MB Biblical Seminary offers courses in Colombia

From March 11–17, Fresno was not the most southern of MB Biblical Seminary’s “multiple locations.” The seminary offered its second course in Bogotá, Colombia.

While a number of professors from MB Biblical Seminary have taught courses in other parts of the world, the Colombian initiative is unique in that the courses are taught at the graduate level and the students are able to receive course credit from the Seminary.

The first class offered by the Seminary in Colombia was “Christian Thought,” taught by Fresno-based professor Mark Baker in Fall 2003. The current course, “The Church and God’s Mission in the World,” was taught by John Driver, a retired Mennonite missionary who has taught courses throughout Latin America and authored a number of books in both English and Spanish.

Nine students took the course for credit and eight audited it. “The Colombian students are thrilled to have this opportunity to work at the graduate level and to receive training from an Anabaptist perspective,” says Baker.”Most of them have college level degrees from an evangelical seminary in Colombia that does not have any Anabaptist faculty.”

Following the course, Driver spoke to about 50 Mennonite Brethren pastors at the Colombian MB Church’s national pastor’s retreat, on the topic “Church leadership: 16th Century Anabaptist models and their significance for today.”

MB Biblical Seminary has locations in Langley, B.C.; Winnipeg, Man.; and Fresno, Cal.

—Brad Thiessen, from reports by Mark Baker