![Andover Theological Seminary by J Kidder](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/Andover_Theological_Seminary_by_J_Kidder.jpeg)
Andover Theological Seminary (1807–1965) was a
Congregationalist seminary founded in 1807 and originally located in
Andover, Massachusetts
Andover is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It was settled in 1642 and incorporated in 1646."Andover" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th ed., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 387. As of th ...
on the campus of
Phillips Academy. From 1908 to 1931, it was located at
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...
in Cambridge. It then collocated to Newton with
Newton Theological Institution
Newton Theological Institution was a Baptist theological seminary founded on November 28, 1825 in Newton Centre, Massachusetts.Hovey, Alvah, Historical Address Delivered at the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Newton Theological Institution, June 8, 1 ...
(NTI). Andover Theological Seminary and NTI formally merged in 1965 to form the
Andover Newton Theological School (1965–2018). In its original and merged forms, it is the first and thus the oldest
theological seminary
A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...
founded in the United States. The seminary continues as
Andover Newton Seminary at Yale Divinity School
Andover Newton Seminary at Yale Divinity School is an American seminary program founded in 2017 within Yale Divinity School and located in New Haven, Connecticut. It is the successor institution of Andover Newton Theological School (ANTS), the o ...
launched in 2017.
History
Andover Theological Seminary traces its roots to the late 18th century and the desire for a well-educated clergy among
Congregationalists in the United States. That desire was expressed in the founding of
Phillips Academy in 1778 for "the promotion of true Piety and Virtue".
In 1806, a growing split within the Congregational churches, known as the
Unitarian Controversy
The Socinian controversy in the Church of England (sometimes called the ''First Socinian controversy'' to distinguish it from a debate around 1800 mainly affecting Protestant nonconformists; and also called the ''Trinitarian controversy'') was ...
, came to a full boil on the campus of
Harvard College
Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...
. The
Hollis Chair of Divinity The Hollis Chair of Divinity is an endowed chair at Harvard Divinity School. It was established in 1721 by Thomas Hollis, a wealthy English merchant and benefactor of the university, at a salary of £80 per year. It is the oldest endowed chair in t ...
sat empty at Harvard for two years owing to tensions between liberal and more orthodox
Calvinists. This theological battle soon divided many of the oldest churches in Massachusetts and began to impact church polity and the hiring of ministers. When the
Harvard Board of Overseers The Harvard Board of Overseers (more formally The Honorable and Reverend the Board of Overseers) is one of Harvard University's two governing boards. Although its function is more consultative and less hands-on than the President and Fellows of Harv ...
appointed well-known liberal
Henry Ware to the Hollis Chair in 1805, the Calvinists withdrew to organize and establish a new school in 1807, Andover Theological Seminary on the campus of
Phillips Academy (est. 1778) in
Andover, Massachusetts
Andover is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It was settled in 1642 and incorporated in 1646."Andover" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th ed., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 387. As of th ...
. This act, covered widely in the national press, was one of the significant events that contributed to the split in the denomination and to the eventual founding of the
American Unitarian Association
The American Unitarian Association (AUA) was a religious denomination in the United States and Canada, formed by associated Unitarian congregations in 1825. In 1961, it consolidated with the Universalist Church of America to form the Unitarian Uni ...
in 1825 (which joined the
Universalists
Universalism is the philosophical and theological concept that some ideas have universal application or applicability.
A belief in one fundamental truth is another important tenet in universalism. The living truth is seen as more far-reaching th ...
, founded in 1793, to become the
Unitarian Universalist Association in 1961).
Andover was founded by the joint efforts of traditionalist, "Old Calvinists" and the adherents of the
New Divinity (also known as
New England theology
New England theology (or Edwardsianism) designates a school of theology which grew up among the Congregationalists of New England, originating in the year 1732, when Jonathan Edwards began his constructive theological work, culminating a little ...
) which was more
revivalistic.
Leonard Woods,
Moses Stuart
Moses B. Stuart (March 26, 1780 – January 4, 1852) was an American biblical scholar.
Life and career
Moses Stuart was born in Wilton, Connecticut on March 26, 1780. He was brought up on a farm, then attended Yale University graduating with h ...
, and
Edward Dorr Griffin
Edward Dorr Griffin (6 January 1770 – 8 November 1837) was a Christian minister and an American educator who served as President of Williams College from 1821 to 1836 and served as the first pastor of Park Street Church from 1811 to 1815. Water ...
were early faculty.
Between 1886 and 1892, a theological dispute known as the "Andover Controversy" broke out between the conservative "New England Calvinism" of the founders and the liberal theology of many on the faculty. President E. C. Smyth was investigated and dismissed for his liberal views in 1887, but in 1891 his dismissal was reversed, on technical grounds, by the Massachusetts Supreme Court, and the matter was dropped the following year.
Relocations and merger
In 1908,
Harvard Divinity School
Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the academic study of religion or for leadership roles in religion, gov ...
and Andover attempted to reconcile, and the seminary moved its faculty and library to the Harvard campus (and soon into Andover Hall
911
911 or 9/11 may refer to:
Dates
* AD 911
* 911 BC
* September 11
** 9/11, the September 11 attacks of 2001
** 11 de Septiembre, Chilean coup d'état in 1973 that outed the democratically elected Salvador Allende
* November 9
Numbers
* 91 ...
. Plans for a formal affiliation between the academies were made, but the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts disallowed the alliance since Andover's endowment is designated for a Christian theological education. Andover, therefore, relocated to the campus of Newton Theological Institution in 1931.
Andover Theological Seminary and the Newton Theological Institution formally merged in 1965 as the
Andover Newton Theological School (ANTS).
Newton Theological Institution
Newton Theological Institution was a Baptist theological seminary founded on November 28, 1825 in Newton Centre, Massachusetts.Hovey, Alvah, Historical Address Delivered at the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Newton Theological Institution, June 8, 1 ...
began instruction in 1825 at Newton Centre, Massachusetts as a graduate seminary formally affiliated with the group now known as
American Baptist Churches USA
The American Baptist Churches USA (ABCUSA) is a mainline/evangelical Baptist Christian denomination within the United States. The denomination maintains headquarters in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. The organization is usually considered mainl ...
, the oldest Baptist denomination in America. As the institution developed, it adopted Andover's curricular pattern and shared the same theological tradition of loyalty to the evangelical Gospel and zeal for its dissemination.
In November 2015, ANTS announced that it would sell its campus and relocate to
Yale Divinity School
Yale Divinity School (YDS) is one of the twelve graduate and professional schools of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.
Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, and the professional school has ...
, after a presence of 190 years on that site.
Historical influence on Protestant missions
Prior to the founding of Andover and Newton, the model for the training of clergy was based on an undergraduate degree (actually the basis for the founding of most of the early colleges in the United States). The graduate model and the three year curriculum with a resident student body and resident faculty pioneered at Andover and Newton has become the standard for almost all of the 140 Protestant theological schools in the country.
Reflecting that zeal, the modern missionary movement began in this country through a group of Andover students known as the Brethren. Both Andover and Newton quickly assumed leadership in the modern mission movement, drawing the two schools into close association of people and ideas. Graduates such as Luther Rice and
Hiram Bingham pioneered in Christian missions around the world.
Adoniram Judson, an 1810 Andover alumnus, is best known for his work in Burma, where he translated the Bible into Burmese and produced the first Burmese-English dictionary.
Notable alumni
Alumni of Andover Theological Seminary include the following notables, listed in order of their last year at the Seminary.
*
Adoniram Judson, class of 1810, one of the first U.S. missionaries sent by the
American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions
The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) was among the first American Christian missionary organizations. It was created in 1810 by recent graduates of Williams College. In the 19th century it was the largest and most imp ...
; later became a
Baptist
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...
missionary to
Myanmar
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
, then known as Burma.
*
Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet
Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet (December 10, 1787 – September 10, 1851) was an American educator. Along with Laurent Clerc and Mason Cogswell, he co-founded the first permanent institution for the education of the deaf in North America, and he be ...
, class of 1814.
*
Hiram Bingham, class of 1816, leader of the first group of missionaries to Hawaii; helped devise the first alphabet for the Hawaiian language.
*
David Brown, attended 1823, member of the Cherokee Nation, author o
"Address in Favor of the Aboriginal Inhabitants of North America"
*
Samuel Worcester
Samuel Austin Worcester (January 19, 1798 – April 20, 1859), was an American missionary to the Cherokee, translator of the Bible, printer, and defender of the Cherokee sovereignty. He collaborated with Elias Boudinot (Cherokee) in Georgia to ...
, class of 1823, American pastor and Cherokee missionary; plaintiff in the
Worcester v. Georgia Supreme Court case.
*
David Oliver Allen
David Oliver Allen (1800–1863) was an American missionary to India and an author.
Life
Allen was born in Barre, Massachusetts to Moses and Mahitable Allen. His father relocated the family to Princeton, Massachusetts while David Allen was an i ...
, class of 1824, American
missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...
.
*
Walter Colton
Reverend Walter Colton (May 7, 1797 – January 22, 1851) was an American clergyman and writer from Vermont who served as the first American Alcalde (mayor) of Monterey, California. He worked as an editor for newspapers in Washington, D.C. and ...
, class of 1825, U.S. Navy chaplain, first American alcalde (mayor) of Monterey, California, co-publisher of California's first newspaper
*
John William Yeomans, class of 1827, Presbyterian pastor and second president of
Lafayette College
Lafayette College is a private liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 1832. The founders voted to name the college after General Laf ...
*
Nehemiah Adams, class of 1829, clergyman and author.
*
Bela Bates Edwards
Bela Bates Edwards (1802–1852) was an American man of letters.
Biography
Edwards was born at Southampton, Massachusetts, on 4 July 1802. He graduated at Amherst College in 1824, was a tutor there from 1827 to 1828, graduated at Andover Theologic ...
, class of 1830, Andover Theological Seminary faculty, 1837-1852; editor of ''American Quarterly Observer'', ''Biblical Repository'', and ''
Bibliotheca Sacra''.
*
William Adams, class of 1830, one of the founders of the
Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York
Union commonly refers to:
* Trade union, an organization of workers
* Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets
Union may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
Music
* Union (band), an American rock group
** ''Un ...
and later its president.
*
Asher Wright, class of 1831, missionary to the
Seneca people, and a linguist who developed a Seneca alphabet and translated large portions of the bible and other texts.
*
Caleb Mills
Caleb Mills (July 29, 1806 – October 17, 1879) was an American educator who served as the Superintendent of Public Instruction in Indiana and was the first faculty member at Wabash College. He played a central role in designing the public educa ...
, class of 1833, first professor of
Wabash College
Wabash College is a private liberal arts men's college in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Founded in 1832 by several Dartmouth College graduates and Midwestern leaders, it enrolls nearly 900 students. The college offers an undergraduate liberal arts cu ...
and father of the
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
public education system.
*
Samuel Francis Smith, class of 1834, Baptist minister who wrote the words to "
My Country, 'Tis of Thee
"America (My Country, 'Tis of Thee)" is an American patriotic song, the lyrics of which were written by Samuel Francis Smith. The song served as one of the ''de facto'' national anthems of the United States (along with songs like "Hail, Columb ...
" while a seminary student.
*
Samuel Harvey Taylor
Samuel Harvey Taylor (October 3, 1807 – January 29, 1871) was an American educator and 6th List of Phillips Academy Heads of School, Principal of Phillips Academy Andover, Massachusetts, Andover from 1837 to 1871, the longest to hold the office ...
, class of 1837, 6th Principal of
Phillips Academy 1837-1871
*
Edward A. Lawrence, Sr., class of 1838, Congregational pastor, professor, author
*
George Frederick Magoun
George Frederick Magoun (1821 – January 30, 1896"Obituaries", ''The New York Times''. January 31, 1896. Available fro/ref>), a member of the Iowa Band of Congregationalist ministers, was the first president of Iowa College (now Grinnell College) ...
, class of 1847, co-founder and first president of
Grinnell College
Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College.
Grinnell has the fifth highest endowment-to-stu ...
[Grinnell College Libraries]
Presidents of Grinnell College: George Magoun
. Accessed May 10, 2008.
*
George Park Fisher
George Park Fisher (August 10, 1827 – December 20, 1909) was an American theologian and historian who was noted as a teacher and a prolific writer.
Biography
He was born in Wrentham, Massachusetts. He graduated from Brown University in 1847, ...
, class of 1851, ecclesiastical historian, president of the
American Historical Association
The American Historical Association (AHA) is the oldest professional association of historians in the United States and the largest such organization in the world. Founded in 1884, the AHA works to protect academic freedom, develop professional s ...
in 1898
*
Charles Augustus Aiken
Charles Augustus Aiken (October 30, 1827 – January 14, 1892) was an American clergyman and academic.
Biography
He was born in Manchester, Vermont, on October 30, 1827, to John Aiken and Harriet Adams Aiken. He graduated from Dartmouth College i ...
, class of 1853, Faculty at Dartmouth College and Princeton Theological Seminary; president of Union College.
*
Laurenus Clark Seelye
Laurenus Clark Seelye (September 30, 1837 – October 12, 1924), known as L. Clark Seelye, was the first president of Smith College, serving from 1873 to 1910. He graduated from Union College (NY) in 1857 with Phi Beta Kappa honors and membership ...
, attended 1858-59, first president of
Smith College
Smith College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in Northampton, Massachusetts. It was chartered in 1871 by Sophia Smith (Smith College ...
*
George Washburn (educator)
George Washburn (March 1, 1833 – February 15, 1915) was an American educator, Christian missionary, and second president of Robert College.
Biography
George Washburn was born on March, 1, 1833 in Middleboro, Massachusetts. His father Philand ...
, class of 1859, professor of philosophy (1886), acting president (1870-1877) and later president (1877) of
Robert College, Constantinople (now Istanbul), founding principal of
American College, Madurai
The American College, often referred to as American College, is one of the oldest colleges in India, located in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. It was founded in 1881 by American Christian missionaries. The red-brick buildings, in the Saracenic style, ...
(1881).
*
Henry F. C. Nichols, class of 1864, member of the
Wisconsin State Assembly
The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin.
Representatives are elected for two-year terms, ...
*
William Jewett Tucker
William Jewett Tucker (July 13, 1839 – September 29, 1926) was an American Congregational minister who served as the 9th President of Dartmouth College in New Hampshire, United States, from 1893 to 1909.
Dartmouth presidency
The ''New York Ci ...
, class of 1866, Andover Theological Seminary faculty, 1879-1893; editor of ''Andover Review''; founder of Andover House; president of
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...
.
*
James Griswold Merrill, class of 1866, president of
Fisk University (1901-1908).
He graduated from
Amherst College.
*
George Trumbull Ladd
George Trumbull Ladd (; January 19, 1842 – August 8, 1921) was an American philosopher, educator and psychologist.
Biography
Early life and ancestors
Ladd was born in Painesville, Ohio, on January 19, 1842, the son of Silas Trumbull Ladd and ...
(1842 – 1921), class of 1869, was an American philosopher, educator and psychologist. He was the first foreigner to receive the Second (conferred in 1907) and Third (conferred in 1899)
Orders of the Rising Sun.
*
Joseph Hardy Neesima
(born ; 12 February 1843 – 23 January 1890), better known by his English name Joseph Hardy Neesima, was a Japanese Protestant missionary and educator of the Meiji era who founded Doshisha English School (later Doshisha University).
He ...
, attended 1870-72, 1873–74, but did not graduate. Founder and president of
Doshisha University
, mottoeng = Truth shall make you free
, tagline =
, established = Founded 1875,Chartered 1920
, vision =
, type = Private
, affiliation =
, calendar =
, endowment = €1 ...
in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
.
*
Albert Edward Winship
Albert Edward Winship (February 24, 1845 – February 16, 1933) was a pioneering American educator and educational journalist.
Biography
Winship was born in West Bridgewater, Massachusetts. He attended Andover Theological Seminary in 1875. He wa ...
, educator
*
William Scott Ament
William Scott Ament (Chinese Names: 梅子明 and 梅威良 Mei Wei Liang) (14 September 1851 – 6 January 1909 in San Francisco) was a missionary to China for the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) from 1877, and wa ...
, class of 1877, controversial Congregational missionary to China criticised by
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...
*
Thomas Davidson Christie, class of 1877, Civil War Veteran, missionary in Turkey, President of St. Paul's College in Tarsus, papers at MNHS.org
*
Claude Black, class of 1943, noted pastor of
Mt. Zion First Baptist Church, civil rights icon, politician.
References
Further reading
*
External links
Andover-Harvard Library Mission and HistoryAndover Newton Seminary at Yale
{{Authority control
Seminaries and theological colleges in Massachusetts
Educational institutions established in 1807
Defunct private universities and colleges in Massachusetts
1807 establishments in Massachusetts
*