Novi Sad Theological College
Encyclopedia
Novi Sad Theological College (NSTC) (Serbian: Teološki fakultet - Novi Sad) is a Serbian language theological educational institution in Novi Sad
, Serbia
. NSTC seeks to equip emerging and current Christian leaders for ministry service in South East Europe, and is the only Protestant/Evangelical
theological post-secondary educational institution in Serbia. NSTC has an interdenominational board of directors, faculty, and student body. The school building and library are owned by the College's host, the Baptist
Union of Serbia.
, Croatia
. In 1957, the school was moved to Novi Sad, where it occupied the current NSTS facility in 1965. The school operated until 1994, when the Baptist Union split according to the new national boundaries in the Former Yugoslavia. The new borders left Protestants and Evangelicals in Serbia without a theological educational institution in their country. Only a few Evangelical leaders were able to receive training, because it involved leaving their churches to study abroad for years at a time.
Realising the need for theological education in Serbia, the Baptist Union of Serbia
offered the use of their vacant facilities to begin a new interdenominational theological school. The Seminary spent its first year renovating the building which had been severely neglected. Under the leadership of Dr. Dimitrije Popadić, NSTS was founded in 2000, offering both undergraduate and graduate programmes. As of November 2005, over 80 degrees and certificates have been awarded.
As of 2008 the Seminary is no longer under the Baptist Union of Serbia, and has changed its Serbian name to Protestantski Teološki Fakultet (Protestant Theological Seminary).
Novi Sad
Novi Sad is the capital of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and the administrative centre of the South Bačka District. The city is located in the southern part of Pannonian Plain on the Danube river....
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
. NSTC seeks to equip emerging and current Christian leaders for ministry service in South East Europe, and is the only Protestant/Evangelical
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
theological post-secondary educational institution in Serbia. NSTC has an interdenominational board of directors, faculty, and student body. The school building and library are owned by the College's host, the Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
Union of Serbia.
History
The Novi Sad Theological Seminary formally opened in 2000, but its roots go back much further. A Baptist bible school was opened in 1940 in Belgrade. It was reopened in 1954 in ZagrebZagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
. In 1957, the school was moved to Novi Sad, where it occupied the current NSTS facility in 1965. The school operated until 1994, when the Baptist Union split according to the new national boundaries in the Former Yugoslavia. The new borders left Protestants and Evangelicals in Serbia without a theological educational institution in their country. Only a few Evangelical leaders were able to receive training, because it involved leaving their churches to study abroad for years at a time.
Realising the need for theological education in Serbia, the Baptist Union of Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
offered the use of their vacant facilities to begin a new interdenominational theological school. The Seminary spent its first year renovating the building which had been severely neglected. Under the leadership of Dr. Dimitrije Popadić, NSTS was founded in 2000, offering both undergraduate and graduate programmes. As of November 2005, over 80 degrees and certificates have been awarded.
As of 2008 the Seminary is no longer under the Baptist Union of Serbia, and has changed its Serbian name to Protestantski Teološki Fakultet (Protestant Theological Seminary).