Fuller Theological Seminary

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Fuller Theological Seminary
Fuller-Theological-Seminary-Official-Logo-All-Rights-Reserved.png
TypeSeminary
Established1947
PresidentMark Labberton
Location
Pasadena
,
California
,
United States
CampusUrban
Websitefuller.edu
Payton Hall on the Pasadena Campus

Fuller Theological Seminary is an Evangelical Christian seminary in Pasadena, California, with regional campuses in the western United States.

History[]

Fuller Theological Seminary was founded in 1947 by Charles E. Fuller, a radio evangelist known for his Old Fashioned Revival Hour show, and Harold Ockenga, the pastor of Park Street Church in Boston.[1] The seminary's founders sought to reform fundamentalism's separatist and sometimes anti-intellectual stance during the 1920s–1940s.[2] Fuller envisaged that the seminary would become "a Caltech of the evangelical world."[2]

The earliest faculty held theologically and socially conservative views, though professors with differing perspectives arrived in the 1960s and 1970s.[2] There were tensions in the late 1950s and early 1960s as some faculty members became uncomfortable with staff and students who did not agree with Biblical inerrancy.[2] This led to the people associated with the seminary playing a role in the rise of neo-evangelicalism and moderate theology.[2][3]

In 2019, it had 2,672 students enrolled. [4][5]

Presidents[]

Fuller has had five presidents over its over 70-year history. The founding president, Harold Ockenga, remained in Boston and served as president in absentia from 1947 to 1954. He described his role to Charles Fuller as recruiting faculty and setting the curriculum, which did not require his active presence in Pasadena.[6] His successor and protege Edward John Carnell, a Baptist theologian and apologist, took over the post in 1954 but resigned in 1959 under failing health.[6] Ockenga resumed his in absentia leadership until 35-year-old David Allen Hubbard, a Baptist Old Testament scholar and member of Fuller's third entering class, became Fuller's third president in 1963.[7] Hubbard served for 30 years and led the seminary through both substantial growth and significant controversy.

Hubbard was succeeded by Reformed philosopher and theologian Richard Mouw, who served as president of Fuller from 1993 to 2013. In 2006, a Los Angeles Times article labeled him as "one of the nation's leading evangelicals".[8] In July 2013, Mark Labberton became the Clifford L. Penner Presidential Chair of Fuller. Labberton, a Presbyterian (USA) pastor, had previously served Fuller as director of the Lloyd John Ogilvie Institute of Preaching since 2009. He retains his position as Lloyd John Ogilvie Associate Professor of Preaching alongside the presidency.[9] Mouw remained at Fuller as Professor of Faith and Public Life until 2020.[10][11]

Theology and academics[]

Fuller is accredited by the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Fuller's student body of 2,897 includes students from 90 countries and 110 denominational backgrounds.[5][4]

Fuller instructors have proposed an alternative perspective on the conservative/liberal debate: Faculty member Tom Sine was quoted in the Seattle Times in 2004 as saying, "We need to be the voice of a third way that flows out of biblical values, instead of buying into the political ideology of either the right or the left."[12]

Schools and degrees[]

Fuller Theological Seminary is organized into schools of theology, psychology, and intercultural studies. The seminary emphasizes integration between the three schools and many students take courses in more than one school. The seminary offers 18 degree programs, including seven master's degrees and 11 advanced degrees.[13]

Campuses[]

Fuller closed Fuller Northwest (Seattle), Fuller Bay Area (Menlo Park), and Fuller Orange County (Irvine). It also reduced degree programs offered in Fuller Colorado (Colorado Springs) and Fuller Arizona (Phoenix).[14] These closures and reductions took place before the 2019–20 academic year.

In May 2009, Fuller opened its 47,000-square-foot (4,400 m2) David Allan Hubbard Library that incorporated the former McAlister Library building at its main campus in Pasadena, California for a total of 90,000-square-foot (8,400 m2).[15]

On May 23, 2018, Fuller announced that its main campus in Pasadena would be sold and the seminary would move its main campus to Pomona by 2021.[16] In October 2019 the board of directors voted to cancel the move and remain in Pasadena, citing dramatically escalated costs of construction in Southern California and differences with the City of Pasadena, which affected the sale and sale price of the seminary’s Pasadena campus.[17][18]

Social issues[]

While Fuller has established policies, the seminary is open to difference in opinion among students and faculty.[19] The seminary's current president, Mark Labberton, marched in favor of comprehensive immigration reform and a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants in 2013.[20] Others have expressed support in the Fuller forum for the Black Lives Matter movement as raising awareness for civil rights.[21] In 2015, some faculty at the seminary called on Christians to openly discuss, with respect, issues related to race, gender, sexual orientation, refugees, and immigrants.[22] While the seminary officially recognizes marriage as "between a man and a woman", the seminary did allow an LGBTQ student club to organize on campus; the club, "OneTable", became the first LGBTQ group organized within an evangelical seminary.[23] In 2021, three LGBTQ former Fuller students joined the class-action lawsuit Elizabeth Hunter et al. vs. U.S. Department of Education, arguing that religious exemptions that allow Christian institutions of higher education to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity violate the Constitution.[24]

Awards and prizes[]

Fuller annually awards the David Allan Hubbard Achievement Award to a graduating student from each of Seminary’s three schools, in recognition of outstanding work completed while at Fuller. The award was instituted in honor of David Allan Hubbard, an Old Testament scholar, and the third President of Fuller Theological Seminary.[25] Each recipient is chosen by the faculty of their respective school.[26]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Randall Herbert Balmer, Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism: Revised and expanded edition, Baylor University Press, USA, 2004, p. 276
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Marsden, George M. (1987). Reforming Fundamentalism: Fuller Seminary and the New Evangelicalism. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing. ISBN 978-0-8028-3642-7. Retrieved November 30, 2009.
  3. ^ George Thomas Kurian, Mark A. Lamport, Encyclopedia of Christianity in the United States, Volume 5, Rowman & Littlefield, USA, 2016, p. 929
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b "Fuller Theological Seminary | The Association of Theological Schools". www.ats.edu. Retrieved 2018-05-25.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b "About Fuller". Fuller Theological Seminary. Retrieved August 18, 2015.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b Strachan, Owen. (2015). Awakening the evangelical mind : an intellectual history of the neo-evangelical movement. Grand Rapids, Michigan. ISBN 9780310520795. OCLC 907181035.
  7. ^ "COLLECTION 0150: David Allan Hubbard: Presidential Papers, 1947–1996". Fuller Seminary Archives and Special Collections. 2017.
  8. ^ Kang, K. Connie (December 2, 2006). "Aiming to Clarify the Meaning of a Loaded Word". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 20, 2009.
  9. ^ "Mark Labberton Faculty Profile". Fuller Theological Seminary. Retrieved July 9, 2013.
  10. ^ "Richard J. Mouw Faculty Profile". Fuller Theological Seminary. Archived from the original on November 27, 2013. Retrieved July 9, 2013.
  11. ^ Kucinski, Matt (June 4, 2020). "Richard Mouw comes home to Calvin". Calvin University. Retrieved 2021-04-06.
  12. ^ Tu, Janet I. (October 28, 2004). "Religious moderates finding their voice". The Seattle Times. Retrieved November 8, 2009.
  13. ^ "Facts and Figures :: Fuller". Fuller Theological Seminary. Archived from the original on June 14, 2014. Retrieved August 18, 2015.
  14. ^ "Fuller Theological Seminary closes some campuses". Retrieved 2018-05-25.
  15. ^ Williams, Janette (May 18, 2009). "Fuller Theological Seminary celebrates new library". Los Angeles Daily News. Archived from the original on August 31, 2018. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
  16. ^ Vincent, Roger (May 23, 2018). "Fuller Theological Seminary leaving Pasadena and putting campus up for sale". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  17. ^ "The Future of Fuller Seminary | Fuller Seminary". 2019-06-01. Retrieved 2020-01-14.
  18. ^ Fowler, Megan. "Fuller Seminary Won't Leave Pasadena After All". News & Reporting. Retrieved 2020-01-14.
  19. ^ "Institutional Commitments". fuller.edu. Retrieved April 27, 2016.
  20. ^ "Fuller Seminary students, staff march on Pasadena City Hall for immigration reform". pasadenastarnews.com. 18 November 2013. Retrieved April 27, 2016.
  21. ^ "A conversation on why Black Lives Matter to White churches". Fuller Studio. 30 March 2016. Retrieved April 27, 2016.
  22. ^ "Conversations the Church needs to have in 2015". fuller.edu. Retrieved April 27, 2016.
  23. ^ "LGBT group finds acceptance at evangelical college". USA TODAY. Retrieved April 27, 2016.
  24. ^ Foley, Ryan (March 31, 2021). "LBGT Christian college students sue to block Title IX religious exemptions". www.christianpost.com. Retrieved 2021-04-06.
  25. ^ Saxon, Wolfgang (June 16, 1996). "Obituary: David Allan Hubbard". New York Times.
  26. ^ "Article: Three Accomplished Graduates Given Prestigious Hubbard Achievement Award". July 6, 2017.

External links[]

Coordinates: 34°08′55″N 118°08′24″W / 34.14861°N 118.14000°W / 34.14861; -118.14000

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