Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary

Coordinates: 38°14′14″N 85°41′06″W / 38.23730°N 85.68500°W / 38.23730; -85.68500

Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary

Type	Private
Established	1853; 168 years ago (1853)
Affiliation	Presbyterian Church
President	Alton B. Pollard III
Location	Louisville , Kentucky , USA
Colors	Blue and White
Affiliations	Kentuckiana Metroversity
Website	lpts.edu

Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, currently branded as Louisville Seminary, is a seminary affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA), located in Louisville, Kentucky. It is one of ten official PC(USA) seminaries, though it currently identifies as an ecumenical seminary, with recent student enrollment representing many faith traditions, including Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, United Methodist Church, American Baptist Churches USA, African Methodist Episcopal Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Unitarian Universalist Association, Evangelical Covenant Church, African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc., Christian Methodist Episcopal, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), United Church of Christ, Community of Christ, and Episcopal Church (USA), among others.

Though now located in Louisville, it was founded in 1853 in Danville, Kentucky (the site is now Centre College) and was known as the Danville Theological Seminary. Though it thrived in its early years, the Civil War took a great toll and by 1870 there were only 6 students enrolled, and as few as one professor at times, requiring classes to be taught by the faculty of Centre College.

The seminary is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools ^[1] as well as the Association of Theological Schools. ^[2]

The Seminary is located on land adjacent to the Cherokee-Seneca Parks designed by Olmsted.

History[]

More than 160 years old, Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary has been building up the Body of Christ in a tradition rooted in Scripture and the Reformed tradition while developing innovative ways to respond to contemporary society's needs.

The present Louisville Seminary represents an unprecedented result of cooperation among Presbyterians in the face of regional tensions and competition. Its heritage stems from two seminaries founded by two branches of the Presbyterian Church. In 1853, Danville Theological Seminary welcomed its first students in Danville, Kentucky. Forty years later, in 1893, Southern Presbyterians in the Synods of Kentucky and Missouri founded a rival seminary in Louisville.

In 1901, under the leadership of Dr. Charles Hemphill, the seminaries in Danville and Louisville were united in spite of strong feelings of antipathy between the two spawned by the American Civil War. The cooperation in founding and then supporting Louisville Seminary was an outstanding example of a unified Presbyterian witness to the American people.

For 60 years, Louisville Seminary ministered to the Louisville community from its downtown home at First and Broadway. During the 1937 flood after most of the city was evacuated, some seminary faculty and administrators stayed behind to shelter refugees trapped by the flood waters. The institution housed nearly 500 servicemen during World War II, and seminary enrollment surged with veterans retiring from the military after the war.

In April of 1963, spring hailed the rebirth of Louisville Seminary in a new location on Alta Vista Road adjacent to historic Cherokee Park. Rebirth came for the Presbyterian Church as well when the northern and southern streams reunited in 1983 after 122 years of separation. In the summer of 1987, the General Assembly voted to relocate the headquarters of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to Louisville. This gave Louisville Seminary students and faculty the opportunity to form closer relationships with denominational leaders, as well as with leaders of other communions. That same year Louisville Seminary purchased the historic Gardencourt mansion and proceeded with renovations that later received an award for historic preservation. This mansion now provides classrooms, faculty offices, and community meeting spaces.

H. Charles Grawemeyer, who served with distinction on the boards of trustees at Louisville Seminary and the University of Louisville, created the Grawemeyer Awards in 1984. The awards are given annually and recognize innovative ideas in various academic disciplines. In 1990, the Grawemeyer Award in Religion was established and is presented in partnership between Louisville Seminary and the University of Louisville.

In 1990, Lilly Endowment Inc. (an Indianapolis-based private philanthropic foundation) launched the Louisville Institute at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Louisville institute’s mission is the bridge church and academy through awarding grants and fellowships to those who lead and study North American religious institutions, practices, and movements; thereby promoting scholarship that strengthens the church, academy, and society, and ultimately contributes to the flourishing of the church.

To address the mental health needs of the community and to enhance its Marriage and Family Therapy Program, Louisville Seminary opened its on-campus counseling center in 1997. The Louisville Seminary Counseling Center is located on the lower level of Nelson Hall and provides therapeutic concerns in the contexts of family, couple’s, and children’s therapy. Clinical experience for the seminary’s marriage and family therapy students is obtained by serving at the Louisville Seminary Counseling Center and at secondary off-campus practicum sites.

The Laws Lodge Conference and Retreat Center became the newest building on Louisville Seminary’s campus in 2000.

To renew and cultivate partnerships between Louisville Seminary and African American churches and institutions across the region, Louisville Seminary established its Black Church Studies Program in 2009. The program is designed to prepare leaders for African American churches and communities in ways that enable them to navigate issues affecting the Black community. Equally important is the program’s commitment to facilitating dialog, mutual understanding, respect, and ministry between the Black Church and the wider Church in the world.

The Covenant for the Future capital campaign launched in 2013. A key component of the campaign was to establish the Covenant Scholars Program, which would provide 100 percent tuition assistance to all Louisville Seminary master’s-level students. Students in the fall 2015 entering class were the first Covenant Scholarship recipients.

In 2021, Louisville Seminary revised its Mission, Vision, and Values statements as well as its stated short-term and long-term goals. The purpose for this effort was to better articulate the ethos of Louisville Seminary in the rapidly changing landscape of theological education.

Moving forward, Louisville Seminary will continue to prepare individuals for ministry and service in an increasingly pluralistic world. In doing so, Louisville Seminary celebrates the unconditional and everlasting love that God has for all people of every creed, color, gender, sexual orientation, and circumstance. And so the Louisville Seminary Community accepts the invitation, the challenges, and the rewards of emphasizing “Whosoever: A Divine Invitation” as the foundation for engaging the world and building bridges between God and humanity.

See also[]

• Presbyterianism
• Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
• Religion in Louisville, Kentucky

References[]

External links[]

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