Tradition 10 · October 10

A Silence That Large

Daily Traditions · October 10

How it gets captured

A.A.'s size gets used as testimony for positions nobody in A.A. was ever asked about, and that is one more reason A.A. holds none. Someone arguing for a law, a funding model or a treatment contract reaches for the biggest number of sober alcoholics there is, and it appears in the submission as if those people agreed with the conclusion. Nobody asked them, and nobody has the standing to answer for them. The long form closes the door from A.A.'s side (Big Book, p. 565): "The Alcoholics Anonymous groups oppose no one. Concerning such matters they can express no views whatever." Bill W. gave the reason in 1955 (A.A. pamphlet P-17, p. 4): "if we steadfastly decline all political, sectarian, or other alliances, we shall avoid internal division and public notoriety". An alliance means taking a side together with somebody else. Division is the danger to the drunk: a fellowship split over a law is a fellowship arguing instead of answering the phone. Today the borrowed number shows up whenever a program or a campaign says it speaks for millions in twelve-step recovery. Test it tonight: when someone tells you what people in recovery want, ask who asked them.

Sit with

No one can say what A.A.'s members want in an outside fight, because A.A. holds no view to report. When have I said what "people in recovery" think?

Grounded in: Long form, Tradition 10 (Big Book, p. 565); P-17, p. 4 (Bill W.'s foreword, 1955).

Tradition 10

"Alcoholics Anonymous has no opinion on outside issues; hence the A.A. name ought never be drawn into public controversy."

Read the Long Form (pp. 563–566). The short form on pp. 561–562 is the one everybody quotes — but the Long Form is where the Traditions actually say what they mean. Tradition 3's "no other affiliation" clause, for instance, exists only in the Long Form. That single clause is why no treatment centre can own an A.A. group. Most of what circulates online skips it.

And a distinction worth keeping straight: the Traditions are governance, not theology. They bind A.A. groups and the Fellowship — not individuals, and not outside businesses. They were adopted in 1950 to keep A.A. from being owned or co-opted. They are not a rulebook for your personal life.

What the Traditions actually say → The Long Form, p. 563 → Search the Big Book → Every day this month →

Ask Recovery Einstein about Tradition 10 → Get the app →

← October 9Read From the Front Tradition 10All of October October 11 →The Other Side of the Same Fight

Daily Traditions is an independent educational resource from Recovery Starts — not official A.A. literature, not affiliated with Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, and not medical advice. The Twelve Traditions are the property of A.A. Page references are to Alcoholics Anonymous (the Big Book), 4th Edition: short form 561–562, long form 563–566. If you're in crisis, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline).