Tentmaker Publications is a family and church business. It all began when we were missionaries in Ireland engaged in church-planting. We saw the need of pastors and evangelists to be supported and yet recognised the problem of small churches with limited funds. Some form of self-support was necessary and a study of Paul’s practice in Acts convinced us of its biblical warrant. Since leaving Ireland in 1996 we have continued to develop Tentmaker Publications, initially with a view to supporting missionary work by others, but for the last six years to support ourselves as well, as we are once more engaged in church-planting. We have four sons who all helped at times to produce the books, whether it was by scanning, typesetting, or the endless folding of sections! Now they have left home all that devolves on Phil. Joy does most of the packing and despatch.

The church we have been establishing is Hartshill Bible Church in Stoke-on-Trent. We currently meet in a school of which one of the members was deputy head. The church has an active evangelistic thrust and missionary interest. We have a missionary working in Weston-super Mare, S W England (Angeline Devlin) and support others in Italy. In the past four years we have developed strong links with churches in Burma and have set up a fund to support work in that needy country. The church is now ‘twinned’ with a church in Tirana, Albania. Our theological position is that of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith. This governs the teaching and practice of the church, though the publishing work reflects a broader evangelicalism. As you can see, for instance, we have published numerous Methodist works and are planning to republish a biography of Arminius. Not only do we believe that these are valuable in understanding evangelical history, but in many cases describe people and movements of eminent godliness and great usefulness in the cause of Christ. We trust that among the many titles we produce you will find much to edify and inform.