The Bachelor of Theology (B.Th.; Th.B. or BTheol) is a three to five year undergraduate degree in theological disciplines. Candidates for this degree typically must complete course work in Greek or Hebrew, as well as systematic theology, biblical theology, ethics, homiletics and Christian ministry. It does not require a thesis but is often a year longer than a Bachelor of Religious Education or Bachelor of Arts. In some denominations, notably the Church of England, it is considered sufficient for formal ordination.
In South Asia, many mainline Churches including the Pentecostals send their candidates to affiliated colleges under the Senate of Serampore College (University) where B.Th. degree is taught in regional languages.
In some schools, the BTh is a three-year degree for mature students pursuing ordination, who do not hold a degree and for whom the requirement of a Master of Divinity has been waived.
Famous quotes containing the words bachelor of, bachelor and/or theology:
“A Bachelor of Arts is one who makes love to a lot of women, and yet has the art to remain a bachelor.”
—Helen Rowland (1875–1950)
“When a bachelor of philosophy from the Antilles refuses to apply for certification as a teacher on the grounds of his color I say that philosophy has never saved anyone. When someone else strives and strains to prove to me that black men are as intelligent as white men I say that intelligence has never saved anyone: and that is true, for, if philosophy and intelligence are invoked to proclaim the equality of men, they have also been employed to justify the extermination of men.”
—Frantz Fanon (1925–1961)
“Only men of moral and mental force, of a patriotic regard for the relationship of the two races, can be of real service as ministers in the South. Less theology and more of human brotherhood, less declamation and more common sense and love for truth, must be the qualifications of the new ministry that shall yet save the race from the evils of false teaching.”
—Fannie Barrier Williams (1855–1944)