Twelve
Traditions
Main
article: Twelve Traditions
The
Twelve Traditions accompany the Twelve
Steps. The Traditions provide guidelines for
group governance. They were developed in AA
in order to help resolve conflicts in the
areas of publicity, religion and finances.
Most twelve-step fellowships have adopted
these principles for their structural
governance. The Twelve Traditions of
Alcoholics Anonymous are as follows.
- Our
common welfare should come first;
personal recovery depends upon AA unity.
- For
our group purpose there is but one
ultimate authority—a loving God as He
may express Himself in our group
conscience. Our leaders are but trusted
servants; they do not govern.
- The
only requirement for AA membership is a
desire to stop drinking.
- Each
group should be autonomous except in
matters affecting other groups or AA as
a whole.
- Each
group has but one primary purpose—to
carry its message to the alcoholic who
still suffers.
- An
AA group ought never endorse, finance,
or lend the AA name to any related
facility or outside enterprise, lest
problems of money, property, and
prestige divert us from our primary
purpose.
- Every
AA group ought to be fully
self-supporting, declining outside
contributions.
- Alcoholics
Anonymous should remain forever
non-professional, but our service
centers may employ special workers.
- AA,
as such, ought never be organized; but
we may create service boards or
committees directly responsible to those
they serve.
- Alcoholics
Anonymous has no opinion on outside
issues; hence the AA name ought never be
drawn into public controversy.
- Our
public relations policy is based on
attraction rather than promotion; we
need always maintain personal anonymity
at the level of press, radio, and films.
- Anonymity
is the spiritual foundation of all our
traditions, ever reminding us to place
principles before personalities.
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