Columbia Theological Seminary Bulletin, 32, number 4, January 1940

The Need of

Theological Education

in a Changing World

COLUMBIA
THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

Endowment Program

COLUMBIA

Bulletin oj
THEOLOGICAL

DECATUR, GEORGIA

SEMINARY

VOL. XXXII

JANUARY, 1940

RETURN POSTAGE GUARANTEED
Entered as second-class matter, May 9, 1928, at the post office at Decatur,
under the Act of August 24, 1912.
PUBLISHED QUARTERLY AT DECATUR, GEORGIA

Ga.,

No. 4

HUMANITY'S GREATEST NEED

Never in recent centuries has the world stood in greater need of the Gospel

Never in rece ^.^ ^ momentum in societ y are

of Jesus Chn S! Mthan toda V. ^.^ ^ previously accepte d

fc wir sac* rtJWs

war. vvnai uic , ahead mans spiritual need will

- X^n^-Th/ILe^f.h-rLa in our daAr - any day-
can be found only in Christ.

CHRISTIANITY'S CRISIS

Recause of present-day conditions, Christianity is facing a real crisis. Whole
J *TL: turned their backs upon the Chnreh. In -J^*
Christians are undergoing persecution In our own land ^Church has been

Sets ^r h-r Tht !r, f n:rt2
Swa Stit,^ dSttdarr; as:

any time since the Middle Ages.

THE NECESSITY FOR THEOLOGICAL EDUCATION

Although it has not been generally recognized, it is true that the Church has
no other means so essential to the accomplishment of its mission as that of train-
ing men who r to b its future leaders. The principal effort of Jesus during
he days of His ministry does not seem to have been devoted to reaching the
multSes un paringly though He did give Himself to the task of teaching
Taling and prLhing" The thing which does seem to have concern. Him
most was the training of the twelve who were to carry on His work after He
had gone. In this fact is the Magna Charta of Theological Education.

In the life of the Church today it is more than ever essential that leaders be
thoroughly trained, for the duties of a minister are far more exacting and
he requirements for the successful performance of these dut.es are far greater
han in ny recent generation. Great changes have taken place in recent years
n trainin/for all professional careers Standards for the prof essions o^
cine law, engineering, and teaching have rapidly advanced. The Chnrtwn
Church likewise must see to it that its future leaders are given the best of intel-
lectual discipline and the finest tools of scholarship that they may meet the
hall ngeo th e wor ld in which they live. If the Church fails to provide ade-
quately for its Theological Seminaries today it will face inevitable decay and
possible disaster in the near future.

COLUMBIA SEMINARY AND THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
Over a period of 1 1 1 years Columbia Theological Seminary has made a con-
tributl o unusual significance to Southern Presbytenanism. During this
period it has trained 1167 men for the Gospel Ministry Among the outstand-
ing leaders whom it has given to the Church, are such m a ^min M.
Palmer, Tames Henley Thornwell, John Le.ghton Wilson J. B_ Adger, Charles
Colcock Jones, James Woodrow, John L. Girardeau Hampden C. DuBose,
C A Stillman, C. W. Grafton, Samuel L Morris, and many others Wood-
row Wilson, the son of a professor in the institution made his first public
profession of Christian faith at a service held in its chapel.

Of the 56 sons of the institution who have gone as missionaries to the foreign
field 16 are in active service today. These are located in Africa, Brazil, China,
Japan and Korea. Dr. C. Darby Fulton, an alumnus of Columbia Seminary,

Campbell Hall

is now serving as Executive Secretary of our entire Foreign Mission work.
Hundreds of Columbia graduates have also served in the no less important task
of Home Missions. Over 400 of these graduates are today actively at work
in pastorates of the Church. These are located in 30 of the United States, in
Canada, and in the Canal Zone. Of the number serving in the supporting
Synods 30 are in Alabama, 23 in Florida, 75 in Georgia, 29 in Mississippi, and
71 in South Carolina.

Year by year Columbia is sending out other groups of ministers who are
doing a notable part in the work of our Assembly. There is no sphere of the
Church in which the influence of this Seminary has not been vitally felt.

A DECADE OF PROGRESS

The wisdom of removing Columbia Seminary to Atlanta has been attested
by the increased service which it has rendered to our Church. Within the

brief period of twelve years, it has sent forth 201 of its graduates into the
service of the Southern Church. A majority of these young ministers are serving
churches within the five States for which the Seminary has an especial respon-

^Another evidence of the value of the present strategic location is the gradual
but marked increase in the percentage of students enrolled in Columbia Seminary
relative to the total number enrolled in all of the Seminaries of the Southern
Presbyterian Church. Thus during the scholastic year 1925-1926 when he
decision was made to remove the Seminary to Atlanta, only 1 1.15% of the
students enrolled in Seminaries of the Southern Church were students ,n Colum-
bia, while the present enrollment represents 23.91% of the total number now
in these institutions.

PRESENT ASSETS

When the Seminary was removed to Atlanta a beautiful campus of fifty-
seven acres was provided for it. Two handsome and modern academic buildings
unsurpassed for their purpose in the Presbyterian world and five commodious
homes for faculty members have been built. This property is conservatively
valued at $500,000, and is now without debt. All obligations incurred
during the period of transition have been paid and the institution is now en-
tirely free of indebtedness. It also has endowment funds aggregating $369,5^.

The ability of the Faculty of the Seminary is recognized throughout the
Church In addition to their work in the classroom and in pulpits and church
conferences of the Southeast, members of the group have produced a notable
number of scholarly and stimulating religious books and articles in recent years
The Faculty also seeks constantly to deepen the religious and spiritual life of
the students, and to emphasize the place of evangelism in the life of the Church.

Conservative in its theological outlook, the Seminary is progressive in methods
of instruction and is constantly seeking to improve the training given its students.
Within the past two years, it has pioneered for the Southern Presbyterian
Church in seeking to provide a year of clinical or practical training for the
students before they begin their work in the ministry

The library consists of 34,000 volumes and is one of the most valuable collec-
tions of theological literature in the South. , .

In 1938 Columbia was one of the forty-six Seminaries in America included
in the first list of fully accredited institutions which was compiled after careful
investigation by the American Association of Theological Schools.

WIDENING HORIZONS

One of the most significant educational developments in the South is found in
the steps which are being taken to establish a Greater University Center in
Atlanta. Columbia Seminary has been invited to cooperate with Agnes bcott
College, Emory University, The University System of Georgia, Georgia Insti-
tute of Technology, and The High Museum of Art in the furtherance of th
enterprise. Under' plans which are being made, each institution will retain its
complete independence but all will work together to provide opportunities which
would not otherwise be possible. It is anticipated that in the course of years
this will enable graduate students working at Columbia Seminary under the
guidance of its Faculty to have facilities for research which are now available
only in the great universities of the North and East.

Burning of the Bonds May, 1937
Celebrating the Seminary's Freedom From Indebtedness

THE IMMEDIATE NEED OF COLUMBIA SEMINARY

It is a matter of urgent necessity that the Endowment of the Seminary ^ should
be increased The budget has been balanced during recent years, but this has
b en poss ble only becaule of the sacrificial attitude of the Faculty and generous

upor through "special contributions. One gift of $5,000 a year for current
expenses which has been made for the past three years will not be available after

941 Provision must be made for this item of the budget as well as for other
funds to meet the requirements of growth and the ever-increasing requests for
service from the churches. ,

The reality of the need of additional endowment becomes more apparent when
comparison is made with endowments of other representative theological institu-
tions.

Institution

Columbia Theological Seminary
Candler School of Theology
Vanderbilt School of Religion
Louisville Theological Seminary
Union Theological Seminary
Southern Baptist Theological

Seminary
The Presbyterian Theological

Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary

Location
Decatur, Ga.
Emory University, Ga.
Nashville, Tenn.
Louisville, Ky.
Richmond, Va.

Louisville, Ky.

Chicago, 111.
Princeton, N. J.

Endowment

$ 369,575

564,060

700,000

1,169,613

1,534,156

2,923,000

2,927,000
4,083,290

A GENEROUS OFFER AND A GREAT OPPORTUNITY
Realizing the great need of Columbia Seminary for additional Endowment,
a faithful and generous friend of the institution has offered to contribute
$100,000 to the endowment fund upon condition that other friends of the
institution shall subscribe a like amount and that evidence shall be given of an
increased interest in the support of the Seminary on the part of the Presbyterians
of the constituent Synods. This challenging offer was placed before the five
supporting Synods at recent meetings and each of these heartily approved a spe-
cial effort by the Seminary to secure the necessary amount and warmly com-
mended the undertaking to the prayers and gifts of the members of the churches.
In obedience to their decision the Seminary is now entering upon an effort to
secure $100,000 which, according to the terms of the conditional offer, will be
matched dollar for dollar. The success of this undertaking will insure a larger
program of service by the Seminary to Southern Presbyterians and to the King-
dom of God.

Prepared for Service

THE APPEAL OF COLUMBIA SEMINARY

Humanity's need for the Gospel of Christ, the crisis confronted by Chris-
tianity, and the absolute necessity for able and spiritual leadership in the minis-
try make it abundantly clear that Theological Education must be adequately
supported if the Church is to perform her mission. In the light of its strategic
location in the heart of Southeastern America, of its faithful and distinguished
service to the Church in the past, and of the rare opportunity which now chal-
lenges it to prepare for the future, Columbia Seminary solicits the prayers and
the gifts of churches and individuals throughout the supporting Synods.