Practice These Principles : Living the Spiritual Disciplines and Virtues in 12-Step Recovery to Achieve Spiritual Growth, Character Development, and Emotional Sobriety – Steps 1, 2, 3

by Ray A.

Most of us in long-term recovery know the Steps so well that we could easily rattle them off from memory, wrapping up our recitation with the familiar “and to practice these principles in all our affairs.”But what are “these principles?” Exactly what principles are the Steps calling us to practice? Which principles do we practice when working a particular Step? Faced with any number of situations in our daily affairs, how readily do we discern the principles involved, and how well then do we live them out?In AA practicing “these principles” is the fulfillment of the 12 Steps. It is the program’s prescription for the good life, a life of spiritual growth and emotional sobriety that we share with our fellows, helping to bring healing to the alcoholic and to others who suffer in our midst.Yet, though crucial to recovery, many of us are not really sure what these principles are, and their connection to the Steps remains a gray area, in AA and probably in other fellowships as well.This uncertainty spills over into another and related gray the relationship between the spiritual, the moral, and the emotional in recovery, and how these are tied to character growth.Because these links too are unclear, emotional sobriety remains a distant and elusive goal for many of us long after we have stopped drinking. We may be sober (or clean, or otherwise abstinent), but our lives are at best manageable and tolerable—sometimes not even that.Practice These Principles brings clarity to the relationship between Steps and principles, offering a comprehensive understanding of what these principles are and how we can practice them in our daily affairs. Its purpose is to help us work the Steps in all their fullness so that we can grow in character, achieve spiritual and emotional healing, and see the Promises fulfilled at last in a life that is “happy, joyous, and free.”

336 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 9, 2012

About the author

Ray A. is a recovering alcoholic who’s been sober in Alcoholics Anonymous since April 26, 1984.

He drank for 25 years and, as with most drunks, alcohol touched every aspect of his life. Early on he earned an undergraduate degree in Romance Languages and a graduate degree in English. As his disease progressed, however, he left a doctoral degree in Comparative Literature unfinished. Alcohol also exacted its toll on his marriage, his family, and a series of promising careers. In midlife, Ray came to AA homeless, alone, and unemployable.

Once in the rooms Ray made progress on many fronts, from personal relations to the establishment of a successful business. By the time of his twelfth sober anniversary, however, he began to suffer an emotional relapse that would worsen over the course of the next six years, result in the collapse of his business, and bring his life crashing down again.

This drawn-out bottom ended in a surrender experience which put Ray on a new path to healing and growth. He was forced to take a hard look at his recovery and find out where things had gone wrong, since he believed he had worked the Steps and done everything the program said to do. In the process, he was also forced to probe into that program and those Steps more deeply than ever.

It was then that he finally began to understand what he had never understood before: the true nature of the principles underlying the 12 Steps and how the practice of those principles can actually bring about the spiritual growth and emotional sobriety that had eluded him all those years and that continues to elude so many recovering alcoholics today.

His progress in this new journey led to the writing of Practice These Principles, a work that reflects his experience as well as years of research into the AA, 12-Step, recovery, and related literature. The first volume discusses Steps 1, 2, and 3 and the second Step 4. Further volumes on the remaining Steps and the 12 Traditions are planned.

The AA Grapevine published Ray’s story in its October 2009 issue under the title “Rebel Without a Cause.”

Reviews

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

"We practice these principles in all our affairs 'so that we and those about us may find emotional sobriety.' It is what will enable us to live a useful, happy and joyous life and to share it with our fellows everywhere."

[Deb Yambor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very illuminating

Ray A. weaves the principles of AA with other important spiritual works that provides a broad foundation for understanding and practicing a program of recovery that works. This book has helped me understand the principles of AA at a much deeper level.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great deep dive into the principles

Amazing research, time and thoughtful in presenting the principles. Grateful for this book and can't wait to continue the rest in this series. Those principles appear to have snuck into everything!

[Sunny Daze · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just added this book to my 2019 Reading Challenge. I started reading this book 3 years ago and want to complete it this year as part of my step work. It is an intense read but since I'm working on my emotional sobriety it is a great companion in completing my step work. If you have the same goal this year check out my notes and highlights and make comments accordingly.

[Stephen]

3/31/21 - Reading as part of a book study group. An intriguing topic - digging into what is behind the 12 Steps recovery. Early reaction - overly academic and evangelical. But it is generating some interesting study group discussions.
End: might not have finished it if it had not been a book study effort.

[Ginni]

I'm having trouble rating this book because it's meant for a very particular group of people, and those people will probably benefit greatly from it. I'm just not one of those people.

"Why did you enter the giveaway if you're not the target audience?" you might ask. While I've never attended Alcoholics Anonymous, I have years of experience as both a participant and as a leader in Biblical 12-step recovery programs Celebrate Recovery and re:generation, and the steps are nearly identical. However, Practice These Principles is extremely dense with AA jargon that I kept having to look up. If the author wishes to make future editions of this book more accessible to the general public, s/he might consider including a glossary of terms or other explanatory tools.

This book reads a bit like a series of lectures or sermons, but without any condescending or moralizing connotations. It's wise and empathetic, rich with study and thought. Anyone who has made AA a way of life should try to get their hands on Practice These Principles. If you're not in AA, though, skip it.

(I received this book for free through a Goodreads giveaway.)