Tradition Four

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AA Tradition Four

"Each group should be autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or A.A. as a whole."


AUTONOMY is a ten-dollar word. But in relation to us, it means very simply that every A.A. group can manage its affairs exactly as it pleases, except when A.A. as a whole is threatened. Comes now the same question raised in Tradition One. Isn't such liberty foolishly dangerous?

Over the years, every conceivable deviation from our Twelve Steps and Traditions has been tried. That was sure to be, since we are so largely a band of ego-driven individualists. Children of chaos, we have defiantly played with every brand of fire, only to emerge unharmed and, we think, wiser. These very deviations created a vast process of trial and error which, under the grace of God, has brought us to where we stand today.

When A.A.'s Traditions were first published, in 1946, we had become sure that an A.A. group could stand almost any amount of battering. We saw that the group, exactly like the individual, must eventually conform to whatever tested principles would guarantee survival. We had discovered that there was perfect safety in the process of trial and error. So confident of this had we become that the original statement of A.A. tradition carried this significant sentence: "Any two or three alcoholics gathered together for sobriety may call themselves an A.A. group provided that as a group they have no other affiliation."

This meant, of course, that we had been given the courage to declare each A.A. group an individual entity, strictly rely on its own conscience as a guide to action. In charting this enormous expanse of freedom, we found it necessary to post only two storm signals: A group ought not do anything which would greatly injure A.A. as a whole, nor ought it affiliate itself with anything or anybody else. There would be real danger should we commence to call some groups "wet," others "dry," still others "Republican" or "Communist," and yet others "Catholic" or "Protestant." The A.A. group would have to stick to its course or be hopelessly lost. Sobriety had to be its sole objective. In all other respects there was perfect freedom of will and action. Every group had the right to be wrong.

When A.A. was still young, lots of eager groups were forming. In a town we'll call Middleton, a real crackerjack had started up. The townspeople were as hot as firecrackers about it. Stargazing, the elders dreamed of innovations. They figured the town needed a great big alcoholic center, a kind of pilot plant A.A. groups could duplicate everywhere. Beginning on the ground floor there would be a club; in the second story they would sober up drunks and hand them currency for the back debts; the third deck would house and educational project - quite controversial, of course. In imagination the gleaming center was to go up several stories more, but three would do for a start. This would all take a lot of money - other people's money. Believe it or not, wealthy townsfolk bought the idea.

There were, though, a few conservative dissenters among the alcoholics. the wrote the Foundation*, A.A.'s headquarters in New York, wanting to know about this sort of streamlining. They understood that the elders, just to nail things down good, were about to apply to the Foundation for a charter. These few were disturbed and skeptical.

Of course, there was a promoter in the deal - a super-promoter. By his eloquence he allayed all fears, despite advice from the Foundation that it could issue no charter, and that ventures which mixed an A.A. group with medication and education had come to sticky ends elsewhere. To make things safer, the promoter organized three corporations and became president of them all. Freshly painted, the new center shone. The warmth of it all spread through the town. Soon things began to hum. to insure foolproof, continuous operation, sixty-one rules and regulations were adopted.

But alas, this bright scene was not long in darkening. confusion replaced serenity. It was found that some drunks yearned for education, but doubted if they were alcoholics. The personality defects of others could be cured maybe with a loan. Some were club-minded, but it was just a question of taking care of the lonely heart. Sometimes the swarming applicants would go for all three floors. Some would start at the top and come through to the bottom, becoming club members; others started in the club, pitched a binge, were hospitalized, then graduated to education on the third floor. It was a beehive of activity, all right, but unlike a beehive, it was confusion compounded. An A.A. group, as such, simply couldn't handle this sort of project. All too late that was discovered. Then came the inevitable explosion - something like that day the boiler burst in Wombley's Clapboard Factory. A chill chokedamp of fear and frustration fell over the group.

When that lifted, a wonderful thing had happened. The head promoter wrote the Foundation office. He said he wished he'd paid attention to A.A. experience. Then he did something else that was to become an A.A. classic. It all went on a little card about golf-score size. The cover read: "Middleton Group #1. Rule #62." Once the card was unfolded, a single pungent sentence leaped to the eye: "Don't take yourself too **** seriously."

Thus it was that under Tradition Four an A.A. group had exercised its right to be wrong. Moreover, it had performed a great service for Alcoholics Anonymous, because it had been humbly willing to apply the lessons it learned. It had picked itself up with a laugh and gone on to better things. Even the chief architect, standing in the ruins of his dream, could laugh at himself - and that is the very acme of humility.

*In 1954, the name of the Alcoholic Foundation, Inc., was changed to the General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous, Inc., and the Foundation office is now the General Service Office.

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NA TRADITION FOUR

"Each group should be autonomous, except in matters affecting other groups or NA as a whole."


For the purpose of this tradition, “autonomy” can be thought of as a group’s right to independence and self-government - with respect to its own affairs. Just as there is no human authority to govern our membership, neither is there a bureaucracy to supervise our groups. Group autonomy is an extension of the freedoms offered us in NA. The Twelve Steps help us gain freedom from the horrors of our addiction, the perils of our past, and the defects of our character. Autonomy, united with other traditions, helps us maintain our freedoms of membership and expression, collective diversity, and spiritual independence.

The flexibility that is inherent in the autonomy we speak of in this Tradition is very important. It allows for innumerable variations in format, service opportunities, etc. so that every addict can feel comfortable in finding a home group. The important thing is that the NA message and the atmosphere of recovery be provided.

One of the privileges of having a home group is assisting with the decisions that concern the group. We are able to use our creative energy to serve. For example, we can choose our formats, our literature and our trusted servants. We are part of, depended on, and valued members. The Fourth Tradition ensures that we respect our fellowship as a whole, in order to keep a clear message of recovery. We choose our formats any way we want them, keeping in language conducive to recovery in the NA fellowship. Sharing celebrations of recovery in the NA fellowship being concise not to affiliate. We can choose our trusted servants and we can even write how we want our trusted servants to carry our conscience. We can print our own literature, respecting our seventh tradition while keeping in mind our literature is approved and we should not change the wording or context. We are able to form our groups with our newly found freedom. We become one of the constants in the newcomer’s eyes. We surrender to group conscience and the principle of the Fourth Tradition in unity with NA as a whole.

Each group is self-governing and periodically chooses members to become trusted servants. It is the responsibility of a group to carry the message of recovery to the still suffering addict. It is the responsibility of a group member to support, not only physically, but also spiritually and emotionally. If we ware instruments of God's will, and God is present in our group conscience, then why should we not support our group not only by placing money in the basket, but by getting involved in the affairs of the group.


So long as we continue to rely on the power of a loving God to influence our decisions and their outcomes, we need not establish any codes of conduct for either our groups or our members. This is where the spiritual conscience of a group becomes indispensable. Group conscience authenticates true autonomy, and autonomy works most efficiently when this principle is inclusive to the spirit of our collective Steps and Traditions. Experience has shown us that when adversity strikes a group, and our focus is placed on the solution of our Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, the problems solve themselves. In this way, we express our faith in NA as a self-correcting program.

Personal preference must never be allowed to interfere with group conscience or what is good for the group as a whole. We must examine our personal preferences to see where they are coming from. Usually it is a matter of ego and therefore must be put aside. While we have a right to our feelings and our expression of those feelings, it is one of the great principles that we do not impose our will on others, depriving them of their say in the matter of their lives. Integrity is a matter of doing the right thing and standing up for the Traditions of NA regardless of personal preferences. Integrity is something that we cannot allow to be compromised.

Just as group autonomy does not justify a disregard for other Traditions, neither does it justify retaliation. If members think a group has deviated, it is imperative that we understand that each group has the right to be wrong. If our Traditions were enforceable, they would no longer say we “ought,” they would say you “must.” There are no musts in NA, in any absolute sense of the word. Even our Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions are only suggestions that neither the individual nor the group must strictly adhere too.

Many have argued that this philosophy may spell disaster for both the group and even NA as a whole, but they are later astonished when this was not the case. Though some groups have strayed from NA tradition over time, once it begins to affect their members’ personal recovery or NA as a whole, either the group will wither and die, or group opinion will snap it back in line. Even in such a case, a groups’ autonomy is held inviolate.

“So then,” you might ask, “can a group decide to do absolutely anything they please?” The answer is, restrictively, “Yes, as long as it is in respect to its own affairs.” There is only one exception to the near unlimited liberty afforded a group through our tradition of autonomy. The exception is, that their liberty may not be exercised at the expense of severe consequences to any other groups or NA as a whole. It is for this reason that we have developed a service structure encompassing the principle of consultation. Such consultation will often consist of a discussion encompassing all involved, in order to solicit other opinions and reach a fellowship conscience, a conscience that supports both our unity and our primary purpose.

Tradition Four tells me that each group has some mobility within their own group as long as no Traditions are broken. Certain groups and members wish to conduct meetings with different formats. As a long as our primary purpose is not compromised, this is fine. With this in mind, each group should have their GSR attend Area Service so that the group is kept well informed as to what is happening within the next level of service. There are a great variety of meetings within the fellowship: Open discussion, speaker discussion, candlelight meetings, etc. This gives us the option in many areas to choose a different type of meeting on any given night. However, no matter where we go to an NA meeting, the message is always the same. Most of us, as addicts, need this type of stability in our lives.
It is part of our complete, creative freedom to exercise our autonomy. We often consult with other members to double check our ideas of get the benefit of a different viewpoint or members experience. The spirit of consultation is not meant to undermine the principle of autonomy, but to be a safeguard against its misuse. If we invite the guidance of a greater consciousness, check to ensure our motives are inventoried, and strive to maintain open-mindedness as both autonomous groups and consulted service bodies, we believe we can then place our trust in the process as we seek viable solutions. Consultation is a method by which we cultivate new thoughts and ideas that can compliment our enthusiasm for helping others.


Questions have arisen with respect to how far the principle of autonomy can be exercised in our fellowship. The answer is simple, it is expressed in the wording of this Tradition; the freedom of autonomy is limited only to the groups. Our groups, however, have created service boards and committees to provide services, which furthers their effort to carry the message directly to the addict. These service boards and committees are not NA, as such. They exist solely to serve the groups and neither do they derive authority from their service, nor do they inherit the sovereignty of the groups’ autonomy. Instead, they are the creatures of our membership and our groups. Created by our need for services, they can be reorganized or disbanded by the groups. This may be done by ignoring them if they are not serving or by creating new service boards and committees as needed. Power is a mood changing drug and many are drawn to service positions under the illusion that it grants them power over others.

In the end, so long as the autonomy of our groups is focused on carrying the message of hope and freedom found in Narcotics Anonymous and our efforts are exercised within the boundaries of our Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, the spirit of this Tradition will always ring true. As our groups grow and find new and effective ways of helping others, our diversity is then strengthened, broadening our base, and raising our point of our freedom.