Interview of Ken B. by Dick B. on
September 20, 2012
By Dick B.
© 2012 Anonymous. All
rights reserved
You can hear the Ken B. interview right now
You may hear Dick B.
interview Ken B. about Dick B. and Ken B.'s new title, God, His Son Jesus
Christ & the Bible in Early A.A.: The Long-Overlooked Personal Stories in
the First Edition of Alcoholics Anonymous (Kihei, HI: Paradise Research
Publications, Inc., 2012), on the September 21, 2012, episode of the
"Christian Recovery Radio with Dick B." show here:
http://goo.gl/VLveO
or here:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/christian-recovery-radio-with-dickb/2012/09/21/dick-b-interviews-ken-b-about-the-book-on-the-1st-ed-stories
Episodes of the "Christian Recovery Radio with Dick B." show
are archived at:
www.ChristianRecoveryRadio.com
______________________________________________________________________________
Part One of Synopsis of Interview – Introducing Ken B.’s Role in our
Work and New Book
[Dick B.’s Radio
Introduction of the September 21 Interview of Ken B.]
My son Ken B. spoke about our important new book we just
published. It is by Dick B. and Ken B., and its title is God, His Son Jesus Christ & the Bible in Early A.A.: The
Long-Overlooked Personal Stories in the First Edition of Alcoholics Anonymous,
published by Paradise Research Publications, Inc., of Kihei, Hawaii.
Please review Part Two of this Synopsis – which summarizes
Ken’s message on the air.
Our new book stems from research my son Ken and I did in
preparing an Introduction Dover Publications asked me to write for its recently-published
book, Alcoholics Anonymous: The Original
1939 Edition. At Dover’s request, the Introduction featured and focused on
the importance of the 29 personal stories in the first edition, 26 of which
were not included in the current (fourth) edition.
As Ken and I carefully studied the first edition, we both
had our eyes opened to a great dichotomy in that edition. On the one hand, the
first section of the first edition featured what Bill Wilson called on page 162
of Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age,
“the new version of the program” centered on the Twelve Steps. On the other
hand, the “Personal Stories” section in the first edition contained
testimonials by A.A. pioneers in which they described how they had practiced
the original Akron “Christian fellowship” program.
This meant that Bill was talking about a new program of 12
Steps while the pioneers were talking about the program they had practiced—one
in which there was no Big Book, and there were no Twelve Steps.
Our new book, God, His
Son Jesus Christ & the Bible in Early A.A., covers three major points
about the great loss to the recovery movement when 22 of the 29 personal
stories in the first edition were not included in the second and following
editions of the Big Book, and four more of those stories were not included in
the fourth edition.
First, having the first edition stories available again
makes it possible for today’s readers to learn what the highly-successful A.A.
pioneers really did in the early days. Second, it brings back into view the
principles and practices of the “old-school” Akron program that produced the
75% success rate A.A. claimed for the period between June 1935 (when Dr. Bob
took his last drink) and April 10, 1939 (when the Big Book was published). Third,
it highlights the great role that God, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Bible have
played in the whole recovery movement and can play today.
In addition, our new book discusses in detail the strange
insertion in the first edition of an alleged statement by Ebby Thacher to Bill that
Bill could choose his own conception of God.
Ken holds a B.A. degree from the University of California at
Berkeley in Rhetoric. He also holds an M.A. degree in Fundamentals of Oral
Communication from San Francisco State University. He has been intensely
involved in Bible study, research, and sources since age 17. He has taught
classes on the Bible. He has conducted many home Bible fellowships for years.
And, he has worked by my side, ever since I got sober in 1986, helping me in my
spiritual recovery by sharing with me the power and love of God, and later by teaching
Bible classes to the men and women I found in Alcoholics Anonymous who wanted
God’s help in their recovery, who believed in God, and who were willing to
follow the precepts of “old-school” A.A. in advancing their sobriety and
attaining new lives in Christ.
As my interest in A.A. history and the Christian Recovery
Movement grew, Ken more and more became my right hand man in providing
suggestions, research, editing, corrections, and all aspects of our publishing
work in print, on radio, on video, and on the Internet. Ken is married and is
also an ordained Christian minister.
Ken has had many years of experience in the computer sales
industry and later in the ethanol industry.
He speaks today from long experience helping drunks, along
with me, in much the same way that Dr. Bob’s wife Anne, Bob’s friend Henrietta
Seiberling, and the couple—T. Henry and Clarace Williams—helped Bill Wilson and
particularly Dr. Bob develop the highly-successful, original A.A. program. And
now – in Part Two, see a summary of Ken’s interview remarks..
dickb@dickb.com
Gloria
Deo
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