2022 Reprint of the 1957 Edition. Exact facsimile of the original edition and not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. Father Ralph S. Pfau, also known as Father John Doe, was the author of Sobriety Without End, Sobriety and Beyond and the Golden Book series. He is believed to have been the first Roman Catholic priest to enter Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). He took his first drink about a year after his ordination. By 1943 he was sufficiently worried about his drinking to investigate A.A. He experienced nervous breakdowns and spent time in sanitariums. He was twice relieved of his parish. Even after achieving sobriety, he continued to be plagued by depressions.
He learned about AA when calling on a parishioner who was thought to be dying but was just passed out from alcohol and drugs. Pfau noticed a copy of the book, Alcoholics Anonymous on the shelf. He borrowed and read it. He stopped drinking. Later he read pamphlets on AA left by a member in the church. With the approval of his Archbishop, he devoted himself to helping other alcoholics, particularly alcoholic priests. He traveled more than 50,000 miles a year to address meetings, conduct retreats and help individuals. For the next 25 years, despite severe problems with depression, he never took another drink. For a short time he continued to take medications prescribed by his doctor and by Mayo Clinic. He threw them away after discussing the problem with a doctor familiar with alcoholism.
In this popular successor to Sobriety and Beyond, the author freely discusses the everyday problems that beset the paths of the unwary. Serenity is the key to long-term sobriety, and Father Doe explains how to get it, nurture it and keep it for a lifetime. Father Doe believes that by continually growing both mentally and spiritually we strengthen our sobriety and prepare ourselves to deal with all the challenges life has in store for us.
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