Spurgeon's College

Last updated

Spurgeon's College
Former Falkland Park, South Norwood Hill - geograph.org.uk - 1777086.jpg
Former name
The Pastors' College
Established1856
Religious affiliation
Baptist Union of Great Britain
Chancellor Rick Warren [1]
Principal Philip McCormack [2]
Location,
51°24′23″N0°05′10″W / 51.4064°N 0.0862°W / 51.4064; -0.0862
Website spurgeons.ac.uk
Spurgeons College logo.png

Spurgeon's College is an evangelical Baptist theological college in South Norwood, London, England, United Kingdom. It is affiliated with the Baptist Union of Great Britain.

Contents

History

The school was founded in 1856 by Pastor Charles Spurgeon as "Pastors' College" in London. [3] [4] His vision was to provide a practical theological education, mission-centered. [5] By 1892, the school had trained 863 students. [6] In 1923, it moved to its present building and was renamed in honor of its founder. [7]

Programs

It delivers training for the Baptist ministry both in the UK and elsewhere. It also offers a suite of other courses including online learning, a part-time (Monday) Degree course, several Master's courses. [8] In 2008 the college was also accredited by the British Accreditation Council. In 2011 the college underwent three external inspections. A week-long inspection by the ecumenical churches (Quality in Formation) declared the college 'fit for purpose' and the University of Wales judged that the preparation for research degrees (MPhil, PhD) meets the current standards. [9] Finally, the 2011 quinquennial review by the university resulted in a report recommending the programmes should continue subject to two conditions being met within months and other recommendations should be carefully considered. [10]

Due to the University of Wales stopping the accreditation of outside institutes, their academic accreditation was withdrawn in 2012. [11] In September 2012, the college announced that its degrees had received provisional accreditation by the University of Manchester, a member of the Russell Group of British universities subject to adjustments and negotiation. [12] In 2020 the college announced a consultation period for a redevelopment programme as part of their vision to become a university. [13] In May 2022 the college was granted full degree awarding powers by the Office for Students. [14]

Partners

The school is a partner of the Baptist Union of Great Britain and the Evangelical Alliance. [15]

Notable alumni

Related Research Articles

Baptists form a major branch of evangelicalism distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul competency, sola fide, sola scriptura and congregationalist church government. Baptists generally recognize two ordinances: baptism and communion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reformed Baptists</span> Baptists who hold to a Calvinist soteriology

Reformed Baptists, Particular Baptists and Calvinistic Baptists, are Baptists that hold to a Calvinist soteriology. Depending on the denomination, Calvinistic Baptists adhere to varying degrees of Reformed theology, ranging from simply embracing the Five Points of Calvinism, to accepting a modified form of federalism; all Calvinistic Baptists reject the classical Reformed teaching on infant baptism. While the Reformed Baptist confessions affirm views of the nature of baptism similar to those of the classical Reformed, they reject infants as the proper subjects of baptism. The first Calvinistic Baptist church was formed in the 1630s. The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith is a significant summary of the beliefs of Reformed Baptists. The name "Reformed Baptist" dates from the latter part of the 20th century to denote Baptists who retained Baptist ecclesiology, and reaffirmed Reformed biblical theology, such as Covenant theology.

Canadian Baptist Ministries (CBM) or Ministères Baptistes Canadiens is a federation of four regional Baptist Christian association of churches in Canada. The federation is a member of the Baptist World Alliance. The headquarter is in Mississauga, Ontario.

Baptists Together, formally the Baptist Union of Great Britain, is a Baptist Christian denomination in England and Wales. It is affiliated with the Baptist World Alliance and Churches Together in England. The headquarters is in Didcot.

The Union of Christian Baptist Churches in Romania is a Baptist Christian denomination in Romania. It is affiliated with the Romanian Evangelical Alliance, the European Baptist Federation and the Baptist World Alliance. The headquarters is in Bucharest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastern University (United States)</span> Private Christian university in St. Davids, Pennsylvania, U.S.

Eastern University (EU) is a private Christian university in the St. Davids, Pennsylvania area, with additional locations in Philadelphia and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The university offers undergraduate, graduate, and seminary programs. Eastern University is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA and has an interdenominational student body, faculty and administration.

Stanley James Grenz (1950–2005) was an American Protestant Christian theologian and ethicist in the Baptist tradition.

Tyndale University is a Canadian private interdenominational evangelical Christian university in Toronto, Ontario, which offers undergraduate and graduate programs. Tyndale students come from over 40 different Christian denominations.

New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (NOBTS) is a Baptist theological institute in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. Missions and evangelism are core focuses of the seminary.

A Bible college, sometimes referred to as a Bible institute or theological institute or theological seminary, is an evangelical Christian or Restoration Movement Christian institution of higher education which prepares students for Christian ministry with theological education, Biblical studies and practical ministry training.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern Baptist Theological Seminary</span> Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, USA

The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (SBTS) is a Baptist theological institute in Louisville, Kentucky. It is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. The seminary was founded in 1859 in Greenville, South Carolina, where it was at first housed on the campus of Furman University. The seminary has been an innovator in theological education, establishing one of the first Ph.D. programs in religion in the year 1892. After being closed during the Civil War, it moved in 1877 to a newly built campus in downtown Louisville and moved to its current location in 1926 in the Crescent Hill neighborhood. In 1953, Southern became one of the few seminaries to offer a full, accredited degree course in church music. For more than fifty years Southern has been one of the world's largest theological seminaries, with an FTE enrollment of over 3,300 students in 2015.

Western Seminary is an interdenominational Evangelical Christian seminary with campuses in Portland, Oregon and San Jose, California. Western Seminary also has online-only degrees and programs and offers cohorts at partner churches around the U.S.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irish Baptist College</span> Irish religious college

The Irish Baptist College (IBC) is a Baptist theological college in Moira, Craigavon, Northern Ireland. It is affiliated with the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland. It is part of the Baptist Theological Centre which is located in the Baptist Centre and is shared with ABC. IBC is accredited and reached Premier College Status by the Accreditation Service for International Colleges (ASIC). The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education of England and Wales, review the IBC for quality and standards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emanuel University of Oradea</span>

Emanuel University of Oradea is a private Baptist university based in Oradea, Romania. It is affiliated with the Union of Christian Baptist Churches in Romania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heritage College & Seminary</span> Canadian evangelical institution in Ontario

The Heritage College & Seminary is a Baptist theological institute in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada. It is affiliated with the Fellowship of Evangelical Baptist Churches in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nazareth Evangelical College</span>

Nazareth Evangelical College is an evangelical Bible college located in Nazareth, Israel. The language of instruction is Arabic. The college offers graduate and undergraduate degrees and provides a number of other education services to the local community.

The Canadian National Baptist Convention is a Baptist Christian denomination in Canada. It is affiliated with the Baptist World Alliance and the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada. The headquarters is in Cochrane, Alberta.

Nigel Goring Wright is a British Baptist theologian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ian Randall</span> British historian (born 1948)

Ian M. Randall is a British historian who is best known for his works on the history of European evangelicalism and Protestant nonconformity. He is a research associate at the Cambridge Centre for Christianity Worldwide at Westminster College in Cambridge, England, and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. Randall also serves as a senior research fellow at Spurgeon's College in London and the International Baptist Theological Study Centre in Amsterdam.

References

  1. "Rick Warren appointed honorary chancellor of UK Christian college". premierchristian.news. Archived from the original on 11 June 2023. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  2. "Philip McCormack". Spurgeon's College. 9 November 2018. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
  3. George Thomas Kurian, Mark A. Lamport, Encyclopedia of Christian Education, Volume 3, Rowman & Littlefield, USA, 2015, p. 1205.
  4. Michael Edward Williams, Walter B. Shurden, Turning Points in Baptist History, Mercer University Press, USA, 2008, p. 132.
  5. David Emmanuel Singh, Bernard C. Farr, Christianity and Education: Shaping Christian Thinking in Context, Wipf and Stock Publishers, USA, 2011, p. 174.
  6. John H. Y. Briggs, A Dictionary of European Baptist Life and Thought, Wipf and Stock Publishers, USA, 2009, p. 480.
  7. Michael Kenneth Nicholls, Spurgeon's College, christianitytoday.com, USA, Vol. 29, 1991.
  8. Spurgeon's College, Theology courses at Spurgeon’s College, spurgeons.ac.uk, UK, retrieved May 5, 2023.
  9. "Quality In Formation Inspection Report 2011 - Spurgeon's College" (PDF). Retrieved 25 May 2016.
  10. "Report on the Quinquennial Review of ... at Spurgeon's College, London on Thursday 16th June 2011" (PDF). Retrieved 25 May 2016.
  11. "University of Wales announces new academic strategy". 6 October 2011. Retrieved 10 June 2016.
  12. "Universiteit Manchester accrediteert Spurgeon's College Londen" (in Dutch). Reformatorisch Dagblad. 6 September 2012.
  13. "Virtual Consultation". Spurgeon's College. 23 June 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  14. "Spurgeon's College 'incredibly proud' to secure full degree awarding powers". Christian Today. 21 May 2022. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
  15. Spurgeon's College, Mission and Values, spurgeons.ac.uk, UK, retrieved 5 December 2020.