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Greenville Seminary's 21st Commencement Slated
The
trustees, faculty and graduating class of
2011 invite you to attend the 21st
Commencement Ceremony of Greenville Seminary
on Friday, May 20 at 7 p.m. at the seminary.
The graduation class includes 11 students
who will receive a variety of degrees,
reflecting the spectrum of our academic
program. Eight graduates are scheduled to be
awarded Master of Divinity degrees, one a
Master of Arts degree, one a Certificate of
Ministry for Ruling Elders, and one a Doctor
of Theology degree.
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The Commencement speaker will be
Rev. Roland S. Barnes, visiting lecturer on
missions, church planting and
evangelism at GPTS. Rev. Barnes is senior pastor
of
Trinity Presbyterian Church (PCA) in
Statesboro, Georgia. He is a member of
the board of directors of the
Christian Missionary
Society.
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Meet the
Graduates
The 2011 GPTS graduates, whose
denominational affiliations include the
Presbyterian Church in America (PCA),
Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC),
Presbyterian Church in Brazil (IPB), Bible
Presbyterian Church (BPC), Presbyterian
General Assembly in Korea (PGAK)
are:
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Kerry Grant Anderson Belcher,
Sr., CMRE, PCA
"The education I've received as a
Ruling Elder from Greenville is
tremendous. Every Ruling Elder should go
through this material. When I go to
Presbytery, I no longer feel like I'm
being talked over. When teaching or
counseling, there is a wealth of
knowledge that has been slowly ground
into the fiber of my being. The
professors are just that...professors of
the faith and of 'Old School' theology.
I'm thrilled to be a supporter of GPTS
and considered an alumnus."
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Jegar Chinnavan, M.Div., BPC
"Though I came with very little
theological knowledge, I am indeed
greatly blessed by God with the
education in the Reformed faith here at
the seminary. It has been a long
pilgrimage at GPTS for me, but,
nevertheless a worthwhile one, for both
me and my family. The tools provided by
the professors for the gospel ministry
are invaluable. I am just amazed with
the abundant treasures that lie within
the scriptures which are prepared for us
and our children."
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Alan Joel Dueck, M.Div., OPC
"I'm grateful to the Lord for his
wonderful grace in providing this time
of learning and growth at GPTS. I'm also
deeply indebted to the men here who have
invested so generously in my spiritual
development. Lord willing, a pastoral
internship is in my future, and after
that a call to a church, maybe even back
home in the Pacific Northwest!"
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Larry Stephen Jones, M.Div.,
PCA
"The Western Carolina Presbytery of
the PCA ordained me in 1999 under the
extraordinary clause. I have taken
classes at GPTS, both on campus and
via the distance education provisions,
ever since that time, and while
pastoring Covenant Presbyterian Church
(Waynesboro, N.C.). I want to express
my gratitude to GPTS for the opportunity
to obtain a quality Reformed theological
education. I am thankful to the
seminary, my family, elders, and church
for the patience extended to me over
this prolonged period of study."
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Joshua Paul Lyon, M.Div., OPC
"The experience at GPTS has been
fruitful and enjoyable. The devotion,
discipline and passion exemplified by
the GPTS faculty have been essential to
my understanding of the Scriptures and
my growing in Christian holiness. I
praise God for these able men who have
been so instructive, encouraging and
patient. I thank every professor,
faculty member and student for this
profitable time at such a remarkable
school."
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Kyongwan Kang, M.A., PGAK
"It is totally due to God's wonderful
providence that I could come to
Greenville. In addition to the sound
doctrine that I have learned here, I
have to say something as a foreigner.
Without the patient, kind help of all
members of this seminary, I could not
have continued my study here. Moreover,
not only I have enjoyed a GPTS life as a
student, but my family also has been
involved in this community as a body of
Christ. The life and lessons at GPTS
will last as a precious memory in my
family's heart. I deeply give thanks to
our gracious Lord for giving the
opportunity for me to "come and see."
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Breno Lucena Macedo, M.Div.,
IPB
"Studying at Greenville Seminary was
a privilege and a great honor. It is a
school where theology meets piety, where
theory meets practice, where
communicating the word of God through
preaching is the chief end of our
studies."
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Todd Everett Seay, M.Div.,
OPC
"I
look to the future with great joy and
excitement knowing that I have been well
prepared for the task of the ministry by
the community at GPTS.
I am thankful for GPTS’
commitment to the Westminster Standards
and the application of the Word to our
heads, hearts, and hands.
I know that I will thank God with
joy upon every remembrance of my GPTS
family."
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Jonathan William Shishko,
M.Div., OPC
"I came to GPTS
with extraordinarily high hopes, only to
have them surpassed each semester! Day
after day, semester after semester, it
has been my privilege to see and learn
from teachers and administrators who
humbly serve by decreasing, so that
Christ might increase. After many
classes, my fellow students and I have,
in so many words, said, "Did
not our hearts burn within us while the
Scripture was opened to us?"
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Adam Paul Venable, M.Div.,
PCA
"I am planning on beginning an
internship with Calvary Presbytery
following graduation. I am thankful for
the education I received at the
seminary."
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Iain A.M. Wright, Th.D.,
Pastor, Covenant OPC, Orland Park, Ill.
“Pursuing an advanced degree while
engaged in fulltime pastoral ministry is
always going to be a challenge. I am
particularly grateful to the faculty for
their patience and the great
encouragement they gave me from start to
finish. In God’s providence, I have had
opportunities of ministering on the
mission field over the years; and I hope
that the skills learnt in writing a
thesis will be put to service in
ministering to brethren in the future.”
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Summer Institute and
Theology Course Address Controversial and
Historical Issues
Registrations
are now open for the 2011
Summer Institute on "Creation," Aug. 1-5,
and the Summer Theology Course on
"Studies in Southern Presbyterian
Theology," July 25-29.
This year's Summer Institute will tackle one
of today's hottest topics in Christian
apologetics, science and biblical theology —
Creationism. Greenville Seminary uniquely
has adopted an official faculty statement on
creation, affirming a literal, historical
six-day creation as described in Genesis.
The Institute will include a free
evening presentation for the public
on Monday, Aug. 1, 7 p.m., featuring the
internationally renowned Creationist
Dr. Jonathan D. Sarfati
of Brisbane, Australia, a physical chemist,
spectroscopist, and chess master. Dr.
Sarfati, editor of publications for
Creation Ministries International, is
noted for taking an uncompromising stance on
the origins of the universe, the earth, and
life, and for defending Scripture in a
straightforward manner against any attempt
to "reconcile" it with "scientific data"
that contradict it.
Also teaching during the Institute along
with Dr. Sarfati will be Dr. Joseph A. Pipa,
Jr., president of Greenville Seminary and
professor of historical and systematic
theology. Dr. Pipa has been an outspoken
defender of a literal six-day creation view
and is co-author of the book Did God
Create in Six Days?
For complete
information and online registration,
click
here or on the banner below.
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The
2011 Greenville Seminary Summer Theology
Course will again feature Dr. Morton Smith's
"Studies in Southern Presbyterian Theology."
Dr. Smith has lectured for nearly 50 years
on the topic of Southern Presbyterianism and
its theology, and these lectures continue to
be a favorite among students, elders, and
Christians of all ages. The course is
popular because it covers a wide range of
topics through the instrumentality of those
most interesting and sometimes controversial
Southern Presbyterians.
More information here.
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PCA General Assembly Delegates:
Have
Breakfast with Us on June 9th
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The seminary
invites commissioners to the Presbyterian
Church in America's 2011 General Assembly to
attend our annual hospitality breakfast,
Thursday June 9.
Come for good food and an update on the
ministry of Greenville Seminary by President
Dr. Joseph Pipa, Jr. You may also win one of
several special prizes to be given away!
Guests are welcome to bring family members
as well.
The breakfast will be held beginning at 7
a.m. at the
Neptune
Restaurant at The Oceanfront Inn, one of the
GA's official lodging venues, 2901 Atlantic
Avenue, Virginia Beach, Va. The Inn is
located 1.3
miles from the Virginia Beach Convention
Center, location of the GA. [Oceanfront
Inn on Facebook] [Neptune
Restaurant on FB]
If you plan to attend, please RSVP
to
info@gpts.edu as soon as possible but no
later than June 1. [See
Menu. A larger buffet will be offered if
50+ guests attend.]
Visit and relax on the comfy couches at our
booth (No. 214) at the Convention Center
Exhibit Hall.
GPTS at OPC GA
Dr. Tony Curto will be
presenting a report about GPTS at the 78th
General Assembly of the Orthodox Presbyterian
Church to be held, June 8-14, 2011 at Sandy Cove
Conference Center, Northeast, Maryland. Due to
special events commemorating the 75th
anniversary of the founding of the OPC, there
will not be an opportunity for our usual special
breakfast meeting.
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'Battle for the Bible'
Resuming?
More
than 30 years ago, a broad coalition of
evangelical and mainline church leaders took up
the challenge of defining and recommitting to
the inerrancy of Scripture. The
International Council on Biblical Inerrancy
issued its 1978
Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy (PDF)
in what many believed to be a definitive
settlement of the issue among evangelicals. A
companion statement on
Hermeneutics (PDF)
was issued in 1982 and a statement on
Biblical Application (PDF)
followed in 1986.
New concerns are being raised, however, that
some within that coalition are now drifting away
from a commitment to inerrancy in favor of a
more "dynamic" view of Scripture. According to a
dispatch in
The Aquila Report, for example, certain
faculty members at Erskine Theological Seminary
and Erskine College, issued a statement on Good
Friday 2011 expressing their concerns about
evident drift within Associate Reformed
Presbyterian Church institutions. The signers
acknowledged, however, that the ARP itself
remains officially committed to inerrancy.
"While
some have thought that what has been termed
the 'battle for the Bible' was successfully
concluded in evangelical circles almost
three decades back, there can be little
doubt at this point that the doctrine of
Scripture is now a front-burner issue among
American Evangelicals," The Aquila Report
story said.
"In
particular, there is increasing interest in
the formulations of Karl Barth, whose
dialectical theology is thought by some to
provide a more 'dynamic' and satisfying view
of the Bible and its authority, and whose
polemic against 'inerrancy in the original
autographs' is increasingly influential in
some quarters.
"The
recent reactivation of the International
Council on Biblical Inerrancy is but one
indication of the concerns that many have
regarding such developments," the report
said.
Greenville Presbyterian
Theological Seminary has always affirmed and
continues its unswerving subscription to the
inerrancy of Scripture.
"GPTS is unequivocally committed to the
inerrancy of Scripture as its foundational
theological principle. The broad
evangelicalism that often arises within
Reformed churches points to a failure of her
leaders to grasp fully the implications of
this foundational doctrine. At GPTS we seek
to work out this great doctrine in every
area of our instruction," according to the
seminary's web site.
"Greenville Presbyterian Theological
Seminary is passionately committed to the
authority of Scripture. GPTS has maintained
its identity as an Old School Presbyterian
seminary. While both "Old School" and "New
School" Presbyterianism claim to hold to the
full authority of Scripture, it was the Old
School theologians of old Princeton who
further developed the original concept of
the inerrancy of Scripture."
The 2012 GPTS Annual Spring Theology
Conference will focus on this and other
aspects of "Old Princeton" teachings in
commemoration of Princeton Seminary's
Bicentennial next year, which coincides with
GPTS's own 25th anniversary. Plan now to
attend this celebration March 13-15, 2012.
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Financial Report
The tables below show our
financial condition as of the end of April 2011.
June is the final month of our current fiscal
year, the time during which we annually seek to
lay a firm financial foundation for the summer
and our new school year. As the figures
indicate, we have an urgent need to
raise funds for our immediate needs.
Please prayerfully consider sending whatever
gift God may supply and lead you to give. We are
overwhelmed with gratitude for those who
responded so generously to our early May request
for emergency help.
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General Fund for April 2011 |
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April
Budget |
April
Actual |
April
Actual v. Budget |
| Expenses |
$73,102 |
$77,186
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-$4,084
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Donation
Income |
$56,192
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$36,343 |
- $19,849
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| Other
Income |
$17,285
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$4,066 |
- $13,219
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| Total
Income |
$73,477
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$40,409 |
- $33,068
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| Net Income |
$375
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- $36,777 |
- $37,152 |
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Fiscal Year
to Date Budget |
Fiscal Year
to Date Actual |
Fiscal Year
to Date Actual v. Budget |
| Expenses |
$731,060 |
$795,954 |
+ $64,894 |
Donation
Income |
$561,916 |
$639,119 |
+ $77,203 |
| Other
Income |
$172,835 |
$171,781 |
- $1,054 |
| Total
Income |
$734,751 |
$810,900 |
+ $76,149 |
| Net Income |
$3,691 |
$14,946 |
+$11,255 |
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Capital Fund Update |
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Goal |
$3,500,000 |
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Received |
$2,459,968 |
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Outstanding Pledges |
$736,527 |
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New Income Needed |
$303,505 |
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Outstanding Bills |
$45,162 |
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Monthly Note |
$6,500 |
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Remaining Mortgage |
$1,101,795 |
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If you would like to make a convenient
online donation to Greenville Seminary,
click the "Donate" button below.
Whether or not you can contribute
financially, here is another way you can
help the seminary: Do you know someone that
would be interested in learning more about
our organization or supporting us? If so,
fill out the form here and an e-mail
message with
a link to our website will be sent to them.
Thank you for your continued support for
Greenville Presbyterian Theological
Seminary.
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Visit our new Amazon.com Seminary Bookstore
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