Casa Publicadora Brasileira (Brazil Publishing House, CPB), the official publishing house of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Brazil, recently celebrated its 125th anniversary with a commemorative program held on May 26, 2025. The event highlighted the life-changing impact of literature and colporteur ministry, with testimonies from readers whose lives were transformed by Adventist books.

One such story featured Paulo Santos, a bricklayer from Teresina, the capital of the state of Piauí. In 2000, during renovations to a home, Santos discovered a copy of Life of Jesus, printed by CPB in 1973.

“That woman had a treasure in her home, something of incalculable value, but she didn’t know how to recognize it,” Santos said. After reading the book, which had been forgotten in an attic, he embarked on a spiritual journey that culminated in his baptism in 2024 at the CPB headquarters.

Santos’s baptism took place during the 125th anniversary celebration, where he was reunited with Ildete Silva, the editor of the edition that influenced his decision.

"The Word Does Not Return Void"

During the program, Alejandro Bullón, Adventist pastor, shared a message based on Isaiah 55:11, emphasizing the enduring power of God’s Word.

“The Word of God never returns void,” he said. “It always fulfills its purpose, even if it takes years, decades, or even more than half a century.”

The event also celebrated the impact of Impacto Esperança (Impact Hope), a South American Division (SAD) initiative that mobilizes church members to distribute millions of free Adventist books annually.

One testimony came from Kátia Cruz de Souza Lima, who received a copy of The Greatest Hope in 2023 while walking along the boardwalk in Praia Grande, São Paulo during a period of grief. A passage from Psalm 121 and a message of comfort inside the book struck a chord with her.

“God is an expert at seeing a face in the crowd. [...] He knows where you live, what you do, and what is in your heart. [...] In the midst of the losses and traumas that occur in a world that goes from bad to worse, God has comfort, guidance, and a safe guide to offer,” she read.

The book included the address of a local Adventist church, which Kátia and her daughter Karina began attending. Both were baptized in December 2023 and are now members of the Vila Formosa Adventist Church. During the CPB celebration, they met Eliana and Denilson, the couple who had shared the book with them.

A Legacy of Literature

The celebration included symbolic elements, such as the arrival of a vintage-style van representing the first vehicle used to transport Adventist literature. Participants received commemorative gifts, including miniature replicas of the vehicle and a special edition of The Ambassadors, an updated-language version of Adventist pioneer and writer Ellen White's Acts of the Apostles.

CPB’s growth has paralleled that of the Adventist Church in Brazil. When the publishing house began operations in Rio de Janeiro in 1900, there were just 26 congregations and 700 members in the country. Today, Brazil has over 1.8 million Adventists and nearly 20,000 congregations, more than any other country.

“Without a doubt, the CPB was fundamental to the growth of the church,” said Stanley Arco, SAD president. “Our pulpits were strengthened with Christ-centered, biblical, and doctrinally sound sermons. The devotional life of members was nourished by denominational periodicals. And the teaching materials produced by the publisher have been essential to preserving the Adventist philosophy of teaching in our 347 schools, which serve almost 300,000 students.”

Looking Ahead

In its first decade, CPB printed just 2,700 books. By the 1940s, production had reached 1.3 million copies, and in the 1970s, that number rose to six million. In the final decade of the 20th century, CPB produced 17 million books. In 2024 alone, the publisher expects to print more than 38 million books, totaling 5.2 billion pages.

“In the hands of God, the autumn leaves have multiplied exponentially,” said Uilson Garcia, president of CPB. “In the first decade, only three tons of paper were consumed. Today, we use 642 tons of this raw material per month.”

Following the main event, church leaders and more than 300 motorcyclists joined CPB staff in distributing 14,000 copies of the missionary book A Chave da Virada throughout the city of Tietê, near Tatuí, where the publishing house is based.

“It is a great blessing to be part of this sacred ministry and to know that our work can transform lives,” said Edwin Castilho, a CPB employee. “It was with this feeling that we went out to deliver the literature of salvation and hope to the people of Tietê.”

“This publisher remains firm in its mission: to print to save,” concluded Garcia.

The original article was published on the South American Division Portuguese news site. Join the ANN WhatsApp Channel for the latest Adventist news.