# Erskine Theological Seminary



## garnetscar (Apr 26, 2011)

I was wondering what opinions people had of Erskine Theological Seminary. I'm looking to apply sometime in the near future. Has anyone here been to Erskine? I'm from Columbia, SC and am looking at attending their Columbia campus mostly.


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## Zenas (Apr 26, 2011)

See generally Tim Phillips. 

Being that I have been involved with the ARP over the past five years, I can say there have been some interesting developments between Erskine College and the ARP General Synod. Others can comment more fully though.


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## SolaScriptura (Apr 26, 2011)

I was there for DMin courses in January and will be heading back in May.


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## goodnews (Apr 26, 2011)

Ryan,

I'm a graduate of the seminary. And despite the recent concerns (warranted concerns) it's still a great place to get your MDiv. It's a beautiful campus, a great place to study and sort of get away. I don't know all the prof's there, but I can think of some good ones that are still teaching there. I don't know as much about the Columbia campus, but think the two campuses share most of the same professors. PM me if you want to talk more specifically.


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## garnetscar (Apr 26, 2011)

goodnews said:


> Ryan,
> 
> I'm a graduate of the seminary. And despite the recent concerns (warranted concerns) it's still a great place to get your MDiv. It's a beautiful campus, a great place to study and sort of get away. I don't know all the prof's there, but I can think of some good ones that are still teaching there. I don't know as much about the Columbia campus, but think the two campuses share most of the same professors. PM me if you want to talk more specifically.


 
I do believe I plan on attending seminary there, I have met a professor there once, Mark Ross, however I was in HS and ignorant and didn't even have a thought towards seminary. The recent concerns regarding some of the undergrad professors do not bother me. I'm just curious of peoples thoughts about their seminary. Obviously it is a smaller school and can't in the same degree be compared to RTS or WTS, etc. How does it compare to Greenville Theological Seminary? Puritan Reformed Seminary? etc...

btw goodnews, go gamecocks!


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## SolaScriptura (Apr 26, 2011)

I'm sorry that I wasn't more descriptive. If you're wanting an education that will encourage, foster, and support even an essentially confessionally reformed theology... I'd look elsewhere. Sorry.


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## sastark (Apr 26, 2011)

garnetscar said:


> I do believe I plan on attending seminary there, I have met a professor there once, Mark Ross, however I was in HS and ignorant and didn't even have a thought towards seminary. The recent concerns regarding some of the undergrad professors do not bother me. I'm just curious of peoples thoughts about their seminary. Obviously it is a smaller school and can't in the same degree be compared to RTS or WTS, etc. How does it compare to Greenville Theological Seminary? Puritan Reformed Seminary? etc...
> 
> btw goodnews, go gamecocks!




Hi Ryan, I want to make it clear that there are good men at Erksine, both undergrad and seminary level professors. However, the "problem professors" do not just teach undergrad courses. We (I say "we" since I am an elder in the ARP, although I am not on the Board of Erskine, nor have I ever been a student there) have a couple of professors in our seminary who are Barthian. I would refer you to ARPTalk, if you want details. You can also get more specific info from Tim Phillips, here on the PB (or see his blog).

If I had to choose today between Erskine and GPTS, I would choose GPTS without hesitation.


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## Notthemama1984 (Apr 26, 2011)

garnetscar said:


> Obviously it is a smaller school and can't in the same degree be compared to RTS or WTS



Why not?


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## goodnews (Apr 26, 2011)

garnetscar said:


> goodnews said:
> 
> 
> > Ryan,
> ...



Go Gamecocks. I don't know anything about PRS. And, I haven't been to GTS in years. WHen I was at Erskine in the late 90's I would have chosen it over GTS unequivocally. Today, there are some concerns though. One of the prof's with neo-orthodox leanings is still teaching there. The other no longer teaches there. I think you could cater your schedule to keep to the profs who are good which is one reason why I'd still recommend it for the MDiv. If you were to ask me which seminary I'd attend today knowing all that I know I'd probably go with one of the RTS campuses. I've never had Dr. Ross for a class but I've heard he's a fantastic professor and as solid as they come theologically.


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## Marrow Man (Apr 26, 2011)

I too am a graduate of Erskine Seminary. I thought I received a good education there. Sure, there are problems, but you are going to encounter problems in many seminaries, including the very good ones (without naming men and/or seminaries -- and we are not going to do that here  -- if we are honest we know there are concerns over issues like creationism, the RPW, justification, etc. at several institutions).

I graduated from Erskine nearly 7 years ago, so things have changed since then. One of my favorite professors is now teaching at Covenant. Another has gone to Gordon-Conwell. And I cannot comment on the Columbia campus as I did not attend there. I do think that Dr. Ross is a great teacher, and there are other good professors that you would get at the Columbia campus. I think you would get a very good education at Greenville Seminary as well. Both schools are fairly inexpensive, but if you are ARP, you get a huge tuition break at ETS (I think PCA students get a reduced tuition at GPTS as well). One difference between the schools is that ETS is accredited and Greenville is not, but that might not make a difference to you.

You mention in your signature that you are looking for a new church home. First Presbyterian in Columbia would be a great church, and you would be able to sit under the preaching and teaching of men like Sinclair Ferguson and Derek Thomas.

BTW, feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions.


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## SolaScriptura (Apr 26, 2011)

Or if you want comments from someone who was there a few months ago, and who sat under 3 of the profs who would be teaching you in the MDiv program... and who listened to 2 of them ridicule the wing of the ARP that has the audacity to think that the school should be teaching the standards of the denomination as being true... then pm me.

BTW - one humorous moment for me during my time there came when one of the professors was talking about how times have changed and so should our theology, and as an example of NOT doing that he referenced Dabney and some of his positions that are odious to modern sentiments and in a tone of voice that conveyed mortified horror he said, "And there's a conservative presbyterian seminary right up the road in Greenville that thinks Dabney is a HERO!"

I loved my time at Erskine. I can't wait to go back. May 23 I'll be there. Yippee!


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## Notthemama1984 (Apr 26, 2011)

Marrow Man said:


> First Presbyterian in Columbia would be a great church, and you would be able to sit under the preaching and teaching of men like Sinclair Ferguson and Derek Thomas.



When I was at Chaplain school at Ft. Jackson, we would all car-pool to First Pres. It would be fantastic to live there and have the privilege to listen to these men on a weekly basis.


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## SolaScriptura (Apr 26, 2011)

Chaplainintraining said:


> we would all car-pool to First Pres.



ALL of you guys?


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## Notthemama1984 (Apr 26, 2011)

SolaScriptura said:


> Chaplainintraining said:
> 
> 
> > we would all car-pool to First Pres.
> ...


 
Sorry, not the whole class. I was thinking "all" in terms of "all the Reformed guys." We also had several non-Reformed guys go with us. We had around 15-20 go and a couple SGLs.


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## TimV (Apr 26, 2011)

Ben how did you keep from punching him? Symbolically of course. Find his weakness and use it? Tape his lecture and publish it? You could have fun with a stereotypical ignorant, arrogant, useless liberal.


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## Marrow Man (Apr 26, 2011)

TimV said:


> Ben how did you keep from punching him? Symbolically of course. Find his weakness and use it? Tape his lecture and publish it? You could have fun with a stereotypical ignorant, arrogant, useless liberal.



The professor in question (Ben and I have discussed this issue in private) is NOT a liberal in any meaningful sense of the word. He is certainly unconfessional on some issues, but that is quite a different matter from using a broad brush to place him in the liberal camp. The professor in question is a solid defender of inerrancy and a committed Calvinist in his soteriology and ecclesiology. Calvin's _Institutes_ were required reading in his class. Sure, there are theological issues that I differ with him on (e.g., I wrote a paper in his ethics class on how images of Christ were wrong; he wrote on my paper that I was wrong and graded me extremely fairly even though we were in disagreement), and he is definitely not out of a southern Presbyterian mold. But nearly every seminary -- even the solidly conservative ones -- have professors that someone somewhere is going to have issue with, and simply to describe them as "a stereotypical ignorant, arrogant, useless liberal" is a sloppy classification at best. Come to Louisville and I'll be glad to take you a campus where you will find some of the nuttiest kinds of professors out there. That's a far cry from what you will get at Erskine.

Besides, the OP was specifically discussing the Columbia campus, not the one in Due West. The discussion should be centered on that campus. The professor in question does not even teach at the Columbia campus.

And N.B.: in order to tape classroom lectures at Erskine, one must receive written permission from the professor, and I believe that part of the agreement is that such would be only for personal use.


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## garnetscar (Apr 27, 2011)

yes, I am mostly referring to the Columbia Campus. However, I will not be able to get a full M-Div there quite yet, and will subsequently have to take some classes at the Due West campus. However, maybe just maybe they will be able to offer the Full M-Div at the Columbia campus soon. It might take me a while to complete seminary as I do not plan to go Full Time unless something unforseen happens and my family would be able to afford it. 

Thanks for the discussion guys. I've just been wondering what others opinions have been towards Erskine.


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## Marrow Man (Apr 27, 2011)

garnetscar said:


> However, I will not be able to get a full M-Div there quite yet, and will subsequently have to take some classes at the Due West campus. However, maybe just maybe they will be able to offer the Full M-Div at the Columbia campus soon.



Are you positive about this? I thought the Columbia campus was now (as of last fall) completely degree-granting.


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## goodnews (Apr 27, 2011)

Marrow Man said:


> garnetscar said:
> 
> 
> > However, I will not be able to get a full M-Div there quite yet, and will subsequently have to take some classes at the Due West campus. However, maybe just maybe they will be able to offer the Full M-Div at the Columbia campus soon.
> ...



It is completely degree granting but they still share professors. I think whether a student has to occasionally drive to Due west depends on his willingness to wait for courses to make it to Columbia or certain professors to make it there.


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## PuritanCovenanter (Apr 27, 2011)

I love the ARP. I have high hopes for ETS. There are good and bad profs everywhere. I have had good teachers in my education and poor ones. I had some that new all the right stuff and couldn't teach worth a not in the hole. My son is attending a Franciscan University. He is challenged on all sides and his favorite Prof is nut case liberal. His other favorite teacher is a Priest who doesn't believe in the Inspiration of Scripture. His female Prof is a great teacher and is by far one of the most fair and best teachers he has had he told me. The Priest is also. They haven't been able to shake his faith nor his foundation. Surround yourself with the best dead guys (good resources and books) and you will do fine no matter where you go. 

I have one friend who attended RTS who told me one of his best Profs was someone who wasn't confessional in some of his stances but he was a great teacher and that Prof kept him sane during a very trying time in school work. He taught him to be Pastoral and to see his work and studies through God's lens of Pastoral ministry. God will be faithful and if you fear liberalism is catching you just come here and ask questions. LOL. I believe some of the best minds here are very helpful.


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## garnetscar (Apr 28, 2011)

Marrow Man said:


> garnetscar said:
> 
> 
> > However, I will not be able to get a full M-Div there quite yet, and will subsequently have to take some classes at the Due West campus. However, maybe just maybe they will be able to offer the Full M-Div at the Columbia campus soon.
> ...


 
good to hear. Honestly I'm early in my process of praying through this. I was thinking initially this Fall to start, but I believe I will be waiting till next fall. I want to find a good church home before starting seminary. 



goodnews said:


> Marrow Man said:
> 
> 
> > garnetscar said:
> ...



That definitely makes sense, and since I'm planning on going p/t it shouldn't be too much of a problem for me. I haven't spoken with anyone from the school about it, but their website and brochures still say 25% or so of the classes must be taken at the Due West campus.


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## Marrow Man (Apr 28, 2011)

garnetscar said:


> I haven't spoken with anyone from the school about it, but their website and brochures still say 25% or so of the classes must be taken at the Due West campus.



That may be old information, because that sounds like the requirements for the satellite campi. Finding a good church home is a great idea. First Columbia is a good church, but there are 5 or so ARP churches in the Columbia area. If you attend and are a member for at least a year, you can qualify for a substantial tuition break. Leaving seminary without financial debt is a huge plus.


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## garnetscar (Apr 28, 2011)

Marrow Man said:


> garnetscar said:
> 
> 
> > I haven't spoken with anyone from the school about it, but their website and brochures still say 25% or so of the classes must be taken at the Due West campus.
> ...



With me going p/t throughout seminary the ARP scholarship wouldn't be applicable for me, as that scholarship is for f/t students only. However, they do have a good partners scholarship for p/t students which I will be looking towards getting whenever I do end up going.


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## jogri17 (Apr 28, 2011)

May I suggest Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary?


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