Using COSA Literature in Meetings

The reading and study of COSA literature and the Balance newsletter can enrich our recovery program like nothing else can. Each booklet or pamphlet published by COSA has been written by recovering COSAs and is approved by a vote of the delegates and the board at the Biannual Delegate Meeting. The Balance newsletter is written, compiled, and designed by COSA trusted servants. The ISO holds the copyrights for all fellowship literature.
The exception to this is the A.A. readings, upon which all Twelve Step programs are based. These readings, including the Twelve Steps, Twelve Traditions, and the Promises of Alcoholics Anonymous, are used with permission of Alcoholics Anonymous. At A.A.’s request, we include an acknowledgment of their copyright and print the original A.A. versions whenever we include these readings in COSA materials.

The COSA Meeting Guide: Starting and Maintaining Sober and Sustainable Groups is a detailed document that includes a number of useful readings and resources for groups.

You may purchase COSA literature at the COSA Online Store. We ask that you please support the fellowship by purchasing all COSA literature directly from the ISO; please do not make copies of any COSA literature, tapes, or CDs as they are all copyrighted. Some groups maintain a lending library of COSA literature, including CDs and tapes; this helps get materials out to many individuals.

Some groups use readings from COSA literature in their meetings. Group autonomy provides that groups may adapt COSA readings to their needs, with the exception of the Steps, Traditions, and Promises which are copyrighted by Alcoholics Anonymous. Presently, the principle of autonomy also gives members at the group level the right to read aloud from non-COSA literature during meetings. It is useful to note that COSA does not use outside literature at the Intergroup level or in the ISO, because doing so would affect COSA as a whole.

COSA encourages groups to offer members information on the many choices available in Step and recovery literature. At the same time, many groups choose to sell only COSA-approved publications at their meetings. This supports the Seventh Tradition as well as our fellowship’s ability to reach those who still suffer. If non-COSA recovery materials are available to members at meetings, we recommend that such literature be displayed separately from COSA-approved literature. Also, we recommend that groups use special care in selecting which non-COSA literature to use and make available at meetings. We want to maintain the focus on our primary purpose: COSA recovery.