Our vision
Our vision is “to be a centre of excellence for reformed Biblical scholarship,
devotion and teaching, impacting Africa with the gospel of Christ and a
God-centred world view.” That’s quite a mouthful! In plain language, we are
rooted in historic Protestant Christianity yet want to listen to the Spirit as
he continues to speak through the Word of Scripture; we want to recognize our
dependence on God through humble devotion; and we want to lead people to a
deeper knowledge of God through his Word. Our central concern is to train men
who will be godly shepherds — lovers of God and his Word, lovers of men, and
faithful expositors of Scripture.
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| A group of students during a contact session in Pretoria, South Africa |
Distinctive approach
SGTS’s approach is
rather different to that of the other seminaries featured on this blog. Our
programme uses a distance-learning approach rather than a lecture-centred one.
As much as we recognize the importance of relationships and face-to-face
contact, we have also become aware that there are many pastors and aspiring
pastors who are unable to relocate (with or without their families!) to attend
full time training for three or four years. Through our distance-learning
approach we allow our students to remain in their places of work or ministry
and supply them with written and audio-visual materials to guide them through
their studies. This doesn’t mean, however, that we neglect face-to-face contact
or meaningful relationships. Twice a year we hold “contact sessions” for a week
at a time in South Africa (Gauteng), Zimbabwe (Harare), Zambia (Lusaka) and
Namibia (Windhoek). These contact sessions provide an opportunity for students
to meet one another and their lecturers. Relationships begun in this way
continue through the year and beyond. We are thankful that, despite the
challenges of distance learning, one of our students could testify, “For me,
SGTS is not just a college but a family.”
The fact that many
students are deeply involved in ministry enables them to apply what they are
learning immediately. It also means that they come to their studies with hearts
and minds full of practical ministry issues — which has its own way of
enhancing learning.
The distance learning
approach helps us to realize the vision of impacting Africa, and we have had
students from South Africa, Swaziland, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi.
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| Pastor Kennedy Sunkutu handling one of the contact sessions in Lusaka, Zambia |
Study programme
At the moment SGTS
offers a one-year Certificate in Theology, which
provides an introduction to academic skills (reading, writing and critical
thinking), as well as an overview the Bible, theology and church history;
Christian vocation and the call to ministry are also covered. The academic
standard of the courses is high and intending students should have a secondary
school pass that will equip them for tertiary studies. Our intention is to
expand our programme to the level of a Bachelor’s degree and beyond as the Lord
provides the needed resources.
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| Students in discussion during a contact session in Harare, Zimbabwe |
Present and future developments
SGTS is in the process
of merging with the African Christian University to become its theological
faculty. The vision of African Christian University is to raise up servants of
God with a transforming world- and life-view. All academic training will be
offered from a distinctively Christian perspective (yes, even mathematics!) and
teaching will emphasize mentoring and discipling, rather than just lecturing.
This merger will expand the seminary’s vision and help it to realize its goal
of impacting Africa with the gospel. One of the initial plans is to add a
residential programme to operate alongside the distance-learning programme.
For more information —
either as a prospective student or a partner in the ministry — please contact
the SGTS office by email (admin@sgts.org)
or by telephone (+260-971-746-487).
