8th Month 8th Tradition

[kremjk]

Our A.A. experience has taught us that:

8.) Alcoholics Anonymous should remain forever non-professional, but our service centers may employ special workers. (short form, pg. 562 4th Ed.)

8.) Alcoholics Anonymous should remain forever non-professional. We define professionalism as the occupation of counseling alcoholics for fees or hire. But we may employ alcoholics where they are going to perform those services for which we may otherwise have to engage nonalcoholics. Such special services may be well recompensed. But our usual A.A. "12th Step" work is never to be paid for. (long form, pg. 564-565 4th Ed.)

? Copyright 2007 Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.
All Right Reserved

[samf]

Thank goodness AA twelveth step work isn't monetarily compensated!! I'd have thought it was thier angle and motive!

They told me they did what they did to stay sober themselves. They didn't want a thing from me. How wild was that?

Thanks, Jim!!

Sam

[kremjk]

We have begun a study of the book "AA Comes of Age" at my home group. It is Bill W's chronicle of the early history of AA up to and including the 1955 International AA conference in St Louis, Mo.

Bill credits the many professional people, doctors, clergy, business profesionals, writers and editors, etc. who were drawn together to enable Alcoholics Anonymous to begin and then to grow.

AA is 'grass roots' in it's practice but without the professionals that were then involved, and are yet today involved at AA's General Service Office, the carrying of the AA message out from Akron Ohio and New York to the rest of the world would not have happened as it did.

I am grateful for all the Non Alcoholic Trustees and Managers of GSO throughout the years who put in their talents and service to keeping our communications and our approved literature flowing. And I'm glad for all the professionals in the communities that continue to refer new people to AA for recovery.

I grateful that I have been trusted and welcomed into jails and hospitals and treatment centers and permitted to share AA's grassroots message with the clients of the doctors and counselors there.

AA is respected and much of it's integrity is due to those professionals who help us.

jim k