A friend of mine was talking to
someone recently who claimed that unless one is working the steps precisely as
they are laid out in the Big Book, one cannot get well.
Firstly, the AA Big Book itself does not say that
we have a monopoly on recovery, merely that we have something that works for
us.
Secondly, I would agree with the chap in question
in that nothing worked for me but what is in the Big Book, and the closer my
programme has come to what is in the Big Book, the better the results have
been.
What is also true, however, is that the Big Book
is, contrary to what Dr Bob supposedly said, open to interpretation. To take
the simplest of examples: in the fear inventory, we are asked to ask ourselves
the question of why we had our fears. Clearly, this could be answered in a
multitude of ways: the actions we have taken in the past that have placed us in
a vulnerable position, the consequences of the feared event, which are the real
reason we are frightened, more abstractly the various ways we have relied on
self rather than God, or the ideas and attitudes that were instilled in us as
children and that have coloured our thinking ever since. This is just one of
many points in the Book where the same instruction, in the absence of further
clarification, could be taken in very different ways. If you ask a dozen people
who claim to work the Steps exactly as they are laid out in the Big Book, you
will discover a dozen different approaches, with quite major differences in
interpretation all the way through, even without the individuals in question
deviating from the plain meaning of the text itself.
It’s also sometimes asserted that worksheets should
never be used, because the Book is enough. This view is usually peddled,
however, by people who were taken through the Book by a sponsor who showed them
exactly how to follow the instructions and gave them particular interpretations
or understandings of particular passages. These instructions, interpretations,
and understandings they themselves usually pass on to other people.
The Big Book was written in principle to enable
people to take the Steps without instruction or assistance. I’ve never met
anyone who took the Steps without instruction or assistance, however, nor
anyone that suggests that instruction and assistance from a sponsor are not
necessary.
What does a sponsor do? Say words. What do
worksheets do? Say words. Worksheets are valid only to the extent that they set
out what a sponsor sponsoring someone using the Big Book would say when taking
someone through the Steps. If they are a facsimile of that instruction and
understanding, great! If not, then they should perhaps be avoided.
The medium does not matter: what matters is that
the instructions are followed from the Book with guidance in the form of the
aggregate experience of a sponsorship lineage crystallised in the instruction
of a particular sponsor. Whether the words are conveyed orally or both orally
and with worksheets to take away is neither here nor there. However, there is
one tiny advantage with worksheets for a sponsee to take away: they do not have
to take copious notes whilst talking to their sponsor, if the worksheets match
what the sponsor is saying, and there is no risk of ‘Chinese whispers’ or
dilution as the instructions and understanding pass down the chain from sponsor
to sponsee and onwards.
When the Big Book was written, one of the reasons
it was written was to ensure that the message remained intact. The enormous
experience gained over the decades in AA is also preserved, through the oral
tradition passed down from sponsor to sponsee, but also through tapes of
speakers and the writings of AA members.
Ultimately, if something works, great! If something
does not work: disregard it.
A final point: money should not be made out of AA
materials. If worksheets are provided for free, knock yourself out. If you are
being asked to pay, be warned.