Welcome to Decoding the Big Book, a special limited series of the Sober Friends podcast.

Researched and sourced from writing the big book by William Sheaberg,

the purpose of each episode is to provide context and history for each chapter of the Big

Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, followed by a

reading of the chapter from the fourth edition. Each section is marked by chapters, so feel

free to skip ahead to what you're interested in and leave the rest. The essence of the chapter We Agnostics is captured in the later wording of step two,

quote, came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity, end quote.

Bill W. co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous wishes to emphasize that only a belief in

God, as the alcoholic understands him, can prevent the alcoholic from taking the first drink.

He chose the title, We Agnostics, to make a delicate and persuasive argument to convince newcomers

to join the first 100 in building a belief in a higher power.

Joe and Charlie, in their big book study, discussed the alcoholic affliction and how if we have a spiritual

experience, we could improve ourselves even with a terminal illness.

You know, we are very unique people. We number amongst a few people in the world today who suffer from a two-fold illness

that can only be overcome by a spiritual experience.

We also number amongst a few people in the world today who have a terminal

illness that we can come out of it in better shape than we were when we went into it if we can

have this spiritual experience. We are unique people. Now to one who feels is an atheist

diagnostic, such an experience seems impossible.

But to continue as is means disaster, especially if he's an alcoholic of the hopeless variety.

To be doomed to an alcoholic death,

Step one, or to live on a spiritual basis,

...