Northern Theological Seminary Newsletter

15 Januarie 2008 0 Comments

NEWSLETTER May 2007

New students

At the beginning of 2007 two new full-time students were admitted to the Seminary. They are Catherine Mabilo and Victor Makhetha. We welcome them to the NTS and pray that they will be very happy in our midst.

Nine part-time students also joined the seminary this year. They are NS Phaswana, HA Kotsi, KI Mabitso, TM Metsing, HV Mthalane, AM Ndawonde, TA Pudumo, DMM Serekego and TW Tjeba. We welcome all of them to the seminary, especially brothers Mthalane and Ndawonde, who are the first students from the Synod of Kwazulu-Natal in the NTS. The full list of NTS students for 2007 are given on page 5 .

Licensing of senior students

In November 2006 three final year students who studied in the NTS were licensed as theological candidates (proponente) of the URCSA. They are MS Baartman, MS Maponya and SJ Motsiri. Professor (emeritus) Willem Saayman delivered the message at the occasion and it was much appreciated by those who attended.

We are grateful to report that proponente Maponya and Motsiri have already received calls from congregations and that prop. Baartman is working for a congregation on a one year contract. We pray that they will have fruitful and happy ministries in those congregations.

Graduations

The trickle of students completing their qualifications is becoming a stream. At the end of 2006 the following were successful:

The three students who were licensed (MS Baartman, MS Maponya, SJ Motsiri) obtained an MA Theology degree in Practical Theology at the University of Pretoria (UP).
Four students (VA Magagula, PM Maruping, CP Mei and GI Setoto) obtained the BA Honours (Theology) degree at UP.
Eight students (SC Kodibona, RJ Mabusela, ME Mahlatsi, PL Makgopa, MV Makhetha, MH Motlou, SD Olivier, MD Shai) completed the BTh and are now enrolled for the Honours degree: the full-time students at UP and the part-timers at Unisa. One highlight: Br PL Makgopa is the first part-time student of NTS to complete the BTh degree (at Unisa). Well done!
Hearty congratulations to all these colleagues! May you go from strength to strength and be life-long theological learners.

Rev Alet Pretorius

Rev Alet Pretorius, minister of URCSA Lebotloane and the scribe of the curatorium, had a stroke earlier this year. This came as a great shock to the curatorium and the seminary. She is recovering at home, but it is not yet clear to what extent she will be able to continue her responsibilities in the church. We pray that she may gradually get back some use of her left arm and leg; and that the Lord will continue to use her in the service of the kingdom.

Kampen

The Kampen Theological University (ThUK) has become part of the larger Protestant Theological University (PThU) in the Netherlands, and this merger has brought about some changes. However, the new institution is still offering one MTh scholarship per year to a student of the NTS. Rev MS Makulubele of URCSA Potgietersrust is the present holder of this scholarship and he is progressing well with his research on the responsibility of the church in relation to child abuse.

The student recommended to Kampen by the NTS management for the academic year Sept 2007 – June 2008 is PM Maruping. He wishes to make a detailed study of the Accra Confession. We trust that this study opportunity will empower him to be a creative and inspiring leader in the URCSA.

NTS Management Committee

New members have recently been appointed to the Seminary Management Committee (SMC). Their names appear in the letterhead at the top of page 1. The SMC also co-opted more URCSA members onto the various sub-committees to streamline the functioning of the NTS. We welcome these members into the leadership of the seminary and trust that they will make a constructive contribution.

The SMC and all its sub-committees had a “bosberaad” on 23-24 February this year to plan for the year’s work. This was a very fruitful exercise and the SMC decided to do this twice a year.

Theological conferences

The role of a theological seminary is not only the formation of new ministers but also to act as a centre of renewal and challenge to existing ministers and other congregational leaders. A seminary does this through arranging theological conferences on relevant topics.

The NTS has slowly started playing this role, as it becomes more established. In May 2006 on Ascension Day it hosted a conference on the Belhar Confession and in August 2006 an international conference (in collaboration with Unisa and Kampen Theological University) on reading Karl Barth in South Africa today.

In January 2007, at the annual Theological Day marking the opening of the NTS, the theme was “Visionary leadership for church reunification”, with Rev JC Goeiman, theological student PM Maruping and Adv Ploos van Amstel as speakers. The attendance was much better than last year, so the Theological Day is once more becoming a fixed part of our URCSA calendar in this region.

Coming soon is the annual Ascension Day conference on Thursday 17 May from 08:30 to 15:00 in the Melodi ya Tshwane building. It will deal with the Lord’s Supper and (fittingly) start in a worship service with Holy Communion – to celebrate the universal Lordship of our ascended Lord. There will be a few presentations on aspects of the Supper, but the emphasis will be on getting participants to share their views and discuss with one another, rather than on many “expert” inputs. ALL WELCOME!

The August NTS conferences have the theme “Reading theological classics in an African context” and after the focus on Karl Barth in 2006, the attention now shifts to Steve Biko. On 12 September 2007 it will be exactly 30 years since his tragic death in police detention in 1977. This conference, once more in collaboration with Unisa and Kampen, will have the theme: “The legacy of Steven Bantu Biko: Theological challenges.” It will take place on 23-24 August on the Unisa Sunnyside campus. Not to be missed.

Financial report and budget

An income and expenditure statement for the seminary’s finances in 2006 and a budget for 2007 are included on page 3. A few items need to be highlighted: a) It is possible once again to subsidise students for their tuition this year , but only the senior students (Hons and MA); b) During this year we will pay off all the debt we incurred in the past; c) The total income needed from congregations, ministries and individuals is R130 000.00; d) There is a deficit of R36 500.00 in the budget, but the Lerato Foundation in the Netherlands will support us again this year and their contribution should more than wipe out this deficit; e) An amount of R120 000.00 is channeled through the NTS account annually to individual students, paid by congregations and individuals of the URCSA and NGK to assist them with their study fees, accommodation and other expenses; f) We wish to record our sincere gratitude to every congregation, ministry and individual who have contributed to the NTS (see page 3). Without you we would not have come this far. May the Lord bless you richly! A special word of thanks must go to the Protestant Church in the Netherlands (Kerkinactie), the Turfloop Seminary Governing Body, and the Lerato Foundation in the Netherlands for the substantial contributions they make to our finances.