RELIGIOUS ENCYCLOPEDIA
Theological Seminaries
XII. Reformed Presbyterian. — 1. Pittsburg:
This institution is located in Pittsburg, Pa., in the North Side, formerly Alleghany, and was founded in 1810, although it has been in its present site only since 1856. It is in connection with the Reformed Presbyterian Church (Old School), and was formed by the action of that body. The purpose of the denomination to institute a seminary goes back to 1807, but it was not formally organized until May 25, 1810, with a board of superintendents consisting of Rev. John Black, Rev. Alexander McLeod, and Rev. Gilbert McMaster; and with Rev. Samuel Brown Wylie as teacher of theology. The seminary then constituted was in Philadelphia, and Dr. Wylie continued as professor of theology till 1827, with some years of intermission from 1817 to 1823, during which time the students were taught by pastors, four years' instruction being required. There was a similar interruption from 1827 to 1836, but from this period on, with little break, the students of theology were taught by professors elected by the synod, though the location was changed several times from East to West, until, in 1856, it came to its present place. The professors during this shifting period were James Renwick Willson and Thomas Sproull (q.v.). The seminary stands for the Reformed theology as embodied in the Westminster standards, and in the Act and Testimony of the Reformed Presbyterian Church, which covenanted in 1871 at Pittsburg, Pa., and is bound to witness politically against national atheism, to seek a Christian constitution, to testify against secret oath-bound orders, and to promote total abstinence and other reforms.
There are four instructors in the seminary, and eight members of the board of superintendents, who meet annually at the close of the session and pass upon the work, and hear discourses from the students. They report annually to the synod, who control the election of professors. The number of students enrolled in 1909-10 was ten, all in the membership of the denomination. One came from Massachusetts, two from New York, two from Pennsylvania, one from Illinois, two from Iowa, one from Missouri, and one from Colorado. The endowment of the seminary is about $90,000, and the number of books in the library is about 3,600.
D. B. Willson.
Bibliography: W. B. Sprague, Annals of the American Pulpit, vol. ix., New York, 1869; J. M. Wilson, Presbyterian Historical Almanac, vol. ix., Philadelphia, 1867; W. M. Glasgow, Historical Catalogue of the Theological Seminary of the Reformed Presbyterian Church in America, Beaver Falls, Pa., 1898.
XIII. United Presbyterian. — 1. Xenia: This seminary is located at Xenia, Greene Co., O., and is an institution of the United Presbyterian Church, under the control of the Second Synod of the West and of the synods of Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, and Nebraska of the United Presbyterian Church. Its immediate control is committed to a board of managers, twenty-five in number, and a board of nine trustees, while the terms and course of study are determined by the General Assembly. The seminary was founded by the Associate Presbyterian Synod of North America in 1794, and was at first located at Service, Beaver Co., Pa., where a build-
ing was erected and a library of about 800 volumes was collected, and Rev. John Anderson was elected professor of theology, the first and only teacher for some twenty-five years. For 117 years it has labored to equip men for the ministry of the Gospel. It is probably the oldest Protestant theological seminary on the continent. Professor Anderson resigned, 1819, and soon thereafter the Associate Synod decided to remove it from Service to Canonsburg, Pa., which was done, and Rev. James Ramsay was chosen professor of theology. In due time other professors were added to the teaching force and the course of study was enlarged. In 1855 the synod agreed to another removal of the seminary, and it was transferred to Xenia, O., where it has prosecuted its work now for fifty-six years.
The Associated Reformed Church, one of the two branches forming the United Presbyterian Church, established a theological seminary at Oxford, O., in 1839, and Rev. Joseph Claybaugh, a local pastor, was appointed professor of theology. In 1857 this institution was removed from Oxford, O., to Monmouth, 111., where it remained till 1874, when it was consolidated with the Xenia Seminary, its library and funds forming a part of Xenia's equipment.
The amount of endowment, including the value of buildings and grounds, is about $200,000, and the library contains between 7,000 and 8,000 volumes, besides a large collection of pamphlets and periodicals. The faculty consists of the following members: Joseph Kyle (systematic theology, history of doctrine, homiletics), Jesse Johnson (ecclesiastical history and apologetics), John E. Wishart (Hebrew exegesis, O. T. literature, pastoral theology), J. Hunter Webster (Greek exegesis and N. T. literature), Melvin G. Kyle (permanent lecturer on Biblical theology as illustrated by archeological research), Peter Robertson (voice culture), and William G. Moorehead (English Bible).
William G. Moorehead. XIV. Protestant Episcopal. — 1. Berkeley: This divinity school is located in Middletown, Middlesex Co., Conn., and had its beginning in a theological department informally organized in Trinity College, Hartford, in 1851, by the president of the college, the Rt. Rev. John Williams (q.v.), assistant bishop of the Episcopal Church in Connecticut. Three years later a charter was granted for the school as a separate institution under its present name, to be located at Middletown, where a large building, which had been the residence of the Rev. Dr. Jarvis, was given for its use. Bishop Williams removed his residence to that city, and was dean of the school for forty-five years, until his death in 1899. The first resident professors were Rev. Edwin Harwood and Rev. Thomas F. Davies; and the bishop was also assisted by Rev. Dr. Thomas W. Coit and other lecturers. The Jarvis House, earlier called the Washington Hotel, served as a residence, dormitory, chapel, and library for several years, but in 1860 another dormitory was built; in the next year a beautiful stone chapel, erected by Mrs. Mary W. Alsop Mutter, in memory of her husband, was consecrated; and in 1868 an adjacent colonial dwelling was purchased which serves as a refectory. In 1896
Theological Seminaries