Laidlaw College (previously known as the Bible College of New Zealand) is the largest theological college in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. The college offers tertiary courses in

biblical 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 ...

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 ...

historical History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

and

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 ...

al studies, as well as professional degrees in teaching and counselling. Laidlaw has around 1,000 students and offers programmes at Certificate, Diploma, Bachelors and Masters levels, as well as doctoral supervision. It is the highest ranked non-University research institute in New Zealand. The college operates two campuses in Auckland (Henderson and Manukau) and one in Christchurch, and offers theology and biblical studies courses by distance. Laidlaw College has also established key partnerships with a number of colleges and churches in Aotearoa New Zealand. The College's vision statement is: ''A world shaped by love, compelled and informed by the Gospel.'' Its mission statement is: ''To equip students and scholars to renew their communities with a faith as intelligent as it is courageous.

History

The college began in 1922 as the Bible Training Institute (BTI) under the leadership of Rev. Joseph Kemp, 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 compete ...

preacher A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach components such as a ...

and pastor of the

Auckland Baptist Tabernacle The Auckland Baptist Tabernacle is a Baptist church located near the corner of Queen Street and Karangahape Road, at the edge of Auckland central business district in New Zealand. It is affiliated with the Baptist Churches of New Zealand. His ...

. In 1972 the Institute was renamed the Bible College of New Zealand (BCNZ). In June 2008, BCNZ announced it had merged with MASTERS Institute, a school of education for training primary school teachers. In August 2008, the enlarged college was renamed ''Laidlaw College'' in honour of

Robert Laidlaw Robert Alexander Crookston Laidlaw (8 September 1885 – 12 March 1971) was a New Zealand businessman who founded the Farmers (department store), Farmers Trading Company, one of the largest department store chains in New Zealand. He was also a C ...

, a founding trustee and longstanding President of the College.History
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References

External links

Laidlaw College
{{authority control Seminaries and theological colleges in New Zealand Bible colleges Evangelical seminaries and theological colleges Educational institutions established in 1922 Education in Auckland Christianity in Auckland Australian College of Theology 1922 establishments in New Zealand

History

See also

References

External links