Rebellion Dogs Publishing

05/07/2026

It was 40 years ago; We Humanists Alcoholics Anonymous meeting in New York City met for the first time (1986). This is the middle of the secular AA story. This was informed a Unitarian Universalist National Newsletters about existing secular meeting spaces (AA for Atheists and Agnostics in Chicago, 1975/We Agnostics, Los Angeles, 1980). But this isn’t the birth of secularism in AA. Right from the start Hank Parkurst, Jim Burwell and others held an opinion about reliance on superstitious agency as a cure for alcohol use disorder was, “I can't stand this God stuff! It's a lot of malarkey for weak folks. This group doesn't need it, and I won't have it! malarky and AA would be better without it.”

I remember talking with James Christopher, founder of Secular Organizations for Sobriety, about his relationship with AA before and since he formed SOS. “AA is a religion in denial,” he would say. Attached is an article in the Secular Humanist magazine, Free Inquiry, written by Jim about a year before he started an LA SOS meeting with some other like-minded people with alcohol use disorder.
In the article he writes about a few “heathenistic meetings in their AA community, irreligious meetings such as AA for Atheists and Agnostics in Chicago (1995) and We Agnostics in Hollywood (1980). As a humanist, it isn’t just the supernatural faith-based sobriety program, not just the G-word. Another religious residue in AA is the “original sin” idea: we are flawed, incomplete and helpless against bad or self-destructive impulse, if not for the mercy of a supernatural source. SOS is also an acronym for save our selves and this peer-2-peer group helps reinforce empowerment with each other—not learned helplessness.
SOS would later spawn LifeRing; in 1997, Marty Nicolaus and others started LifeRing meetings and by 1999 some when on their own, creating LifeRing Press also, to support literature for their recovery approach. Many other non-12-Step fellowship have come to be and this helps a wider gateway for recovery from addiction to help more people: AA works, SOS, LifeRing, Women For Sobriety, SMART Recovery, She Recovers all work. This article attached also reached some nonbelievers in New York City and together, they started We Humanists and secular AA in NYC grew from there, starting in 1986.

This is the point: Yes/And is a better solution to a problem than, this-but-not-that. Religious AA works, secular AA works, non-12-step works, the more the better. 40 years after this article came out, there are several secular AA meetings to choose from over 16 hours or more a day. Non-12-step alternatives, more than James Christopher could have imagined are also succeeding as mutual-aid groups, also. Here’s an article that made a difference…

, , , , , , LifeRing Canada S.O.S AA secular members Free Inquiry

https://secularhumanism.org/1985/07/sobriety-without-superstition/

04/29/2026

The latest EmotionalSobrietyPodcast w/ Allen Berger + co-hosts, and - another amazing chat

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/dir-7ftae-2d3a126f

04/25/2026

William H Schaberg, known for more scholarly writing, has written something far more personal - 30 Things: Practical Advice for Living Well (2024). Writing the Big Book: The Creation of AA (2019) is such a book that people are just discovering now and starting reading groups about - in person and online.

Rebellion Dogs Publishing has started a 30-episode series of vignettes (10 minutes or less each), going through chapter by chapter. This overview kicks us off; 30 more shorts will follow.

What others have said...

Dr. Joe Nowinski, clinical therapist, writer and author

There are many things to like about 30 Things, starting with the fact that it is easy and enjoyable to read, thanks to the writing skill of the author. That makes it comfortable to be read in chunks of 3-4 "things" and then pause to reflect on them as they may apply to the reader. Next—and perhaps most importantly--it is written from a position of humility - not authority - which makes the advice offered easy to digest. It stands in contrast to the patronizing approach that typically characterizes "advice" writings. Most of the "things" in fact emanate from the author's own experiences and originate with others he respects. While it is doubtful that I or other readers will be able to memorize these 30 things and apply them on a daily basis, I can easily see how a situation I find myself in may stimulate my memory of one "thing" or another, and thereby help to inform my actions. For these reasons, I heartily recommend 30 Things to all who are open to seeing life at times from a different perspective.

Adina Silvestri, EdD, LPC, Licensed Professional Counsellor

As a therapist specializing in substance abuse and erasing shame, I found 30 Things to be a valuable source of wise and practical advice. This book provides an array of insights that are especially beneficial for therapists and their clients on a journey toward healing and self-improvement. Below are some key highlights and how they can be applied to therapy:

Embrace the Fact That We Are All Different

○ Schaberg’s advice to acknowledge and appreciate individual differences is crucial in therapy. This helps clients understand that differing perspectives and behaviours are normal and can be embraced rather than judged.

○ Application: Encourage clients to explore and celebrate their unique traits and those of others, fostering acceptance and reducing interpersonal conflicts.

04/22/2026

Who has heard Mary C on Recovery Demystified the podcast?

Have you heard? Mary C on Recovery Demystified - it's a great conversation with quotable and helpful contributions from host Early and Mary, with talking about her story and
AA secular members

This is a remarkable conversation to listen into.

https://www.recoverydemystified.com/

Spotify...
https://open.spotify.com/episode/1qdFXdIYjPUv2SBlbwCENe?si=c3018243f8ad4579

iHeart...
https://open.spotify.com/episode/1qdFXdIYjPUv2SBlbwCENe?si=c3018243f8ad4579

Deezer ...
https://link.deezer.com/s/334hbExO7SqsTQfsq8t7B

Empowering. Non-Religious. Inclusive. Recovery Demystified provides addiction recovery support that is uplifting and barrier-free in NWA.

04/12/2026

Part 2 is here 🙂

https://rebelliondogspublishing.com/blog/blog/7746531/when-the-need-to-people-please-comes-up-against-no-more-f**ks-to-give

Read and feed(back). We want to hear from you.

Previously posted April 8, article LinkedIn Secular AA In our last blog, Knives Out, we looked at pluralism in AA culture. Diverse worldviews create a ...

04/07/2026

The podcast platform, BuBuzzsproutid not exist when Rebellion Dogs Publishing started 'barking' out loud and online. has really helped. There was a time when I had to manually upload to Apple Podcasts, PodBean, MySpace (who remembers MySpace, lol) and all of them. It's nice to spend more time creating new content and less time on the tech.

If you're thinking of podcasting your own show, it's been good - fairly priced, technically easy to manage, with no or few glitches.

We've been guest blogging, and we want to get serious about new content.

Some of our older shows on RebellionDogsPublishing.com haven’t been uploaded to Buzzsprout. Rebellion Dogs started in 2011, and it would be good to include the back-catalogue on the Buzzsprout server. Over 200 of you listen each day-some are new to Rebellion Dogs, so welcome.

Favorite apps are: Apple Podcast, Spotify, Overcast, Buzzsprout.com or https://rebelliondogspublishing.com/rebellious-radio directly, Podbean, iHeartRadio, and Podcast Addict.

Most of us listen to this show on our phones; iPhones are the favourite. Of the 10,000 listeners, here are the favourites as of today...

1. Mary C as a guest on the Plain Language Big Book (2024).
2. Bill Schaber, author of Creating the Big Book: The Creation of AA (2019) + 30 Things: Practical Advice for Living Well (2024)
3. Bob K, author of The Secret Diaries of Bill W., and Key Players in AA History
4. Religionless Spirituality with Rev Ward Ewing, past chair of the General Service Conference of AA
5. Modernity and Fundamentalism in 12 Step Culture
6. Feminists on Drugs with Professor Trish Travis
7. AlAllen Bergerust before the 12 Essential Insights for Emotional Sobriety EmEmotional Sobriety and Recoveryame out. Some of you already know, some of my time away has been joining Patrick, Thom and Partrick on their Emotional Sobriety Podcast, which continues to be a blast. All the fun of this one, with no edition, lol.



Thanks, everyone, listeners, contributors, fellow travellers, this is a great community that continues to add meaning and hope through the good and the difficult times.

04/05/2026

today - everyone welcome, Toronto's Beyond Belief Agnostics & Freethinkers AA group hosts the monthly International Conference of Secular AA speaker meeting. Info about the Phoenix ICSAA 2026 in November and some history of secular AA in Canada.

03/28/2026

Who Dun It?!?! From the quirky murder mystery Knives Out (2025) we find an AA-like story baked into an exchange between a crime detective atheist and a boxer-turned priest who help solve a murder together….

https://rebelliondogspublishing.com/blogs/rebellion-dogs-blog/posts/knives-out-de-escalation-when-one-world-view-triggers-another/

Hey, have you heard this one? "An atheist cop and a priest walk into a crime scene together..." In the first of a two-part series, we look at...

03/27/2026

This April in Orlando

We’re so excited that our Carrie Wilkens, PhD will be presenting on the importance of including families & the Invitation to Change at the SMART Recovery Conference this coming April!

More details about the conference below. SMART Recovery USA

https://favoredconferencesandevents.regfox.com/smart-recovery-national-conference-2026?hsLang=en

03/25/2026

Le***an, atheist, trailblazer, an alcoholic, infused with purpose and empathy.

This is one of the earliest recorded voices in Alcoholics Anonymous history.In this rare and historically significant recording from December 11, 1946, Marty...

03/24/2026

We're looking for secular AA voices from the USA and Canada. Submissions are due by/before March 31, 2026.

Two new pamphlets needed for the lived experience of AA members: Transgender and people of Asian heritage who would like to contribute to new AA pamphlets, now is the time 😊

Not only has AA made gestures toward nonbelievers in AA through the Grapevine book, One Big Tent, and the pamphlet, The “God” Word: Agnostic and Atheist Members in AA, but we also see outreach to atheists and agnostics across AA to contribute to our literature. Some of you, I hope, have submitted your stories for consideration in the Fifth Edition of Alcoholics Anonymous. Editors can only choose from the stories that are already submitted.
Right now there is an opportunity for the voice of secular in two upcoming pamphlets:

• The trustees’ Literature Committee is seeking stories of personal recovery from all transgender, non-binary, genderqueer, Two-Spirit, and gender non-conforming members in the A.A. structure of the United States and Canada.
• The trustees' literature committee is seeking stories of personal recovery from all members in the AA structure of the United States and Canada with ethnic or cultural ties to Asia

Please encourage all qualified individuals to submit their stories. The success of the pamphlet depends on having a broad range of stories to choose from. Stories of recovery may include, but are not limited to:
1. experience strength and hope,
2. steps traditions and concepts
3. ethnic cultural sexual and gender diversity
4. sponsorship and service experience in AA meetings
5. safety
6. racism
7. mental health
8. cultural reconnections
9. diversity of socioeconomic status
10. atheists and agnostics
11. newcomer experiences
12. finding experience in linguistic groups and or communities
13. accessing AA despite cultural barriers

E-mail submissions or questions to pamphletstories@aa.org
Please start working on this now. Submissions are due by March 31st 2026

https://www.aa.org/submit-story-aa-for-the-transgender-alcoholic-pamphlet

https://www.aa.org/submit-story-asian-and-asian-american-alcoholic-alcoholic-pamphlet

Email submissions: pamphletstories@aa.org
Subject Line: A.A. for the Transgender Alcoholic and or, The Asian and Asian-American alcoholic in A.A.
Postal Mail submissions:

Attn: Literature Assignment
General Service Office
Box 459
Grand Central Station
New York, NY 10163

On the envelope: The word "Pamphlet" should be written on the envelope and at the top of the first page of the manuscript.
Thank you for your participation in the process!

11/16/2025

https://rebelliondogspublishing.com/rebellious-radio/blog/7653569/dr-jamie-marich-on-trauma-and-recovery
Here's a conversation with AA secular members ICSAA 2024 Orlando keynote speaker, Dr. Jamie Marich who spoke on a trauma-informed look at the 12-step process. Here, we catch up and new projects and the current environment for clinical care for people with addiction and mental health concerns and professionals who work to help us. NANAADAC, The Association for Addiction ProfessionalsdEdgewood Health Network - CalgaryACAMHaCanadian Centre on Substance UseaHazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Episode #84 features our long-awaited guest, Jamie Marich, PhD, in conversation with Mary C and Joe C of Rebellion Dogs Radio. Dr Jamie's latest colla...