Mention of "Jesus" in Early Alcoholics Anonymous Literature
Posted: Wednesday, June 16, 2010
by Richard Burns, J.D.
Dick B.
"It will probably surprise you to know that there were many many references to Jesus. So many, in fact, that I will only list some categories. For example: (1) In his own biography, Bill Wilson spoke of the Great Physician-a figure of speech used for Jesus Christ and often expressed by Dr. Silkworth. (2) Anne Smith mentioned Christ in her journal. (3) Rev. Sam Shoemaker-who was called a cofounder of A.A. by Bill-started writing about Jesus Christ in his very first book-Realizing Religion, and continued to do so throughout his long career. (4) Shoemaker pointed out that Calvary Mission-where Bill made his decision for Christ-was the place where Jesus Christ changes lives. (5) Bill marched in a processional from Calvary Church to Madison Square to witness-the group carried the sign, "Jesus Christ changes lives." (6) Endless Oxford Group writings were read by early AAs and frequently mentioned Jesus Christ. (6) Dr. Bob mentioned many times that early AAs considered the Book of James, the Sermon on the Mount, and 1 Corinthians 13 were "absolutely essential to the early program;" and, of course, it was Jesus that delivered the sermon (see Matthews 5, 6, 7)."
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