Czech seminary celebrates 60 years of serving the Church

Founded in 1949 in Switzerland, the International Baptist Theological Seminary (IBTS) moved to the Czech Republic in 1995. The seminary trains leaders from across Europe, the Middle East and beyond in modular programs that allow pastors, missionaries and teachers to continue their ministries while traveling to Prague for intensive sessions several times a year. Once offering undergraduate and graduate degrees, IBTS now focuses on serving as a resource center for the European Church and beyond through research and sabbatical programs; Certificate, Master and Doctoral levels programs; and conference hosting.

With over 170 graduates, IBTS offers a Certificate of Applied Theology; Masters of Philosophy and Theology; PhDs; and a Postgraduate Certificate in Theology. Modules, such as Church in Contemporary Society and Christian Presence and Witness among Muslims, are specifically designed to help students engage with their society and context. Other modules guide students to reflect on their religious context and engage with those of other faiths.

On a daily basis, issues of church and community are the focus. With all these various engagements, the seminary says it tries to enable students to become aware of different societal, contextual and church community issues, as well as equip them for a proactive role in church and society.

PhD student Lina Andronoviene says that her current studies continue to show her the many important issues about the Church’s attitude toward singleness and its need to improve on “adequately supporting and developing those who are not married.” Although married herself, Lina finds her work crucial for the “high proportion of involuntarily single believers [in the Baltic countries]” and says it will “contribute to the developing of holistic and relevant ministry in evangelical churches.”