Irish Baptist College
Former name
Irish Baptist Training Institute
MottoDomine Sequor  (Latin)
Motto in English
Lord I Follow
TypeBible college
Established4 October 1892
FounderHugh D. Brown
Religious affiliation
Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland
Academic affiliation
Queen's University Belfast
University of Wales, Lampeter
University of Chester
PrincipalEdwin Ewart
DirectorDavy Ellison
Academic staff
10
Administrative staff
5
Location
Baptist Theological Centre, The Baptist Centre, Moira, Craigavon, BT67 0HG, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom

54°28′46″N 6°11′35″W / 54.479364°N 6.192942°W / 54.479364; -6.192942
CampusRural
Campus university
Websiteirishbaptistcollege.co.uk

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.[1] 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).[2] The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education of England and Wales, review the IBC for quality and standards.[3]

History

Irish Baptist College in Moira.

IBC was founded as the Irish Baptist Training Institute, on 4 October 1892 in No. 16 Harcourt St., Dublin, now Republic of Ireland, by Hugh D. Brown, pastor of the neighbouring Harcourt St. Baptist Church, and Ambrose U.G. Bury, MA, was appointed the first principal of the IBC.[4] Since the college was established with funding from the philanthropist J.D. Rockefeller,[5] the building was named Rockefeller House. The college was controlled half by the Harcourt St. Church and half by the Baptist Union of Ireland. In 1916 Thomas Harold Spurgeon, MA, BD, (son of Rev. Thomas Spurgeon and grandson of Rev. Charles Spurgeon) was appointed principal. In 1940 the College moved to 42 Terenure Road in Dublin, the Harcourt St. Baptist Church had moved to Grosvenor Road, Rathmines. In 1964 the college moved to a new campus in Belfast in Northern Ireland, and control of the college was transferred to the Baptist Association. Following Spurgeon's retirement 1963, David P. Kingdon was appointed principal serving until 1974,[6] when he was succeeded by Dr. Ivor Oakley who served until 1988, Norman Shields served as acting principal following Dr. Oakley's departure. In 1990 Dr. Hamilton Moore became principal serving until 2009 when Edwin Ewart was elected principal. In college accept its first female students in 1964.

On 10 May 2003[7] the college moved into the purpose built Baptist Theological Centre in the Baptist Centre located outside Lisburn in Moira in County Antrim.[7] A new library (John B. Craig Library) and study area were added in 2010, it is named after Pastor John B. Craig who trained in the IBC in Dublin, before serving in Belfast before emigrating to Canada.

A Women's Ministry Course is run at the Baptist Centre in association with the Irish Baptist College.[8] The Irish Baptist Historical Society is an extension of the Irish Baptist College.[9]

The IBC became a constituent college of the Institute of Theology at Queen's University Belfast (QUB) in 1977, offering MTh and PhD degrees. In 2003 the IBC began offering undergraduate degrees and an MA validated by the University of Wales, Lampeter (UoW), which ceased its international partnerships programmes in 2010. In 2010 the IBC commenced its partnership with the University of Chester validating Undergraduate and Postgraduate degrees.[10] It was announced in 2019 that QUB was closing the Institute of Theology, with all existing students to have completed their programmes by 2023.[10]

Campus

IBC is part of the Baptist Theological Centre which is located in the Baptist Centre and is shared with ABC. The campus is in a rural area near to the M1 motorway and within the boundaries of the City of Lisburn. IBC is a campus university.[7]

Organisation

The Principal of the college is Edwin Ewart, since 2010.[11] The IBC is administered by a management committee which reports to the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland.

Courses

IBC offers degrees accredited by the University of Chester, University of Wales, Lampeter, and IBC awards.

Sport

Football and table tennis are both played at IBC. The current IBC table tennis champion is Josh Patterson after his 2-0 defeat of newcomer Andrew Gray, a victory as convincing as it was surprising. Former champion- Luke Keys.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland". Archived from the original on 17 August 2009. Retrieved 29 January 2009.
  2. ↑ ASIC Archived 2007-12-12 at archive.today
  3. ↑ Irish Baptist College Reviewing Higher Education - Quality Assurance Agency.
  4. ↑ The History of the Harcourt Street Baptists Archived 17 December 2021 at the Wayback Machine by Pastor Louis E. Deens.
  5. ↑ 'The Baptist Heritage : Four Century of Baptist Witness' by H. Leon McBeth, B & H Publishing, 2010.
  6. ↑ David P. Kingdon(1934-2021) by Peter Milsom, Evangelical Magazine, September/October 2021, page 27.
  7. 1 2 3 about Irish Baptist College Archived 2008-07-05 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ↑ Women's Ministry Course, Irish Baptist Women.
  9. ↑ Education Department - The Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland Moira Baptist.
  10. 1 2 Higher Education Review (Alternative Providers) of the Irish Baptist College Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA), March 2021.
  11. ↑ Irish Baptist College faculty page Archived 2009-01-25 at the Wayback Machine
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