Trinity College, Bristol

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Trinity College

Trinity College, Bristol (Bristol)
Trinity College, Bristol
Shown within Bristol
Building information
Town Bristol
Country England
Coordinates 51°28′40″N 2°37′54″W / 51.477781, -2.631631Coordinates: 51°28′40″N 2°37′54″W / 51.477781, -2.631631
Completion date 1669

Trinity College, Bristol is a theological college affiliated to the Church of England. It is located in Stoke Bishop, a prosperous suburb in Bristol, England, next to the University of Bristol's residential halls. It offers various undergraduate and postgraduate courses which are validated by the University of Bristol and chiefly trains students for ordination in the Church of England, although the courses are interdenominational.

Contents

[edit] Building

The building previously known as Stoke House was built in 1669 and has been designated by English Heritage as a grade II* listed building.[1]

[edit] History

Trinity College was formed in 1972 from a merger of three evangelical colleges in Bristol: Clifton, Dalton House with St Michaels, and Tyndale Hall. Trinity is rooted in the evangelical tradition but offers training to Christians from a variety of theological traditions. [2]

All of the colleges had their origins in the Bible Churchmen's Missionary Society (BCMS, now Crosslinks). The Bible Missionary Training College opened in Bristol in 1925, and was recognized by the Church of England in 1927. The BCMS college faced great difficulties in its early days. Its conservative evangelical constituency was numerically and financially weak. The staff split over the issue of subscription to BCMS' doctrinal basis, and those who did not view subscription as essential left to form Clifton Theological College. Subsequently, Dalton House was opened to train women. The Principal of the men's college (C.S.Carter) resigned in the early 1930s after dismissing a student. It was renamed Tyndale Hall in 1952. [3]

An earlier attempt at merger in the 1960s was poorly handled and resulted in considerable conflict.[4]

Since September 1997, Trinity has been a member of the Bristol Federation. Its partners are Bristol Baptist College, Wesley College, and the West of England Ministerial Training Course (WEMTC).

[edit] Notable staff and alumni

  • George Carey – 103rd Archbishop of Canterbury. Principal of the college from 1982–1988.
  • J. Alec Motyer – Former principal of the college, well known as the author of several key books, including 'The Prophecy of Isaiah.' He is also the Old Testament editor of the Bible Speaks Today series of commentaries.
  • J. I. Packer – Associate principal from 1971-79. Packer is considered[who?] to be one of the most important evangelical theologians of the late 20th century.
  • Joyce G. Baldwin - Former principal and author of numerous commentaries.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Stoke House, Clifton Theological College, and attached rear kitchen block. Images of England. Retrieved on 2007-05-23.
  2. ^ Kings, 2003. "Canal, River and Rapids: Contemporary Evangelicalism in the Church of England" by Graham Kings, published in the journal Anvil Vol 20 No 3, September 2003, pp167-184. Retrieved on September 9, 2006.
  3. ^ Preliminary listing of the records of the Bible Churchmen's Missionary Society. Retrieved on 2007-08-16.
  4. ^ McGrath, Alister E., To know and serve God : a life of James I. Packer, London: Hodder & Stoughton, ISBN 0340565713 .


[edit] External links