Emmanuel College is the theological college of Victoria University in the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

. Affiliated with the

United Church of Canada The United Church of Canada (french: link=no, Église unie du Canada) is a mainline Protestant denomination that is the largest Protestant Christian denomination in Canada and the second largest Canadian Christian denomination after the Catholi ...

, it is also a member institution of the Toronto School of Theology. The college's principal is HyeRan Kim-Cragg. Emmanuel College is a member of the

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 ...

History

Emmanuel College has its origins in Victoria College, a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

college founded in 1836.University of Toronto
/ref> From 1871 it operated a Faculty of Theology training candidates for the ministry of the Wesleyan Methodist Church. In 1884, with the merger of the Wesleyan Methodists and the

Methodist Episcopal Church The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself on a national basis. In ...

(MEC) into a single

Methodist Church of Canada The Methodist Church was the major Methodist denomination in Canada from its founding in 1884 until it merged with two other denominations to form the United Church of Canada in 1925. The Methodist Church was itself formed from the merger of four ...

, the seminary the MEC had established at Albert University in 1857 merged into Victoria. When the merger in turn to create the United Church of Canada took place in 1925, a number of congregations in the

Presbyterian Church in Canada The Presbyterian Church in Canada (french: Église presbytérienne du Canada) is a Presbyterian denomination, serving in Canada under this name since 1875. The United Church of Canada claimed the right to the name from 1925 to 1939. According to ...

chose to remain a distinct denomination.

Knox College, University of Toronto , mottoeng = The word gives light , established = , religious_affiliation = Presbyterian Church , type = Federated theological college , principal = Ernest van Eck , city = Tor ...

, founded as the

Free Church A free church is a Christian denomination that is intrinsically separate from government (as opposed to a state church). A free church does not define government policy, and a free church does not accept church theology or policy definitions from ...

rival to Queen's during the

Disruption of 1843 The Disruption of 1843, also known as the Great Disruption, was a schism in 1843 in which 450 evangelical ministers broke away from the Church of Scotland to form the Free Church of Scotland. The main conflict was over whether the Church of S ...

and favourable to church union, was expected to serve as the new church's main seminary. However, the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA, french: Assemblée législative de l'Ontario) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by ...

awarded the building to the continuing Presbyterians. The faculty and most students of Knox left to form "Union College" with the Faculty of Theology at Victoria. Shortly renamed Emmanuel College, the new college became affiliated with the

as a

seminary in 1925. The Emmanuel College main building was designed by architect

Henry Sproatt Henry Sproatt (June 14, 1866 – October 4, 1934) was a Canadian architect who was prominent during the early 20th century. Born in Toronto, he trained in Europe and in New York City. He formed a partnership in 1890 with another celebrated arch ...

In 1969 the Toronto School of Theology (TST) was created as an independent federation of 7 schools of theology, including the divinity faculties of Emmanuel College. Within its own federation, U of T granted all but theology or divinity degrees. In May 1974, along with the other federated universities, St. Michael's and Trinity, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed with the University of Toronto, establishing the terms of their new relationship with the Faculty of Arts and Science. Since 1978, by virtue of a change made in its charter, the University of Toronto has granted theology degrees conjointly with Emmanuel College and other TST's member institutions. Emmanuel College welcomed its first woman principal in 2018 with the appointment of Michelle Voss Roberts. In 2022, HyeRan Kim-Cragg succeeded Voss Roberts as principal. Rev. Kim-Cragg is the first person of colour and second woman to lead the institution.

Popular culture

Emmanuel College's library was the location where the British band

Tears for Fears Tears for Fears are an English pop rock band formed in Bath, England, in 1981 by Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith. Founded after the dissolution of their first band, the mod-influenced Graduate, Tears for Fears were associated with the new wav ...

filmed the music video for their song " Head over Heels" in June 1985.

References

* Kenneth H. Cousland. ''The Founding of Emmanuel College of Victoria University of the University of Toronto''.

University of Toronto Press The University of Toronto Press is a Canadian university press founded in 1901. Although it was founded in 1901, the press did not actually publish any books until 1911. The press originally printed only examination books and the university calen ...

, 1978. * Martin L. Friedland. ''The University of Toronto: A History'' University of Toronto Press, 2002.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Emmanuel College, University Of Toronto Seminaries and theological colleges in Canada University of Toronto Methodist seminaries and theological colleges University of Toronto buildings Educational institutions established in 1928 1928 establishments in Ontario