Seminary

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A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of higher education for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry. The English word is taken from the Latin seminarium, translated as seed-bed, the image from the Council of Trent document Cum Adolescentium Aetas which called for the first modern seminaries.^[1] As such, in the West the term usually refers to Christian educational institutes, but has widened to include American Jewish institutions.

Contents 1 History 2 Accreditation and recognition 3 Other uses of the term 4 See also 5 References

[edit] History

Since at least the 4th century, there have been seminaries for the training of clergy.^{[citation needed]} The first known group of seminarians was gathered by St. Basil of Ancyra. The term dropped out of general use in the Middle Ages, when most theological training was in monasteries and later in the universities.^{[citation needed]}

The establishment of modern seminaries resulted from Roman Catholic reforms of the Counter-Reformation after the Council of Trent.^[2] Seminaries became live-in institutions under the direct control of senior clergy.^{[citation needed]} This later led to the creation of minor seminaries to educate boys for the priesthood at a time when literacy was not widespread. The Tridentine model of a seminary was similar to that of a monastery.^{[citation needed]} These seminaries stood in contrast to the freer intellectual atmosphere of the universities.^{[citation needed]} The Tridentine seminaries placed great emphasis on personal discipline as well as the teaching of philosophy as a preparation for theology; an approach that was explicitly rejected by Protestant reformers such as John Calvin.^[3]

The Tridentine model of a seminary has since been adopted and adapted by other Christian denominations as well as by modern American Judaism, though now in a more open fashion than the Tridentine model and often without the Catholic emphasis on the pre-requisite study of philosophy and the Catholic requirement to live on campus within the Christian community of the seminary.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Accreditation and recognition

Some seminaries elect to acquire accreditation. In North America, four entities that accredit religious schools in particular are recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation: Association of Advanced Rabbinical and Talmudic Schools, Association for Biblical Higher Education, Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada, and Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools.^[4]

Some seminaries are accredited by, recognized by, or otherwise affiliated with various church or denominational entities or non-government recognized faith-based accrediting agencies, instead of or in addition to government-recognized accreditation.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Other uses of the term

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sponsors religious education programs for secondary school students which are referred to as seminaries.

In some countries, the term seminary is also used for secular schools of higher education that train teachers. During the 19th century in the United States, "Seminaries educated women for the only socially acceptable occupation: teaching. Only unmarried women could be teachers. Many early women's colleges began as female seminaries and were responsible for producing an important corps of educators."^[5]

[edit] See also

• Minor seminary
• List of Roman Catholic seminaries
• List of Eastern Catholic seminaries
• List of colleges and seminaries affiliated with the Episcopal Church
• List of evangelical seminaries and theological colleges

[edit] References