Ben A.

When we go about searching for our character defects through the process of personal inventory, we invariably unearth some unpleasant stuff -- our internal chametz.

Like the scouts, we were tragically mistaken. G‑d desires that He be found in reality. Whether or not we are up to the task is irrelevant. It is not on our power that we rely, but on His...

It seems that the Sages knew quite a bit about us alcoholics. Who has been as ready to find fault in others as we have been? Who has been as indignant toward the shortcomings of others?

We find that the Twelfth Step's call for service – that we "carry this message to other alcoholics" – is not just a way of paying back to the program, it is crucial to our own sobriety.

Some people question the use of an alcoholic taking personal inventory and admitting to his wrongs early in sobriety. What's the point of trying to clean house when you still have the same character defects?

Some might think it odd when they hear an alcoholic in recovery say something like “Being an alcoholic is the greatest thing that ever happened to me.”

One should not fool oneself into believing that by answering the Twelfth Step's call to "carry the message" that he is somehow making a sacrifice for the benefit of others.

There are those critics of the Twelve Steps who say that personal humility along with submission to a Higher Power degrades alcoholics and makes them feel spiritually bankrupt...

Even if in actual practice, one only uses honest measures, the mere fact that he keeps with him another set of dishonest measurements already constitutes a certain duplicity of character.

What a letdown it was for many of us to learn that being clean and sober was not the elixir of love that we sought. Recovery didn't suddenly make us so irresistibly charming and desirable...