Here is a link to MA World Services frequently asked questions page: https://marijuana-anonymous.org/vote/faq/
Please familiarize yourself with the FAQs before you host the meeting.
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Script
Hi, my name is ______________ and I will be your host for this information meeting about the upcoming vote in MA.
Let’s start with the WE version of the Serenity Prayer. It starts with God, and that is the Higher Power of your own understanding.
I will now put the call in Q&A mode, and give some information about the vote, then you can enter the queue to ask your questions.
[Chair: Put meeting into Q&A mode by pressing *01.
Please be sure to mute when someone else is speaking and un-mute when you talk.]
This meeting is to give information. Our desire is to provide the information so you can make an informed decision about how you feel on the issue.
Here’s how it all started: At the 2021 MA World Service Conference, a formal amendment was passed to change “God” to “Higher Power” in the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions. This would occur in Steps 3, 5, 6, 7 and 11, and Tradition 2. I will read the exact changes in a few minutes.
These changes, if passed, would not occur until the next edition of the book Life with Hope and Life with Hope Workbook. There will not be any separate financial costs if this passes.
This is a fellowship-wide vote for all members of Marijuana Anonymous, and each meeting is taking a vote in their own way. We have 32 phone meetings in MAWPM, and have 32 ballots to return to World Services with a YES or NO vote. The voting will happen the week of March 27, starting on Monday and ending on Sunday, April 2.
There is no clean time requirement to be able to vote. Tradition three states that “The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop using marijuana.”
How we will take the vote:
The vote is going to be taken at all of the 32 meetings of the MAWPM group. At each meeting during the week of Monday, March 27 through Sunday, April 2, at half past the hour, the person who will tally the votes will interrupt the meeting and announce the process and give the instructions.
Each person will enter the queue to vote. One by one, each person will speak up and give their vote – yes, no or abstain. Because the outcome is based upon a specific number of “yes” votes, a vote to abstain is a no vote.
All spoken votes will be counted. If you do not speak your vote, you are not counted as present in the voting; someone might not be on their phone, or have fallen asleep.
In MAWPM, a 2/3 majority is required for any motion to pass. Less than 2/3 majority of a yes vote, it will not pass. Per MAWS by-laws, you are eligible to vote at all the meetings you regularly attend. You do not need to, but you are eligible to. This is a personal decision. For example, if I go to nine meetings a week, I can vote 9 times, once at each of my regularly attended meetings.
The meeting’s chairperson will witness the count and will act as a second person to verify the tally. We will ask for a 3rd person to count the yes, no or abstain votes in case of a discrepancy between the tally counter and chairperson.
The person taking the tally at each meeting will email the result of the vote, stating the number of yes, no and abstain votes, carbon copying the meeting chairperson for accountability. Then our Web Administrator, who has the ballot links, will submit each meeting’s ballot during a live video chat session with another MAWPM fellow for accountability.
The voting must be completed by May 9th. This proposal will pass if ¾ of the ballots returned to MA World Services give a yes vote. If less than ¾ of the returned ballots give a yes vote, it will not pass. The fellowship-wide vote results will be announced May 26 on the first day of the MA World Services Conference.
Here are the Proposed changes: (Copied and pasted from MAWS website – do not edit)
Step Three: Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God a Higher Power, as we understood God Higher Power.
Step Five: Admitted to God a Higher Power, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
Step Six: Were entirely ready to have God a Higher Power remove all these defects of character.
Step Seven: Humbly asked God a Higher Power to remove our shortcomings.
Step Eleven: Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God a Higher Power, as we understood God Higher Power, praying only for knowledge of God a Higher Power’s will for us and the power to carry that out.
Tradition Two: For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority, a loving God Higher Power whose expression may come through in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern.
If you have questions, you can email fellowship.vote@marijuana-anonymous.org
Question: If the motion passes, would the word “God” change to “Higher Power” in every place the word God is mentioned within the MA literature?
No, there are very specific changes outlined in the Motion. Should the Motion pass, it would only change the words “God” to “Higher Power” within the numbered versions of the Twelve Steps and the Twelve Traditions, and anywhere the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions are directly quoted within other MA literature, including at the beginning of each chapter in Life with Hope, as well as Life with Hope 12 Step Workbook, MA pamphlets, handouts, website and MA App. Everywhere a specific step is quoted, it will be updated.
Voting will be conducted at 30 minutes past the hour for each meeting, from Monday, March 27 through Sunday, April 2, until all 32 meetings have voted. All times are Eastern.
The 7 AM meetings will vote every day at 7:30.
The 10 AM meetings will vote every day at 10:30.
The Noon meetings will vote every day at 12:30.
The 8 PM meetings will vote every day at 8:30.
The 10 PM Tuesday – Friday meetings will vote each of those days at 10:30.
You may now enter the queue to ask your question about this motion before the fellowship. I will advance the queue.
[Chair: read only if heated talk begins] Please keep in mind, Tradition Five states “Each group has but one primary purpose, to carry its message to the marijuana addict who still suffers.” In MA, we create an atmosphere to best serve our primary purpose, to carry the message to the marijuana addict who still suffers. If you would like to discuss the God or HP voting issue, you can press #1 to go into Subconference Room #1.
When no one else is in the queue, exit from Q&A mode by pressing *03 and close the meeting with the WE version of the Serenity Prayer.
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