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UTC - A Centre of
Excellence |
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History
The
College was inaugurated in July 1910 under the
name “The United Theological College of South
India and Ceylon” as “a Christian College where
students may obtain a sound theological
education”. It was established through the
co-operation of the London Missionary Society,
the Wesleyan Methodist Missionary Society, The
United Free Church of Scotland, the Arcot
Mission of the Reformed Church in America and
the Trustees of the Jaffna College Funds and the
S.P.C.K. in Scotland also gave their
support.
Interest in this ecumenical
institution grew, and churches, missionary
societies and other organisations from various
regions of India and from abroad joined with the
founders in support of the College. In 1951 the
Church Missionary Society and the society for
the Propagation of the Gospel became supporting
bodies. The College had received help at various
times from the Danish Lutheran Church and the
friends of Dr.L.P.Larsen, the first Principal of
the College, and in 1959 the Danish Missionary
Society became a supporting body. In 1960 the
Basel Evangelical Mission (now a member of the
Association of Churches and Mission in S.W.
Germany) and the Kolhapur Church Council joined
the ranks, to be followed the next year by the
church of South India, and in 1963 by the Mar
Thoma Church. The Council of Y.M.C.A’s in India
joined as a supporting body in 1967 and the
Church of India, Pakistan, Burma and Ceylon (now
merged in the Church of North India) in 1969.
Also in 1969 the Board of Global Ministries of
the United Methodist Church became one of the
contributing bodies.
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Following the merger of
the Gurukul Lutheran Theological College and
Research Institute with the United Theological
College for B.D., M.Th.and other degree
programmers in June 1971, several Lutheran Church
and Missions (Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church,
South Andhra Lutheran Church, Church of Sweden
Mission, the Lutheran Church of America, the
American Lutheran Church-both presently merged in
the Evangelical Church of America, India
Evangelical Lutheran Church and the Leipzig
Evangelical Lutheran Mission ) became supporting
bodies of the College. The Malankar Jacobite
Syrian Church became a contributing body in 1979.
The first home of the College was a
building on Mission Road, Bangalore city, formerly
used for the seminary, which had been founded and
maintained by the London Missionary Society from
1841 under the name ‘Bangalore Theological
Seminary’. The permanent site of the College at 17
(new number 63) Miller’s road, Bangalore, was
acquired in 1912, and the building was first
occupied in 1914. In 1919, a year after Serampore
College was granted permission by the Act of the
Government of Bengal to grant degrees in Theology,
the College was affiliated to the Serampore
College for the B. D. Degree.
In 1949, the
Y.M.C.A Training School was re-opened, and in
September 1950, eight new rooms were added to the
Hostel by the Council of Y.M.C.A’s to provide
accommodation for their students. In 1976,the
Senate of Serampore College granted autonomy to
the College for the B.D., B.R.E., and
D.R.K.Courses. Under the autonomy the College has
the freedom to set its own curriculum, evaluate
the candidates and recommend them to the Senate
for the award of the degree or diploma. The M.Th .
and D.Th. courses continue under the regulations
of the Serampore Senate.
The platinum
Jubilee of the College was celebrated in
1985.
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Mission
UTC’ s Aim is :
Continued
participation in the mission of Jesus Christ in the
world equipping students for the ministry of the
Church
UTC is
:
Ecumenical
in vision and composition, contextual in reflection and
action. |
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