Covenant Theological Seminary, informally called Covenant Seminary, is the

denominational A religious denomination is a subgroup within a religion that operates under a common name and tradition among other activities. The term refers to the various Christian denominations (for example, Eastern Orthodox, Catholic, and the many variet ...

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, ...

of the

Presbyterian Church in America The Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) is the second-largest Presbyterian church body, behind the Presbyterian Church (USA), and the largest conservative Calvinist denomination in the United States. The PCA is Reformed in theology and presb ...

(PCA). Located in

Creve Coeur, Missouri Creve Coeur is a city located in mid St. Louis County, Missouri, United States, a part of Greater St. Louis. Its population was 18,834 at the 2020 census. Creve Coeur borders and shares a ZIP code (63141) with the neighboring city of Town and ...

, it trains people to work as leaders in church positions and elsewhere, especially as

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

missionaries 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 ...

, and counselors. It does not require all students to be members of the PCA, but it is bound to promote the teachings of its denomination. Faculty must subscribe to the system of biblical doctrine outlined in the

Westminster Standards The Westminster Standards is a collective name for the documents drawn up by the Westminster Assembly (1643–49). These include the Westminster Confession of Faith, the Westminster Shorter Catechism, the Westminster Larger Catechism, the Directo ...

History

The seminary was established in 1956 as a sister institution to

Covenant College Covenant College is a private, liberal arts, Christian college in Lookout Mountain, Georgia, located near Chattanooga, Tennessee. As the college of the Presbyterian Church in America, Covenant teaches subjects from a Reformed theological wor ...

, founded the previous year in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. I ...

. Both were agencies of the

Bible Presbyterian Church The Bible Presbyterian Church is an American Protestant denomination in the Calvinist tradition. History Origin The Bible Presbyterian Church was formed in 1937, predominantly through the efforts of such conservative Presbyterian clergymen as ...

(Columbus Synod). The institution's founders believed that their denomination needed a strong

theological Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

school to resist liberalizing influences in

American Evangelicalism In the United States, evangelicalism is a movement among Protestant Christians who believe in the necessity of being born again, emphasize the importance of evangelism, and affirm traditional Protestant teachings on the authority as well as the ...

. The college and seminary shared the a president and campus in St. Louis until the college outgrew its space and moved to

Lookout Mountain, Georgia Lookout Mountain is a city entirely within Walker County, Georgia, United States. Bordering its sister town of Lookout Mountain, Tennessee, Lookout Mountain is part of the Chattanooga metropolitan statistical area. The population was 1,641 at t ...

, in 1964. They formally became two separate institutions in 1966. Denominational mergers over the ensuing decades made the schools part of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC), then the

Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod The Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod was a Reformed and Presbyterian denomination in the United States and Canada between 1965 and 1982. Formation The RPCES was formed in 1965 with the union of the Reformed Presbyterian Church, ...

(RPCES), and finally, in 1982—through what is known as the "joining and receiving" with the RPCES—the

(PCA), which elects and oversees the work of the seminary's board of trustees. Over its 65 years, the seminary has continued to grow in size and reputation, and is now home to a student body (both on campus and online) drawn from nearly every U.S. state and many other nations. More than 4,500 Covenant Seminary graduates now serve as pastors, church planters, missionaries, campus ministers, counselors, Bible translators, and educators, and in many other ministry and non-vocational ministry capacities in multiple denominations and in all 50 states and 100 countries.

Academics

The seminary is accredited by the

Higher Learning Commission The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an institutional accreditor in the United States. It has historically accredited post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa ...

and

Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada The Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada (ATS) is an organization of seminaries and other graduate schools of theology. ATS has its headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. History It was founded in 1918. The associ ...

.Covenant Theological Seminary

. It offers several

academic degree An academic degree is a qualification awarded to students upon successful completion of a course of study in higher education, usually at a college or university. These institutions commonly offer degrees at various levels, usually including unde ...

Master of Divinity For graduate-level theological institutions, the Master of Divinity (MDiv, ''magister divinitatis'' in Latin) is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America. It is the most common academic degree in seminaries and divi ...

(M.Div.),

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

(MA),

Master of Theology Master of Theology ( la, Theologiae Magister, abbreviated MTh, ThM, or MTheol) is a post-graduate degree offered by universities, divinity schools, and seminaries. It can serve as a transition degree for entrance into a PhD program or as a stand ...

(Th.M.), and

Doctor of Ministry The Doctor of Ministry (abbreviated DMin or D.Min.) is a professional doctorate, often including a research component, that may be earned by a minister of religion while concurrently engaged in some form of ministry. It is categorized as an advanced ...

(D.Min.). The seminary is doctrinally committed to the

Reformed faith Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Calv ...

and

Covenant theology Covenant theology (also known as covenantalism, federal theology, or federalism) is a conceptual overview and interpretive framework for understanding the overall structure of the Bible. It uses the theological concept of a covenant as an organ ...

, and it believes the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

to be the inspired and inerrant word of

God In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...

. The seminary is also home to the

Francis Schaeffer Francis August Schaeffer (January 30, 1912 – May 15, 1984) was an American evangelical theologian, philosopher, and Presbyterian pastor. He co-founded the L'Abri community in Switzerland with his wife Edith Schaeffer, , a prolific author ...

Institute, which encourages Christians to engage contemporary culture in a compassionate way with the truth-claims of the gospel. Covenant publishes ''Covenant'' magazine annually and ''Presbyterion,'' an academic theological journal, semiannually.

President

In July 2021, the Rev. Dr. Thomas C. Gibbs became the sixth president of Covenant Seminary, After graduating from Auburn University, Gibbs served as a youth director at Faith Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, Alabama. After earning a Master of Divinity degree from Covenant Seminary in 1997, he started a new Reformed University Fellowship (RUF) chapter at Baylor University, then served as senior pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian Church of San Antonio, Texas, for 19 years. Previous Covenant presidents include: Robert G. Rayburn (1956–1977), William S. Barker (1977–1985), Paul Kooistra (1985–1994), Bryan Chapell (1994–2010; chancellor, 2011–12), and Mark Dalbey (interim president, 2012–13, permanent, 2013-2021).

Notable alumni

* Kenneth Bae, US missionary, author, activist * William S. Barker, theologian, educator * Jerram Barrs, author, educator, pastor, Founder of Francis Schaffer Institute * Anthony Bradley, theologian, educator, author *

Bryan Chapell Bryan Chapell (born 18 November 1954) is an American pastor and theologian who currently serves as the Stated Clerk of the Presbyterian Church in America. He was previously the senior pastor of Grace Presbyterian Church in Peoria, Illinois. Prio ...

, theologian, educator, pastor *

Ligon Duncan Jennings Ligon Duncan III (born November 29, 1960) is an American Presbyterian scholar and pastor. Early life and education Duncan is native to Greenville, South Carolina. His father was an eighth-generation Southern Presbyterian ruling elder. ...

, pastor * Ted K. Lim, pastor, educator, former president of Asian Center for Theological Studies in Korea *

Matt Morginsky Matt "Mojo" Morginsky (born June 14, 1976), is the lead vocalist of the Christian ska band The O.C. Supertones. Early years Matt Morginsky was born in Long Island to a Jewish father and an Italian mother. At age 14, he converted to Christianit ...

, Christian singer *

Nancy Pearcey Nancy Randolph Pearcey (born 1952) is an American evangelical author on the Christian worldview. Education Pearcey earned a BA from Iowa State University, an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. She a ...

, Christian author *

Bong Rin Ro Bong Rin Ro is an American Theology, theologian and Missiology, missiologist. He is a founding leader and former executive secretary of the Asia Theological Association, Asian Theological Association as well as former dean of the Asia Graduate Sch ...

, missiologist, former executive secretary of

Asia Graduate School of Theology The Asia Graduate School of Theology (AGST) is a consortium of evangelical theological seminaries. It was established by Asia Theological Association in 1984, and consists of three bodies: AGST Japan, AGST Philippines, and AGST Alliance (Cambodia ...

Phillip Sandifer Phillip Sandifer (born 10 May, 1959) is an American writer, musician, recording artist and music producer. His music is primarily known within the Americana and Inspirational music field. Personal life Phillip Sandifer was born in Baltimore, Ma ...

, singer/songwriter * Dane Ortlund, pastor, author

References

External links

* {{Coord, 38.6437, -90.4521, type:edu_region:US-MO, display=title Seminaries and theological colleges in Missouri Presbyterianism in Missouri Presbyterian universities and colleges in the United States Universities and colleges in St. Louis Reformed church seminaries and theological colleges Presbyterian Church in America Educational institutions established in 1956 Buildings and structures in St. Louis County, Missouri 1956 establishments in Missouri