Is "progress, not perfection" in the Big Book?
In short:
- Yes, in substance, and in the program text itself. The exact three words aren't there, but Chapter 5 says: "We claim spiritual progress rather than spiritual perfection." (p. 60), in the same paragraph as "We are not saints." (p. 60).
- The paragraph is written to a reader who has just read the Twelve Steps and thinks he can't do them. Its point is stated outright: "The point is, that we are willing to grow along spiritual lines." (p. 60).
- The same pages also ask the reader to be "fearless and thorough from the very start" (p. 58) and say "Half measures availed us nothing" (p. 59). So "progress rather than perfection" is about not expecting to be perfect, not about doing less.
What the search found
All our sources were searched for "progress, not perfection," "progress rather than," "perfection," "perfect" and "saints," with page breaks joined.
- Program text: "spiritual progress rather than spiritual perfection" (p. 60), the only place the program text uses the word "perfection."
- The exact wording "progress, not perfection": not in any book in our sources.
- Stories and later books: "perfection" turns up in some personal stories and in A.A. Comes of Age (1957) in other connections; none uses the saying.
The paragraph in full context (pp. 58–60)
Chapter 5 opens by asking a great deal. Those who don't recover are those who cannot or will not "completely give themselves to this simple program" (p. 58), a way of living that "demands rigorous honesty" (p. 58). "With all the earnestness at our command, we beg of you to be fearless and thorough from the very start." (p. 58). "Half measures availed us nothing." (p. 59). Then come the Twelve Steps (pp. 59–60).
The next paragraph answers the reader's reaction: - Many of us exclaimed, "What an order! I can't go through with it." (p. 60). - "Do not be discouraged. No one among us has been able to maintain anything like perfect adherence to these principles." (p. 60). - "We are not saints." (p. 60). - "The point is, that we are willing to grow along spiritual lines." (p. 60). - "The principles we have set down are guides to progress." (p. 60). - "We claim spiritual progress rather than spiritual perfection." (p. 60).
Read together, the pages ask for complete willingness and thoroughness, and promise no one that he will carry the principles out perfectly. Neither half cancels the other. See: What does "half measures availed us nothing" mean in context?
The same idea elsewhere in the program text
- Growth over a lifetime. Step Ten: "Our next function is to grow in understanding and effectiveness. This is not an overnight matter. It should continue for our lifetime." (p. 84). The Promises come true "sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly" (p. 84).
- Falling short. "Of course, we all fall much below this standard many times. But we must try to repair the damage immediately lest we pay the penalty by a spree." (p. 99).
- An ideal to grow toward. On sex conduct: "Whatever our ideal turns out to be, we must be willing to grow toward it." (p. 69).
- Walking a path. "Both you and the new man must walk day by day in the path of spiritual progress." (p. 100). Families are told to "praise his progress" (p. 127) and to see his defects won't vanish overnight (p. 100).
A note from later
In A.A. Comes of Age (1957), Bill W., describing early A.A.'s dreams of reforming the world, wrote that most alcoholics were idealists: "We were perfectionists who, failing to attain perfection, had gone to the other extreme and settled for the bottle and the blackout." (A.A. Comes of Age, 1957). That is 1957, after Dr. Bob's death, and it isn't program text.
Read it yourself
- Chapter 5, "How It Works" (pp. 58–60): https://www.aa.org/sites/default/files/2021-11/en_bigbook_chapt5.pdf
- Chapter 6, "Into Action" (p. 84): https://www.aa.org/sites/default/files/2021-11/en_bigbook_chapt6.pdf
- Chapter 7, "Working With Others" (pp. 99–100): https://www.aa.org/sites/default/files/2021-11/en_bigbook_chapt7.pdf
- A.A. Comes of Age is sold by A.A. World Services: https://onlineliterature.aa.org
Sources
| Source | Pages | Date |
|---|---|---|
| All our sources (searched) | — | various |
| Alcoholics Anonymous, Chapter 5, "How It Works" | 58–60, 69 | 1939 |
| Chapters 6, 7, 9 | 84, 99–100, 127 | 1939 |
| A.A. Comes of Age | — | 1957 (post-1950) |
Recovery Starts is independent and not affiliated with Alcoholics Anonymous. Quotations are brief and cited; the Big Book and A.A. Comes of Age are © A.A. World Services, Inc.
These pages answer questions about A.A. from A.A.'s own published literature, read in full, with every quote checked word for word against the page it cites. Recovery Starts is independent and not affiliated with Alcoholics Anonymous. What we read, and when each source was written.