Shang-Jen Chen, President of Taiwan Theological College and Seminary (Photo: WCRC/Greenaway)

Prayer, study and mission are at the heart of Taiwan Theological College and Seminary. Its president, Shang-Jen Chen, believes that prayer must be part of the daily life of seminary faculty and students. From Tuesday through Friday students meet at 06:30 for 45 minutes of prayer.

“Through prayer we seek to understand God’s word. It is the source of our commitment,” says Chen.

Chen and the seminary’s 18 faculty members want their graduates to achieve academically so that they are well-equipped to serve as what John Calvin described as “pastor-scholars”.

“I want our students to known for their piety and for their hard work,” Chen says. “It’s better to burn out than to rust out.”

The seminary is located in Taiwan’s capital, Taipei. There are 30 students in each year of its M.Div. programme. Most are preparing for parish ministry, though some focus on music and others on counselling. This year the seminary’s first Ph. D. student will graduate.

Chen, who has a Ph.D. from Princeton Theological Seminary in the United States of America, is aware of the impact of western theology on Taiwan’s theologians. He believes it is time now for the seminary’s faculty to reflect critically on the theology they have learned in the west. This reflection is particularly important, Chen notes, given the decline of mainline western denominations.

“We don’t have to copy everything. We have to ask what is practical and what is Biblical in what we have been taught,” says Chen.

Chen is deeply committed to cross-cultural mission work. In recent years the seminary has focused on mission in Myanmar. The hope is that when students have a direct experience of mission in the field it will affect their approach to ministry.

“We want them to move beyond the local ministry model and learn about missiology in context,” Chen explains. “We want our students to develop a passion for inter-cultural ministry and for working with very poor people.”
Chen himself has twice taught short-term courses in Christian ethics in Myanmar. His plan is to spend a week in the country every year. He is fascinated he says by the ethical issues the country faces. He cites the example of the impact of the opium trade on the budget of a parish. What do pastors do, he asks, if they are told by parishioners: “All we have for Sunday offering are the proceeds from opium sales”?

In the three years since Chen accepted the post of President and Associate Professor of Ethics at the seminary, he has been encouraging students to “do social justice work but to not lose sight of a biblical focus, spiritual nurturing and evangelism.” Calvin is once again his reference. The Reformer’s concepts of piety and knowledge, spirit and heart are what Chen expects of his students – nothing more and nothing less.