Bible College of South Australia
The Bible College of South Australia (BCSA), formerly known as the Adelaide Bible Institute, is an interdenominational and evangelical Bible College in Adelaide, South Australia. It offers courses accredited through the Australian College of Theology.[1] The College's particular focus is on teaching 'theology for ministry' and seeing men and women trained to serve in Christian ministry 'in Adelaide, South Australia and beyond'.
History
Formerly called the 'Adelaide Bible Institute', the College was established in 1924 and offered evening classes to train people for missionary service. In 1949, the College became residential, first at West Richmond before moving in 1950 to Payneham. It was at this time that the College began to provide full-time ministry training programs. Growing numbers of students meant that in 1962, the College relocated to larger premises in Victor Harbour where Rev. Geoffrey Bingham became Principal and oversaw a continued increase in the student body.
The College was renamed 'Bible College of South Australia' in 1973 and in 1980, the strategic decision was made to move back to the city. The former Concordia College girls' boarding house in Malvern was acquired and continues to be the College's home today.
In the 1990s, the College partnered with Burleigh Baptist Theological College to start teaching the Bachelor of Theology and Bachelor of Ministry degrees of the Australian College of Theology, the country's oldest and largest accredited provider of tertiary theological education. At the end of that decade, the same partnership saw the establishment of the South Australian Graduate School of Theology. This enabled the teaching of Masters and Doctoral degrees in addition to the range of undergraduate awards. In 2007, following the closure of Burleigh, the Graduate School was amalgamated into the College proper where the full range of academic programs are now still offered.
Notable people associated with the Bible College include:
- Geoffrey Bingham, past Principal
- Paul Harrington, Vicar of Holy Trinity Church, Adelaide, Chair of the College Council
Courses
Bible College SA offers tertiary qualifications from diploma to postgraduate level, focussing on the Bachelor of Ministry, Bachelor of Theology and Master of Divinity, these three being commonly recognised as standard qualifications for workers in churches and Christian ministries.
All courses at the College emphasise New Testament and Old Testament studies with the disciplines of Christian Thought (e.g. Systematic Theology, Church History and Ethics) and ministry practice (e.g. Preaching, Leadership and Evangelism) also being offered. Courses are taught on-campus by a small in-house faculty and several adjunct lecturers. Several of the Master of Arts units are run in intensive blocks by visiting lecturers.
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Coordinates: 34°57′14″S 138°36′47″E / 34.954°S 138.613°E