Included with this issue is the report of the Group Conscience Committee on their proposal for a procedure for taking an SA-wide group conscience. This report summarizes feedback coming into Central Office from responding SA groups since the proposal was issued last December.
Since it was announced at the Los Angeles convention last December, Roy and the Central Office have been using the International Group Conscience Committee in an ad hoc temporary advisory capacity in day-to-day matters involving Central Office or SA as a whole. This is the only active representative body SA has at present, and it has been working extremely well. Following are some recent decisions made:
A decision has been made to go ahead with typesetting the SA manual and publishing it in 6-by-9 quality paperback format. This new edition of the SA manual would still have a plain white cover, as it does now. In the process, it is anticipated that a few changes may be made to the text where appropriate.
What do you think of the following statement, which might be used in conjunction with our sobriety statement? Please pass along any comments you might have to the Central Office.
We’re very grateful for Ruth P.’s work in translating the German newsletters into English. The following are excerpts from their sixth newsletter, dated February:
[Regarding the subject of what to do about sex offenders and the whole business of sexual dependency counseling] I have made a decision not to mix up the program with counseling. Looking back, I see how crazy I was to even consider getting involved in a “professional” way! My main area of interest—profession-wise—is in spiritual direction.… Spiritual direction and the 12-Step program are real compatible.
I want to make an amends to you. When I was at the L.A. conference, I took the chip for nine months of sobriety, when I had only eight. So I’m sending it back to you. I found my error when I wanted to tell the length of my sobriety for December 28th, and so I computed again.
I would like to share a metaphor which B.M. of the Ft. Worth group shared recently. He said that his sexual addiction could be described as follows:
The group here at K.S.P. is doing fine so far. It has dropped in attendance to about eleven. Our sobriety is getting stronger thanks to our Higher Power. Longest…so far is a little over a year by one inmate and four months for another.
I would like to take this time to express my thanks for all the help and prayers from C.O. Our Sat. night group is still going strong. We made some bad decisions and mistakes, but God in his wisdom has been with us the past few months. We have three regulars each week, and the important thing is that we are very serious about SA and our lives. I want to urge all new groups to heed what C.O. says about running ads in any newspaper.
