Last week was the end of the teaching term for the year 2015/16 and to mark this event we held the annual Thanksgiving service in Coats Memorial Church. It’s an oddly juxtaposed time of year in many respects. There is the joy of completing another year at College and yet with each passing year there is also sadness at those who are leaving the College. Looking back to September when the year started reminds us that life has its ups and downs – each student has their own story to tell of the year and how that fits into their bigger narrative. With each student that leaves or graduates the College, they move on to new opportunities changed by their time spent with us at SBC. We’ve always excited to see where our students end up and the vast array of jobs, ministries, and further training they go on to. This year, amongst others, we have students heading off on foreign mission; some still discerning what their next step will be; some heading into chaplaincy; and others into local church ministry.
As the year comes to an end for the students (and the marking season begins for the staff!) we start to look ahead to next year. We’re already excited about what lies ahead. The returning students offer so much potential and we look forward to sharing with them again next term. There are new developments in the pipeline (see the previous post on the partnership with WPC on the new Chaplaincy module). We will be offering some excellent classes that can be taken as part of the Bachelors course or as an individual class – an Intro to Theology (Faith Seeking Understanding); Baptist Identity for those interested in Baptist distinctives and ministry; and of course, the new Chaplaincy module on a Tuesday afternoon.
Please would you consider partnering with us to share the news of SBC and the courses we offer to those who might be interested in studying with us – we really can’t do this without you! If you are asking why should you share the news of SBC then here is my answer: We are uniquely placed within Scotland to offer a high quality of academic study combined with practical placements backed up with the support and resources offered by our on-campus location of the University of the West of Scotland. There really is no better way to study theology in Scotland!
So as the year comes to a close and we celebrate the students heading off to pastures new, we are also excited with the prospect of many new students coming to join us on the journey to study theology at SBC.