THE

DIVINITY SCHOOL: A TEACHING COMMUNITY

 1921

The Silliman Bible School opens

in June under the leadership of
Dean Irving Monroe Channon,
under the sponsorship of the
American Board.
 1922
The First Annual Graduating Exercise of
the Silliman Bible School was held on
December 14, 1922 for seven students
who had completed the two year course.
They were: Isidoro D. Antivo, Silvestre A.
Bontuyan, Simeon S. Emi lia, Faustino L.
Gicain, Alfonso N. Quiniones, Adriano C.
Santiago and Florencio F. Tubongbanua.”

 1931

Silliman Institute Trustees approve raising
admission standards to high school graduation,
extending regular course to four years and
granting B.Th. degree. Dean and Mrs.
Channon retire in August; Dean James F.
McKinley assumes leadership. "Girls Bible
School" of Cagayan de Oro merges into
Silliman Bible School. Deaconess Training
Courses started.
 1935
➢ The Rev. Angel Taglucop became the first
graduate of the Silliman Bible School to
receive the B.Th. degree and at the same
commencement Miss Basilisa Lumasag
received the first Deaconess Diploma.
 1935—
➢ Arrival of the Rev. Proculo A. Rodriguez, first full-
time Filipino faculty member. Silliman Bible
School became College of Theology.

➢ The Rev. Proculo Rodriguez was instrumental in
the creation of the University Extension program
in 1945. And the Divinity Students (then College
of Theology) were utilized in the Extension work.

 1936

➢ The Bible School produced five women
graduates from the Deaconess Course
● Lorenza Cassion (Roble)
● Castilla Evarretta (Vera)
● Melecia Montejar (Cullamar)
● Rebecca Pia (Cometa)
● Deborah Rivas
➢ Three men with the B.Th. Degree
➢ the Rev. Jose Evaretta, the Rev. Pastor Rivera,
and the Rev. Lumen Roble.

 1941-1945
➢ The War years. The College closed; some
of the faculty were imprisoned, the rest
"fled to the hills"; Channon Hall was used
as head quarters for the Japanese
Kempeitai.

 1946
The College reopens for regular work in June.the
College of Theology offered three academic
programs:
➢ the regular four-year Bachelor of Theology
course for the pastoral ministry,
➢ a new four-year Bachelor of Christian Education
course for future deaconesses and Christian
Education directors,
➢ and a three-year Kindergarten Teacher's
Certificate (KTC).

 1954-59
Admission standards raised, to A.A. title or its
equivalent; academic work of the College upgraded
.
➢ In the 1958-1959 school year, the college curriculum
was streamlined.
➢ The K.T.C. program was abolished
➢ The B. Th. and B.C.Ed, programs were combined
into one new Bachelor of Theology course with
majors in pastoral ministry, Christian Education,
biblical teaching, kindergarten teaching, radio-audio-
visual programming and sacred music.
 1961
➢ First Pastors Annual Pastors Convocation
in January. Dean and Mrs. Higdon retire;
Dean Paul T. Lauby assumes leadership.
Construction of the new academic campus
begins.

 1962
A four-year Bachelor of Divinity (BD.) with an A.B.
or an equivalent degree for a prerequisite and a
five-year double-major program (DM) specially
designed for such church vocations as sacred
music, kindergarten teaching, religious
journalism, deaconess work, bible teaching in
church-related schools were offered.
Rodriguez Library and McKinley Hall dedicated in
August.
➢ Dr. Lauby explained the rationale for offering the B.D.
program:
“ Our faculty is firmly convinced that this new program will
result in a better educated pastoral ministry. We fully expect
that the B.D. level of education will rapidly become the
accepted training for the parish ministry in this country. We
are aware of the fact that a large percentage of the parishes
in the United Church of Christ in the Philippines are still not
able to support a trained ministry and will have to rely upon
lay leadership for some time to come. We feel that this
situation calls for not less but more well educated pastors
who will be able to train the volunteer lay ministry for the
smaller congregations. We are committed to emphasizing in
our B.D. course the teaching ministry of the pastor. Since
this has traditionally been the weakest point in Philippine
parish life we are seeking better ways to prepare our
graduates for a dynamic preaching-teaching emphasis.”


His reason for offering the double-major (DM)
We believe that the five-year double-major program will prove
to be an excellent training particularly for deaconesses.
Under this pro gram students will be able to earn a
government recognized degree (the B.A., B.S., or B.S.E.) and
still take a substantial course in theology. This program will
provide the student with a broader liberal education
background. We understand there is still apprehension on the
part of some of the church leaders that if deaconesses are
granted a recognized teaching degree they will be tempted to
take higher paying jobs in the public schools. We feel that
young women who are genuinely committed to church
vocations and who are excited about the possibilities for
satisfying work within the church will not be so tempted. At
the same time we recognize that this new professional status
for the deaconess may encourage the conferences to make
better use of her and provide her with a more adequate
salary.
 1965-66
▪ Dr. Proceso U. Udarbe succeeded Dr. Lauby as
dean of the College, the first Filipino to hold that
position.
▪ The first BD class who graduated in 1965 were
Rev. Samsom B. Almarez, Rev. Zosimo A. Jadloc
and Somchart Cha-um Thong.

▪It was then felt that the name "College of Theology" was no
longer appropriate to designate the institution. Thus, in keeping
with the trend in similar schools elsewhere in the world, the
College was renamed "The Divinity School of Silliman University,"
in April 1966.
▪It was in this same year that the Divinity School became a
participating institution in the newly established South East Asia
Graduate School of Theology to grant the degree M.Theol.
(SEAGST).
 1973-75
In 1973 the faculty voted to phase out the
B.D. and B.T.E.
A new three-level curriculum was introduced
1. the Associate in Ministry (A. Min.) program -
which entails two years of collegiate studies
in the arts and one year and two summers
of concentrated theological studies;
2. the Bachelor of Ministry (B. Min.), a five- year course Dr. Levi Oracion

(including an internship of one year) the first three years

of which is the A. Min;
3. and the eight-year Master of Ministry (M. Min.) the first
seven years of which should include an A.B. or an
equivalent degree and the B. Min. or an equivalent
degree.
Both the B. Min. and the M. Min. programs offer majors in
either pastoral studies or Christian education.
 1978
➢ The three-tiered program was discontinued
because it was perceived to be not answering
the particular needs expressed.
➢ Furthermore, the Association of Theological
Schools in South East Asia (ATESEA) was
standardizing the quality of theological
education in the region.
This led the Divinity School to embark on a further study of its curriculum
offerings. The curriculum review committee was formed, composed of the
faculty assisted by two bishops, a moderator, and pastors of a city and a
town church. They came out with the proposal to offer an improved
Bachelor of Theology degree program (two years of pre-theology in
lib eral arts studies, three years of intensive theological studies, and one
year of supervised internship); and the Master of Divinity program, which
is universally accepted as the standard theological training program for the
Protestant ministry (three years of graduate theological studies, and one
year of supervised internship). Both B.Th and M.Div have two majors –
Pastoral Studies and Christian Education.
The Divinity School also launched the Lay Theological Development
Program in cooperation with the Visayas and Mindanao jurisdictions.
 Divinity Pictorial
(pages from SU Portal1978-1990)
 1990’s
➢ In the 1990’s there was again a revision in the curriculum
as shown in the 1992-93 University Catalogue. The
Pastoral Ministry appeared to be the only major offered
under the Bachelor of theology and Master of Divinity.
Whether Christian Education major was discontinued or
placed under moratorium was not clear.
➢ But in 1994, the Divinity School introduced a new
program – major in Liturgy and Music – with intensive
internship at Asian Institute of Liturgy and Music (AILiM).
➢ This was modified in 2000 because of high cost of living
in Manila. The Divinity School decided to have the
music intensive program in Silliman which required a
revision in the curriculum of the Bachelor of
Theology/Master of Divinity major in Liturgy and Music.
 2009
➢ The Divinity School again revised its
existing programs by introducing new
subjects in the B.Th and M.Div programs.
We have also three new degree programs –
Master of Divinity-thesis track, Master
of Theology in Mission Studies and
Doctor of Theology and a certificate
program in Clinical Pastoral Education
➢ This brief survey of the programs of the
Divinity School has shown that a number
of changes took place in its history. It also
shows the twofold direction of the
seminary education:
➢ Pastoral Ministry and Diaconal Ministry.
➢ The two have the same fundamental goal
“to train people for the Gospel ministry.”