Our History
In the early days of World War II, a young couple, Ken and Bessie Adams, were working with the Friends Evangelistic Band in England, visiting people in their homes to share the gospel. On many of these visits, they found that they had been preceded by others who left literature, especially the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Ken declared, “I cannot stand by and watch the spread of so much dangerous propaganda and not do something about spreading the truths of the Gospel.”
On 1 November 1941, fired by passion for literature distribution, Ken and Bessie Adams established “The Evangelical Publishing House” in a small rental space in Colchester, UK. This took place even when the government was severely limiting publishing and the opening of bookshops in wartime England.
The Adams believed in the transformative power of Christian literature and its ability to shape lives, and partnered to found CLC as an autonomous arm of WEC International, a global evangelistic organization founded by C.T. Studd. The organization’s primary goal was to distribute Christian literature to individuals and churches across the United Kingdom. By the end of the war, there were six literature centres across England and a work serving German Prisoners of War.
CLC Ministries offered a literature ministry to all branches of the church. “We will not let doctrinal differences hinder us from serving all denominations with their literature needs,” affirmed Ken. “But our position is to be uncompromisingly evangelical so that purchasers feel quite sure that all they see and buy will build up readers or point the unconverted to the Savior. Each book center should be first and foremost a spiritual powerhouse–workers out to win souls and help fellow Christians, this being more important than the sale of books. Branches of Christ’s church in the town should be made to feel that the shop belongs to all and is their service.”
Global Expansion and Impact
Driven by a growing vision to bring Christian literature to people around the world, Ken and Bessie Adams initiated the global expansion of CLC. Through the pioneering efforts of their colleague, John Davey, the first overseas CLC bookshop opened on the island of Dominica in 1947. Together with a dedicated group of overseas workers, they continued to establish bookshops in various countries throughout the world. Their dedication to providing quality Christian resources in different languages contributed to the growth of the organization.
In 1948, Ken and Bessie moved to North America to establish a new CLC USA headquarters in the Philadelphia area. Today, CLC serves in over 40 countries where men and women of diverse nationalities are joining hands to feed a world hungry for print. It is represented by more than 110 bookshops, 18 distribution warehouses and 18 publishing houses.
CLC International operates with many bookshops, publishing ventures, and ministries – all dedicated to distributing Christian literature and resources. Given that a large percentage of people coming to faith in Christ do so through the reading of a Christian book, CLC remains committed to Ken and Bessie Adams’ original vision of making Christian literature accessible to all, serving as a valuable resource for individuals, churches, and communities worldwide.
Through CLC, we desire to see people’s lives changed though making evangelical literature available to all nations so that people of all backgrounds may come to faith and maturity in Christ. Join our team today!