WESTMONT, IL—Starting this month IVP kicks off its seventy-fifth anniversary by starting a yearlong celebration of books and authors that have shaped culture, affected the church, and changed lives.
Linda Doll, who coauthored (with Andrew T. Le Peau) Heart. Soul. Mind. Strength.: An Anecdotal History of InterVarsity Press, 1947–2007, wrote, “One of the helpful emphases of the postmodern age is the reminder that if we are to look forward, we first have to look back. If we are going to know where we are going, we have to know where we have been.”
The history of twentieth-century evangelicalism cannot be understood apart from the authors and books that shaped it. Leading figures and IVP authors such as evangelist Rebecca Manley Pippert, apologist Francis Schaeffer, theologian J. I. Packer, and pastor-scholar John Stott helped a generation of church leaders to think more biblically. Landmark books such as Ron Sider’s Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger, James W. Sire’s The Universe Next Door, and Your God Is Too White by Columbus Salley and Ronald Behm challenged Christians to engage the world around them.
Throughout the coming yearlong celebration IVP will look at where the press has been by sharing monthly stories about how individual books and authors have started and led historical discussions concerning missions, apologetics, spiritual formation, science, social justice, theology, politics, women in ministry, and more.
“InterVarsity Press occupies a unique place in the Christian world—one that I believe is essential in a time when we are more divided than ever. IVP books offer diverse and sometimes intentionally contradictory positions,” said Cindy Bunch, associate publisher and director of editorial for IVP. “Sometimes we joke that our books make everyone mad at one time or another—but we are actually quite serious about our role in maintaining a broad publishing program. We welcome a variety of readers rather than drawing hard lines that keep people inside and outside the boundaries. IVP authors encourage readers to dive deeper into Scripture, culture, science, theology, justice, and more, while always keeping our eyes on Christ. We value the life of the mind and at the same time we call readers to an ever-deepening spiritual journey. The qualities named in the tagline ‘Heart. Soul. Mind. Strength.’ capture our desire to reach readers in a holistic way.”
In celebration of the seventy-fifth anniversary, IVP is releasing special editions of select iconic and bestselling books from our history. Between fall of 2019 and fall of 2023, IVP is releasing Signature Collection editions of twenty-seven books and thirteen Bible studies that represent a wide range of authors, topics, and genres.
Stan Jantz, president and CEO of the Evangelical Christian Publishing Association (ECPA), said, “For seventy-five years InterVarsity Press has published compelling books that bring honor to Christ by cultivating the mind while simultaneously stirring the heart. My first encounter with InterVarsity came while I was in college through brilliant authors such as Os Guinness and Becky Pippert, who are still writing great books for—you guessed it—InterVarsity Press. Not content to rest on past success, this innovative publisher continues to discover and publish first-rate authors for new generations. That’s the mark of a great publisher. That’s the mark of InterVarsity Press.”
Since 1947, IVP has been publishing thoughtful Christian books that shape both the lives of readers and the cultures they inhabit. Times may have changed in those seventy-five years, but nothing has changed about how IVP books and authors speak boldly into the urgent issues of the day and provide timeless tools for spiritual growth and thoughtful engagement with academia.
Jon Boyd, editorial director for IVP Academic, said, “IVP has always known that a crucial part of our mission is to speak the language of academia—in its own terms, asking its pressing questions, and then bringing to bear fresh light from Scripture and Christian thought. Many of our trade books do that too, of course, but serving the university world is the central raison d’être of the IVP Academic imprint. These days we’re publishing more academic books than ever, spanning more fields than ever, by authors from more institutions and traditions than ever, serving more needs of readers than ever (from historical fiction to encyclopedias, literary essays to specialized monographs)—all for the sake of being part of a renewal of Christian life and thought in and through the world’s universities, seminaries, and colleges.”
Speaking into important cultural moments throughout the decades—from the halls of academia to the church pulpit to the public forum—IVP has served as a conversation partner for Christians wishing to deepen their personal faith, understand a biblical view of the world around them, and engage with that world faithfully. IVP and its books have not only addressed a particular moment in history, they’ve also spoken timeless truths across generations.
“In the course of its seventy-five years of publishing, InterVarsity Press has grown from an original focus on making Bible study, discipleship, and worldview resources available to a student ministry to becoming one of the most trusted sources of Christian thought and practice for people in the church, the academy, and the world,” Jeff Crosby, IVP publisher, said. “As the people who compose IVP enter the next chapter of its history, I am confident that the organization will continue to not only fulfill its unique and strategic mission in the world but will expand and refine it. The world desperately needs the kind of publishing that InterVarsity Press has been committed to curating since its inception. I’ve been privileged to be associated with IVP throughout my career as a longtime bookseller and, since 1998, as an employee. No other publisher has shaped my understanding of Christian faith and practice as much.”
Watch for more information about IVP’s seventy-fifth anniversary on ivpress.com and facebook.
Contact: Krista Clayton, 630.734.4013, kclayton@ivpress.com
