A.A. in 1946.
New York A.A. Archives: see especially
letters from Bill to Dean B. (Indianapolis)
on February 11, 1958; and Bill to George S.
(Philadelphia) on June 2, 1958.
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
++++Message 5676. . . . . . . . . . . . RE: Publishing the 24 Hour book and
Little Red Book
From: Arthur S . . . . . . . . . . . . 5/7/2009 9:10:00 AM
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
The statement below, regarding assumed difficulties in obtaining money in
1952 and 1953 to print the 12&12, is not consistent with its source
reference to "Pass It On (pages 355-6):"
==============================================
"(1) We remember how Bill W. had encountered such enormous difficulties in
obtaining the money to publish the Big Book in 1939. In 1952 to 53, he met
even more difficulties in obtaining the money to publish the Twelve Steps
and Twelve Traditions. Finally, in desperation, he entered into a deal with
Harper and Brothers, a commercial publisher, where two editions would be
published, one for AA members, and the other a commercial version (for fifty
cents more per copy). By later standards, this would probably have been
regarded as a breach of the Traditions, but it was the only way Bill could
figure out to raise the money to print his new book. See Pass It On, pages
355-6."
==============================================
Reliable source reference show no such notion of difficulties in raising
funds for publication of the 12&12 or of any other of Bill's works from the
time of the establishment of the General Service Conference in 1951. In fact
the record shows very much the opposite.
Based on a 1951 Conference advisory action recommending that AA literature
should have Conference approval, the Alcoholic Foundation Board formed a
special Trustees’ committee on literature to recommend to the 1952
Conference literature items that should be retained and future literature
items that would be needed. Bill W also reported to the 1952 Conference on
the many literature projects he was engaged in.
Bill's projects reported in the 1952 Conference final report were: (1)
Up-dating the story section of the "Big Book" to provide a more truly
representative cross-section of AA recovery stories; (2) A new series of
anecdotal analyses of the Twelve Traditions; (3) A series of orderly,
point-by-point essays on the Twelve Steps; (4) "A kind of a popular history
of AA and its ideas of recovery, tradition and service"; (5) A book on the
application of AA philosophy to the "total problem of living" and (6) A
reference manual stating our total experience with the whole idea of service
functions.
The 1952 Conference unanimously approved the Board proposals and Bill's
projects. For Bill, this resulted in publication of:(a) "The Twelve Steps
and Twelve Traditions" in 1953; (b) “The Third Legacy Manual” in 1955
and
renamed “The AA Service Manual” in 1969; (c) The 2nd edition Big Book in
1955; (d) “AA Comes of Age” in 1957; (e) “The Twelve Concepts for
World
Service” in 1962; and (f) “The AA way of Life” in 1966 and later
renamed to
“As Bill Sees It” in 1975.
In regards to the 12&12, "Pass It On" (pg 356) states that "The book was an
immediate success." The 12&12 sold 29,567 copies in 1953 compared to Big
Book sales of 23,296 copies.
Both the 12&12 and "AA Comes of Age" were sold commercially through Harper &
Brothers with the consent of the General Service Conference (Traditions
notwithstanding). In Bob P's "Unofficial History of AA" it states that in
1952 "Bill asked to be released from routine duties in order to concentrate
on writing: updating the story section of the Big Book and writing a new
series of essays on the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions. The Literature
Committee reported ten projects had been completed, and ten more were
suggested by the Delegates. Volunteers couldn’t accomplish all this work,
so
the Conference approved employment of professional writers’ in AA (p
183)."
I'd like to know what source documents give the impression of "difficulties
in obtaining money." It doesn't seem to be historically accurate/factual.
Cheers
Arthur
- - - -
RESPONSE FROM GLENN C.
Arthur,
I cited Pass It On, pages 355-6.
If the New York AA office was rolling in money,
then why did they enter that commercial
agreement with Harper and Brothers over the
two editions of the Twelve Steps and Twelve
Traditions?
If they didn't need the money, and didn't HAVE
to do it in order to get the Twelve and Twelve
published at all, then that commercial profit-
making deal doesn't look very cricket to me.
Glenn
-----Original Message-----
From: Glenn Chesnut
Sent: Monday, May 04, 2009 2:25 PM
To: AAHistoryLovers group
Subject: Publishing the 24 Hour book and Little Red Book
> In 1952 to 53, he met even more difficulties in
> obtaining the money to publish the Twelve Steps
> and Twelve Traditions. Finally, in desperation,
> he entered into a deal with Harper and Brothers,
> a commercial publisher, where two editions would
> be published, one for AA members, and the other
> a commercial version (for fifty cents more per
> copy). By later standards, this would probably
> have been regarded as a breach of the Traditions,
> but it was the only way Bill could figure out
> to raise the money to print his new book.
> See Pass It On, pages 355-6.
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
++++Message 5677. . . . . . . . . . . . Re: the 24 Hour book and
spirituality vs. religion
From: Arthur S . . . . . . . . . . . . 5/7/2009 9:41:00 AM
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
In Bob P's "Non Approved AA History" manuscript he notes the following (pg
211) regarding the Twenty-Four Hours a Day book,:
"The history of AA literature is also told in the history of what was not
published. Several Conferences had to deal with the request that the
Twenty-Four Hours A Day book be adopted as AA literature, since it was
written by an AA member and was in widespread use in AA (It was copyrighted
and published by Hazelden and hence was not available. Also, being written
in specific religious language, it would be inappropriate.) ..." [Note: Bob
P wrote this in the mid-to-late 1980s]
The 1953, 1954 and 1972 Conferences faced the question of accepting
publication rights on the “Twenty-Four Hours a Day” book written by AA
member Richmond W.
The 1953 Conference postponed the matter to allow review prior to the 1954
Conference with the recommendation to: "Ask the Delegates to weigh this
question for submission to the 1954 Conference: Does the Conference feel it
should depart from its purely textbook program by printing non-textbook
literature such as the "24 Hour Book of meditation?"
The final 1954 Conference report states the following: "The Conference was
asked to consider the offer of the publisher who wished to give to AA
Publishing, Inc. publication rights to the booklet, 'Twenty-Four Hours a
Day.' A two-page letter from the publisher, favoring this proposal and
answering certain objections to the proposal, was read to the Conference.
The letter noted that current net profit from sales of the booklet is about
$5,300 annually. Requests that AA Publishing, Inc. undertake publication of
the booklet have been received from many areas, largely as the result of
suggestions by the present publisher, it was reported. Comment by the
Delegates indicated they felt it unwise to set a precedent in the case of
this booklet and expressed fear that AA Publishing 'would be flooded with
similar requests' if it did so. The Delegate from the State in which the
booklet is published said it was the consensus of his group and of his area
that the proposal not be approved. Following full discussion of the
proposal, the Conference adopted a resolution that publication rights to
'Twenty-Four Hours a Day' not be accepted and further asked that the
publisher be thanked for his offer."
The 1972 Conference Literature Committee recommended that: "The 24-Hour Book
not be confirmed as Conference-approved literature."
Cheers
Arthur
- - - -
RESPONSE FROM GLENN C.
Bob P.'s account is confused. At the time of
the 1953-54 discussion, the Twenty Four Hour
book was NOT being published by Hazelden.
It was being published by Richmond Walker himself
under the sponsorship of the Daytona Beach
AA Group.
The reasons given for New York not taking over
its publication at that time were (as you note
above):
(1) "fear that AA Publishing 'would be
flooded with similar requests' if it did so."
(2) From the wording of the question which the
1953 Conference put to the 1954 Conference,
it seems to have been a possible issue (to
them) that the Twenty Four Hour book was
"non-textbook literature."
What would that have meant in 1953?
When some folks tried to raise the issue again
in 1972 (a year after Bill W.'s death),
Bill P. is correct in saying that it was now
effectively a dead issue, since Hazelden now
owned the copyright, and would not be expected
to give it up.
Glenn
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
++++Message 5678. . . . . . . . . . . . Re: the 24 Hour book and
spirituality vs. religion
From: Glenn Chesnut . . . . . . . . . . . . 5/8/2009 4:04:00 PM
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
From: "trysh travis"
(trysh.travis at gmail.com)
I'd like to politely disagree about the role
religion played in the Conference decision not
to approve *24 Hours a Day.* I have seen
Richmond Walker's correspondence with the GSO
and Literature Committee members on this matter
at the Archives in New York, and it is fairly
clear there that religiosity was an issue.
In a letter to O.K.P. dated 18 Feb. 1954,
Walker wrote angrily about the rebuff he'd
received from the Conference. Describing the
official response to the proposal that "AA
Publishing should accept the publication
rights to the book *24 Hours a Day,*" Walker
claimed that "favoring this proposal, the
statement is made: 'The Book is accepted and
used by a number of AAs who say they find it
helpful.'" In opposing this proposal, two
statements are made. One is, 'If a precedent
is set, through acceptance of this offer, how
would the movement be able to deal with the
problem of many other booklets, for which
Conference approval would undoubtedly be
sought?....' The 2nd Statement is 'Since the
booklet is regarded by some as having religious
overtones, how could the movement justify its
entrance into a field of publishing in which
misinterpretation and misunderstanding could
arise?'"
After noting somewhat snippily that *24 Hours*
is a "book," not a "booklet," Walker goes on to
respond to what must have been a delegate's
or a committee's "statements" at some length:
"This book carefully refrains from any mention
of religion, and it has no more 'religious
overtones' than the Big Book. It is largely
spiritual and inspirational, but so is the
book 'Alcoholics Anonymous.' ... There is no
mention of religion in the whole book, for
instance, the word 'Christ' or 'Jesus' is
never mentioned, nor is it ever advised that
we go to church. Where then, is the 'religion'?
... we have a spiritual program" why try to
deny it? ... I do not think that either of
these statements opposing the proposal have
been fairly stated, nor do I think that they
have any basis in fact."
(RW to OKP, Box 73, Folder C.)
We lack a "smoking gun" where someone explicitly
states "AAWSO does not want to take over
publication of the book because it is too
religious," but the content of this letter
makes it pretty clear, I think, that Walker
got that message.
Further, in a response to an "Ask-It Basket"
question at the 1968 Conference, "Why can't we
have a 24-Hour book printed by G.S.O.?" the
statement was made that "The 'Twenty-Four Hours
a Day' book was offered to A.A.W.S. some years
ago. The Conference then felt it was too
spiritually or religiously oriented. A.A.W.S.
would be reluctant to put out a similar book.
since it has no wish to compete with this book.
"The A.A. Way of Life' seems to serve the
same need." (Conference Report 1968, p. 27).
I think it is important to note this evidence
of uneasiness with Walker's religiosity. The
logistical and procedural reasons the Conference
had for declining the book were real, but so
was a skittishness about the book's palpable
Christian overtones.
I say they are "palpable" because while Walker
is correct that Christ, Jesus, and church are
never mentioned in *24 Hours,* it routinely
alludes to and quotes from the Christian Bible.
(I'm just skimming through my copy at random
here .... Quote from St. Paul, 26 April;
references to parable of the Prodigal Son,
12-13 March; quote from Mark 13:13, "he that
endureth to the end, the same shall be saved,"
19 Feb, etc.) Walker is clearly drawing on
many other spiritual sources-- including, as
Glenn has pointed out elsewhere, the "New
Thought" beliefs he probably developed in the
Emmanuel Movement in Boston. Even if it
doesn't dominate the book, however, there is
a clear pattern of Christian imagery and
language present, enough that Walker's claim
that "there is no mention of religion" seems
a bit naive, and also enough, I think, so that
reasonable people might find the book too
"religious."
I discuss why the Conference might've been
particularly concerned about this issue in the
mid-1950s in my forthcoming book (which, as
some of you know, I have been working on for
MANY 24 hours!). We're still a few months
away from the publication date, but you can
get a preview of the finished product here:
http://www.uncpress.unc.edu/browse/book_detail?title_id=1647.
Trysh T.
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
++++Message 5679. . . . . . . . . . . . Re: the 24 Hour book and
spirituality vs. religion
From: rick tompkins . . . . . . . . . . . . 5/6/2009 8:44:00 PM
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
Thank you, Glenn, for the reports on the early AA use of the Upper Room
periodical from the United Methodist Church and the phenomenal demand for
the Twenty-Four Hours A Day book.
"The Upper Room" was always available, for free or with a small-sum mailed
subscription, in the Narthex (the 'lobby') of my home Methodist Church and
I'm sure it's made available there today.
It can still inspire me, but not in the manner that Twenty-Four Hours A Day
led me in my early sobriety.
AAWS' Daily Reflections wasn't available until 1990 and the "24 Hours Book"
was the second reading at all of the Groups I attended, and its use remains
widespread here in Illinois.
It's an available book printed nearby in Minnesota and I wonder if that's
one reason for its prevalence in the Midwest.there are still Steering
Committee discussions on which daily book to read at Group meetings and I'm
sure that when AAWS assembles the second Daily Reflections (as currently
proposed) there'll be a new round of more discussions.
The content of the 24 Hours book's format can still find its way into an AA
meeting, "can we hear the AA Thought For the Day?" and all three sections
are normally read. And, it reminds the group of the actual calendar date, to
boot, LOL.
Apart from the "thought," the "meditation," and the ending 'question' the
"Meditation For the Day" comes directly from the Oxford Group movement's use
of God Calling by Two Listeners (A.H. Russell, Editor). Richmond W. either
excerpted verbatim or rewrote many of the same daily messages from God
Calling, bringing it home to AA recovery and spiritual growth.
I wonder if he was ever approached by Oxford Groupers (or Moral Re-Armament
members) on his use of the older "Two Listeners" work. Was he accused of
being "not maximum" or worse? Perhaps by the time Richmond finished his
draft in the early 1950s, God Calling was an historically obscure item.
The "Two Listeners" daily meditations are still in print by a few publishers
and I was fortunate to find a used copy years ago.
In the 24 Hours book, some of the Meditations follow directly from the
Thought and others seem completely disjointed from the lead Thought, but the
textual 'dance with the power of God' reinforced my dwindled Faith early on.
I like to think that Richmond's work was assembled and written as a
recovered AA's resource to find and rediscover faith in the Trinity of an
almighty God.
I chose my most effective concept of a Higher Power as the workings of the
Holy Spirit and have found others who found the same HP along the way. My
belief in the "Son" is ultimately an AA outside issue but it's an 'inside
job' for this ex-drunk!
The apostle Paul writes that the 'worldly wisdom is not God's wisdom.' My
path of recovery led me full circle to my belief in "the peace of God that
surpasses all understanding" and I am a better person for it. Richmond W.'s
effort took the wheel for a while on that path.
With serenity to all,
Rick, Illinois
On a side note, when Works Publishing and/or A.A. Publishing declined taking
on the responsibilities of publishing the 24 Hours book, the Little Red
Book, or any other suggestions, it really had no choice---the funding wasn't
available, period. Hence, the dual-publishing of the 1953 12+12 with Harper
Brothers helped its distribution, along with the same dual publishing of the
1957 AA Comes of Age with Harper's.
Even the fledgling GSO in England politely, in 1954, declined to publish the
12+12 in the UK for lack of funds. ---R.
- - - -
FROM GLENN C.
Rich had gotten sober once for two and a half years
(1939-1941) in the Oxford Group, but then he went
back to drinking again.
From 1941 to May of 1942, Rich was not only back to drinking again, he was
putting away so much alcohol that he had to be hospitalized several times,
lying
there suffering through the D.T.'s. But still he could not stop. "I was
lying
in a hospital when my wife sent a lawyer to tell me she did not want me
around
any longer. In this she was certainly justified -- I was of no use as a
husband
or father to my children." He and Agnes had been married about nineteen
years at
the time. He was forty-nine years old, and everything was now destroyed. It
was
clear to one and all that he was a hopeless alcoholic, and as he said in his
lead, "my wife rightly refused to put up with it any longer."
So he was very definitely "not maximum"!
Finally, in May 1942, he joined the newly founded AA group
in Boston, and never drank again. And also got back with his wife and family
again.
He says at the beginning of the Twenty Four Hour
book that he obtained permission from Dodd, Mead
and Company for adapting material from "God Calling
by Two Listeners" for use in the fine print section
at the bottom of each page.
Glenn C.
A SHORT BIOGRAPHY OF RICHMOND WALKER:
http://hindsfoot.org/rwfla1.html
http://hindsfoot.org/RWfla2.html
http://hindsfoot.org/RWfla3.html
(based on his memoirs plus some of the
autobiographical passages in the Twenty
Four Hour book)
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
++++Message 5680. . . . . . . . . . . . Re: the 24 Hour book and
spirituality vs. religion
From: Lee Nickerson . . . . . . . . . . . . 5/7/2009 8:30:00 PM
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
I remember a discussion I had with Frank M. about the 24 hour book. I came
away
thinking that the only reason that AA did not conference-approve this book
was
because it would set a precedent other than AA publishing and creating their
own
literature. It seems that most AAs I know are self-fancied writers and if
there
was a part of the Conference that approved any writing that was submitted,
there
would probably have to be a separate office somewhere just to handle that
load.
I don't see or hear about the 24 hour Book much in my area but it was the
top
recommended reading when I got sober. I am satisfied with the belief that if
something is not conference-approved, it is not conference-non approved. We
can
only examine and approve so much.
- - - -
From: "John Schram"
(lasenby327 at surfree.com)
I too had heard the the Walker book Twenty-Four
Hours a Day was turned down due to meditation and
prayer section. I had heard this came from book
"God Calling" by A J Russell.
John Schram Corona del Mar, Calif.
- - - -
From: James Flynn
(jdf10487 at yahoo.com)
I thought the Daily Reflections book was written
so that AA members could have a Daily Meditations
book that was conference approved. When I got
sober in 1987 it was suggested to me (by a
sponsor) that I get a 24 hour a day book, a Big
Book, the 12 &12, Living Sober, the Little
Green Book and the Little Red Book. This was
to be my "spiritual stash."
Apparently this was standard operating procedure
in some parts of the country before the Daily
Reflections book was published. I say this
because I have corresponded with many other
people in AA who were given similiar directions
by their sponsors.
Later it seemed that there was some anti-hazelden,
anti-treatment sentiments going around the
program and people stopped advocating the use
of Hazelden publications and chips. Hazelden
or "Hazelnut" as some critics liked to call it,
became the object of derision. Evidently this
Dostları ilə paylaş: |