Alcoholics Anonymous and Sin
Dick B.
© 2011 Anonymous. All rights reserved
Part One
How the Major Sources of Alcoholics Anonymous Spoke about Sin
There is no “theological” discussion here of “sin” or the
various kinds of sin. But the host of one of our broadcasts asked me to discuss
where “sin” had been in the organizations that fathered A.A., and what had
happened to it. Therefore, this article reviews how large a role the subject of
sin—and therefore Jesus Christ—played in the programs that impacted upon early
A.A. and its Christian Fellowship, as well as its later 1939 12-Step program.
Alcoholics Anonymous History, Its Major Sources, and Sin
The Bible:
Dr. Bob said the A.A. old-timers believed the answers to all
their problems were in the Bible; that the parts considered absolutely
essential were the Book of James, Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, and 1 Corinthians
13; and that the basic ideas of A.A. came from their study and effort in the
Bible. The Co-Founders of Alcoholics
Anonymous: Biographical Sketches Their Last Major Talks (NY: Alcoholics
Anonymous World Services, Inc., 1972 1975), 13-14.
In Matthew
1:20-21, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying,
among other things, that his wife
Mary “shall bring forth a son and thou shalt call his
name JESUS: for he shall save his
people from their sins.”
3 John 4:4, 8: “Whosoever
committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the
law. . . . He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the
beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might
destroy the works of the devil.”
Romans 6:6-9: “Knowing this, that
our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed,
that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin.
Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.
Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no
more dominion over him. For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that
he liveth, he liveth unto God. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead
indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin
therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
1 Timothy 1:16 “This is a faithful
saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to
save sinners; of whom I am chief.
The YMCA Lay Brethren
and the “Great Awakening of 1875 in St.
Johnsbury , Vermont
“Young Men’s
Christian Associations had their origin in a desire to reach and save
unconverted young men through the agency of converted men of the same age and
class. . . . It is this blessed work of our Associations that has developed lay
preachers more and Moore. I can remember when our cause had very few Moores to preach Christ upon the platform, in the street
and often in the pulpit. . . there are now many Taggarts and Moores Vermont
(Kihei , HI
“The Y.M.C.A. can hardly be called a sister of the society
[Christian Endeavor]. . . . the relationship between the Y.M.C.A. and the
Society of Christian Endeavor has always been considered a family relationship.
. . . But. . . they can in many ways mutually aid one another; as the
receptions which are given by the associations to the societies, and by the
societies to the associations have proved. Some of the best workers among the
secretaries of the Y.M.C.A. have been trained in the Christian Endeavor Society
for their future work, and some of the most earnest and eloquent speakers at
Endeavor conventions have been leading Y.M.C.A. workers.” Dr. Bob of Alcoholics Anonymous, 171.
The Great Evangelists
such as Dwight Moody, Ira Sankey, and F. B. Meyer:
I will dwell on Evangelist F. B. Meyer because he had close ties to so many of the people and
organizations which were to impact on A.A. at a later date. In Bob Holman’s
F. B. Meyer: If I Had a Hundred Lives
(Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications, Ltd., 2007), there is a
report of Meyer’s speaking at a large meeting with General William Booth,
founder of the Salvation Army. (195). He met Frank Buchman, Founder of the Oxford Group; and Meyer’s books,
especially The Secret of Guidance,
much influenced Buchman (155). Buchman was especially struck by the words of
John 7:17—which became the favorite
verse of Rev. Samuel M. Shoemaker, Jr., a chief lieutenant of Frank Buchman’s
in America Christ
Church Christ Church
Dwight L. Moody and F. B. Meyer were close friends and
associates in Christian ministry for many years. In the early 1870’s, Meyer met American Evangelist Dwight L.
Moody and his partner, the gospel singer Ira Sankey. F. B. Meyer worked
with Moody and Sankey in the streets. He spoke much of sin. In The Secret of Guidance (Chicago: Moody
Publishers, 1896), 7, 15, “Meyer was
part of the Higher Life movement in England
that believers could experience victory over sin in the here
and now.” (16). Speaking of “Permitting Some Known Evil,” Meyer wrote: Does
your will refuse to relinquish a practice or habit that is alien to the will of
God? Do you permit some secret sin to have its unhindered way in the house of
your life? Do your affections roam unrestrained after forbidden object.” (39).
“Sin is that which is always and everywhere wrong.” “(40). “Surely all the
guilt and penalty of sin were laid on Jesus, and He put them away forever.”
(89) “It is through the blood of His Cross.that sinners are made near. In His
death He not only revealed the tender love of God, but He put away our sins and
wove for us those garments of stainless beauty in which we are gladly welcomed
into the inner presence chamber of the King.” (108)
In 1903, F. B. Meyer
wrote an Introduction to Down in Water
Street, pp. 5-7. in which he spoke of his dear friend S.
H. Hadley, and extolled the importance
and virtues of the Water Street Mission, Jerry McAuley, and S. H. Hadley
(see below)
The Salvation Army
and General William Booth:
Here are some quotes from the Salvation Army on overcoming
sin and the problem of drunkenness.
“Poor S was in despair [he had been drunk a whole day]. The
Captain visited him and in the morning prayed and talked with him for nearly
two hours. He persisted there was no mercy for him. After a long struggle,
however, hope sprung up. He fell on his knees, confessed his sins, and obtained
forgiveness. . . . He now has a happy family, a comfortable home, and has been
the means of leading numbers of other slaves of sin to the Saviour and to a
truly happy life.
“She became a terror to all the neighborhood. . . . But our
Open Air meetings attracted her. She came back to the Barracks, got saved, and
was delivered from her love of drink and sin.
“The Army speaks much after the fashion of the old Prophet
or Apostle to each individual about his or her sin and duty thus bringing to
bear on each heart and conscience the light and power from heaven by which
alone the world can be transformed.” It speaks of the man who last night was
drunk in a London Paris
Harold Begbie’s book, Twice
Born Men, recounted the success of the Salvation Army workers in the slums
of London where Army workers reached out to drunks and derelicts, offered them
salvation and the Bible, and when they were redeemed, urged them to join “God’s
Army.” This book was highly popular in the Oxford Group and was widely read by
early AAs.
The Young People’s
Society of Christian Endeavor (in which Dr. Bob was active)”
The following are two articles by Dr. Clark, founder of
Christian Endeavor:
(1) “Practicing the presence of God” It involves going away
by one’s self. It involves a daily quiet hour with God. It involves a putting
away of all known sin. It involves a searching of the heart for the rebellious
life-guard who would keep some of the apartments of the soul closed to the
entrance of the King.
(2) “July 9: Confess, repent, forsake sin, and the darkness
will flee away, and God’s light will flood your soul” Dick B. and Ken B., Dr. Bob of Alcoholics Anonymous, 173.
‘What is meant by being a Christian? Accepting Christ openly as one’s Saviour
from sin and the Master of one’s life.” Dr.
Bob of Alcoholics Anonymous, 183.
Young Men’s Christian
Association (of which Dr. Bob’s father and also Bill Wilson were presidents,
and Oxford Group leaders Frank Buchman and Sam Shoemaker had been secretaroes):
“Young Men’s Christian Assocations had their origin in a
desire to reach and save unconverted young men through the agency of converted
men of the same age and class. This was the thought in the mind of George
Williams when, in 1874, in the City of London Vermont Burton
Academy in Manchester , Vermont
Another strong tie to the YMCA and A.A. can be found in the
fact that Oxford Group Founder Dr. Frank N.D. Buchman had been a YMCA Secretary
in Pennsylvania Princeton
Rescue Missions where Jerry McAuley and Samuel H. Hadley were
so successful and where, years later, Ebby Thacher and Bill Wilson each made
decisions for Jesus Christ at the Calvary Mission and were reborn.
From prison, Jerry McAuley was converted. In the Bible, he
found “that Jesus died for sinners; and the Holy Spirit showed him he was a
sinner.” He prayed, the “light of Heaven shone in his darkened cell, and the
blessed Saviour appeared and told him that his sins were forgiven.” Later, at
his rescue mission, he gave the invitation: “Is there one man here who would
like to come to Christ?” Later, as he was about to be locked up, he said “the
dear Saviour . . . came to me in the saloon . . . and said: “Pray.” I did fall
on my knees on that stone floor, and said: “God be merciful to me, a sinner.” His
wife, Mrs. McAuley prayed fervently: “Dear Saviour, I was a drunkard down in Cherry Hill fourteen years ago. You saved me. Save these
poor drunkards, for Jesus’ sake.” Samuel
H; Hadley, Down in Water Street
S. H. Hadley later became Superintendent of McAuley’s Water Street Mission Mission converts. Their help, their only help, he
insisted, was God. Anything else would fail them. They must pray. They must
read their Bibles. They must maintain constant communion with Jesus. They must
be deeply religious. They must rest with absolute faith on the promises of God.
. . . He had no place for theories in his Mission Water Street
The Oxford Group,
with which both Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob were associated:
In Foundations for
Faith, 2d ed. compiled by Harry J. Almond (London: Grosvenor Books, 1980),
9-29: Frank Buchman put it this way: “Sin is the disease (the problem). Jesus
Christ is cure (the solution). And the result is a miracle.”
In H. A. Walter, Soul
Surgery (New Britain, CT: Record Press, 1921), Walter states: “. . . as Mr.
Buchman puts the matter in the simplest terms, only three essential factors are
involved in conversion—Sin, Jesus Christ, and (the result) a Miracle.” (pp.
127-28)
Long-time Oxford Group activist and employee T. Willard
Hunter wrote this: “Sin was big with Frank Buhcman. He believed that sin was
the fatal factor that stood in the way. Sin was anything that stood between a
person and another person—or between that person and Gd. He believed that sin
was at the root of a person’s difficulties or of any of the world’s problems.”
T. Willard Hunter, World Changing Through
Life Changing: The Frank Buchman Revolution The Record and The Promise (Claremont , CA : Regina
Rev. Samuel M.
Shoemaker, Jr., who taught Bill Wilson the principles of the 12 Steps:
In his early book, Realizing
Religion, (NY: Association Press, 1929), in his chapter titled “The Fact of
Sin,” Shoemaker wrote:
“Sin alone is capable only of evil; but the human mind,
however steeped in it, once it becomes awake to its own condition is capable of
something better. We can repent. . . In the words of the old children’s hymn;
Repentance
is to leave
The sin we
loved before
And show
that we in earnest grieve
By doing it
no more., pp. 18-19
‘To realize the meaning of sin in feeling and in thought is
not the mark of a sick soul, but rather the sign of return to spiritual health.”
p. 21.
In his book Twice-Born
Ministers (NY: Fleming H. Revell, 1929), 40-41, Shoemaker wrote much about
sin, and said this: “Christianity does not look on sin as merely selfishness:
sin is disobedience of God, the child’s refusal to listen to the Father. Sin is
not mixing up the relationships between men only, it is estrangement of lives
from God.
Part Two will cover the places in early A.A. where sin was discussed
and covered, and also what happened to “sin” in A.A. thereafter.
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