Frequently Asked Questions

Below there are frequently asked questions arranged by category.

We do not maintain any membership lists, including lists of early members. It is difficult to piece together an accurate list of early members with…
Members of the immediate family and close friends are usually pleased to learn about an alcoholic’s membership in A.A. As for colleagues at work, it…
Publicly accessible aspects of the Internet such as websites featuring text, graphics, audio and video can be considered the same as publishing or…
The A.A. Guidelines represent the shared experience of A.A. members and groups throughout the United States and Canada. They also reflect guidance…
Many alcoholics, by the time they turn to A.A. for help with their drinking problems, have also accumulated substantial financial problems. Not…
No. Nor is it allied with any religious organization.
An A.A. meeting may take one of several forms, but at any meeting you will find alcoholics talking about what drinking did to their lives, their…
The Fellowship has four books that are generally accepted as “textbooks.” The first is Alcoholics Anonymous, also known as “the Big Book,” originally…
The service structure is the framework in which our "general services" are carried out. It is the structure that takes the place of government in A.A…
Members of A.A. have a selfish interest in offering a helping hand to other alcoholics who have not yet achieved sobriety. First, they know from…
The "group conscience" is the collective conscience of the group membership and thus represents substantial unanimity on an issue before definitive…
Bequests in wills are acceptable only from A.A. members, with a maximum of $10,000 from any one person, and only on a one-time basis — not in…