Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (GCTS) is an interdenominational Christian evangelical theological seminary in the United States. Besides its 118 acre main campus in South Hamilton, Massachusetts, it also has an urban campus in downtown Boston known as the Center for Urban Ministerial Education (CUME), a campus in Charlotte, North Carolina, and an extension site in Jacksonville, Florida, which opened in January of 2006.
With over 2,000 students spread across the 4 locations, it is one of the largest seminaries in the United States and is considered a leading independent theological school that is neither attached to a university nor any specific denomination. While maintaining a distinctive evangelical outlook, Gordon-Conwell participates in the wider theological community as a member school of the Boston Theological Institute (BTI). The latter is a consortium of nine theological schools in the Greater Boston area, representing a wide spectrum of theological persuasions. Students belonging to a BTI member school enjoy full library access to the nine schools, and are entitled to take a certain percentage of their courses at other member schools, while degrees are conferred by their own respective institutions.
Contents |
[edit] Academics and accreditation
The institution is accredited by the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada (1964) [1] and by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (1985).[2] The seminary offers over 19 degrees including the Master of Divinity (M.Div.), Master of Theology (Th.M.), Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.), and a wide range of specialized master's degrees.
[edit] History
Though the present Gordon-Conwell was established in 1969, its historical roots can be traced to the 1880s, since it is the result of the merger of two schools: Gordon Divinity School in Wenham, Massachusetts and Conwell School of Theology of Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Gordon Divinity School was founded by A.J. Gordon, noted pastor of Clarendon Street Church in Boston around the turn of the 20th century. Conwell School of Theology was founded by Philadelphia pastor Russell Conwell, who was famous for his "Acres of Diamonds" sermon. The major personnel behind the merger were several noted evangelical theologians in the country, including Billy Graham and Harold J. Ockenga, who was also the first president of the seminary. In the 60's Ockenga and others saw the need for a strong evangelical voice in New England to counterweight the major liberal schools including Harvard, Boston University and others. With the financial backing of Pennsylvania oil man J. Howard Pew and the unifying influence of Graham, Ockenga brought two smaller schools together, and launched a new era in New England theological life.
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary announced the appointment of James Emery White as president, effective July 1, 2006. White succeeds Dr. Walter C Kaiser Jr. who retired on June 30, 2006. Kaiser's predecessor was Robert Cooley, who was a member of the Assemblies of God. Cooley was the first Pentecostal to be president of a major evangelical seminary and was part of the academic wing of the Assemblies, including others like Gordon Fee, John Ashcroft and his father Robert Ashcroft.
[edit] Academic Community
Many of its former and existing faculty members are leading scholars in their respective fields and are influential especially in the evangelical wing of Christianity. In the early years of the seminary perhaps the two most beloved and noted professors were Gordon Fee and Eugene Peterson, both of whom later moved to Regent College in Vancouver. Today's leading professors include David Wells, Jack Davis and the retiring Kaiser. At the Boston campus founding professor Eldin Villafane is perhaps the most noted scholar, having team taught with Harvey Cox at Harvard, and influencing the latter to reconsider his secularist view of the future by exposing him to Pentecostalism.
Today's Gordon-Conwell includes three major branches: South Hamilton ("The Hill"), Boston (CUME), and Charlotte. Each has a distinct academic flavor. The Hamilton campus is a three-year residential program with traditional evangelical thinking and a mostly young full-time student body. CUME, by comparison, is an "Urban" program done exclusively through night and weekend classes. The student body is mostly part-time and middle-aged. Although the program is considered evangelical, the theological emphasis includes elements not typical to evangelical thinking, such as an emphatic egalitarianism, social justice theology, and other aspects typically considered features of a liberal seminary. The Charlotte program is weekend based, and therefore also attracts an older student body, often part-time.
[edit] Trivia
- In February 2002, U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft sang a rendition of "Let the Eagle Soar" (composed by Ashcroft himself) at a seminary banquet in Charlotte on the invitation of longtime friend and President Emeritus, Robert Cooley. His performance was recorded by CNN (Windows Media Player, Real Player) and appeared in Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11, and several television specials. It was remarkable for a sitting Attorney General both to appear in such a religious setting and to conclude his remarks by singing. The theme of Ashcroft's song was based on the idea of the return of the American "Eagle", symbolizing national greatness.
