What is The Oxford Group? - Third Printing from 1933

What is The Oxford Group? by the Layman with a Notebook, with a Foreword by L.W. Grensted.

This version of the book was published by The Oxford University Press in London. This is the British Edition of the book. This book is a Third Printing from September 1934 with the original dust jacket.

The popular Oxford Group book titled "What Is the Oxford Group?" by the Layman with a Notebook is essentially an introduction to and an explanation of the Oxford Group movement, which was a Christian organization that influenced the founding of Alcoholics Anonymous. The book outlines the core ideas and practices of the Oxford Group, focusing on the personal transformation through spiritual practices and the group's emphasis on moral inventory, guidance from God, confession, and restitution.

The author, writing anonymously as "the Layman with a Notebook," seeks to provide a clear and comprehensive account of the Oxford Group's aims, methods, and its philosophy of life-changing through faith and personal honesty. It delves into the ways in which these practices can be applied to everyday life, aiming to inspire readers to embark on their own spiritual journeys within this framework. The book is not only a guide but also serves as a testimonial to the profound personal changes that can be achieved through the group's practices.

The Oxford Group emphasized personal spiritual transformation and evangelism. Here are some of their key principles:

1. Absolute Honesty: Members were encouraged to be completely truthful in their daily lives, acknowledging their own flaws and mistakes.

2. Absolute Purity: This principle advocated for moral and spiritual cleanliness, urging individuals to live lives free from sin as they understood it.

3. Absolute Unselfishness: Members were expected to consider the needs of others and put them before their own, promoting a life of service and sacrifice.

4. Absolute Love: Love was seen as the greatest force and was to be the guiding principle in all interactions, reflecting a commitment to benevolence and forgiveness.

5. The Guidance of God: The Oxford Group believed that personal guidance from God could be sought and received through prayer and meditation, particularly through quiet time set aside for listening to God.

6. Sharing: The practice of sharing one's sins and experiences in a group setting was central, as it was believed to help in spiritual growth and foster a supportive community.

7. Restitution: Members were encouraged to make amends for past wrongs as part of their spiritual path to healing and reconciliation.

These principles were designed to help individuals achieve personal transformation and to foster a societal change based on Christian values and practices. The emphasis on personal morality and renewal was significant in shaping the methodologies of later groups, like Alcoholics Anonymous, which adopted and adapted some of these principles into their own Twelve Steps program.

This book served as a basis for the text of Alcoholics Anonymous. What is the Oxford Group? was written in 1932 and served as a popular book among early AA members. Dr. Bob had owned and circulated several copies of this book among Akron AA's.

Here is the Foreword by L.W. Grensted:

"The very last thing that the writer of this book would wish is that he should become widely known as a prophet of the Oxford Group Movement. Even less, if that were possible, would he claim any special authority as an exponent of its principles. For both reasons I am sure that he is right in his desire that his book should be an anonymous exposition of the principles which underlie the experience of new strength and new vision through which he has been passing. It has been written, as his friends know, with a heat of conviction which makes it rather a living document than a carefully guarded treatise. It is, for those who can understand, a piece of direct and first-hand evidence for the ways of God"s working in a human life.

Yet, since anonymity carries its own risks of misunderstanding, I am glad to have the opportunity of adding this brief foreword. Characteristically individual as this book is, it yet covers so much of the ground of the experience upon which the fellowship of the Group is based, and in a form at once so systematic and so readable, that I believe that it may, under God, be used very widely to help others to understand that fellowship better, and to bring home to them that challenge of the living Christ for which and for which alone the fellowship stands."

This book is in very good condition. The book cover shows some minor wear. There is a bookplate and handwriting on the first page. There is no other writing or markings inside the book. The dust jacket is in good condition with some fading, stains, and edge wear.

Please view all of the photos for the conditions.