What to look for in a seminary?!

Rhet,

I thought the article was great....I was pleasantly surprised. He made great points that many of our fundamentalist brothers should hear.

For those that are in the IFB movement there are some much better choices than Hyles or Crown. Schools like Central in Minneapolis, Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary, Faith Baptist Theological Seminary, Calvary in PA, and even Bob Jones....are all good choices for IFB.

Great article! Dr. Bauder "hits the nail on the head."

 

Good food thought. First, he seems to be pushing a fundamental baptists agenda. What about other excellent conservative evangelical seminaries? Second, his comments are confined to an actual classroom setting. What about DL? And third, what does he mean by credible schools? Even a good fundamental baptist would recognize excellence wherever it is displayed. Good overall.

 

While I certainly can't agree with some of his statements, I can endorse his claim that the typical fundamentalist minimum of Bible college for pastors and missionaries is subpar. I'm curious whom Bauder has in mind with his "apostate" label. I've grown weary of this fundamentalist mindset that unbelievers and apostates fill the faculty of the "liberal" (i.e., non-Baptist or non-evangelical) schools. My suspicion is that if Bauder were to peruse his alma mater, Denver Seminary, he would see some "apostate" institutions listed where many of the profs received their doctorates.

I'm glad there are fundamentalist seminaries out there, and I have a degree from one of them. But I've also been to a conservative evangelical seminary and even an "apostate" one and they are far superior academically with better faculty, libraries, and students. People are not marginalized for holding different beliefs than the norm and few discussions are taboo at these places. I've found my 2 years at these institutions to be exponentially more fruitful than the 7+ years spent at the fundamentalist Bible college/seminary from my past. I think the bar is set too low at the fundamentalist schools in theology and church history.

I can say that fundamentalist seminaries do an adequate job with the languages and an intro. to fundamentalist biblical theology (including NT and OT studies from their perspective), but there was a gaping hole in theology and church history in my experience. Perhaps other fundamentalist seminaries do a better job in these areas, but my guess is my experience was typical.

 

Decent enough article, nothing that has'nt been said here many times.
Brandon where did you go to school?:godisgood:

 

I suppose I should've shared that. I've been at Baptist Bible College and Graduate School, the one in Missouri. We had adjunct profs come in from other fundamentalist seminaries like Faith Seminary in Ankeny, IA and even Central in Minnesota. I've also been at TEDS and now I'm at Calvin Seminary. Honestly, I doubt Bauder would consider Calvin to be "apostate," if he's even heard of it. It's a denominational seminary for the CRCNA.

 

Mild rebuke?

Kevin Bauder and I have clashed horns several times and we disagree vehemently on numerous things. However, I cannot stand idly by and see a good man demeaned. Dr. Bauder is a man of scholarship and learning who can hold his own in any academic gathering. IMHO, it is a slam and a demeaning cut to say, “Honestly, I doubt Bauder would consider Calvin to be 'apostate,' if he's even heard of it.” Such a statement seems to imply that Bauder as a Fundamentalist is too provincial to be knowledgeable of the sophisticated and scholarly Calvin College. Believe me, we are not so ignorant. (We even know some names such as de Groot, Plantinga, Hoeksema, Olthuis, et. al. ) On the contrary, it is the newly enlightened and sophisticated crowd who are ignorant of us Fundamentalists. I enjoy great hilarity at their naivety and confidence in their own cleverness.

 

Please forgive me if this came off as a condescending slam on Bauder. I had never heard of Calvin until my time at TEDS and had never heard of the CRC until I applied at Calvin. I was too provincial since my background was rather light on philosophy, church history, and anything non-Baptist so people from Calvin College or Seminary were not involved in my fundamentalist education. I would never imply that Calvin is too sophisticated and scholarly (after all they took me when no one else would and I'm a scalawag) that it is beyond fundamentalists, but it is not Baptist and is itself a rather provincial school (at least the seminary is).

I may be newly enlightened, sophisticated, naive, confident in my own cleverness, and greatly hilarious to others here (thanks for the slam Paid...mild rebuke indeed), but I've never been accused of being ignorant of fundamentalists. Thus, my statement is rather accurate just replace Bauder with my former self ok?

BJ

PS-I didn't pick this fight with Bauder with talk of "apostate" schools in the first place. He really should have named names so one knows what he considers "apostate."

 

Brandon,

You stated what schools you attended. What was your experience at TEDS like after attending the Missouri school?

 

I was only at TEDS for a short time for a Th.M. in systematic theology. Thus, I only had a handful of profs and was only there for a year. I enjoyed all of my profs and my fellow students were great.

I can say that academically, TEDS blew the MO school away. I felt bitter and cheated that I learned more in 1 year at TEDS about church history and theology than at 7+ at the other place. As for other things about TEDS, well it's expensive and it's expensive to live in the area. They also offer little financial aid.

One school that I've been impressed with after moving up here is Grand Rapids Theological Seminary. I had never heard of it before I moved (don't jump on me Paid), but I've been impressed with its graduates who are pastors around here.

BJ

 

I am ignorant of this. What does TEDS stand for? The rest I am aware of, including Calvin and Grand Rapids, and have been aware of for many years.

FTR, I've never been to seminary, but am only a dumb dirt farmer.

Ed

 

Scratch that! The light just dawned, just as I hit "Send"! - Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, a very good school, BTW, where even some friends of mine have attended. A senior moment, no doubt!

Ed

 

Anybody who makes a living farming these days can hardly be dumb.

Bill