All Nations Christian College

Last updated

Easneye House
EasneyeHouse.jpg
Hertfordshire UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location within Hertfordshire
General information
Architectural style High Victorian
Town or city Ware
CountryEngland
Coordinates 51°48′10″N0°00′03″E / 51.8027°N 0.0007°E / 51.8027; 0.0007
Construction started1867
Completed1868
Client Thomas Fowell Buxton
Design and construction
Architect(s) Alfred Waterhouse

All Nations Christian College is an English missions college, located on the Easneye estate near Ware, Hertfordshire, and validated by the Open University.

Contents

Aims

Unlike some Bible colleges, the focus of All Nations Christian College is primarily missiological – that is, it is focused on training people for cross-cultural Christian mission service anywhere in the world, in Britain or overseas. The Bachelor's degree course offered by the college is in "Biblical and Intercultural Studies", representing the division in the syllabus between personal development, biblical, and intercultural elements of the course.

History

All Nations is the result of the merger in 1971 of three colleges, all of which prepared people to work in cross-cultural missionary service overseas: Mt Hermon Missionary Training College (founded 1911), Ridgelands Bible College (1919), and All Nations Bible College (1923). The last had changed its name to All Nations Missionary College in 1962, just prior to moving from Taplow, in Buckinghamshire, to Easneye Mansion near Ware in 1964. The first two exclusively trained women, while All Nations Missionary College trained both single men and married couples.

All Nations Missionary College had always maintained cordial relations with the other two colleges, to the extent of sharing council members and faculty at times. In the freer atmosphere brought in by the 1960s it became increasingly evident to the principals of Mt Hermon (Meg Foote) and All Nations (David Morris) that it was time to bring the colleges together and to train men and women, singles and marrieds, in one enlarged institution. Ridgelands College was approached and they readily agreed to be involved with such a vision. (Redcliffe College at Chiswick was also approached but their trustees were not convinced combining was feasible). Despite resistance in some quarters to the idea of a coeducational merger, Morris and Foote persisted, and in 1971 the three colleges merged under the name of All Nations Christian College.

It took some time to decide on a location for the merged college, but, after examination of a wide range of available properties in the Home Counties, the decision was made to buy the Easneye Mansion and 15 acres (6.1 ha) of land, which All Nations Missionary College had used on a rental basis since 1964. This was enlarged and developed with the proceeds from the sale of the other two colleges.

Easneye Mansion

Easneye Mansion had been the family home of the Buxtons since being built by Thomas Fowell Buxton (Jnr) in 1868. Buxton's father, Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton (Snr), had made his fortune (along with Messrs Truman and Hanbury) by brewing and popularising porter (beer), which was considered to be a cheaper, more nutritious and healthier alternative to gin. Sir Thomas was a member of the reformist Clapham Sect and it was to him that the ailing William Wilberforce entrusted the oversight of the Emancipation of Slaves Bill, which Buxton eventually got through Parliament in 1832. This earned him not only a Baronetcy but also the title of "The Liberator". His sister in law was the penal reformer Elizabeth Fry, and Buxton could be seen beside Fry on the back of the previous edition of the English £5 note from 2001 to 2016. Buxton's brewery was successful and eventually enabled his son to buy the estate at Easneye (Anglo-Saxon for water-island) and build the mansion under the direction of the architect Alfred Waterhouse. It is a Grade II* listed building. [1]

As the Buxtons moved into Easneye, Hannah, the wife of Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton Snr, wrote a letter expressing her desire for a dedication service to be held, which contained the prophetic wish: "(May) this house ever be inhabited by faithful servants of God in and through Jesus Christ .. and may this place be a fountain of blessing in the church and in the world". Arthur Buxton (1882–1958) lived here in his youth. During the lifetime of the owner all available family and employees would gather in the Main Hall for morning prayers to be offered on behalf of the estate, the church and the world; and a grandson of Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton Snr, Barclay Fowell Buxton, went as a missionary to Japan, while some of the household servants also went overseas in Christian service. Barclay Fowell Buxton's son, Godfrey Buxton, founded a precursor institution of All Nations Missionary College.

Principals of the college

The principals of the college since the 1971 merger have been:

Since 2006, the college has restructured its governance. Instead of a principal, the overall directional role of the college is carried by its CEO, and other members of staff serve on the Leadership Team.

Facilities

The college contains the largest missiological library in Europe, with over 50,000 volumes and 40,000 indexed articles. It subscribes to over 100 periodicals with back issues of a further 200.

The college's student accommodation consists of the original Buxton house (Main House) which contains the married couples' accommodation (the Wainery), plus the former stables and coach house, along with a custom-built accommodation block (Oak House, built in 1971, housing 70 students). The Academic Block was also built in 1971 and contains two large lecture halls as well as tutors' offices. The lecture halls are fitted with induction loops for the hard of hearing.

Wifi is available throughout most of the campus. There is also a games room, and various leisure and sports facilities.

Courses

Undergraduate

The primary course is Biblical and Intercultural Studies. It is available as a Certificate, Diploma, or BA (Hons) Degree. While a college qualification is internationally recognised by missionary societies, students can choose to be accredited by the Open University.

Postgraduate

Missiology, Leadership, Contextual Theology, Ecclesiology, Development & Staff Care are available as a PG Certificate, PG Diploma, or MA. [2]

Complementary

Short courses of ten weeks are available titled En Route, running alongside the regular courses. Additional courses during the breaks include Refresh for Mission for existing missionaries, the International Dance School for artists, and the Islamics Course.

Related Research Articles

Moore Theological College, otherwise known simply as Moore College, is the theological training seminary of the Diocese of Sydney in the Anglican Church of Australia. The president of the Moore Theological College Council is ex officio the Anglican Archbishop of Sydney.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trinity College, Bristol</span>

Trinity College, Bristol is an evangelical Anglican theological college located in Stoke Bishop, Bristol, England. It offers a range of full-time and part-time taught undergraduate and postgraduate courses which are validated by the University of Durham through the Common Awards Scheme, though the college sets its own curriculum. Many of its students are training for ordination in the Church of England; and hence there is a strong vocational aspect to the courses it provides. It also has students of other Christian denominations, as well as students who are intending to serve within various forms of lay ministry. The college also has a significant number of students studying for research degrees at masters and doctoral levels. All of Trinity's postgraduate research courses are validated by the University of Aberdeen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Codrington College</span> Anglican theological seminary in Barbados

Codrington College is an Anglican theological college in St. John, Barbados now affiliated with the University of the West Indies at Cave Hill. It is one of the oldest Anglican theological colleges in the Americas. It was affiliated to the University of Durham from 1875 to 1965.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tougaloo College</span> Private historically Black college in Jackson, Mississippi

Tougaloo College is a private historically black college in the Tougaloo area of Jackson, Mississippi. It is affiliated with the United Church of Christ and Christian Church. It was originally established in 1869 by New York–based Christian missionaries for the education of freed slaves and their offspring. From 1871 until 1892 the college served as a teachers' training school funded by the state of Mississippi. In 1998, the buildings of the old campus were added to the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prairie College</span> Christian post-secondary school in Canada

Prairie College is an interdenominational Christian College located in the town of Three Hills, Alberta. Founded as Prairie Bible Institute, classes began on October 9, 1922, on the property of the McElheran family farm.

Penn View Bible Institute is a nationally accredited 4 year Bible College with the Association for Biblical Higher Education preparing preachers, missionaries, Christian school teachers, child evangelism workers, and musicians in the conservative holiness movement since its beginning in 1966; the main campus also has a KG through 12th grade Christian Academy. It is located on 60 acres in rural Penns Creek in the central part of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is governed by God's Missionary Church and is affiliated with the Interchurch Holiness Convention. Penn View Bible Institute is Wesleyan-Arminian (Methodist) in belief.

Free Villages is the term used for Caribbean settlements, particularly in Jamaica, founded in the 1830s and 1840s with land for freedmen independent of the control of plantation owners and other major estates. The concept was initiated by English Baptist missionaries in Jamaica, who raised funds in Great Britain to buy land to be granted to freedmen after emancipation. The planters had vowed not to sell any land to freedmen after slavery was finally abolished in the Empire in 1838; they wanted to retain freedmen as agricultural workers. The Free Villages were often founded around a Baptist church, and missionaries worked to found schools as well in these settlements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barclay Fowell Buxton</span>

Rev. Barclay Fowell Buxton was an English evangelical Christian missionary in Japan.

Barclay Godfrey Buxton MC was a casualty of World War I, who compensated for his inability to follow the family tradition of missionary service by founding and running missionary training colleges.

Yisu Das Tiwari (1911–1997) was an Indian theologian and a leading participant in Hindu-Christian dialogue.

Buxton & Leek College is a college of Further and Higher Education operating at their campuses and facilities in Buxton, Derbyshire, Leek, Staffordshire and Derby, Derbyshire. The college is part of the University of Derby.

Jesse Ndwiga Kanyua Mugambi is a professor of philosophy and religious studies at the University of Nairobi with professional training in education and philosophy of religion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eston College</span> Christian college in Saskatchewan, Canada

Eston College is a private Christian post-secondary educational institution located in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. Since 1944 it has served as the primary training center for the Apostolic Church of Pentecost (ACOP).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dunston Hall Hotel</span> Grade II listed building in Norfolk, England

Dunston Hall Hotel is an Elizabethan Revival style Grade II listed building in the village of Dunston, Norfolk, England. It is part of the QHotels Collection group of hotels and has an AA four-star rating.

The International Association for Mission Studies (IAMS) is an international, inter-confessional, and interdisciplinary professional society for the scholarly study of the Christian mission and its impact in the world and the related field of intercultural theology. It is based in England and South Korea.

Paul Gordon Hiebert was an American missiologist. He was "arguably the world's leading missiological anthropologist."

Hannibal Richard Cabral(1955 — 23rd October 2021) was the former principal of Karnataka Theological College, Mangalore, a seminary established in 1965 and affiliated to India's first University, the Senate of Serampore College. Cabral was appointed by the College Council as Principal in 2009 as John Sadananda, then principal, was elevated to the Bishopric of the Karnataka Southern Diocese of the Church of South India.

Oliver Rainsford Barclay was a British academic and evangelical Christian. Originally a zoologist, he later turned his attentions to widening the influence of conservative evangelical Christianity within universities and theological colleges. He was General Secretary of the Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship from 1964 to 1980, and also Chair of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students from 1971 to 1979. In 1989, he co-founded the journal Science and Christian Belief.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Singapore Bible College</span> Evangelical Bible college in Singapore

Singapore Bible College (SBC) is an evangelical Bible college in Singapore. SBC has over 500 students, representing 25 countries. The current principal is Rev. Dr. Clement Chia.

The Reverend Arthur Buxton was a clergyman of the Church of England, Rector of All Souls Church, Langham Place, Marylebone, after serving as Chaplain to the Forces during the First World War.

References

  1. Historic England. "Name: ALL NATIONS CHRISTIAN COLLEGE EASNEYE (1078763)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 27 December 2015.
  2. "Postgraduate Programme Overview". All Nations.

Sources

51°48′10″N0°00′03″E / 51.8027°N 0.0007°E / 51.8027; 0.0007