Catching up with Australia.

This is a follow-up to my previous post. I emailed Daphne Anson (see blog list) and she replied with a link to an Anglican vicar, the Rev. Mark Durie. He's another Australian and it turns out  also associated with the same School of Theology as Elizabeth Kendal, whom I referenced in the previous post. I intend to add their sites to my blog list. They are too good to miss.

The Melbourne School of Theology fascinates me, because I studied at the, now defunct, Birmingham Bible Institute (UK). The Australians achieved everything that BBI wanted to be. The vision of their founder Re. C H Nash is practically identical to the vision of the Rev. H.Brash Bonsall , founder of BBI.

1. Biblical knowledge. The essence of training is to provide a thorough working knowledge of the Bible as the one dependable revelation from God. It is the chief equipment for the Christian worker.
2. Equal opportunity for all Christians. Training is open to people of all ages and levels of educational background, whether they are pursuing full-time paid Christian ministry, or seeking to be better equipped to serve the church and the world.
3. Practical relevance. There is great emphasis on the application of truth to daily life.
4. Spiritual growth. The encouragement of personal spiritual growth in Christ is a major objective that permeates the total program of the College.
5. Training in community. There is a strong emphasis upon students learning, sharing and worshipping together, discovering in depth the meaning of fellowship in Christ and the loving service of others.
6. Interdenominational unity. One of the great appeals of MST is its denominational diversity. It's exciting and, at times, challenging to learn to express our deep unity in Christ in the midst of our many different backgrounds.
7. Flexibility in the program. MST is continually seeking to appropriately adapt its teaching and learning methods to a fast-changing educational environment, while remaining committed to the unchanging gospel.
8. Evangelism and mission. One of MST's great emphases is the training of men and women for evangelism and cross-cultural mission. It is imperative that all students have a clear understanding of the gospel and the uniqueness of Christ as Lord and Saviour in a pluralistic world.
9. Leadership. MST seeks to equip its graduates for leadership in the church, mission and market place, so that they will be people who influence others in their thinking and behaviour. It is also our passion to equip people for key leadership roles, and to continue to assist their professional growth and development through in service programs.

BBI (UK) would have signed up to all of this. It is a sad reflection on the state of Christianity in the UK that the college lost its vision, its student applications and eventually ceased its ministry.

Nevertheless, in its heyday I spent three happy years there studying the Bible, training for Christian service and enjoying the fellowship.