Tradition 9 · September 7

Shouted Down

Daily Traditions · September 7

Before the Tradition

Nobody governs A.A. — not even the man who started it. Bill W. tried. He was the co-founder and the author of the book, and the groups refused him every time. He wrote it down himself (P-17, p. 39): "Each time I have strenuously tried it I have been shouted down." And: "After struggling a few years to run the A.A. movement I had to give it up — it simply didn't work." The groups put it plainly (A.A. Comes of Age): "We are not going to have a personal government in New York, or anywhere else. Services, yes. But government, no." Hold on to that when someone in a room, or a building, tells you how A.A. is going to be run. If the groups would not take orders from Bill W., they are not taking orders from a program director, a counsellor, or the oldest member at the table. Tradition 9 is not an idea somebody had. It is the record of what happened to the one man best placed to govern A.A. He lost, wrote the loss down, and made it permanent.

Sit with

The groups refused to be governed by the man who founded them. Who have I let govern my recovery who has less claim than he did?

Grounded in: P-17 (p. 39); A.A. Comes of Age.

Tradition 9

"A.A., as such, ought never be organized; but we may create service boards or committees directly responsible to those they serve."

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 9 → Get the app →

← September 6Rule-Making Benders Tradition 9All of September September 8 →No Real Authority

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).