The Irish Baptist College (IBC) is 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 c ...

theological college 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 ...

in Moira,

Craigavon Craigavon may refer to: * Craigavon, County Armagh, a planned town in Northern Ireland ** Craigavon Borough Council, 1972–2015 local government area centred on the planned town * Viscount Craigavon, title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom ** ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label=Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is #Descriptions, variously described as ...

. It is affiliated with the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland. It is part of the Baptist Theological Centre which is located in the

Baptist Centre The Baptist Centre is a building which houses the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland (ABC), its departments (Baptist Missions, Baptist Women, Baptist Youth, and others) and the Baptist Theological Centre which includes the Irish Baptist C ...

and is shared with ABC. IBC is accredited and reached Premier College Status by the Accreditation Service for International Colleges (ASIC). The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education of England and Wales, review the IBC for quality and standards.

History

IBC was founded as the ''Irish Baptist Training Institute'', on 4 October 1892 in No. 16 Harcourt St.,

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

, now

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. ...

, by Hugh D. Brown, pastor of the neighbouring Harcourt St. Baptist Church, and Ambrose U.G. Bury, MA, was appointed the first principal of the IBC. Since the college was established with funding from the philanthropist J.D. Rockefeller, the building was named ''Rockefeller House''. The college was controlled half by the Harcourt St. Church and half by the

Baptist Union of Ireland The Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland (ABC, ABCi and ABCI) is a Baptist Christian denomination based in Ireland. It is a group of 117 autonomous Baptist churches working together in fellowship and evangelism, training and caring minist ...

. In 1916 Thomas Harold Spurgeon, MA, BD, (son of Rev.

Thomas Spurgeon Thomas Spurgeon (20 September 1856 – 17 October 1917) was a British Reformed Baptist preacher of the Metropolitan Tabernacle, one of the fraternal twin sons of the famous Charles Spurgeon (1834–92). Life Thomas and his twin brother were bor ...

and grandson of Rev.

Charles Spurgeon Charles Haddon Spurgeon (19 June 1834 – 31 January 1892) was an English Particular Baptist preacher. Spurgeon remains highly influential among Christians of various denominations, among whom he is known as the "Prince of Preachers". He wa ...

) was appointed principal. In 1940 the College moved to 42 Terenure Road in Dublin, the Harcourt St. Baptist Church had moved to Grosvenor Road,

Rathmines Rathmines () is an affluent inner suburb on the Southside of Dublin in Ireland. It lies three kilometres south of the city centre. It begins at the southern side of the Grand Canal and stretches along the Rathmines Road as far as Rathgar to t ...

. In 1964 the college moved to a new campus in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

, and control of the college was transferred to the Baptist Association. Following Spurgeon's retirement 1963, David P. Kingdon was appointed principal serving until 1974, when he was succeeded by Dr. Ivor Oakley who served until 1988, Norman Shields served as acting principal following Dr. Oakley's departure. In 1990 Dr. Hamilton Moore became principal serving until 2009 when Edwin Ewart was elected principal. In college accept its first female students in 1964. On 10 May 2003about Irish Baptist College
the college moved into the purpose built Baptist Theological Centre in the

located outside

Lisburn Lisburn (; ) is a city in Northern Ireland. It is southwest of Belfast city centre, on the River Lagan, which forms the boundary between County Antrim and County Down. First laid out in the 17th century by English and Welsh settlers, with ...

in Moira in

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population ...

. A new library (John B. Craig Library) and study area were added in 2010, it is named after Pastor John B. Craig who trained in the IBC in Dublin, before serving in Belfast before emigrating to Canada. A Women's Ministry Course is run at the Baptist Centre in association with the Irish Baptist College. The Irish Baptist Historical Society is an extension of the Irish Baptist College.Education Department - The Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland
Moira Baptist. The IBC became a constituent college of the Institute of Theology at

Queen's University Belfast , mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back? , top_free_label = , top_free = , top_free_label1 = , top_free1 = , top_free_label2 = , top_free2 = , established = , closed = , type = Public research university , parent = ...

(QUB) in 1977, offering MTh and PhD degrees. In 2003 the IBC began offering undergraduate degrees and an MA validated by the

University of Wales, Lampeter University of Wales, Lampeter ( cy, Prifysgol Cymru, Llanbedr Pont Steffan) was a university in Lampeter, Wales. Founded in 1822, and incorporated by royal charter in 1828, it was the oldest degree awarding institution in Wales, with limited ...

(UoW), which ceased its international partnerships programmes in 2010. In 2010 the IBC commenced its partnership with the University of Chester validating Undergraduate and Postgraduate degrees.Higher Education Review (Alternative Providers) of the Irish Baptist College
Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA), March 2021. It was announced in 2019 that QUB was closing the Institute of Theology, with all existing students to have completed their programmes by 2023.

Campus

IBC is part of the Baptist Theological Centre which is located in the

and is shared with ABC. The

campus A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a college campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls, student centers or dining halls, and park-li ...

is in a

rural area In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are descr ...

near to the

M1 motorway The M1 motorway connects London to Leeds, where it joins the A1(M) near Aberford, to connect to Newcastle. It was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK; the first motorway in the country was the Preston By-pass, which ...

and within the boundaries of the City of

. IBC is a

campus university A campus university is a British term for a university situated on one site, with student accommodation, teaching and research facilities, and leisure activities all together. It is derived from the Latin term campus, meaning "a flat expanse of ...

Organisation

The Principal of the college is Edwin Ewart, since 2010.Irish Baptist College faculty page
The IBC is administered by a management committee which reports to the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland.

Faculty

* Pastor Edwin Ewart (BA BD MTh MPhil) became

College Principal A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a University system, constituent part of one. A college may be a academic degree, degree-awarding Tertiary education, tertiary educational institution, a part of a coll ...

of IBC in 2010. after being a staff lecturer from April 2007. It was in May 2009, that Pastor Ewart was appointed Principal Designate of the Irish Baptist College, to take up the position of Principal of the Irish Baptist College in 2010. Pastor Ewart is also a Tutor in Pastoral Theology and

Biblical Theology Because scholars have tended to use the term in different ways, Biblical theology has been notoriously difficult to define. Description Although most speak of biblical theology as a particular method or emphasis within biblical studies, some scho ...

. *Davy Ellison (BD MTh) took up the post of Director of Training in 2019. Prior to lecturing at IBC he was interim co-ordinator for Baptist Youth and assistant pastor at Antrim Baptist church. He lectures in Biblical studies in both the OT and NT. * Dr. Peter Firth (BD PhD) took up the post of

Biblical Studies Biblical studies is the academic application of a set of diverse disciplines to the study of the Bible (the Old Testament and New Testament).''Introduction to Biblical Studies, Second Edition'' by Steve Moyise (Oct 27, 2004) pages 11–12 ...

Tutor (

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chris ...

) in 2010. Prior to lecturing at IBC Peter pastored Charlotte Chapel Edinburgh and Newcastle Baptist Church. * Dr. Sarah Darymple (BD PhD) took up the post of

Tutor (

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

) in 2014. A former editor of the Baptist Magazine, Sarah also worked as a missionary in France and furthermore as part of a church plant in Scotland. * Dr. David Luke (BA BD PhD) was employed by the college on a full-time basis in 2013. He is the Postgraduate Director of Studies and the Historical Theology Tutor. David also specialises in

Apologetics Apologetics (from Greek , "speaking in defense") is the religious discipline of defending religious doctrines through systematic argumentation and discourse. Early Christian writers (c. 120–220) who defended their beliefs against critics an ...

, a module available to third year students at IBC. Prior to lecturing at IBC David was pastor of Gilnahirk Baptist Church. * Alan Baird became a staff lecturer in September 2007. Baird is the Ministry Studies Tutor. * Valerie Hamilton became

registrar A registrar is an official keeper of records made in a register. The term may refer to: Education * Registrar (education), an official in an academic institution who handles student records * Registrar of the University of Oxford, one of the se ...

and a staff lecturer October 2006. * Ken Scott (MA MLitt PhD) became a staff lecturer in 2007. Scott is the Postgraduate Tutor (part-time). * Matthew Campbell is the current

Youth Ministry Youth ministry, also commonly referred to as youth group, is an age-specific religious ministry of faith groups or other religious organizations, usually from ages 12 to 30, whose mission is to involve and engage with young people who attend ...

lecturer, a role he fulfils alongside working as the Baptist Youth Director.

Courses

IBC offers degrees accredited by the

University of Chester , mottoeng = "He that teacheth, on teaching" , former_names = , established = (gained university status in 2005) , type = Public , endowment = £395,000 (2018) , budget = £118.3 million , chancellor = Gyles Brandreth , vice_chancel ...

, and IBC awards. Students will complete QUB's courses by 2023 as its Institute of Theology is being wound down.

Sport

Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

and

table tennis Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the ping-pong ball, back and forth across a table using small solid rackets. It takes place on a hard table div ...

are both played at IBC. The current IBC table tennis champion is Josh Patterson after his 2-0 defeat of newcomer Andrew Gray, a victory as convincing as it was surprising. Former champion- Luke Keys.

References

External links

Irish Baptist College

Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland

Queen's University Belfast

University of Chester

University of Wales, Lampeter
{{authority control Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland Baptist seminaries and theological colleges in the United Kingdom Bible colleges, seminaries and theological colleges in Northern Ireland Educational institutions established in 1892 Queen's University Belfast University of Chester University of Wales, Lampeter 1892 establishments in Ireland