Our twelfth Step – carrying the message — is the basic service that the AA Fellowship gives. This is our principal aim and the main reason for our existence. Therefore, AA is more than a set of principles; it is a society of alcoholics in action. We must carry the message, else we ourselves can wither and those who haven’t been given the truth may die.
Service positions, whether performed by individuals, groups, areas, or AA as a whole, are utterly vital to our existence and growth. Nor can we make AA more simple by abolishing such services. We would only be asking for complication and confusion.
Tradition Four reminds us, “With respect to its own affairs, each AA group should be responsible to no other authority than its own conscience. But when its plans concern the welfare of neighboring groups also, those groups ought to be consulted. And no group, regional committee, or individual should ever take any action that might greatly affect AA as a whole without conferring with the trustees of the General Service Board.” On such issues our common welfare is “PARAMOUNT”.
As vital as Tradition Four is, remember we cannot make any member conform to what format we think works best for AA as a whole. However, districts and areas are responsible to encourage groups to participate and incorporate all thirty-six of AA principles as a whole.