Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions

STEP TWO

"As psychiatrists have often observed, defiance is the
outstanding characteristic of many an alcoholic. So it's not
strange that lots of us have had our day at defying God
Himself. Sometimes it's because God has not delivered
us the good things of life which we specified, as a greedy
child makes an impossible list for Santa Claus. More of-
ten, though, we had met up with some major calamity, and
to our way of thinking lost out because God deserted us.
The girl we wanted to marry had other notions; we prayed
God that she'd change her mind, but she didn't. We prayed
for healthy children, and were presented with sick ones,
or none at all. We prayed for promotions at business, and
none came. Loved ones, upon whom we heartily depended,
were taken from us by so-called acts of God. Then we be-
came drunkards, and asked God to stop that. But nothing
happened. This was the unkindest cut of all. ‘Damn this
faith business!' we said.

"When we encountered A.A., the fallacy of our defiance
was revealed. At no time had we asked what God's will was
for us; instead we had been telling Him what it ought to
be. No man, we saw, could believe in God and defy Him,
too. Belief meant reliance, not defiance. In A.A. we saw the
fruits of this belief: men and women spared from alcohol's
final catastrophe. We saw them meet and transcend their
other pains and trials. We saw them calmly accept impos-
sible situations, seeking neither to run nor to recriminate.
This was not only faith; it was faith that worked under all
conditions. We soon concluded that whatever price in hu-
mility we must pay, we would pay."

Now let's take the guy full of faith, but still reeking of