History bears out that Psychology and medicine alone could not / failed to keep the drunk sober. They had to have a power greater than themselves to maintain sobriety. 

Bill Wilson writes: "I cannot resist the conclusion that the philosophical implications arising from Freud’s work have done a great deal to poison modern thought. Many people are constantly coming into A.A. who have been under treatment by Freudians." (The treatments were ineffective to keep them sober thus coming into the rooms of AA) 

....  He goes on..."These (people)  are apt to be sold on Freud in the sense that adherents of a religion worship their founder. They brook no questioning or doubt. They say, “It is so because the master says so”. They venerate Freud as a great debunker of the human race....  

There is bound to be a great deal of bias, because in A.A. we see only the failures of psychiatry. Then, too, most of the people we get in have been treated by Freudians. But it is also true, that after coming into A.A. (working the 12 steps which provided a spiritual experience) , many who have received psychiatric treatment report that they are able to go back over the experience and pick out of it much that is helpful.

McCabe, Ian. Carl Jung and Alcoholics Anonymous: The Twelve Steps as a Spiritual Journey of Individuation (p. 3). Taylor & Francis. Kindle Edition. 

An insightful question — and one that strikes at the core of why so many well-intentioned “study formats” or hybrid programs can unintentionally blur the lines between recovery principles and human interpretation.

Let’s unpack it carefully, piece by piece — from both a Big Book/12-Step lens and a Traditions lens.

🧭 1. The Purpose of the Twelve Steps

According to the Big Book, the Twelve Steps are a set of spiritual actions designed to produce one specific result:

“Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these Steps…” (p. 60)

They are not a curriculum, a therapy model, or a philosophy.
 They are a spiritual process revealed through experience, not invented by man.

So when someone brings in an AWOL (A Way Of Life) program that introduces methods, exercises, or doctrines outside of what the Steps teach, it immediately creates a dual authority problem:

“Which are we following — the Big Book or the AWOL manual?”

That confusion undermines the clarity of the Step process itself.

🧩 2. The Nature of AWOL (A Way Of Life)

The AWOL format was originally a peer-led study group, not an official A.A. or F.A. structure. It was meant to walk through the Steps together using outside materials.
But many modern AWOLs add their own interpretations, questions, or psychological layers that aren’t in the Big Book or 12 & 12.

That means it’s not technically the Twelve Steps anymore — it’s a commentary on them.
And when newcomers don’t understand that distinction, they can mistake human interpretation for the actual Program.

⚖️ 3. It Confuses the Source of Authority — Violating Tradition Two

Tradition Two: “For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority — a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience.”

When an AWOL leader or curriculum dictates how the Steps “must” be done, that group begins to substitute human authority for divine guidance.
The 12 & 12 warns against this directly:

“No member should place himself in a position of authority over another.” (p. 132)

So the confusion becomes spiritual:
 People can’t tell whether they are obeying their Higher Power's will or someone else’s structured workbook.

🧨 4. It Creates a Mixed Message — Violating Tradition Three and Tradition Six

Tradition Three: “The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop…”
Tradition Six: “An A.A. group ought never endorse, finance, or lend the A.A. name to any related facility or outside enterprise…”

When a 12-Step meeting hosts or promotes an AWOL that isn’t an A.A. (or F.A., N.A., etc.) publication, it mixes an outside enterprise with the fellowship’s message.
Newcomers then can’t tell what’s core program and what’s optional add-on.

That’s confusing because it subtly implies:

“The regular Steps aren’t enough — you need this special version.”

That idea directly undermines the simplicity and accessibility the Big Book protects.

💔 5. It Divides the Fellowship Into “Us and Them”

Once an AWOL exists alongside the fellowship, people start saying things like:

• “He’s in the AWOL; she’s not.”
• “We’re the serious ones; the rest don’t get it.”
• “You can’t really recover unless you do AWOL.”

That’s Tradition One violation territory — unity gets replaced by stratification.
Bill W. warned of exactly this kind of elitism:

“Whenever we fail to place the welfare of the group first, we are letting our instincts run riot.” (12 & 12, p. 130)

So even if the AWOL helps some people, it can harm the body of the fellowship by creating tiers of worthiness.

🌀 6. It Confuses the Spiritual Sequence

The Twelve Steps unfold in a divinely ordered progression — from powerlessness to surrender to inventory to amends to service.
 When AWOL programs rearrange, embellish, or intellectualize that process, members often end up:

• Over-analyzing instead of experiencing,
• Learning about God instead of trusting God,
• Talking recovery instead of living recovery.

The confusion isn’t just structural — it’s experiential.
 The “flow of the Spirit” described in the Big Book gets replaced by a schedule of assignments.

🧾 Summary Table

Area of ConfusionStep/Tradition AffectedHow Confusion Shows Up
Dual authority | Tradition 2 ; “Which is right — AWOL or Big Book?”
Added requirements | Tradition 3 ; “Only some people are suited for this method.”
Outside affiliation | Tradition 6 ; Group appears tied to a separate program or curriculum.
Division & hierarchy | Tradition 1 ; Members split into “true” vs. “lesser” participants;
Substitution of intellect for spirit | Step Process ; Study replaces surrender; head replaces heart.

🔔 In Plain Language

The confusion comes from mixing two different spiritual ecosystems:

The Twelve Steps VS.                        AWOL (as often practiced)
Inspired revelation of principles | Human system of interpretation
Simple, direct, experiential | Structured, analytical, curriculum-driven
God-centered guidance | Human-authored guidance
Freedom through surrender | Control through process

When you graft one onto the other, you dilute both — like trying to mix two sets of blueprints for the same house. The walls don’t line up.

💡 The Core Idea

The Twelve Steps don’t need supplementation — they need application.

So, working an AWOL “not part of the 12 Steps” inside a 12-Step fellowship confuses the message, divides the membership, and risks replacing God’s authority with human design.

AWOL (“A Way of Life” 12-Step study) and the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous focus on the same problems but are very different as a solution in purpose, scope, and format.

Here’s the breakdown:

1. Origin & Purpose

• Big Book of AA
  • Written in 1939 by Bill W. and early AA members.
  • Serves as the foundational text of Alcoholics Anonymous.
  • Explains the problem of alcoholism, the spiritual solution, and how to apply the 12 Steps.
  • Intended to inspire and guide through personal stories and step-by-step instructions historically proven successful.
• AWOL
  • Originated in 1977 in Canada as a structured group study of the 12 Steps.
  • Focus is on studying the Steps in a set, committed timeframe (often 12 months to 18 months).
  • Usually uses multiple resources (including the Big Book, Little Red Book and 12 & 12, and sometimes program-specific literature like FA materials).
  • Designed for interactive learning and accountability, not for storytelling or history.

2. Format

• Big Book
  • A single book divided into chapters, starting with the Doctor’s Opinion and moving through 164 original pages, plus personal recovery stories.
  • Can be read alone, with a sponsor, or in meetings.
  • No fixed time commitment other than "pursuing a RIGOROUS course of action", "sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly"—it’s more of a reference and testimony of the actions and histories and results.
• AWOL
  • A meeting series—usually weekly, lasting 1–2 years depending on pace.
  • Participants commit to attend every session unless seriously ill or traveling and no more than 2 sessions.
  • Includes homework, written inventories, sharing with a sponsor, and group discussion.
  • Heavily interactive—participants often read passages aloud, write step work, and share responses.

3. Method of Teaching

• Big Book
  • Self-paced, open-ended reading.
  • Leaves the application of the Steps largely to personal initiative or sponsor guidance.
• AWOL
  • Guided, structured schedule to complete all 12 Steps.
  • Forces consistent progress—less chance of “stalling out” on a step.
  • Often uses worksheets, study questions, and personal inventories.

4. Community & Accountability

• Big Book
  • Can be studied alone, though often read in groups.
  • Sponsor is optional but strongly encouraged.
• AWOL
  • Built-in sponsor/sponsee system.
  • Emphasis on group commitment and mutual accountability—if you miss meetings, you may be asked to leave .

Key Difference in Essence

• Big Book = The original instruction manual for AA’s program to document how they found their higher power, implemented it into their lives and asked that Higher power to remove the obsession. 
• AWOL = A modern, structured “classroom” approach to working those instructions in a group over time. "Know thyself." The premise is that if the illness is understood, the right rules and tools can be implemented to create a working solution.