# PTS



## NeoInarien (Sep 26, 2004)

Princeton Theological Seminary? What is the 'word on the street' about them?


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## fredtgreco (Sep 26, 2004)

Liberal. No longer a Christian seminary.


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## SolaScriptura (Sep 26, 2004)

Actually... I think liberal is technically incorrect. I think that properly speaking they lean more closely towards neoorthodoxy than to classic liberalism.
But either way, they're not orthodox.


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## FrozenChosen (Sep 26, 2004)

According to their professors, Gnosticism was a valid expression of Christianity. Boo, hiss.


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## RamistThomist (Sep 26, 2004)

"The Spirit of Old Princeton is dead."

--J Gresham Machen


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## NeoInarien (Sep 27, 2004)

mmm, fair enough.

are there any good divinity schools? Univ. Chicago? Harvard, Yale, Duke, Vandy, Emory??


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## RamistThomist (Sep 27, 2004)

They will probably all be academically rigouros, if not sympathetic to the evangelical faith. Mark Noll got his PhD from Vanderbuilt. that's my :twocents:


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## C. Matthew McMahon (Sep 27, 2004)

Yes. Chicago - No, Harvard - no way, Duke - nope, Vandy - nope, Emory - no.

Schools to look at concerning a solidly Christian education in divinity:
Seminaries and Colleges:

â-ºWhitefield Theological Seminary
WTS was developed during a six year period of research in the field of higher education. during the research, various academic and practical programs were evaluated. The result was the birth of Whitefield Theological Seminary in 1980. It offers graduate degrees in theological studies, as well as postgraduate degrees such as Ph.D and Th.D. The seminary is committed to the Westminster Confession of Faith and the Larger and Shorter Catechisms (1647). Graduates include Dr. RC Sproul, Dr. RC Sproul Jr., Dr. Greg Bahnsen, Dr. Nigel Lee, Dr. Kenneth Gentry and Dr. George Grant.

â-ºCalvin Theological Seminary 

â-ºReformed Theological Seminary
In less than thirty years RTS became one of the ten largest seminaries in the United States with an enrollment of approximately 1900 on three campuses, or approximately two per cent of the total enrollment in theological education in the United States and Canada. RTS has become the leading evangelical seminary in the southeastern United States. 

â-ºWestminster Theological Seminary
Westminster Theological Seminary prepares leaders for ministry, developing graduates with a depth of understanding of God's Word and a heartfelt desire to use that knowledge in God's service. A Westminster education starts with the Bible. Grounded in the Reformed tradition, Westminster teaches that the Christian religion is true, and that in-depth study of the Bible and its historical contexts will reveal this truth, building a bedrock foundation for Christian ministry. 

â-ºCovenant Theological Seminary 
PCA affiliated school.

â-ºNorthwest Theological Seminary
Northwest Theological Seminary is the culmination of a concerted effort to bring a new Reformed theological seminary to the Pacific Northwest. The specific emphases is biblical theology in the tradition of Geerhardus Vos; presuppositional apologetics in the tradition of Cornelius Van Til; and orthodox confessionalism in the classic Calvinistic tradition. 

â-ºGreenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary 
Great School in the OPC tradition. Great teachers there.

â-ºKnox Theological Seminary
Knox has forged an unusually effective blend of strong academics and practical ministry to thoroughly prepare leaders of the 21st century. Our vision for ministry emphasizes the application of true, biblical Christianity to all aspects of our culture and our world. We equip you in a personal, mentoring environment to have a real impact in both the church and the world. 

â-ºPuritan Reformed Theological Seminary 
Joel Beeke and the Dutch Puritan Tradition here.

Others?


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## VirginiaHuguenot (Sep 27, 2004)

Having been raised on Tobacco Road, I am familiar with Duke (both the divinity school and the basketball team). They have an annual "blessing of the animals" at Duke. I personally wouldn't want to go to any seminary that had the Blue Devil as its mascot.

Ditto for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons.


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## RamistThomist (Sep 27, 2004)

Talk to Fred Greco; he got me sold on RTS


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## SolaScriptura (Sep 27, 2004)

Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, IL is a good divinity school. Though they are not "Reformed" (though many of the faculty are soteriologically Calvinistic) so I guess that makes them "no good" by the opinion of some here. However, the fact remains that academically they are an outstanding school. They were intending to offer an evangelical alternative to the old liberal divinity schools. However, in the past 10 years or so they have had sort of an identity crisis as their denomination, the EFCA, was protesting their emphasis of academics to the neglect of pastoral preparation... so they are trying to become more pastorally oriented... but their reputation still remains that they are a place to go to get an education that is primarily academic.


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## fredtgreco (Sep 27, 2004)

{[i:bbfc2e0afd]Putting on Obi Wan Kenobi voice[/i:bbfc2e0afd]}

[i:bbfc2e0afd]You would like to go to RTS...

[/i:bbfc2e0afd]Maybe I should check out RTS.

[i:bbfc2e0afd]You would like to go to RTS Jackson[/i:bbfc2e0afd]...

I think Jackson might be the best campus

[i:bbfc2e0afd]You should visit RTS Jackson soon[/i:bbfc2e0afd].

Hey, maybe I should arrange a visit!

{[i:bbfc2e0afd]Putting off Obi Wan Kenobi voice[/i:bbfc2e0afd]}

=========================================
Seriously, there are academics at Chicago, Duke and other schools. But if you want an evangelical school - one that actually believes that the Bible is true, man needs salvation, and that salvation is foun in Jesus Christ, you cannot go to any of these schools.

If you are looking for a Reformed school, I would recommend RTS Jackson, Greenville, Mid-America Reformed, or WTS-CA.

As a second tier, I would say WTS-PA, Covenant, Knox, Whitefield, etc.

There are also good non-Reformed seminaries, as long as you are aware of that distinction. All of these are better than Princeton, Duke, Chicago, etc:

The Masters Seminary, Southern Baptist Seminary, TEDS (Trinity), Dallas Theological.


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## Me Died Blue (Sep 27, 2004)

What about Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary (with Joel Beeke)? They are not affiliated with the Puritan Reformed Church for the record.


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## NeoInarien (Sep 27, 2004)

Thank you webmaster for the thorough scoop. 

And Fredtgreco: any time one can weave star wars into theology one knows the yield will be one great tapestry! kudos!

Yes, this unfortunately matches what I have heard elsewhere: these divinity schools are now secular. Nonetheless, when a university is looking to hire a professor it seems that these schools sadly score the 'points' (although perhaps not with God). 

Correct me if I am wrong: If one were to go to one of these school's and earn and MDiv, then one would need to do an extra year at a denomination-specific seminary? Or no? I am guessing this has a lot to do with which denomination. But given I am begging for information, I figure it best to accept any that anyone has and knows for sure. So speak up!

Thanks


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## Ianterrell (Sep 28, 2004)

Shout outs for RPTS: Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary. As far as I know the oldest Christian seminary in the States. Faithful to the Westminster Standards. Historic. Accredited. Beautiful campus.


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## puritanpilgrim (Oct 6, 2004)

[quote:dc0b0403c4]Yes. Chicago[/quote:dc0b0403c4]

Why Chicago? Are they not liberal. And what degrees would you recomed?


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## Me Died Blue (Oct 6, 2004)

[quote:e714a398a2="webmaster"]Yes. Chicago - No, Harvard - no way, Duke - nope, Vandy - nope, Emory - no.[/quote:e714a398a2]

[quote:e714a398a2="puritanpilgrim"][quote:e714a398a2]Yes. Chicago[/quote:e714a398a2]

Why Chicago? Are they not liberal. And what degrees would you recomed?[/quote:e714a398a2]

Matt was saying "yes" in response to the question of whether or not there were still any good divinity schools - then he listed several popular divinity schools with a "no" after each one, of which Chicago was one. It is just like the other ones he mentioned at the top of his post.


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## C. Matthew McMahon (Oct 6, 2004)

See Chris above:


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## Me Died Blue (Oct 25, 2004)

Since we're talking about quality Christian higher education, regardless of having secular accreditation or not, don't forget Bahnsen Theological Seminary.


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