Bill W. - The recovery bible

THE
RECOVERY
BIBLE

JEREMY P. TARCHER/PENGUIN

Published by the Penguin Group

Penguin Group (USA), 375 Hudson Street,

New York, New York 10014, USA

USA Canada UK Ireland Australia
New Zealand India South Africa China

Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R ORL, England

For more information about the Penguin Group visit penguin.com

First Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin edition 2013

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the authors rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

Published simultaneously in Canada

Most Tarcher/Penguin books are available at special quantity discounts for bulk purchase for sales promotions, premiums, fund-raising, and educational needs. Special books or book excerpts also can be created to fit specific needs. For details, write: Special.Markets@us.penguingroup.com.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

W., Bill.

The recovery bible / Bill W., Emmet Fox, James Allen, William James,

Henry Drummond, and more.First Tarcher/Penguin edition.

p. cm.

ISBN: 978-1-101-62054-0

1. AlcoholicsRehabilitation. 2. Twelve-step programsHistorySources.
I. W., Bill. Alcoholics Anonymous. II. Drummond, Henry, 18511897. Greatest thing in the world. III. Trine, Ralph Waldo, 18661958. In tune with the infinite. IV. Fox, Emmet. Mental equivalent. V. Allen, James, 18641912. As a man thinketh. VI. Shoemaker, Samuel M. (Samuel Moor), 18931963. Religion that works. VII. James, William, 18421910. Varieties of religious experience. VIII. Title.

HV5275.W155 2013 2013020722

616.86103dc23

adapted from the American Standard Version translation of 1901

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures;

He leadeth me beside still waters.

He restoreth my soul:

He guideth me in the paths of righteousness for his names sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil; for thou art with me;

Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies:

Thou hast anointed my head with oil;

My cup runneth over.

Surely goodness and lovingkindness shall follow me all the days of my life;

And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High

Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress;

My God, in whom I trust.

For he will deliver thee from the snare of the fowler,

And from the deadly pestilence.

He will cover thee with his pinions,

And under his wings shalt thou take refuge:

His truth is a shield and a buckler.

Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night,

Nor for the arrow that flieth by day;

For the pestilence that walketh in darkness,

Nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.

A thousand shall fall at thy side,

And ten thousand at thy right hand;

But it shall not come nigh thee.

Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold,

And see the reward of the wicked.

For thou, O Lord, art my refuge!

Thou hast made the Most High thy habitation;

There shall no evil befall thee,

Neither shall any plague come nigh thy tent.

For he will give his angels charge over thee,

To keep thee in all thy ways.

They shall bear thee up in their hands,

Lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder:

The young lion and the serpent shalt thou trample under foot.

Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him:

I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.

He shall call upon me, and I will answer him;

I will be with him in trouble:

I will deliver him, and honor him.

With long life will I satisfy him,

And show him my salvation.

BILL W. (BILL WILSON)

1939

W e, of Alcoholics Anonymous, are more than one hundred men and women who have recovered from a seemingly hopeless state of mind and body. To show other alcoholics PRECISELY HOW WE HAVE RECOVERED is the main purpose of this book. For them, we hope these pages will prove so convincing that no further authentication will be necessary. We think this account of our experiences will help everyone to better understand the alcoholic. Many do not comprehend that the alcoholic is a very sick person. And besides, we are sure that our way of living has its advantages for all.

It is important that we remain anonymous because we are too few, at present, to handle the overwhelming number of personal appeals which may result from this publication. Being mostly business or professional folk we could not well carry on our occupations in such an event. We would like it understood that our alcoholic work is an avocation.

When writing or speaking publicly about alcoholism, we urge each of our Fellowship to omit his personal name, designating himself instead as A Member of Alcoholics Anonymous.

Very earnestly we ask the press also, to observe this request, for otherwise we shall be greatly handicapped.

We are not an organization in the conventional sense of the word. There are no fees nor dues whatsoever. The only requirement for membership is an honest desire to stop drinking. We are not allied with any particular faith, sect or denomination, nor do we oppose anyone. We simply wish to be helpful to those who are afflicted.

We shall be interested to hear from those who are getting results from this book, particularly from those who have commenced work with other alcoholics. We should like to be helpful to such cases.

Inquiry by scientific, medical, and religious societies will be welcomed.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS.

W e of Alcoholics Anonymous believe that the reader will be interested in the medical estimate of the plan of recovery described in this book. Convincing testimony must surely come from medical men who have had experience with the sufferings of our members and have witnessed our return to health. A well-known doctor, chief physician at a nationally prominent hospital specializing in alcoholic and drug addiction, gave Alcoholics Anonymous this letter:

To Whom It May Concern:

I have specialized in the treatment of alcoholism for many years.

About four years ago I attended a patient who, though he had been a competent business man of good earning capacity, was an alcoholic of a type I had come to regard as hopeless.

In the course of his third treatment he acquired certain ideas concerning a possible means of recovery. As part of his rehabilitation he commenced to present his conceptions to other alcoholics, impressing upon them that they must do likewise with still others. This has become the basis of a rapidly growing fellowship of these men and their families. This man and over one hundred others appear to have recovered.