kindness to, and work with,
newcomers and their families. They often confided in her when they did not feel
free to do so with Dr. Bob or others. Many regularly participated with Anne in
Quiet Times lasting more than an hour early each morning at the Smith home. Anne
often communicated with people by phone, and she always attended meetings.
Possibly the most important single part of her work, however, involved the
material she recorded in, and taught from, the spiritual journal she compiled
between 1933 and 1939. In it, she had many comments on the Bible, Oxford Group
principles, Christian literature to read, and most of the specific principles
that wound up in the Twelve Steps. She staunchly recommended the Bible as the
source book for daily reading. She also recommended reading on the life of
Jesus Christ, Oxford Group life-changing stories, and other relevant Christian
literature of the day. See Dick B., Anne
Smith’s Journal 1933-1939 (www.dickb.com/annesm.shtml.)
Anne and Dr. Bob were fervent Bible students. So much so
that when he was asked a question about the program, Dr. Bob would often ask
the person, "What does the Good Book say?" Dr. Bob's and Anne's son
said that in the early days the "God's Big Book [the Bible]" was the
reference book in the Smith home.
Bill Wilson called Anne Smith the "Mother of A.A."
and a "Founder." And he dubbed Dr. Bob the "Prince of all Twelfth-steppers"--the
AA cofounder who personally helped over 5,000 alcoholics without pay. The Akron
A.A. team of Dr. Bob and Anne has never been equaled in personal, spiritual
recovery outreach. It was truly the heart of A.A.'s spiritual beginnings.
Sources: Alcoholics Anonymous, 3rd ed., DR.BOB and the Good Oldtimers, The Co-Founders of Alcoholics Anonymous,
The Akron Genesis of Alcoholics Anonymous,
Anne Smith's Spiritual Journal, That Amazing Grace, The Good Book and The Big Book, Turning
Point: A History of Early A.A.'s Spiritual Roots and Successes, Children of the Healer; and two important
resources by Dick B. and Ken B.. The Dick B. Christian Recovery Guide, 4th
ed.; and “Stick with the Winners,” a 27 video class that can be accessed
online.
Gloria Deo
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