When Bill Wilson conducted A.A.'s Convention in St. Louis, it was a first for many things pertaining to Alcoholics Anonymous History. It was the first major Alcoholics Anonymous event following Dr. Bob's death. And that made it the first Alcoholics Anonymous History landmark since publication of the Big Book in 1939. It was the first contention by Bill Wilson that A.A. had "come of age."[[ASIN:091685602X Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age: A Brief History of A. A.]]. It was an introduction to A.A.'s new conference system and Twelve Traditions. And it gathered together many notables who had figured in A.A.'s beginning. Perhaps most significant, Bill brought in two religious leaders he felt played a major role in A.A. They were featured speakers. Their remarks are still important to an understanding of A.A. in its Big Book stage. The first religious leader to speak was Fr. Ed Dowling, S.J. The second was Rev. Samuel M. Shoemaker, Jr., rector of Calvary Episcopal Church.
The remarkable thing at the convention was Bill's introduction of Showmaker to the AAs assembled. Bill reported Shoemaker's talk in his Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age book. And in it, he commented that there came to the lectern a man that most AAs didn't know. That appearance was so successful that Bill invited Shoemaker to be a speaker at the next convention--which was in Long Beach, California. And still very few AAs are treated to Shoemaker's relevant ideas--even though Shoemaker was invited to write articles for A.A.'s own "Grapevine" publication.
But it was to be years before the real significance of Shoemaker to A.A. would be revealed in detail. As the years went on, Bill wrote many tributes to the role that Shoemaker had played.[[ASIN:1885803273 New Light on Alcoholism: God, Sam Shoemaker, and A.A. (2d ed.)]]. Bill wrote Sam that without Sam, A.A. would have been nothing. And later, in an article published in A.A.'s The Language of the Heart, Bill pointed out that almost every idea in the last ten of A.A.'s Twelve Steps came from the teachings of Rev. Sam Shoemaker. Bill called Sam a co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. Both Bill and his wife Lois made it clear that Bill and Shoemaker became close personal friends. And Shoemaker made it clear that he had been a part of the A.A. movement from its very beginnings.
One part Sam played was covered in his first radio talk to America. It was titled "Good Morning." [[ASIN:1885803222 Good Morning!: Quiet Time, Morning Watch, Meditation, and Early A.A.]]. And the "Good Morning" book by Dick B. showed the important role that Sam played in the practices of Quiet Time--which became a part of early A.A. practices. In fact, Quiet Time was said to be a "must" in early A.A. It involved prayer, Bible study,seeking God's guidance,and use of devotionals like Henry Drummond's The Greatest Thing in the World (1 Corinthians 13 and "love"). Its ideas of "prayer and meditation" found their way into Step Eleven which Bill fashioned as part of his suggested steps to recovery in the first edition of A.A.'s Big Book published in 1939.
But the heart of Sam Shoemaker's spiritual ideas was still in need of publication and commentary. For Sam's actual language could be found in almost every one of Bill's suggested Twelve Steps. And "New Light on Alcoholism" lays out many of the parallels. And this is something most AAs didn't know, and probably still don't know. Therefore the book "Courage to Change" by Bill Pittman and Dick B. was published by Baker Book House (Fleming H. Revell) and then republished by Hazelden. Finally it came out in ebook form. It stands as an authoritative review of the biblical ideas Sam contributed to A.A. Steps and to its Big Book.
Why read it? Because two of A.A.'s leading historians collaborated to make this book an easy-to-read study of Sam Shoemaker's real contributions to the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. They kept it brief. They made it a tutorial. They used accurate Alcoholics Anonymous History materials. And even today this book stands as an outstanding, concise, and accurate study of the Twelve Steps as Sams Shoemaker helped Bill Wilson to fashion them.
Showing posts with label A.A.-Bill W.. Show all posts
Showing posts with label A.A.-Bill W.. Show all posts
Friday, October 21, 2011
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Alcoholics Anonymous History Blog and Its Content
Dick B. is a writer, historian, retired attorney, Bible student, CDAAC, and an active recovered member of the Alcoholics Anonymous Fellowship with over 25 years of continuous sobriety. He has published 42 titles and over 675 articles on Alcoholics Anonymous History as well as the Christian Recovery Movement. He is Executive Director of the International Christian Recovery Coalition.
Several websites incorporate various aspects of Alcoholics Anonymous History, the biblical roots of Alcoholics Anonymous, and the Christian Recovery Movement today, These include www.dickb.com; www.dickb-blog.com; http://drbob.info; www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition; and http://freedomranchmaui.org.
This blog will supplement the materials posted on Alcoholics Anonymous History.com. It will present materials primarily devoted to Alcoholics Anonymous. It will cover titles, articles, blogs, forums, facebook, twitter, digg, in the rooms, tumbler, stumble upon, and several social network forums. But the materials covered here will be those pertaining to Alcoholics Anonymous History.
Probably the beginning work is the First Edition of Alcoholics Anonymous just published by Dover Publications. It contains the original First Edition reprint with all the personal stories--most of which have since been removed from later editions. It also covers the original solution---a "spiritual experience"--not just a spiritual awakening or personality change sufficient to overcome alcoholism. Of great importance is the lengthy introduction by author Dick B. explaining the origins of the Big Book, its sources, the changes in the manuscript, the purpose of the personal stories, and the way in which the personal stories were included to provide evidentiary testimony as to how the program in the edition worked.
Any Alcoholics Anonymous History presentation with integrity does not merely start with some writer's conception of a "higher power," a fellowship that it "spiritual, but not religious," a theory that claims you can choose your own conception of "a" god, or an assertion that you do not need to believe anything at all in order to recover from alcoholism by the path outlined in the A.A. Big Book.
To me, accurate and truthful Alcoholics Anonymous History includes the origins, history, founding, original A.A. Christian Fellowship founded in Akron in June, 1935. It also includes Bill Wilson's claim that there were "six" word-of-mouth ideas that were commonly used to "work" the program, but also were varied in wording, varied in their reference to God, and varied in acceptance by different groups of AAs. It includes the original seven point summary of the original Akron Christian Fellowship program and the 16 principles and practices of the Akron pioneers. It includes the shift in program promulgated by Bill Wilson and his partner Henry Parkhurst as they formed a corporation and sought to write a book primarily emanating from the 28 Oxford Group life-changing ideas which were ultimately codified into the Big Book and Steps. www.dickb.com/Oxford.shtml. It includes the Christian and Bible materials tossed out before the Big Book was printed. It includes the sources of the Steps named by Bill Wilson as Dr. William D. Silkworth, Professor William James, and the Oxford Group teachings of Rev. Samuel M. Shoemaker, Jr. It includes the last minute changes in the Big Book manusript just prior to its going to the printer. It includes full details as to how and why a committee of four changed the word "God" in the Steps and substituted "Power greater than ourselves" and "God as we understood Him" in God's place. It explains how Bill Wilson resisted these changes, but finally relented in order to appease atheists and agnostics who might try to get sober by the Steps. It includes the change of the solution from "spiritual experience" to "spiritual awakening" and "personality change." It includes the person by person stories removed from Big Book editions and the vacancy their removal left in testimonies about either the Akron Christian Fellowship program or the original Big Book program.
There is much more to Alcoholics Anonymous History. And the items have theirit place in any effort to answer such questions as to whether Alcoholics Anonymous History proves that A.A. is a "cult." Or that Alcoholics Anonymous History has no Christian origins. Or that Alcoholics Anonymous History does not prove that all three of the first AAs--Bill Wilson, Dr. Bob Smith, and Bill Dotson believed in God, were born again Christians, had studied the Bible extensively, and had been cured by simply turning to God. Or that Alcoholics Anonymous History proves that A.A. is not religious or a religion. Or that Alcoholics Anonymous History establishes A.A. as a program whose recovery comes from "Someone" or "Something" or "not-god-ness," but not and never from reliance on "the God of the Scriptures" as Bill Wilson himself referred to Yahweh, the Creator, Maker, Heavenly Father, God of our fathers, and Father of Light.
Each year of our 21 years of research has brought before the fellowship and historians mountains of manuscripts, books, correspondence, news articles, church records, creed and confession statements, historical accounts, and obscured writings by A.A. founders and pioneers as well as virtually ignored news accounts across America. This blog will be reporting them as found, analyzed, verified, and published.
God Bless, Dick B. dickb@dickb.com
Several websites incorporate various aspects of Alcoholics Anonymous History, the biblical roots of Alcoholics Anonymous, and the Christian Recovery Movement today, These include www.dickb.com; www.dickb-blog.com; http://drbob.info; www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition; and http://freedomranchmaui.org.
This blog will supplement the materials posted on Alcoholics Anonymous History.com. It will present materials primarily devoted to Alcoholics Anonymous. It will cover titles, articles, blogs, forums, facebook, twitter, digg, in the rooms, tumbler, stumble upon, and several social network forums. But the materials covered here will be those pertaining to Alcoholics Anonymous History.
Probably the beginning work is the First Edition of Alcoholics Anonymous just published by Dover Publications. It contains the original First Edition reprint with all the personal stories--most of which have since been removed from later editions. It also covers the original solution---a "spiritual experience"--not just a spiritual awakening or personality change sufficient to overcome alcoholism. Of great importance is the lengthy introduction by author Dick B. explaining the origins of the Big Book, its sources, the changes in the manuscript, the purpose of the personal stories, and the way in which the personal stories were included to provide evidentiary testimony as to how the program in the edition worked.
Any Alcoholics Anonymous History presentation with integrity does not merely start with some writer's conception of a "higher power," a fellowship that it "spiritual, but not religious," a theory that claims you can choose your own conception of "a" god, or an assertion that you do not need to believe anything at all in order to recover from alcoholism by the path outlined in the A.A. Big Book.
To me, accurate and truthful Alcoholics Anonymous History includes the origins, history, founding, original A.A. Christian Fellowship founded in Akron in June, 1935. It also includes Bill Wilson's claim that there were "six" word-of-mouth ideas that were commonly used to "work" the program, but also were varied in wording, varied in their reference to God, and varied in acceptance by different groups of AAs. It includes the original seven point summary of the original Akron Christian Fellowship program and the 16 principles and practices of the Akron pioneers. It includes the shift in program promulgated by Bill Wilson and his partner Henry Parkhurst as they formed a corporation and sought to write a book primarily emanating from the 28 Oxford Group life-changing ideas which were ultimately codified into the Big Book and Steps. www.dickb.com/Oxford.shtml. It includes the Christian and Bible materials tossed out before the Big Book was printed. It includes the sources of the Steps named by Bill Wilson as Dr. William D. Silkworth, Professor William James, and the Oxford Group teachings of Rev. Samuel M. Shoemaker, Jr. It includes the last minute changes in the Big Book manusript just prior to its going to the printer. It includes full details as to how and why a committee of four changed the word "God" in the Steps and substituted "Power greater than ourselves" and "God as we understood Him" in God's place. It explains how Bill Wilson resisted these changes, but finally relented in order to appease atheists and agnostics who might try to get sober by the Steps. It includes the change of the solution from "spiritual experience" to "spiritual awakening" and "personality change." It includes the person by person stories removed from Big Book editions and the vacancy their removal left in testimonies about either the Akron Christian Fellowship program or the original Big Book program.
There is much more to Alcoholics Anonymous History. And the items have theirit place in any effort to answer such questions as to whether Alcoholics Anonymous History proves that A.A. is a "cult." Or that Alcoholics Anonymous History has no Christian origins. Or that Alcoholics Anonymous History does not prove that all three of the first AAs--Bill Wilson, Dr. Bob Smith, and Bill Dotson believed in God, were born again Christians, had studied the Bible extensively, and had been cured by simply turning to God. Or that Alcoholics Anonymous History proves that A.A. is not religious or a religion. Or that Alcoholics Anonymous History establishes A.A. as a program whose recovery comes from "Someone" or "Something" or "not-god-ness," but not and never from reliance on "the God of the Scriptures" as Bill Wilson himself referred to Yahweh, the Creator, Maker, Heavenly Father, God of our fathers, and Father of Light.
Each year of our 21 years of research has brought before the fellowship and historians mountains of manuscripts, books, correspondence, news articles, church records, creed and confession statements, historical accounts, and obscured writings by A.A. founders and pioneers as well as virtually ignored news accounts across America. This blog will be reporting them as found, analyzed, verified, and published.
God Bless, Dick B. dickb@dickb.com
Friday, September 02, 2011
Christians recovering from alcoholism/drug addiction in 12 Step fellowships today? Yes!
- Aishrenelle Rein likes this.
- Richard G Burns Locations, times, programs, content are and will continue to be posted on International Christian Recovery Coalition site www.ChristianRecoveryCoali
tion.com, and its blog and forums. International Christian Recovery Coalitionwww.ChristianRecoveryCoalition.com International Christian Recovery Coalition: An informal fellowship of Christian Leaders and Workers in the recovery arena4 minutes ago · ·
Saturday, August 27, 2011
The Complete Program for the Sept 24 Christian Recov Summit in Brentwwood, CA
The International Christian Recovery Coalition
www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition.com
Presents
The North American Summit Conference Meeting #2
Saturday, September 24, 2011, 9:30 AM to 8:00 PM
Golden Hills Community Church—Brentwood Campus
2401 Shady Willow Lane, Brentwood, CA 94513
(925) 516-0653
http://goldenhills.org/
Theme
Using Akron-Cleveland Christian Recovery Model Principles
to Enhance Substantially Today's Christian Recovery Efforts
Contact: Dick B., Executive Director
International Christian Recovery Coalition
PO Box 837, Kihei, HI 96753-0837
www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition.com
Email: DickB@DickB.com
Cell: 808 276 4945
The Program
Summit Conference Meeting #2
Golden Hills Community Church, Brentwood, CA
Friday Evening, September 23, 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. (** We hope you can make this meeting, too)
Workshop meeting with International Christian Recovery Coalition Participants: Details soon!
Saturday, September 24, 9:30 am to 8:00 pm:
Pre-meeting music and hospitality
Commencing prayer
Welcome by Matt Pierce, Pastor of Recovery Ministry, Golden Hills Community Church
Theme presentation by Dick B., Executive Director, International Christian Recovery Coalition
“Christian Recovery Resource Centers and Persons” Worldwide—on the Move!
Learning about the astonishing success of the original Akron A.A. “Christian fellowship” program and how to apply its principles and practices today;
how the early Cleveland program built upon the original Akron program and
set the stage for Christian recovery opportunities today
Break and Music (10 minutes)
Vision presentation by Ken B.
“Christian Recovery Resource Centers and Persons”:
Supplying Critically-Important, Missing Pieces in Modern Christian Recovery Efforts
Lunch Break (1 hour)
Featured Speaker: J. Donald Hall, Don Hall Ministries, 23365 Barnes Lane, Colfax, CA 95713
Long-recovered wayward youth and drug addict
Missionary evangelist and Bible teacher--18 years, serving with Youth With a Mission and
others in over 60 nations; conferences, seminars, retreats, and mission
services –also community programs in schools, prisons, and civic clubs
Graduate of Vanguard University, Costa Mesa, CA (B.A. Degree)
Graduate of California Graduate School of Theology (M.A. Degree)
Founder and former Executive Director of Teen Challenge in Southern CA and Hawaii
for sixteen years
Cited by the Governors of California and Hawaii for his leadership in the fight against
drug abuse and crime among America’s Youth
Senior Pastor of Calvary Assembly, San Jose, California, for eight years
Recent ministries: South Korea Outreach; Sri Lanka Ministry; Singapore; Gulf Disaster Relief
Break and Music (10 minutes)
Speaker Panel 1:
Jeff A. Holt, Men’s Recovery Fellowship, Auburn Church of the Nazarene, Auburn, California
Dale Marsh, Recovery Pastor, Oroville Church of the Nazarene, Oroville, California; International Christian Recovery Coalition Speakers’ Bureau
Dominic D, Turning Point Recovery Ministry, Cornerstone Fellowship—Livermore Campus, California
Roger McDiarmid, International Christian Recovery Coalition Speakers' Bureau, Huntington Beach, California
Wade Hess, Training Director, CityTeam Ministries, San Jose, California
Break and Music (10 minutes)
Speaker Panel 2:
Mark Galligan, Leader, “Akronite” Recovery Group, Ontario, Canada
David Sadler, Christian recovery leader serving Golden Hills Community Church, Brentwood, California
Karen A. Plavan, Ph.D., Prof. of Counseling an Chemical Dependency, Director of Oasis Center, Pittsburgh, PA
Bill Boyles, President, Won Way Out Ministries, Wyoming, Delaware
Wayne White, Certified Substance Abuse Counselor, President/CEO, Footprints/Alcoholics Victorious,
Kansas City, Missouri
Dinner Break (1 hour)
International Christian Recovery Coalition Future Plans: Dick B. and Ken B.
Christian Music Concert
Closing Prayer
Our Sponsors and Endorsers
Christian Denominational Recovery Programs
United Methodist Special Program on Substance Abuse and Related Violence
Rev. Cynthia W. Sloan
Program Associate,
United Methodist Special Program on
Substance Abuse and Related Violence (SPSARV)
New York Office location: 475 Riverside Drive, room 338
New York, NY 10115
phone: 212-870-3699, fax: 212-870-3932
North Carolina Office location:
325 Meadowbrook Drive
Matthews NC 28104-4309
phone: 704-882-0282
email: csloan@gbgm-umc.org
website: http://www.umspsarv.org
Become a “Fan” on SPSARV’s Facebook page
SPSARV Advance Number: 982598
Episcopal Diocese of Texas Recovery Committee
Fr. Bill Wigmore, Chaplain and Former President
Austin Recovery
8402 Cross Park Drive
Austin, TX. 78754
Tel: 512.697.8674
Email: RevBillW@gmail.com
website: www.AustinRecovery.org
Individual Benefactors
Bob J., Kihei, Maui, Hawaii
Philanthropist and long-time Christian recovery and A.A. history collector and benefactor
Rick S.
Long-recovered Christian recovery work supporter
Rick is preparing a sponsor's guide to Alcoholics Anonymous, using the first edition text.
The guide will be published in paperback and on the Internet; and it will have accompanying audio talks of Rick's taking people through the Big Book.
Robert P. Turner, M.D., M.S.C.R.
Associate Professor of Neurosciences, Pediatrics, and Biostatistics, Bioinformatics, & Epidemiology, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
Christian Churches
The Crossing Church, Costa Mesa, California, Host, September 17, 2011, Conference
Golden Hills Community Church, Brentwood, California, Host, September 24, 2011, Conference
Endorsing Christian Recovery Libraries and Archives
Griffith Library, The Wilson House – birthplace of Bill Wilson, East Dorset, Vermont
Bonnie Burke (formerly, Bonnie Lepper), President
23,000 historical items donated by Dick B., A.A. meetings, Quiet Time, seminars.
Conducted Tours at East Dorset, Vermont (Wilson House, Griffith Library, East Dorset
Congregational Church—where both the Wilson and the Griffith families and
Bill W. attended—and nearby cemetery where Bill and Lois Wilson are buried)
Conducted Tours to St. Johnsbury, Vermont (Dr. Bob’s birthplace and boyhood home,
North Congregational Church—where all of Dr. Bob’s family attended,
The Athenaeum—the village library containing many historical records,
St. Johnsbury Academy—where Dr. Bob attended, his father was an Examiner,
and his mother had been student, teacher, school historian & Exec. Comm. member)
Dr. Bob Core Library—North Congregational Church (UCC), St. Johnsbury, Vermont
Jay Sprout, Pastor
The entire family of Dr. Bob attended this church and was active in its affairs.
North Congregational Church sponsors this Conference in the context of housing the “Dr. Bob Core Library.”
Ray G., Newton Falls, Ohio, and Seminole, Florida
Traveling archives; and, for 21 years, the Archivist and a Managing Board Member, Dr.
Bob’s Home, Akron, Ohio; A.A. speaker and exhibitor of A.A. historical Items all over the United States and Canada, and on sobriety cruises
The St. Paul’s Episcopal Church Library, Akron, Ohio
Mark Pruitt, Rector
This is the church in which Dr. Bob became a communicant before his death.
Its former rector, Dr. Walter Tunks, was a major figure in the beginning Akron days of A.A.
The library is a source of A.A. historical materials.
Christian Intervention, Treatment, Recovery Ministries, Counseling, Sober Living
Sponsors
New Life Spirit Recovery
Robert T. Tucker, Ph.D., D.Min., Registered Addiction Specialist, MCA and M-RAS)
Founder and Executive Director, New Life Spirit Recovery Christian Treatment Center; President, Association of Christian Alcohol and Drug Counseling (aka: ACADC Institute)
18652 Florida Street, Suite 200, Huntington Beach, CA 92648
(714) 841.1906 or Call Toll Free (866) 543.3361
http://www.newlifespiritrecovery.com/OC_Recovery.html
Rock Recovery Ministry, ABC Sober Living, Soledad House
David Powers, Rock Church recovery leader
810 Emerald Street
San Diego, CA 92109
Contact: david@abcsoberliving.com
619.925.1879
http://www.rockrecovery.org/
Association of Christian Alcohol and Drug Counselors Institute, Redlands, California
Pastor Mike Belzman, Ph.D., Chairman and Founder
Jeff Jay and Debra Jay, Grosse Point, Michigan
Nationally-known authors, lecturers, interventionists,
Authors of Love First: A Family’s Guide To Intervention—Updated
Tools and Techniques to Help Loved Ones Heal from Addiction, 2d ed., rev and exp.
(Center City, MN: Hazelden, 2008)
Publishers
Sponsors
Hazelden Publishing and Educational Services, division of Hazelden Foundation
Center City, Minnesota, www.Hazelden.org; publisher of recovery books, including:
The Book That Started It All: The Original Working Manuscript of Alcoholics Anonymous
Bill W.: My First 40 Years
Silkworth: The Little Doctor Who Loved Drunks
Dover Publications
publisher of many books, including Alcoholics Anonymous: The Original 1939 Edition,
with an Introduction by Dick B.: http://store.doverpublications.com/0486480593.html
Our Exhibitors and Displays
United Methodist Special Program on Substance Abuse and Related Violence (SPSARV)
http://www.umspspserv.org
New Light Spirit Recovery, Huntington Beach, California
http://www.newlifespiritrecovery.com/OC_Recovery.html
Association of Christian Alcohol and Drug Counselors Institute, Redlands, California
Hazelden Publishing and Educational Services, division of Hazelden Foundation
www.Hazelden.org
Our Featured Speaker and Panelists
Featured Speaker: J. Donald Hall, Don Hall Ministries, Colfax, California
(See details in this program about his education; his work with Teen Challenge and Youth With A Mission, his pastoring of churches, his work as a Missionary Evangelist and Bible teacher, and his speaking engagements in 60 nations.)
Speaker Panel 1:
Jeff A. Holt, Men’s Recovery Fellowship, Auburn Church of the Nazarene, Auburn, California
Dale Marsh, Recovery Pastor, Oroville Church of the Nazarene, Oroville, California
Dominic D, Turning Point Recovery Ministry, Cornerstone Fellowship—Livermore Campus, California
Roger McDiarmid, International Christian Recovery Coalition Speakers' Bureau, Huntington Beach, California
Wade Hess, Training Director, CityTeam Ministries, San Jose, California
Speaker Panel 2:
Mark Galligan, Leader, “Akronite” Recovery Group, Ontario, Canada
David Sadler, Christian recovery leader serving Golden Hills Community Church, Brentwood, California
Karen A. Plavan, Ph.D., Prof. of Counseling an Chemical Dependency, Director of Oasis Center, Pittsburgh, PA
Bill Boyles, President, Won Way Out Ministries, Wyoming, Delaware
Wayne White, Certified Substance Abuse Counselor, President/CEO, Footprints/Alcoholics Victorious,
Kansas City, MO
Acknowledgments
Our Conferences could not have taken place without leadership and help from:
Randy Moraitis, Executive Pastor of Ministries, The Crossing Church, Costa Mesa, CA
Matt Pierce, Pastor of Recovery Ministry, Golden Hills Community Church, Brentwood, CA
David Powers, Rock Recovery Ministries Leader, Rock Church, San Diego, CA
The Lifelines Band, Costa Mesa, CA
The Musicians at Golden Hills Community Church
Roger McDiarmid, Huntington Beach, California
David Sadler, Lafayette, California
Karl Kramer, Brentwood, California
Our Sponsors
Our Endorsers
Our Exhibitors
Thank you!
For Further Participation in and Support of the Projects of International Christian Recovery Coalition
Dick B. and Ken B., The Dick B. Christian Recovery Guide, 3rd ed., 2010
http://christianrecoverycoalition.com/christian-recovery-guide.shtml
The “Introductory Foundations for Christian Recovery” class by Dick B. and Ken B.
http://dickb.com/IFCR-Class.shtml
(The class includes four DVD's, a class instructor's guide, a student's guide, and
The Dick B. Christian Recovery Guide, 3rd ed.)
“Christian Recovery Resource Centers and Persons” Worldwide
http://christianrecoverycoalition.com/christian-recovery-resource-centers.shtml
The 29-volume “Dick B. A.A. History and Christian Recovery Movement Reference Set”
http://www.dickb.com/titles.shtml
The International Christian Recovery Coalition Web site:
www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition.com
The International Christian Recovery Coalition Blog
http://internationalchristianrecoverycoaliti.blogspot.com/
International Christian Recovery Coalition Forums Website
http://www.christianrecoverycoalition.com/forums/
Other Christian Recovery and A.A. Historical Resources
FREE: Over 650 articles by Dick B.: http://www.dickb.com/articles.shtml
FREE: Over 175 recorded audio talks by Dick B.: DickB.com/Audio-talks.shtml.
FREE: Follow Dick B. on Facebook, on Twitter, and on the Dick B. Blog.
FREE: The “Dick B. FYI Message” newsletters: To subscribe, please go to the bottom of the center column of the www.DickB.com front page.
FREE: The Dick B. Channel on YouTube (“dickbchannel”): http://goo.gl/rCtH6
www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition.com
Presents
The North American Summit Conference Meeting #2
Saturday, September 24, 2011, 9:30 AM to 8:00 PM
Golden Hills Community Church—Brentwood Campus
2401 Shady Willow Lane, Brentwood, CA 94513
(925) 516-0653
http://goldenhills.org/
Theme
Using Akron-Cleveland Christian Recovery Model Principles
to Enhance Substantially Today's Christian Recovery Efforts
Contact: Dick B., Executive Director
International Christian Recovery Coalition
PO Box 837, Kihei, HI 96753-0837
www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition.com
Email: DickB@DickB.com
Cell: 808 276 4945
The Program
Summit Conference Meeting #2
Golden Hills Community Church, Brentwood, CA
Friday Evening, September 23, 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. (** We hope you can make this meeting, too)
Workshop meeting with International Christian Recovery Coalition Participants: Details soon!
Saturday, September 24, 9:30 am to 8:00 pm:
Pre-meeting music and hospitality
Commencing prayer
Welcome by Matt Pierce, Pastor of Recovery Ministry, Golden Hills Community Church
Theme presentation by Dick B., Executive Director, International Christian Recovery Coalition
“Christian Recovery Resource Centers and Persons” Worldwide—on the Move!
Learning about the astonishing success of the original Akron A.A. “Christian fellowship” program and how to apply its principles and practices today;
how the early Cleveland program built upon the original Akron program and
set the stage for Christian recovery opportunities today
Break and Music (10 minutes)
Vision presentation by Ken B.
“Christian Recovery Resource Centers and Persons”:
Supplying Critically-Important, Missing Pieces in Modern Christian Recovery Efforts
Lunch Break (1 hour)
Featured Speaker: J. Donald Hall, Don Hall Ministries, 23365 Barnes Lane, Colfax, CA 95713
Long-recovered wayward youth and drug addict
Missionary evangelist and Bible teacher--18 years, serving with Youth With a Mission and
others in over 60 nations; conferences, seminars, retreats, and mission
services –also community programs in schools, prisons, and civic clubs
Graduate of Vanguard University, Costa Mesa, CA (B.A. Degree)
Graduate of California Graduate School of Theology (M.A. Degree)
Founder and former Executive Director of Teen Challenge in Southern CA and Hawaii
for sixteen years
Cited by the Governors of California and Hawaii for his leadership in the fight against
drug abuse and crime among America’s Youth
Senior Pastor of Calvary Assembly, San Jose, California, for eight years
Recent ministries: South Korea Outreach; Sri Lanka Ministry; Singapore; Gulf Disaster Relief
Break and Music (10 minutes)
Speaker Panel 1:
Jeff A. Holt, Men’s Recovery Fellowship, Auburn Church of the Nazarene, Auburn, California
Dale Marsh, Recovery Pastor, Oroville Church of the Nazarene, Oroville, California; International Christian Recovery Coalition Speakers’ Bureau
Dominic D, Turning Point Recovery Ministry, Cornerstone Fellowship—Livermore Campus, California
Roger McDiarmid, International Christian Recovery Coalition Speakers' Bureau, Huntington Beach, California
Wade Hess, Training Director, CityTeam Ministries, San Jose, California
Break and Music (10 minutes)
Speaker Panel 2:
Mark Galligan, Leader, “Akronite” Recovery Group, Ontario, Canada
David Sadler, Christian recovery leader serving Golden Hills Community Church, Brentwood, California
Karen A. Plavan, Ph.D., Prof. of Counseling an Chemical Dependency, Director of Oasis Center, Pittsburgh, PA
Bill Boyles, President, Won Way Out Ministries, Wyoming, Delaware
Wayne White, Certified Substance Abuse Counselor, President/CEO, Footprints/Alcoholics Victorious,
Kansas City, Missouri
Dinner Break (1 hour)
International Christian Recovery Coalition Future Plans: Dick B. and Ken B.
Christian Music Concert
Closing Prayer
Our Sponsors and Endorsers
Christian Denominational Recovery Programs
United Methodist Special Program on Substance Abuse and Related Violence
Rev. Cynthia W. Sloan
Program Associate,
United Methodist Special Program on
Substance Abuse and Related Violence (SPSARV)
New York Office location: 475 Riverside Drive, room 338
New York, NY 10115
phone: 212-870-3699, fax: 212-870-3932
North Carolina Office location:
325 Meadowbrook Drive
Matthews NC 28104-4309
phone: 704-882-0282
email: csloan@gbgm-umc.org
website: http://www.umspsarv.org
Become a “Fan” on SPSARV’s Facebook page
SPSARV Advance Number: 982598
Episcopal Diocese of Texas Recovery Committee
Fr. Bill Wigmore, Chaplain and Former President
Austin Recovery
8402 Cross Park Drive
Austin, TX. 78754
Tel: 512.697.8674
Email: RevBillW@gmail.com
website: www.AustinRecovery.org
Individual Benefactors
Bob J., Kihei, Maui, Hawaii
Philanthropist and long-time Christian recovery and A.A. history collector and benefactor
Rick S.
Long-recovered Christian recovery work supporter
Rick is preparing a sponsor's guide to Alcoholics Anonymous, using the first edition text.
The guide will be published in paperback and on the Internet; and it will have accompanying audio talks of Rick's taking people through the Big Book.
Robert P. Turner, M.D., M.S.C.R.
Associate Professor of Neurosciences, Pediatrics, and Biostatistics, Bioinformatics, & Epidemiology, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
Christian Churches
The Crossing Church, Costa Mesa, California, Host, September 17, 2011, Conference
Golden Hills Community Church, Brentwood, California, Host, September 24, 2011, Conference
Endorsing Christian Recovery Libraries and Archives
Griffith Library, The Wilson House – birthplace of Bill Wilson, East Dorset, Vermont
Bonnie Burke (formerly, Bonnie Lepper), President
23,000 historical items donated by Dick B., A.A. meetings, Quiet Time, seminars.
Conducted Tours at East Dorset, Vermont (Wilson House, Griffith Library, East Dorset
Congregational Church—where both the Wilson and the Griffith families and
Bill W. attended—and nearby cemetery where Bill and Lois Wilson are buried)
Conducted Tours to St. Johnsbury, Vermont (Dr. Bob’s birthplace and boyhood home,
North Congregational Church—where all of Dr. Bob’s family attended,
The Athenaeum—the village library containing many historical records,
St. Johnsbury Academy—where Dr. Bob attended, his father was an Examiner,
and his mother had been student, teacher, school historian & Exec. Comm. member)
Dr. Bob Core Library—North Congregational Church (UCC), St. Johnsbury, Vermont
Jay Sprout, Pastor
The entire family of Dr. Bob attended this church and was active in its affairs.
North Congregational Church sponsors this Conference in the context of housing the “Dr. Bob Core Library.”
Ray G., Newton Falls, Ohio, and Seminole, Florida
Traveling archives; and, for 21 years, the Archivist and a Managing Board Member, Dr.
Bob’s Home, Akron, Ohio; A.A. speaker and exhibitor of A.A. historical Items all over the United States and Canada, and on sobriety cruises
The St. Paul’s Episcopal Church Library, Akron, Ohio
Mark Pruitt, Rector
This is the church in which Dr. Bob became a communicant before his death.
Its former rector, Dr. Walter Tunks, was a major figure in the beginning Akron days of A.A.
The library is a source of A.A. historical materials.
Christian Intervention, Treatment, Recovery Ministries, Counseling, Sober Living
Sponsors
New Life Spirit Recovery
Robert T. Tucker, Ph.D., D.Min., Registered Addiction Specialist, MCA and M-RAS)
Founder and Executive Director, New Life Spirit Recovery Christian Treatment Center; President, Association of Christian Alcohol and Drug Counseling (aka: ACADC Institute)
18652 Florida Street, Suite 200, Huntington Beach, CA 92648
(714) 841.1906 or Call Toll Free (866) 543.3361
http://www.newlifespiritrecovery.com/OC_Recovery.html
Rock Recovery Ministry, ABC Sober Living, Soledad House
David Powers, Rock Church recovery leader
810 Emerald Street
San Diego, CA 92109
Contact: david@abcsoberliving.com
619.925.1879
http://www.rockrecovery.org/
Association of Christian Alcohol and Drug Counselors Institute, Redlands, California
Pastor Mike Belzman, Ph.D., Chairman and Founder
Jeff Jay and Debra Jay, Grosse Point, Michigan
Nationally-known authors, lecturers, interventionists,
Authors of Love First: A Family’s Guide To Intervention—Updated
Tools and Techniques to Help Loved Ones Heal from Addiction, 2d ed., rev and exp.
(Center City, MN: Hazelden, 2008)
Publishers
Sponsors
Hazelden Publishing and Educational Services, division of Hazelden Foundation
Center City, Minnesota, www.Hazelden.org; publisher of recovery books, including:
The Book That Started It All: The Original Working Manuscript of Alcoholics Anonymous
Bill W.: My First 40 Years
Silkworth: The Little Doctor Who Loved Drunks
Dover Publications
publisher of many books, including Alcoholics Anonymous: The Original 1939 Edition,
with an Introduction by Dick B.: http://store.doverpublications.com/0486480593.html
Our Exhibitors and Displays
United Methodist Special Program on Substance Abuse and Related Violence (SPSARV)
http://www.umspspserv.org
New Light Spirit Recovery, Huntington Beach, California
http://www.newlifespiritrecovery.com/OC_Recovery.html
Association of Christian Alcohol and Drug Counselors Institute, Redlands, California
Hazelden Publishing and Educational Services, division of Hazelden Foundation
www.Hazelden.org
Our Featured Speaker and Panelists
Featured Speaker: J. Donald Hall, Don Hall Ministries, Colfax, California
(See details in this program about his education; his work with Teen Challenge and Youth With A Mission, his pastoring of churches, his work as a Missionary Evangelist and Bible teacher, and his speaking engagements in 60 nations.)
Speaker Panel 1:
Jeff A. Holt, Men’s Recovery Fellowship, Auburn Church of the Nazarene, Auburn, California
Dale Marsh, Recovery Pastor, Oroville Church of the Nazarene, Oroville, California
Dominic D, Turning Point Recovery Ministry, Cornerstone Fellowship—Livermore Campus, California
Roger McDiarmid, International Christian Recovery Coalition Speakers' Bureau, Huntington Beach, California
Wade Hess, Training Director, CityTeam Ministries, San Jose, California
Speaker Panel 2:
Mark Galligan, Leader, “Akronite” Recovery Group, Ontario, Canada
David Sadler, Christian recovery leader serving Golden Hills Community Church, Brentwood, California
Karen A. Plavan, Ph.D., Prof. of Counseling an Chemical Dependency, Director of Oasis Center, Pittsburgh, PA
Bill Boyles, President, Won Way Out Ministries, Wyoming, Delaware
Wayne White, Certified Substance Abuse Counselor, President/CEO, Footprints/Alcoholics Victorious,
Kansas City, MO
Acknowledgments
Our Conferences could not have taken place without leadership and help from:
Randy Moraitis, Executive Pastor of Ministries, The Crossing Church, Costa Mesa, CA
Matt Pierce, Pastor of Recovery Ministry, Golden Hills Community Church, Brentwood, CA
David Powers, Rock Recovery Ministries Leader, Rock Church, San Diego, CA
The Lifelines Band, Costa Mesa, CA
The Musicians at Golden Hills Community Church
Roger McDiarmid, Huntington Beach, California
David Sadler, Lafayette, California
Karl Kramer, Brentwood, California
Our Sponsors
Our Endorsers
Our Exhibitors
Thank you!
For Further Participation in and Support of the Projects of International Christian Recovery Coalition
Dick B. and Ken B., The Dick B. Christian Recovery Guide, 3rd ed., 2010
http://christianrecoverycoalition.com/christian-recovery-guide.shtml
The “Introductory Foundations for Christian Recovery” class by Dick B. and Ken B.
http://dickb.com/IFCR-Class.shtml
(The class includes four DVD's, a class instructor's guide, a student's guide, and
The Dick B. Christian Recovery Guide, 3rd ed.)
“Christian Recovery Resource Centers and Persons” Worldwide
http://christianrecoverycoalition.com/christian-recovery-resource-centers.shtml
The 29-volume “Dick B. A.A. History and Christian Recovery Movement Reference Set”
http://www.dickb.com/titles.shtml
The International Christian Recovery Coalition Web site:
www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition.com
The International Christian Recovery Coalition Blog
http://internationalchristianrecoverycoaliti.blogspot.com/
International Christian Recovery Coalition Forums Website
http://www.christianrecoverycoalition.com/forums/
Other Christian Recovery and A.A. Historical Resources
FREE: Over 650 articles by Dick B.: http://www.dickb.com/articles.shtml
FREE: Over 175 recorded audio talks by Dick B.: DickB.com/Audio-talks.shtml.
FREE: Follow Dick B. on Facebook, on Twitter, and on the Dick B. Blog.
FREE: The “Dick B. FYI Message” newsletters: To subscribe, please go to the bottom of the center column of the www.DickB.com front page.
FREE: The Dick B. Channel on YouTube (“dickbchannel”): http://goo.gl/rCtH6
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Choices in A.A. for Newcomers, Students, and Sponsors in the Fellowship
There are some choices in A.A. today for newcomers, students of recovery and of the program, and sponsors. Those actually in the fellowship. And wanting to learn.
They can listen to or read about the philosophy and history writers and professors and anti-A.A. Christian critics and learn about not-god-ness, Buchmanism, Father Dowling, the non-existent "six steps," Swedenborg, Freemasonry, Spiritualism, "spirituality," scattered Bible verses, the dangers of A.A., the adultery and mental disorders of Bill W., the depressions of Bill W., the LSD and Niacian forays of Bill W., higher powers, light bulbs, radiators, and chairs, as well as other nonsense gods, OR
They can do the best they can to find out what A.A. was, what A.A. is, and what A.A. might become if all the present diversions become the recovery talk of the day continue to gain audiences.
There are still resources to do the latter. You can learn about them at the two forthcoming Summits in California in September. Or in Dick B.'s books and articles. Or in some diligent study of our history now being undertaken and reported by many participants in International Christian Recovery Coalition
They can listen to or read about the philosophy and history writers and professors and anti-A.A. Christian critics and learn about not-god-ness, Buchmanism, Father Dowling, the non-existent "six steps," Swedenborg, Freemasonry, Spiritualism, "spirituality," scattered Bible verses, the dangers of A.A., the adultery and mental disorders of Bill W., the depressions of Bill W., the LSD and Niacian forays of Bill W., higher powers, light bulbs, radiators, and chairs, as well as other nonsense gods, OR
They can do the best they can to find out what A.A. was, what A.A. is, and what A.A. might become if all the present diversions become the recovery talk of the day continue to gain audiences.
There are still resources to do the latter. You can learn about them at the two forthcoming Summits in California in September. Or in Dick B.'s books and articles. Or in some diligent study of our history now being undertaken and reported by many participants in International Christian Recovery Coalition
Monday, August 08, 2011
Comments on the brief 12Step.com Article on origins of A.A. Twelve Steps
Here is my reply to an article by 12Step.com on the history and origins on the origins and development of the A.A. Twelve Steps:
Congratulations on the temperate quality of your short articles on A.A., the Steps, and the origins.
I would add only these more comprehensive caveats and comments.
1. Dr. Bob stated that the basic ideas for the Twelve Steps came from the study and effort in the Bible. See DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers and Dick B.., The Good Book and the Big Book: A.A.’s Roots in the Bible www.dickb.com/goodbook.shtml and The James Club and the Original A.A. Program’s Absolute Essentials www.dickb.com/JamesClub.shtml
2. If you take Bill Wilson at his word—and I do on this point—the Steps that he introduced in the Big Book four years after A.A. was founded (the Big Book in April 1939 to be exact), Bill stated that of the Twelve Steps, the first should be attributed to Dr. William D. Silkworth. The second and twelfth to Professor William James. And “the rest of it” to the Oxford Group as led in American writing and teachings by Rev. Samuel M. Shoemaker, Jr., chief OG lieutenant in America. See Bill’s Grapevine Writings in The Language of the Heart and Dick B., Twelve Steps for You www.dickb.com/12stepsforyou.shtml, and New Light on Alcoholism: God, Sam Shoemaker, and A.A. www.dickb.com/newlight.shtml.
3. Then there is the indisputable and commonly accepted journal kept by Dr. Bob’s wife Anne Ripley Smlth. www.dickb.com/annesm.shtml. Anne shared this journal (compiled between 1933 and 1939) with Bill and Bob, with early AAs, and regularly with the early AAs and their families who gathered at the Smith home each morning to participate in the Quiet Time meetings conducted on the porch of the Smith home by Anne Smith. You can find that, before the Steps were either contemplated or written by Bill W., the ideas are discussed extensively by Anne Smith and her journal.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
21 Dick B. Titles Now Listed in Hollis Classic Full Catalog at Harvard University
Thanks to a distinguished psychiatrist at Beth Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, a set of my 29 reference titles has been placed in the Harvard Library System. And now, thanks to him, 21 of my titles are listed in Hollis Classic Full Catalog at Harvard, with miscellaneous titles also listed in World Catalog under Harvard.
Dick B. "The James Club" is now available in ebook form - smashwords
The James Club and The Original A.A. Program's Absolute Essentials
Ebook By Dick BPublished By first.edition.design.ebook.publishing
Rating: Not yet rated.
Published: July 26, 2011
Category: Non-Fiction » Self-Improvement » Addiction and recovery
Category: Non-Fiction » Religion and Spirituality » Christianity
Words: 52121 (approximate)
Language: English
Ebook Short Description
Early Akron AAs wanted "The James Club" to be the name of their fellowship. The Bible's Book of James was their favorite; they also studied it, Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, and 1 Corinthians 13. These three Bible segments were considered "absolutely essential" to their program. This book takes each verse in James, the Sermon, and 1 Cor 13, and shows the influence of such verses on A.A. language.Extended Description
For years, A.A. has quietly acknowledged, primarily through one publication, that the early A.A. pioneers in Akron believed firmly that the answer to all their problems was in the "Good Book," as they called the Bible. A.A. cofounder Dr. Bob said that all the basic ideas were taken from their study of the Good Book. And he added many many times that the three parts of the Bible the old timers considered "absolutely essential" to their spiritual program of recovery were: (1) The Book of James. (2) Jesus's Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7). (3) 1 Corinthians 13, Paul's famous chapter on "love."You can find the foregoing remarks in A.A.'s DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, in pamphlets published by Akron AA, and in several talks given through the years by Dr. Bob himself. And it was even his co-founder friend Bill Wilson who spoke of the studies of James, the Sermon, and Corinthians; the reading of these passages by Dr. Bob's wife Anne to Bill and Bob; and the fact that--as Bill put it--"J... (Read more)
Tags
bible, sermon on the mount, aa history, 12 step program, big book, book of james, james clubAvailable Ebook reading formats:
Single purchase gains access to all formats. How to download ebooks to e-reading devices and apps.| Format | Full Book | Sample First 20% |
|---|---|---|
| Online Reading (HTML, good for sampling in web browser) | Buy | View sample |
| Online Reading (JavaScript, experimental, buggy) | Buy | View sample |
| Kindle (.mobi for Kindle devices and Kindle apps) | Buy | Download sample |
| Epub (Nook, Sony Reader, Kobo, and most e-reading apps including Stanza, Aldiko, Adobe Digital Editions, others) | Buy | Download sample |
| PDF (good for reading on PC, or for home printing) | Buy | No sample available |
| RTF (readable on most word processors) | Buy | No sample available |
| LRF (Use only for older model Sony Readers that don't support .epub) | Buy | Download sample |
| Palm Doc (PDB) (for Palm reading devices) | Buy | Download sample |
| Plain Text (download) (flexible, but lacks much formatting) | Buy | No sample available |
| Plain Text (view) (viewable as web page) | Buy | No sample available |
Saturday, July 23, 2011
15th Dick B. YouTube Presentation Script - The September 24 Summit Announcement
The Dick B. Channel on YouTube
The History of Alcoholics Anonymous and the Christian Recovery Movement
Video 15
The North American Christian Recovery Summit
This is the fifteenth presentation of the Dick B. Channel on YouTube. The subject was to have been a continued discussion of the Christian upbringing of A.A. cofounders Bill W. and Dr. Bob as a youngsters in Vermont
But we interrupt the series to tell you about the first North American Summit of the International Christian Recovery Coalition at Golden Hills Community Church in Brentwood , California Mariners Church Community Center in Irvine , California
This summit is free. No registration is required. The public is invited. And it will be the first gathering of Christian leaders and workers in the recovery arena, of newcomers, and of the public, where we will be hearing: (1) how Christian recovery has been moving; (2) how it is incorporating the “old school” Akron A.A. and Cleveland A.A. Fellowship programs; (3) what leaders are doing now and suggest for steps forward. If you are one of those who wants: (1) to stay in existing 12 Step and other recovery programs; (2) to stress the role that God, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Bible have played in the recovery movement; and (3) to apply those “old school” A.A. principles in recovery today, then this is a great opportunity you will not want to miss.
We here present the program of the North American Summit of the International Christian Recovery Coalition on Saturday, September 24, 2011, at Golden Hills Community Church in Brentwood , California
The Theme:
Using Principles of the Akron-Cleveland Christian Recovery Model
to Enhance Substantially Today's Christian Recovery Efforts
The Tentative Northern California Meeting Program Schedule
Friday Evening, September 23: (We'll announce place and time when speakers and panels set)
Possible workshop meeting with International Christian Recovery Coalition Participants
Saturday, September 24, 9:00 AM. Admission Free! No Registration. Be early for best seats!
Pre-meeting music, program literature, exhibit tables, and hospitality
Commencing prayer
Welcome by Matt Pierce , Pastor of Recovery Ministry, Golden Hills Community Church
Theme presentation by Dick B., Exec. Dir., International Christian Recovery Coalition
“Christian Recovery Resource Centers
Learning about the Astonishing Success of the Original Akron A.A. “Christian fellowship” Program and How to Apply Its Principles and Practices Today
How the Early Cleveland
Set the Stage for Christian Recovery Opportunities Today
Break and Music
Vision presentation by Ken B.
The International Christian Recovery Coalition and “Christian Recovery Resource
Centers and Persons”: Supplying Critically-Important, Missing Pieces in
Modern Christian Recovery Efforts
Lunch Break (We're told there are about 75 eateries within a 5 minute walk from church.)
Featured Christian, Recovered Speaker: Don Hall of Colfax, California
Break and Exhibit Tables
First Speakers Panel:
David Sadler, Recovery Ministry, Golden Hills Community Church , Brentwood
Dale Marsh, Recovery Pastor, Serenity Group, Church of the Nazarene, Oroville
Wade Hess, Training Leader, CityTeam Ministries, San Jose , CA
Dominic D. Turning Point, Cornerstone Fellowship, Livermore , CA
Jeff Holt, recovery fellowship, Church of the Nazarene, Auburn , CA
Break and Music
Second Speakers Panel:
Ken Jones, Pastoral Counselor, Melbourne , FL
Craig G., Christian Recovered AA, Rohnert Park , CA
Danny W., founder, A.A. Roots Revival Group; Clarence S. (Cleveland
Dinner Break
International Christian Recovery Coalition Future Plans: Dick B. and Ken B.
Christian Music Concert
Closing Prayer
Our Conference Reward
for Those Who Want God’s Help and Can Learn the Facts
The last 21-plus years of research and learning about the real “old time” A.A. of 1935-1940 in Akron and Cleveland
By learning these simple facts, and how the Akron approach was further refined in Cleveland A.A. beginning in May of 1939, those in recovery need no longer: (1) Wallow in the talk of nonsense “higher power” gods that abounds in today’s recovery scene. (2) Try to fathom the mystical “spirituality” which is little understood and poorly articulated by those who advocate it. (3) Fruitlessly rely on meetings and group strength to get well, rather than believing that God could and would relieve them if He were sought.
Early A.A. principles and practices are being used by the few that know them in today’s 12 Step and Christian recovery fellowships. And these principles and practices appear to hold great promise of making possible successful recovery today similar to that achieved by earlier Christian recovery pioneers.
This fifteenth presentation has covered the North American Summit of the International Christian Recovery Coalition we hope you will attend on Saturday, September 24, at Golden Hills Community Church in Brentwood , California
I close by giving you pictures of three of my books which more fully detail the facts about the “old school” A.A. programs in Akron and Cleveland Akron
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Christian Roots of A.A., A.A. Christian Roots
What are the Christian roots of A.A.? Strangely, there are some well financed websites, sites like psychoheresy, that claim there are no Christian roots of A.A. And they make many statements that just don't square with the actual Christian roots of A..
In brief, those Christian roots of A.A. (Alcoholics Anonyous) include the following:
1. The Salvation Army. See www.dickb.com/drbobofaa.shtml
2. The lay brethren of the YMCA. See www.dickb.com/drbobofaa.shtml
3. The great Christian evangelists like Dwight L. Moody, Ira Sankey, F.B. Meyer, Billy Sunday, and
Allen Folger.
4. The Christian Gospel Rescue Missions like those headed by Jerry McAuley, S.H. Hadley, and
Calvary Mission (where A.A. co-founder Bill W. and his "sponsor" Ebby T. made decisions
for Christ.
5. The Great Awakening of 1875 in St. Johnsbury, Verrmont (where A.A. co-founder Dr. Bob was
born and raised.
6. The Young People's Society of Christian Endeavor of North Congregational Church of S Johnsbury
7. In St. Johnsbury, Vermont - where Dr. Bob was born and raised: (a) Devoted Congregationalist
parents who were Sunday school superintendents and teachers, as well as active in the church. (b)
Sunday school, sermons, prayer services, Bible studies. (c) Christian Endeavor (d) St. Johnsbury
Academy where Dr. Bob's parents were active and Dr. Bob took Christian studies, attended Daily
Chapel, required weekly church services and Bible study. (e) The YMCA of which Bob's father
was president - which was active in the church and in the Academy.
8. In East Dorset Vermont--where Bill W. was born and spent his youngest years: (a) East Dorset
Congregational Church and Sunday school and revivals (b) Bible studies by Bill with his
grandfather Griffith and his friend Mark Whalon.
9. In Manchester, Vermont--where Bill W. attended Burr and Burton Academy: (a) Daily chapel.
(b) Required weekly Bible study. (c) Required weekly attendance at Manchester Congregational
Church. (d) Bill's four-year Bible study course. (e) The presidency by Bill W. of the school YMCA
and of Bill's girl friend Bertha Bamford of the school YWCA and their joint participation
There are many more facets of the Christian roots of A.A. And these will be covered in the next presentation.
Dick B. dickb@dickb.com; www.dickb.com; www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition.com
-
In brief, those Christian roots of A.A. (Alcoholics Anonyous) include the following:
1. The Salvation Army. See www.dickb.com/drbobofaa.shtml
2. The lay brethren of the YMCA. See www.dickb.com/drbobofaa.shtml
3. The great Christian evangelists like Dwight L. Moody, Ira Sankey, F.B. Meyer, Billy Sunday, and
Allen Folger.
4. The Christian Gospel Rescue Missions like those headed by Jerry McAuley, S.H. Hadley, and
Calvary Mission (where A.A. co-founder Bill W. and his "sponsor" Ebby T. made decisions
for Christ.
5. The Great Awakening of 1875 in St. Johnsbury, Verrmont (where A.A. co-founder Dr. Bob was
born and raised.
6. The Young People's Society of Christian Endeavor of North Congregational Church of S Johnsbury
7. In St. Johnsbury, Vermont - where Dr. Bob was born and raised: (a) Devoted Congregationalist
parents who were Sunday school superintendents and teachers, as well as active in the church. (b)
Sunday school, sermons, prayer services, Bible studies. (c) Christian Endeavor (d) St. Johnsbury
Academy where Dr. Bob's parents were active and Dr. Bob took Christian studies, attended Daily
Chapel, required weekly church services and Bible study. (e) The YMCA of which Bob's father
was president - which was active in the church and in the Academy.
8. In East Dorset Vermont--where Bill W. was born and spent his youngest years: (a) East Dorset
Congregational Church and Sunday school and revivals (b) Bible studies by Bill with his
grandfather Griffith and his friend Mark Whalon.
9. In Manchester, Vermont--where Bill W. attended Burr and Burton Academy: (a) Daily chapel.
(b) Required weekly Bible study. (c) Required weekly attendance at Manchester Congregational
Church. (d) Bill's four-year Bible study course. (e) The presidency by Bill W. of the school YMCA
and of Bill's girl friend Bertha Bamford of the school YWCA and their joint participation
There are many more facets of the Christian roots of A.A. And these will be covered in the next presentation.
Dick B. dickb@dickb.com; www.dickb.com; www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition.com
-
Friday, July 15, 2011
Christian and Recovery Links for You
Moderator Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Kihei, Maui, Hawaii Posts: 450 |  Christian and Recovery Links for You Since we began our research, publishing, and dissemination work in 1990, we have established a large number of Christian and Recovery Links we would like you to know about. And here they are: Alcoholics Anonymous History: www.dickb.com Dick B.'s Personal A.A. History Blog: www.dickb-blog.com Dr. Bob Information: www.drbob.info Freedom Ranch Maui Incorporated: www.freedomranchmaui.org Dick B. Blog: www.mauihistorian.blogspot.com Dick B. YouTube Channel: http://goo.gl/rCtH6 Richard G. Burns/Dick B. Facebook Maui Historian Twitter International Christian Recovery Coalition: www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition.com International Christia Recovery Coalition Blog http://www.internationalchristianrec...i.blogspot.com International Christian Recovery Coalition Forums http://goo.gl/rCtH6 In addition, we regularly appear on radio on Take12Radio.com And disseminate a newsletter frequently to those who subscribe or communicate with dick b. at dickb@dickb.com God Bless, Dick B.  |
Sunday, April 03, 2011
A.A. History: Descriptive Titles Bill W. Gave to Two A.A. Founders
A.A. History: Descriptive Titles Bill W. Gave to Two A.A. Founders Dick B. © 2011 Anonymous. All rights reserved Most accurate and complete A.A. history accounts tell of the position of A.A. Cofounder Bill Wilson in recognizing and appreciating the important service of others who were principals in the shaping of Alcoholics Anonymous ideas. In fact, the titles which Bill W. bestowed were not only descriptive; they highlighted the type of service rendered. Comments about A.A. Co-founder Dr. Bob One of the good sources for this information about Dr. Bob’s titles is the book by Bill’s long-time secretary and archivist: Nell Wing, Grateful to Have Been There: My 42 Years with Bill and Lois and the Evolution of Alcoholics Anonymous, 2d exp and rev ed. (Center City, MN: Hazelden, 1998) “Fisher of Men”: Nell wrote, at page 89: “Dr. Bob, in Bill’s phrase, was the “fisher of men. . .” In Matthew 4:18-19, Jesus called to Peter and Andrew who were casting a net into the sea and were fishers: “And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” “Prince of all Twelfth-steppers”: Nell wrote at page 90: “Dr. Bob became, as Bill described him, ‘the prince of the Twelfth Steppers’—a title for which he was well qualified, growing out of his natural instinct as a doctor for helping people, combined with his intense desire as an alcoholic to administer to his fellow sufferers.” Bill Wilson himself said: “It had been decided that Bob would attend mostly to the questions of hospitalization and the development of our Twelfth Step work. Between 1940 and 1950. . . he had treated 5,000 drunks at St. Thomas Hospital in Akron. His spiritual example was a powerful influence, and he never charged a cent for his medical care. So Dr. Bob became the prince of all twelfth-steppers. Perhaps nobody will ever do such a job again.” See The Co-Founders of Alcoholics Anonymous: Biographical Sketches Their Last Major Talks (NY: Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc., 1972, 1975), page 34. “The Rock Upon Which A.A. Was Founded”: Nell wrote at page 90: “Bill often described Bob as ‘the rock upon which A.A. was founded.’” In Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 7:24-25), Jesus said: “Therefore whosoever heareth these saying of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the wind blew and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock” Comments about Dr. Bob’s Wife, Anne Ripley Smith “Founder and Mother of A.A.”: Bill W. wrote: “Anne was the wife of Dr. Bob, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. She was, quite literally, the mother of our first group, Akron Number One. . . . In the full sense of the word, she was one of the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous” The Language of the Heart: Bill W.’s Grapevine Writings (NY: The A.A. Grapevine, Inc., 1998), pages 353-54. And both of Dr. Bob’s children stated quite clearly that “Bill W. called her the ‘Mother of A.A.’” Children of the Healer: The Story of Dr. Bob’s Kids By Bob Smith and Sue Smith Windows as Told to P. Christine Brewer (Center City, MN: Hazelden, 1992), pages 29, 41, 132) www.dickb.com/annesm.shtml; www.dickb.com/drbobofaa.shtml Gloria Deo
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
