The Strong Meeting Checklist was part of OA’s 2008–2013 Strategic Plan. It is not enough to make the public aware that OA exists and can be a solution to compulsive eating; meetings have to be strong and must function effectively for people to “stay for the miracle” and for OA to continue to grow and be there for those who need it in the future. Consider doing an inventory of your OA meeting using this checklist.
1. Does our meeting start and end on time? 2. Are all attending, including newcomers, greeted and made to feel welcome and accepted? 3. Does our meeting focus on OA recovery through the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions? 4. Do we offer our own experience, strength, and hope, sharing the solution we have found? 5. Is the group contributing financially to all levels of OA service as per our Seventh Tradition? 6. Are sponsors available and identified at the meeting? 7. Does our group practice anonymity by reminding members not to repeat who is seen or what personal sharing is heard at a meeting? 8. Does our group follow a meeting format? 9. Is only OA-approved literature on display and for sale? 10. Does our group welcome and support individual members who use a variety of OA-approved literature? 11. Are group conscience meetings held regularly? 12. Are all service positions filled, and is rotation of service practiced? 13. Is our meeting information readily available, and is the World Service Office informed of all meeting details and changes so that newcomers and visitors can find our meeting? 14. Are cross talk and advice-giving avoided?
OA Responsibility Pledge
Always to extend the hand and heart of OA to all who share my compulsion; for this I am responsible.
Overeaters Anonymous, Inc. World Service Office Location: 6075 Zenith Court NE, Rio Rancho, NM 87144, USA Mailing address: PO Box 44727, Rio Rancho, NM 87174-4727, USA Telephone: +1 505-891-2664
The group secretary is a link in a chain that disseminates important information in two ways: from the World Service Office to group members and from the group to the World Service Office.
Sending current group information or changes to the World Service Office is a job that usually falls onto the broad shoulders of the group secretary. The secretary also has the responsibility to distribute information from the World Service Office and service body, such as newsletters, surveys, and other mail, to members of the group.
Has this two-way flow of information been running smoothly in your group? If not, the place to start is to make sure your meeting is registered correctly with the World Service Office. These are some important points to remember when registering or making changes:
Use the Group Registration/Change form to make any changes to your group information. On the OA website, click on Edit a Meeting to make changes to your meeting. Contact the World Service Office if you have any questions.
When your group chooses to affiliate with an intergroup or national service board, include the intergroup’s/national service board’s number or at least the correct name of the intergroup/national service board.
With ANY change it is important to give complete information. The critical areas to complete are those marked “*required.” Make sure all information is accurate, and check that apartment numbers are included, as these are often overlooked.
Use your group number on all correspondence to the World Service Office. Once a group is registered, its group number will remain the same, regardless of changes to the meeting information.
Update the World Service Office with meeting detail changes as soon as you can, no matter how small the change. It is the group’s responsibility to do this. Some groups assume the intergroup/national service board will pass changes on to the World Service Office, and this is not always the case.
The group secretary can work with other members to make sure pertinent OA information reaches everyone. For instance, the secretary can make sure someone reviews OA News from the OA website and makes it available to members in the meeting. A group may also receive mailings from the intergroup/national service board with information that needs to be distributed. Each OA group should be sure the secretary receives adequate help and materials to do their job. The smooth flow of information between the World Service Office and the group depends on the secretary.
Other tasks of group secretaries are outlined in the OA Handbook for Members, Groups, and Service Bodies. The secretary’s tasks may include presiding at group conscience and/or steering committee meetings or seeing that the meeting place is ready each week.
If you have any questions about registering or recording changes for your group, please call, write, or send an email to the World Service Office’s group registration coordinator (info@oa.org). We are interested in hearing your ideas on how we might improve the group registration process and on group registrations in general.
Revised March 2023
We of Overeaters Anonymous have made a discovery. At the very first meeting we attended, we learned that we were in the clutches of a dangerous illness, and that willpower, emotional health, and self-confidence, which some of us had once possessed, were no defense against it.
We have learned that the reasons for the illness are unimportant. What deserves the attention of the still-suffering compulsive overeater is this: There is a proven, workable method by which we can arrest our illness.
The OA recovery program is patterned after that of Alcoholics Anonymous. As our personal stories attest, the Twelve Step program of recovery works as well for compulsive eaters as it does for alcoholics.
Can we guarantee you this recovery? The answer is up to you. If you will honestly face the truth about yourself and the illness; if you will keep coming back to meetings to talk and listen to other recovering compulsive overeaters; if you will read our literature and that of Alcoholics Anonymous with an open mind; and, most important, if you are willing to rely on a Power greater than yourself for direction in your life and to take the Twelve Steps to the best of your ability, we believe you can indeed join the ranks of those who recover.
To remedy the emotional, physical, and spiritual illness of compulsive eating we offer several suggestions, but keep in mind that the basis of the program is spiritual, as evidenced by the Twelve Steps.
We are not a “diet” club. We do not endorse any particular plan of eating. In OA, abstinence is the action of refraining from compulsive eating and compulsive food behaviors while working towards or maintaining a healthy body weight. Once we become abstinent, the preoccupation with food diminishes and in many cases leaves us entirely. We then find that, to deal with our inner turmoil, we have to have a new way of thinking, of acting on life rather than reacting to it — in essence, a new way of living.
From this vantage point, we begin the Twelve Step program of recovery, moving beyond the food and the emotional havoc to a fuller living experience. As a result of practicing the Steps, the symptoms of compulsive eating and compulsive food behaviors are removed on a daily basis, achieved through the process of surrendering to something greater than ourselves; the more total our surrender, the more fully realized our freedom from food obsession.
Here are the Steps as adapted for Overeaters Anonymous:
We admitted we were powerless over food — that our lives had become unmanageable.
Came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.
Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these Steps, we tried to carry this message to compulsive overeaters and to practice these principles in all our affairs.
“But I’m too weak. I’ll never make it!” Don’t worry, we have all thought and said the same thing. The amazing secret to the success of this program is just that: weakness. It is weakness, not strength, that binds us to each other and to a Higher Power and somehow gives us the ability to do what we cannot do alone.
If you decide you are one of us, we welcome you with open arms. Whatever your circumstances, we offer you the gift of acceptance. You are not alone anymore! Welcome to Overeaters Anonymous. Welcome home!
Permission to use the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous for adaptation granted by AA World Services, Inc.
It is suggested that a neutral, experienced OA member facilitate an inventory for a group or service body. Region boards can assist with finding members who can provide this type of support.
Use an entire meeting for an honest and fearless discussion of the group’s weaknesses and strengths.
This inventory is divided into two parts. A is an inventory of the group as a whole; B is a personal inventory of a member’s behavior in the group.
A. Group Inventory*
Does our meeting start and end on time?
Are all attending, including newcomers, greeted and made to feel welcome and accepted?
Does our meeting focus on OA recovery through the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions?
Do we offer our own experience, strength, and hope, sharing the solution we have found?
Is the group contributing financially to all levels of OA service as per our Seventh Tradition?
Are sponsors available and identified at the meeting?
Does our group practice anonymity by reminding members not to repeat who is seen or what personal sharing is heard at a meeting?
Does our group follow a meeting format?
Is only OA-approved literature on display and for sale?
Does our group welcome and support individual members who use a variety of OA-approved literature?
Are group conscience meetings held regularly?
Are all service positions filled, and is rotation of service practiced?
Is our meeting information readily available, and is the World Service Office informed of all meeting details and changes so that newcomers and visitors can find our meeting?
Are cross talk and advice-giving avoided?
B. Determine your part in the group
Do I make a point to welcome new members, talk with them, and offer my phone number? Do I sponsor new members?
Do I interrupt speakers or other members who are sharing?
Do I give my full attention to the speakers, the secretary, and other group members?
Do I ever repeat anything personal I have heard at meetings or from another member?
Do I put pressure on the group to accept my ideas because I have been in the Fellowship a long time?
Do I take part in meetings, or do I sit and listen?
Do I volunteer or willingly accept a group office (e.g., secretary, treasurer)? Do I offer to help set up, clean, etc.?
Do I criticize others in the group or gossip about them?
Do I insist on requirements other than those in Tradition Three, including telling others that they should use only specific literature, or they can’t be in the Fellowship, or that they cannot use the services of health care professionals, such as psychologists or dietitians?
Do I try to give advice?
Is it difficult for me to realize that my point of view may not always be the group conscience? Can I accept disagreement?
Do I use the telephone or electronic communication to help myself and others, not just for complaints and gossip?
Do I make it a point to speak with newcomers who are having a difficult time in the program? Do I let them know they are welcome?
Do I monopolize the conversation and explain every Tool, Tradition, etc.?
Do I feel no one can lead a meeting as well as me?
Do I go to meetings to learn instead of teach?
Do I cross talk and cause meetings to go off on tangents?
Do I wait until announcement time to make proper OA announcements?
Do I have a topic so everyone can participate at meetings I chair?
Do I try to cause dissension?
Do I follow the meeting format completely?
Do I commit myself to the OA program?
Do I have a sponsor and work the Steps?
Do I give service to promote group growth and benefit my own growth as well?
Am I only interested in my own welfare, or am I concerned for my fellow OA members as well?
Overeaters Anonymous, Inc. World Service Office Location: 6075 Zenith Court NE, Rio Rancho, NM 87144, USA Mailing address: PO Box 44727, Rio Rancho, NM 87174-4727, USA Telephone: +1 505-891-2664
These guidelines have been developed through the experience of OA members and the Board of Trustees, who have contributed to their creation. They reflect OA Traditions and Concepts of Service as reflected in our OA Conference-approved literature. These guidelines are strong suggestions based on those who have gone before. They do not replace the local group conscience, but we encourage OA groups and service bodies to consider carefully before acting contrary to these suggestions.
The guidelines are designed to assist members in situations where an OA meeting (or meeting attendance) is being disrupted by the behavior of one or more members, within or outside a meeting, whether face-to-face or virtual. Fortunately, such disruptions are rare. The disruption can range from subtle, annoying behavior to dangerous behavior. Many times the behavior is unintentional. Here are examples of issues you may encounter in your meeting:
“My regular meeting is having a problem with a member who is disruptive. She speaks out of turn and argues with other people. People are worried and the group is losing members. What should we do?”
“My home meeting is having a problem with a member who acts in a threatening manner. People are afraid and upset; many are not coming back to the meeting. Short of legal action or contacting the police, does OA have a policy on how to handle difficult members?”
“One of our members has made inappropriate sexual advances toward another member. How should the member and the group handle this situation?”
“Some members from my home group are being particularly controlling with their sponsees and specifically saying that, in order to be considered abstinent, members must stop taking medication and must follow a specific food plan. How can we deal with this?”
“Can we kick a member out of a meeting and/or out of OA?”
There are no easy answers. Although OA has no written policy on disruptive behavior, we can refer to our literature and the Traditions.
“From Tradition One in The Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions of Overeaters Anonymous, Second Edition: “The unity of OA is a matter of life and death to us. However, unity isn’t always easy to maintain…. If we as individuals did not value the common welfare of the Fellowship above our own … OA … would lose the strength that comes from our union of the many” (p. 92).
From Tradition Three in The Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions of Overeaters Anonymous, Second Edition: “Occasionally groups are plagued by members who disrupt the harmony of the meetings. Even these people are not permanently barred from the group and denied the chance to recover. Of course groups must protect their members from violence or harassment…. We have found that most personality problems can best be dealt with on a one-to-one basis” (p. 109).
Tradition Five tells us that the primary purpose of every OA group is to carry the message of recovery to those who still suffer. Every member of the group has the responsibility, therefore, to keep that primary purpose in mind. If a member’s actions are disruptive or dangerous, the OA group not only needs to protect itself and its members, it must also make certain that the primary purpose for which the group exists is upheld. If it doesn’t, the meeting may fold and many may lose the opportunity for recovery.
How a meeting protects itself can cause conflict and controversy. Each situation is unique and should be evaluated individually. Discussing it at your group conscience meeting can help. You may find it helpful to contact your intergroup, service board, region, or the World Service Office to learn how others have dealt with such problems. A letter from the chair of the Board of Trustees to OA members, dated October 6, 2017, stated, “In some cases the individuals who offer themselves as sponsors may go beyond the boundaries suggested for sponsorship. . . . They ought only to share or suggest changes that worked for them in their journey. Sponsors should not issue orders or make demands.”
Alerting local groups, intergroups, and service boards or virtual service boards to potential problems helps them to be prepared if the disruptive individual shows up at another meeting. Be careful, however, to put principles before personalities (Tradition Twelve) and protect members’ anonymity as well as confidentiality.
Clear guidelines in meeting formats (such as a statement regarding cross talk or safe practices in choosing a sponsor) can prevent most problems. Important guidelines may need to be repeated more than once during a meeting. Because virtual meetings lack face-to-face contact, it is critical to set guidelines based on principles prior to creating a meeting format. As our Suggested Meeting Format states, “The chair for each meeting has the discretion to suggest to anyone sharing that he or she is off-topic or is speaking too long.”
When addressing a disruptive member, begin informally, one-to-one if possible. One or two members of the meeting may approach the disruptive individual to discuss the problem and look for solutions. Let the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions guide you. Always strive to place principles before personalities and treat others with kindness, patience, tolerance, and love. It is best if the members approaching the disruptive individual are grounded in these principles. Any person is welcome at our meetings, but their disruptive behavior is not. Remember, we are dealing with inappropriate behavior. You might need to ask yourself how you would treat a sick person in this situation. You might need to approach the disruptive person by phone. However you decide to approach the disruptive person, it is often helpful to have another member present to ensure your own safety.
If a one-to-one approach is not possible, or if the individual is uncommunicative or uncooperative when approached, it may be necessary to hold a group conscience with the whole meeting or form a specific committee. Be sure to provide an equal hearing for all. Ask everyone to pray for God’s will and come to the meeting with healthy, tolerant, and supportive attitudes. Blame and accusations help no one. The meeting may decide that this individual should be asked to leave for the good of the group. While we cannot expel any person from OA, we can ask a disruptive member who is unwilling to change their behavior(s) to leave the meeting and stay away until the matter has been resolved. This can be done while upholding Tradition Three; we are not denying the person membership in OA as a whole. If the disruption is significant, it may be necessary to state clear consequences, including registering a formal complaint with the police. Our Tradition of anonymity (Tradition Twelve) should never be used to cover up unsafe behavior of any kind.
Other Suggestions
In all cases, strong meetings can minimize opportunities for disruptive behavior. Do you have a strong meeting? Would your meeting benefit from doing a group inventory? Are you using the suggestions on the Strong Meeting Checklist? (See the list of resources at the end of this document.) You may already have procedures in place for dealing with disruptive behaviors. The Suggested Meeting Format provides wording, giving the chair of the meeting responsibility for dealing with such behaviors. Well-prepared group secretaries, leaders, or chairs—and an informed group conscience— are essential to the well-being of meetings.
If disruptions are subtle and reflect nonadherence to the group conscience or meeting format, consider holding a meeting on Tradition Two and/or Tradition Five. Discuss how the Tradition(s) has helped you in your recovery.
A chair, moderator, or any other member can interrupt a disruptive person’s share or outburst by calling for a five-minute break and using the Serenity Prayer to interrupt the disruption and refocus the meeting. A short break or a moment of silent reflection may help. These ideas may bring enough of a pause between the behavior and the continuation of the meeting to bring everyone back to focus on our OA recovery.
If the behavior includes approaching members (during or after a meeting) for inappropriate reasons, including sales pitches, sexual advances, or other unacceptable actions, group members may interrupt the behavior by joining a conversation that might morph into something else and redirect it. For example, if you have a member who habitually approaches younger newcomers as an available sponsor, whereas another member might be a healthier, safer option, members may interrupt and discourage the person known for this type of behavior.
If the disruptive behavior is subtle and primarily attention-seeking, take the person aside or offline, listen to their concerns, and ask how you can help. Share some of your own experience on how you got well, so the person may identify and find their own solutions. Remember the expression, “There but for the grace of God go I.”
Most situations can be resolved within the group. However, if a person appears to be a danger to themself or others, then it is appropriate to call the police. Police are trained to deal with such cases.
Sometimes a member is so distraught that they may need immediate attention. In a face-to-face meeting, it may be appropriate for someone to take that member aside to offer help. In a virtual meeting, a member may arrange to immediately contact the distraught person to work one-on-one offline while the rest of the group continues its meeting.
You can address disruption in virtual meetings by speaking to people privately. If this is not successful, discussion at the group conscience meeting may help the group find a way to approach the problem.
Technology can also be helpful. Phone meetings often have access to an internet interface or “dashboard” that allows meeting moderators to mute or remove a disruptive caller from the meeting. In virtual meetings, make sure that a moderator with access to the dashboard is familiar with the Traditions and only mutes, drops, or blocks a caller after other methods have failed. Online meetings have options such as private messaging and “gag” commands. Moderators can remove a member who is cursing or spamming and offer a public explanation.
Remember, a member is never permanently banned from a meeting (Tradition Three).
Resources
The Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions of Overeaters Anonymous, Second Edition (#990-2)
Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions by Alcoholics Anonymous
Overeaters Anonymous, Inc. World Service Office Location: 6075 Zenith Court NE, Rio Rancho, NM 87144, USA Mailing address: PO Box 44727, Rio Rancho, NM 87174-4727, USA Telephone: +1 505-891-2664
As described in the OA Handbook for Members, Groups and Service Bodies, many groups hold meetings to determine how best to conduct meetings, spend funds, organize special events, and deal with issues that affect the group or OA as a whole. These meetings to discuss the business of the group allow members to work together to consider and agree on how best to proceed in the interests of OA as a whole.
Our business meetings are conducted by group conscience. Group conscience is about the special ways (unique to Twelve Step fellowships) in which the individuals in a group conscience meeting are inspired to enable the meeting to agree on the best decisions for OA.
In our pamphlet The Twelve Concepts of OA Service, Concept One discusses the need to reach an informed group conscience. Our Twelve Traditions and our Twelve Concepts of OA Service are the basis for much of our decision-making and the primary means by which we reach an informed group conscience. (Other means include the history of the group, what other groups have done in similar situations, and other background it may be useful to gather.) When we cannot decide what approach to take, it is always prudent to look first at the Traditions and Concepts.
Group conscience demands the private discipline of accepting that our own views are just that, our own views, and listening with an open mind to the views of others. We are prepared to see things differently and to adjust our perception and yield to the group conscience to arrive at consensus.
Not all our group decisions will be wise and practical. We do make mistakes sometimes and have to look for better answers to a problem. Another group conscience vote can be taken when something needs to be corrected. Like individuals, OA groups learn from their mistakes—and so does OA as a whole. We find that our Higher Power often leads us through our blunders.
To minimize blunders, it’s important that every voting member be fully informed and understand all pertinent facts before voting. Behind all this lies Tradition Two: “For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority—a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern.”
This suggests that each of us is responsible for attempting to be free of our own will so we may be open to the good of the whole. The same spirit of selflessness applies regardless of the size or service level of the group. Groups often hold group conscience meetings before or after their regular meetings.
Groups may set a regular schedule for these meetings, or any member of the group may call for a meeting. Providing notice of the meeting and agenda topics a few weeks in advance is a good idea so those attending may have time to think about the items, read background material, and find relevant information when appropriate.
In some meetings, all persons attending may vote; other meetings might restrict voting privileges to regular attendees. While some steering committee meetings might restrict voting on routine matters, such as paying bills, to those who meet the committee’s abstinence requirements, all group members vote on matters of major importance, such as format and abstinence requirements for speakers and officers.
Most members have a special affinity for one particular group and consider it their home group, where they accept responsibilities and try to sustain friendships. Members are encouraged not to meddle in the business or policy of groups they visit only occasionally, or where they do not accept service assignments (p. 12).
Your group or service body may find it useful to study the Traditions and Concepts regularly to become better informed about their origin and usefulness. Many groups have a Traditions meeting once a month in which the topic of that meeting is a particular Tradition.
The following is a suggested format for group conscience meetings. It does not require formal decision-making methods such as motion, amendment, and debate because, as Concept Twelve (d) states, “all important decisions shall be reached by discussion, vote and, whenever possible, by substantial unanimity.” But a group may decide that a certain item would be more efficiently discussed by using motions and votes. The size of the group may determine the formality needed. Each group may decide how to conduct their business.
Suggested Format for a Group Conscience Meeting
1. Introduction
“Welcome to the group conscience meeting of the __________ group of Overeaters Anonymous. My name is __________, and I am a compulsive eater and the chair of this meeting.”
2. Serenity Prayer
“Will those who wish to, please join me in the Serenity Prayer: God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.”
“The purpose of this meeting is to make decisions that affect our group. I encourage everyone here to participate. If a matter comes to a vote and you do not attend our meeting regularly or do not plan to, please consider whether it would be reasonable for you to vote. However, we welcome everyone’s viewpoint; we can all learn from one another.
“Please remember Tradition Five: ‘Each group has but one primary purpose—to carry its message to the compulsive overeater who still suffers.’ Therefore, anything we decide at this meeting must reflect that purpose. No matter what we believe as individuals, we must be united in our purpose to carry our message as best we can to the compulsive overeater who still suffers. That person is our focus. May we do our best for him or her.”
5. Minutes from Previous Meeting
“Are there minutes from our last meeting?” [Secretary reads minutes, if available, or distributes copies.] “Any corrections or additions?”
[Applicable corrections or additions are made.]
6. Setting Up the Agenda
[At this point, the chair presents the agenda and asks for additions or amendments. The agenda often results from discussions at previous meetings, or people at the current meeting may make suggestions. The chair should make certain that the agenda is clear, in a logical sequence, and agreeable to those attending the group conscience meeting. The attendees address each item on the agenda.]
7. Making Decisions
[Some agenda items may require collecting information before the meeting; e.g., if one item is “Should the meeting start half an hour earlier,” it would be important to check if the room is available half an hour earlier. Depending on the nature of the issue, decisions can be made in different ways. The issue might not be controversial at all. It might be supported or opposed by most people in the group, but vehemently opposed or supported by a minority. It might have the support of only slightly more or less than half the group. Each possibility can require a different approach. To determine how to handle the issue, the chair might begin with a general statement, such as:]
“The issue here is whether or not this group should change its meeting format to have a Traditions meeting on the last Monday of the month. Does anyone feel strongly one way or the other? Let’s go around the room and have people indicate how they feel, what they think would be best for the group, and why they think this would be helpful to the group.” (Or, “Let’s have a quick vote. Those who like the proposal, please raise your hands. Now, those who don’t like the proposal, please raise your hands.”)
General Consensus
[If it becomes clear members generally share the same opinion, the chair can say something like the following:] “It seems that we may have reached a consensus. Let’s make certain. Does anyone oppose (or support) this proposal?” [If no hands are raised, the chair may say:] “Let’s go on to other business. Would our secretary please record that we reached a consensus to have (or not have) a Traditions meeting on the last Monday of the month?”
Some Support or Opposition
[If it is apparent that some feel strongly for or against the proposal, the chair may say something like the following:] “It is clear that at least some members feel strongly that this proposal should (not) go forward. We in OA try to find a consensus, so it is important that we hear all points of view. Often those who disagree with the majority can best educate us by explaining the reasons for the views they hold. Let us remember that whatever decision we make can always be changed if our experience suggests it isn’t working. Let us have two people who support the proposal and two who oppose it speak for two (or three or five) minutes each, alternating one for and one against, followed by another vote.”
Clear Result from the Vote
[If the results of the vote are clear—very few members either oppose or support the proposal—then the chair may say something like:] “It appears that this proposal has (or does not have) the support of the majority of the group. Accordingly, would our secretary please record that we reached a group conscience on __________?”
A Large Minority
[If the vote doesn’t show a clear consensus, in the interests of developing a true group conscience, the chair should try to work toward a greater consensus in the following suggested manner:] “Concept Twelve (d) says, ‘all important decisions shall be reached by discussion, vote and, whenever possible, by substantial unanimity.’ In my opinion, we have not reached substantial unanimity. A large number of members present oppose (or support) this proposal and to go with the majority would not achieve unanimity.
“Does anyone have an idea of how to develop our informed group conscience in this situation?”
[Here are some ideas that groups have used to develop a group conscience:
Ask for suggestions, changes, or amendments to the proposal that might address some of the reasons it has not found substantial unanimity. Perhaps those in the minority who are opposed to the proposal largely support it but disagree with one or two parts. Amending those parts could result in substantial unanimity.
Appoint a committee of two, four, or six members, evenly divided on the issue, to discuss it and make recommendations to the group.
Try the proposal for a limited time and monitor its effectiveness. Schedule a group conscience meeting for one to six months in the future to decide whether to continue using it.
Hold the proposal until the next group conscience meeting and announce at each OA group meeting that it did not achieve substantial unanimity and that it is important for all regularly attending members to be at the next group conscience meeting to discuss the proposal fully.]
8. Closing
“Is there any further business to conduct? Does anyone want to raise an issue for a future meeting?”
“Thank you for coming. To close the meeting, let us have a moment of silence followed by __________.” [Select one of the following suggested closings: Serenity Prayer, Seventh Step Prayer, Third Step Prayer, or the OA Promise: “I put my hand in yours…”]
OA Responsibility Pledge
Always to extend the hand and heart of OA to all who share my compulsion for this I am responsible.
Overeaters Anonymous, Inc. World Service Office Location: 6075 Zenith Court NE, Rio Rancho, NM 87144, USA Mailing address: PO Box 44727, Rio Rancho, NM 87174-4727, USA Telephone: +1 505-891-2664
Introduction
“Our way of life, based on these Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, has brought us physical, emotional and spiritual healing that we don’t hesitate to call miraculous. What works for us will work for you too.” —read the full Introduction to the Twelve Steps.
The Twelve Steps of Overeaters Anonymous
We admitted we were powerless over food—that our lives had become unmanageable.
Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.
Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these Steps, we tried to carry this message to compulsive overeaters and to practice these principles in all our affairs.
Permission to use the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous for adaptation granted by AA World Services, Inc.
I put my hand in yours, and together we can dowhat we could never do alone.No longer is there a sense of hopelessness,no longer must we each dependupon our own unsteady willpower.We are all together now,reaching out our hands for power andstrength greater than ours, and as we join hands,we find love and understandingbeyond our … Continued
