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{{short description|UK-based Christian charity}}
{{distinguish|text=the Catholic [[Society for the Propagation of the Faith]]}}
▲{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox organization
| name = Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge
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The '''Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge''' ('''SPCK''') is a [[United Kingdom|UK]]-based [[Christians|Christian]] charity. Founded in 1698 by [[Thomas Bray]], it has worked for over 300 years to increase awareness of the [[Christians|Christian]] faith in the [[United Kingdom|UK]] and worldwide.
The SPCK is the oldest [[Anglican]] [[Christian mission|mission]] organisation in the world, though it is now more ecumenical in outlook and publishes books for a wide range of Christian denominations. It is currently the third-oldest independent publisher{{Citation needed|date=June 2024}} and the leading publisher of [[Christians|Christian]] books in the [[United Kingdom]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ipg.uk.com/independent-publishing-awards|title=IPG Independent Publishing Awards|access-date=24 August 2017}}</ref>
==History==
=== Foundation ===
On 8 March 1698, Rev. [[Thomas Bray]] met a small group of friends, including Sir [[Humphrey Mackworth]], Colonel [[Maynard Colchester]], [[Francis North, 2nd Baron Guilford|Lord Guilford]] and [[John Hooke (judge)|John Hooke]] at [[Lincoln's Inn]]. These men were concerned by what they saw as the "growth in vice and immorality" in
They resolved to meet regularly to devise strategies to increase their knowledge of Anglican Christianity. They decided that these aims could best be achieved by publishing and distributing Christian literature and encouraging Christian education at all levels.
Closely connected to the [[Church of England]], the SPCK was not active in Scotland, where the [[Society in Scotland for Propagating Christian Knowledge]] was founded in 1709.<ref name=Cambs/>
SPCK was involved in tackling a number of social and political issues of the time.<ref name="Cambs" /> It actively campaigned for penal reform, provided for the widows and children of clergy who died whilst overseas and provided basic education for slaves in the Caribbean.▼
▲
One of the key priorities for Bray and his friends was to build libraries in market towns. In its first two hundred years, the Society founded many [[charity school]]s for poor children aged 7-11. The Society also provided [[teacher training]].<ref>{{cite web| title =Schooling before the 19th Century| work =Living Heritage| publisher =UK Parliament| url =http://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/transformingsociety/livinglearning/school/overview/before19thcentury/| access-date =1 December 2014 }}</ref>
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SPCK has worked overseas since its foundation. The initial focus was the British colonies in the Americas. Libraries were established for the use of clergy and their parishioners, and books were frequently shipped across the Atlantic throughout the 18th century. In 1709, SPCK sent a printing press and trained printer to [[Tranquebar]] in East India to assist in the production of the first translation of the Bible into [[Tamil language|Tamil]]. This was accomplished by the German [[Lutheran]] missionaries [[Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg]] and [[Heinrich Pluetschau]] from the [[Danish-Halle Mission]].
As the British Empire grew in the 19th century, SPCK supported the planting of new churches around the world. Funds were provided for church buildings, schools, theological training colleges, and to provide chaplains for the ships taking emigrants to their new homes. While the SPCK supported the logistics of church planting and provided resources for theological learning, by the 19th century it did not often send missionaries overseas. Instead, this work was passed to other organizations such as its sister society the [[United Society for the Propagation of the Gospel]] (USPG), which was also founded by Bray. In Ireland, the [[Association for Promoting Christian Knowledge]] (APCK) was founded in 1792 to work alongside the Church of Ireland; in south India the Indian Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (ISPCK) was established to support the Anglican missions in that region and is affiliated with SPCK.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ispck.org.in/aboutus.php |publisher=Indian Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge|title=About|accessdate=26 August 2020}}</ref>
During the twentieth century, SPCK's overseas mission concentrated on providing free study literature for those in a number of ministerial training colleges around the world, especially in Africa. The International Study Guide series was provided, free of charge, to [[seminaries|theological training colleges]] across the world. They can still be purchased from the SPCK website,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://spckpublishing.co.uk/catalogsearch/result/?q=ISG|title=Search results for: 'ISG'|publisher=SPCK Publishing|access-date=13 March 2019}}</ref> although the focus of SPCK's worldwide mission is now on developing the African Theological Network Press.
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From the late 1800s to the early 20th century, SPCK ran a Training College for Lay Workers on Commercial Road in Stepney Green, London.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://spckpublishing.co.uk/blog/a-very-brief-history-of-spck-s-charitable-work.html|title=A Very Brief History of SPCK's Charitable Work|publisher=SPCK Publishing|access-date=1 March 2019}}</ref> This was set up to provide a theological education for working-class men, with the aim of better helping clergy to conduct services. It was also anticipated that with a firmer understanding of the Bible, theology and the values of the Anglican church, these men might be able to instruct their own communities.
Throughout the
=== Publishing and distribution ===
Throughout the 18th century, SPCK was by far the largest producer of Christian literature in Britain.{{cn|date=October 2023}} The range of its output was considerable
Depositories were established at [[Great Queen Street]], [[Lincoln Inn's Fields]], [[Royal Exchange, London|Royal Exchange]] and [[Piccadilly]].<ref name="BTAO">{{Cite book| title=The children of Seeligsberg| date=1875| author= BTAO}}</ref>
SPCK's early publications were distributed through a network of supporters who received books and tracts to sell or give away in their own localities. Large quantities of Christian literature were provided for the Navy, and the Society actively encouraged the formation of parish libraries, to help both clergy and laity. By the 19th century, members had organized local district committees, many of which established small book depots — which at one time numbered over four hundred. These were overseen by central committees such as the Committee of General Literature and Education. In 1899, the addresses of their "depositories" in London were given as Northumberland Avenue, W.C.; Charing Cross, W.C. and 43 Queen Victoria Street, E.C..<ref>"The Dawn of Day", 256th edition</ref> Six years later, in edition 331, the depository was closed at Charing Cross, but a new one added at 129, North Street in Brighton.▼
▲SPCK's early publications were distributed through a network of supporters who received books and tracts to sell or give away in their own localities. Large quantities of Christian literature were provided for the Navy, and the Society actively encouraged the formation of parish libraries, to help both clergy and laity. By the 19th century, members had organized local district committees, many of which established small book depots
In the 1930s, a centrally coordinated network of SPCK Bookshops was established, offering a wide range of books from many different publishers. At its peak, the SPCK bookshop chain consisted of 40 shops in the UK and 20 overseas. The latter were gradually passed into local ownership during the 1960s and 1970s.▼
▲In the 1930s, a centrally coordinated network of SPCK Bookshops was established, offering a wide range of books from many different publishers. At its peak, the SPCK
[[Holy Trinity Church, Marylebone]], Westminster, London is a former Anglican church, built in 1828 by Sir [[John Soane]]. By the 1930s, it had fallen into disuse and in 1936 was used by the newly founded Penguin Books company to store books. A children's slide was used to deliver books from the street into the large crypt. In 1937, Penguin moved out to [[Harmondsworth]], and the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge moved in. It was their headquarters until 2004, when it moved to [[Diocese of London|London Diocesan House]] in Causton Street, Pimlico. The bookshop moved to Tufton Street, Westminster, in 2003.
In 1999 the SPCK established the Assemblies website to provide resources for school assemblies.<ref>[https://www.assemblies.org.uk/about/how-to-use/ SPCK Assemblies - About - How to use this site], assemblies.org.uk. Retrieved 24 December 2023.</ref>
On 1 November 2006, St Stephen the Great Charitable Trust (SSG) took over the bookshops but continued to trade under the SPCK name, under licence from SPCK. That licence was withdrawn in October 2007. However, some shops continued trading as SPCK Bookshops without licence until the SSG operation was closed down in 2009.▼
▲On 1 November 2006, St Stephen the Great Charitable Trust (SSG) took over the bookshops but continued to trade under the SPCK name, under licence from SPCK. That licence was withdrawn in October 2007. However, some shops continued trading as SPCK Bookshops without licence until the SSG operation was closed down in 2009.{{cn|date=October 2023}} In 2006 Alec Gilmore described what he called the "narrowing" of the SPCK's vision.<ref>Alec Gilmore, [https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2006/22-december/comment/before-they-narrowed-the-vision "Before they narrowed the vision"], ''[[Church Times]]'', 19 December 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.</ref>
In 2019 the SPCK's "specialist medical, mental health and self-help imprint", The Sheldon Press, was acquired by Hachette UK.<ref>Katharine Cowdrey, [https://www.thebookseller.com/news/spcks-sheldon-press-join-john-murray-learning-923766 "Hachette acquires SPCK's Sheldon Press"], ''[[The Bookseller]]'', 3 January 2019. Retrieved 23 December 2023.</ref>
=== SPCK's former book series ===
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* Early Church Classics<ref name="wallace" />
* Early Chroniclers of Europe<ref>[https://www.worldcat.org/search?q=se%3AEarly%20chroniclers%20of%20Europe se:Early chroniclers of Europe], worldcat.org. Retrieved 19 April 2023.</ref>
* Ecclesiastical Biographies<ref>E. K. Sanders (Ella Katharine Sanders), ''[https://archive.org/details/SainteChantal/page/n7/mode/2up Sainte Chantal, 1572-1641: A Study in Vocation]'', London: SPCK, 1918 (Ecclesiastical Biographies), title page. Retrieved 21 April 2023.</ref>
* English Theologians
* Exploring the Old Testament
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* The Indian Church Commentaries
* Legends Revived
* Lessons on the Way for the Use of Inquirers and Teachers<ref>Percy Dearmner, ''[https://archive.org/details/lessonsonwayvol20002perc/page/n3/mode/2up Belief in God and in Jesus Christ]''. Londen: SPCK and Cambridge: W. Hefner and Sons, 1936 (Lessons on the Way for the Use of Inquirers and Teachers), list in preliminary pages. Retrieved 19 April 2023.</ref>
* Library of Pastoral Care
* Little Books on Religion
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* Manuals of Health<ref name="proctor" /><ref name="clare" /><ref name="bower" />
* Missionary Stories Series
* Natural History Rambles<ref>[[Peter Martin Duncan|P. Martin Duncan]], ''[https://archive.org/details/seashore00dunc/page/n3/mode/2up The Sea-shore
▲* Natural History Rambles<ref>[[Peter Martin Duncan|P. Martin Duncan]], [https://archive.org/details/seashore00dunc/page/n3/mode/2up The Sea-shore]]'', London: SPCK, 1879 (Natural History Rambles). Retrieved 19 April 2023.</ref><ref>Rev. J. G. Wood, [https://archive.org/details/lanefield00woodiala/page/246/mode/2up Lane and Field], London: SPCK, 1897, publisher's list, p. 1. Retrieved 19 April 2023.</ref><ref name="clare" /><ref name="bower" />
* The Nature Lover's Series
* New Library of Pastoral Care<ref>Michael Butler and Ann Orbach, ''[https://archive.org/details/beingyouragepast0000butl/page/n3/mode/2up Being Your Age : Pastoral Care for Older People]'', London: SPCK, 1993, frontispiece. Retrieved 19 April 2023.</ref>
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* The Zoo
}}
====Based on lecture series====
{{columns-list|colwidth=30em|
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=== SPCK's former pedagogical aids ===
* Atlases<ref name="bower" />
* Church History Cartoons<ref name="symonds" />
* Maps, "mounted on canvas and roller, varnished"<ref name="bower" />
== SPCK in the 2020s ==
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=== Lion Hudson ===
SPCK purchased [[Lion Hudson]] in 2021<ref>{{cite web|work=The Bookseller|title=SPCK buys Lion Hudson's publishing business|url=https://www.thebookseller.com/news/spck-buys-lion-hudson-become-uks-biggest-publisher-1256461}}</ref> which is now an SPCK imprint.
=== Marylebone House ===
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=== Diffusion prison fiction ===
SPCK also owns the imprint Diffusion, which has published 12 titles especially commissioned for adults who struggle to read. These titles are divided into two series, "Star" and "Diamond". Star books are written for adults who are new to reading and need to improve their very basic skills, while the Diamond series is more appropriate for learners who want to develop their reading confidence further.<ref name="Dbooks">{{Cite web |title=Diffusion Books |url=https://spckpublishing.co.uk/diffusion_books |access-date=13 March 2019 |publisher=SPCK Publishing}}</ref> All of the books are
SPCK provides these books for free to prisons including to individual prisoners, prison libraries and prison reading groups. This is done with the aim of addressing two major causes of re-offending: lack of employment on release and lack of support from family and friends. At the end of each chapter, the Diffusion books contain questions which can be discussed in a reading group, thereby developing verbal communication and social skills. These questions focus on developing empathy by asking questions like "what would it feel like to be in that character's position?" and encourage self-reflection by asking "how does this example apply to my own life?".<ref>{{Cite web |title=What We Do {{!}} Improving Literacy |url=https://www.diffusionbooks.org.uk/reading-groups |access-date=13 March 2019 |publisher=Diffusion Books}}</ref>
By the end of 2018, the SPCK had sent Diffusion books to 70% of prisons in the UK. In 2018 alone, it sent out over 6,500 books.
=== The African Theological Network Press ===
Together with the [[Akrofi-Christaller Institute|Akrofi-Christaller Institute of Theology, Mission and Culture]], the Jesuit Historical Institute in Africa and Missio Africanus, the SPCK founded the African Theological Network Press (the ATNP). The ATNP publishes theology written by Africans on topics that matter to African Christians.
The ATNP seeks to mitigate the dependence of African theological study and teaching on publications from the global North.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{Cite web|url=https://spckpublishing.co.uk/african-theological-network-press|title=African Theological Network Press - ATNP| publisher=SPCK Publishing| access-date=8 March 2019}}</ref>
==
The Scottish sister society,<ref name="Tanner 2004">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AXyq-Umw9DgC&q=%22Society+for+the+Promotion+of+Christian+Knowledge%22 |title=The Last of the Celts |last=Tanner |first=Marcus |publisher=Yale University Press |date=2004 |isbn=0-300-10464-2 |page=35 |url-access=limited }}</ref> the '''Society in Scotland for Propagating Christian Knowledge''' ('''SSPCK'''), was formed by royal charter in 1709<ref name="Tanner 2004"/> as a separate organisation with the purpose of founding schools "where religion and virtue might be taught to young and old" in the [[Scottish Highlands]] and other "uncivilised" areas of the country. It was intended to counter the threat of Catholic missionaries and of growing Highland [[Jacobitism]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Porter |first=Andrew |title=Religion Versus Empire?: British Protestant Missionaries and Overseas Expansion, 1700–1914 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ldQxO_yIPSEC&pg=PP9 |year=2004 |publisher=Manchester University Press |page=9 |isbn=9780719028236
▲=== Prominent members ===
▲* James Catford, chair of trustees
* Sam Richardson, CEO
* Bishop [[John Pritchard (bishop)|John Pritchard]], former chair of trustees
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==Further reading==
* Allen, William Osborne Bird & McClure, Edmund (1898) ''Two Hundred Years: the History of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge,
* Clarke, W. K. Lowther (1959) ''A History of the SPCK''. London: SPCK
* Clarke, W. K. Lowther (1919) ''[https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofsp00clarrich/page/n5/mode/2up A Short History of the S.P.C.K.]'' London: SPCK and New York: Macmillan
* [[T. C. Smout|Smout, T. C.]] (1985), ''A History of the Scottish People'', Fontana Press, {{ISBN|0-00-686027-3}}
* Grigg, John A., "'How This Shall Be Brought About': The Development of the SSPCK's American Policy," ''Itinerario'' (Leiden), 32 (no. 3, 2008), 43–60.
* Nishikawa, Sugiko. "The SPCK in defence of protestant minorities in Early Eighteenth-Century Europe." ''Journal of Ecclesiastical History'' 56.04 (2005):
* Simon, Joan. "From charity school to workhouse in the 1720s: The SPCK and Mr Marriott's solution." ''History of education'' 17#2 (1988): 113–129.
* Threinen, Norman J. (1988) ''Friedrich Michael Ziegenhagen (
* Withrington, D. J. "The SPCK and Highland Schools in Mid-Eighteenth Century." ''Scottish Historical Review'' 41.132 (1962):
==
*{{commons category-inline|Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge}}
▲* [http://www.sspck.co.uk/index.html Society in Scotland for Propagating Christian Knowledge] official website of the SSPCK
{{Authority control}}
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[[Category:Christian publishing companies]]
[[Category:Educational book publishing companies]]
[[Category:History of education in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Organisations based in the City of Westminster]]
[[Category:Religion in the City of Westminster]]
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