Myanmar Institute of Theology

Myanmar Institute of Theology

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Established	1927
Location	Insein, Yangon , Yangon Division , Myanmar
Campus	Seminary Hill
Yangon City Landmark

The Myanmar Institute of Theology (MIT) is a Protestant Christian Baptist seminary in Insein Township, Yangon, Myanmar (Burma). The Judson Research Center and the Peace Studies Center are parts of the Myanmar Institute of Theology. There is a library with 30,000 usable volumes and more than 30 periodical subscriptions for students and faculty.

History

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Myanmar Institute of Theology

The Myanmar Institute of Theology, originally known as Baptist Divinity School, was founded in June 1927, on Seminary Hill, Insein. With only four students to begin with, the school used the facilities of the Karen Theological Seminary currently known as the Kayin Baptist Theological Seminary. Shortly after its opening the school became affiliated with the Northern Baptist Theological Seminary in Chicago, Illinois. This affiliation lasted until the Second World War. The first president was Dr. W. E. Wiatt, an American missionary who served from 1927 to 1939. The school was renamed in 1939 as the Willis and Orlinda Pierce Divinity School (1939-1949). The second president of the school was Dr. C. F. Chaney who served from 1939 to 1941, when the Japanese occupied Burma.

In 1948, the school reopened with Thra Chit Maung as chairperson of the Curriculum Committee. In 1952, with the arrival of Dr. Paul D. Clasper, Thra Chit Maung was made president and Dr. Clasper, vice-president. The school was renamed in 1949 as the Burma Divinity School (1949-1976). In 1955, it became affiliated with Central Baptist Theological Seminary of Kansas City, Kansas. This affiliation lasted until 1960, when the school became an accredited member of the Association for Theological Education in South East Asia. Since 1960, the school has been conferring degrees on its graduates.

Since 1966, with the departure of American Baptist missionaries from Myanmar, the school has been entirely staffed by nationals. The seminary has faithfully carried out its education mission, adapting and responding to the challenges of the new day.

In 1976, the name was again changed to the Burma Institute of Theology (1976-1989) as it was deemed more appropriate to the situation in Burma. In 1977, on Dr. Chit Maung’s retirement, Thramu Esther Lwin was made acting-president and then president from June 1978 to the end of 1983. In January 1984, Rev. Victor San Lone, who had been serving as general secretary of the Burma Baptist Convention, became president and served in that capacity until his sudden death in 1987. Thramu Eh Wah, the vice-president, was made acting-president until March 1988, when she was officially appointed President. The seminary’s name was changed to the Myanmar Institute of Theology in 1989, when the country changed its name to Myanmar. Dr. Eh Wah retired in 1998. The vice-principal Dr. Anna May Say Pa was elected the new principal. Dr. Simon Pau Khan En succeeded in 2006 and when he retired in 2010 Dr. Samuel Ngun Ling became principal effective from 2010-2011 academic year.

Throughout its history, the school has served as an institution of higher theological education. More than 20 ethnic groups and not less than 10 Christian denominations are represented each year in the student body. Until 1962, only the B.Th. program was offered. That year the Bachelor of Religious Education program was introduced and in 1976, the B.D. program was initiated. In 1996, no new B.Th. applicants were accepted for the B.Th. program as the Board of Trustees had decided that the seminary would offer only graduate programs. In 1997, the MIT started the M.Div, and M.T.S. degree programs and replaced the B.D. program. March 1999 saw the last batch of B.Th. graduates and the first batch of MTS graduates. March 2000 marked the graduation of the first batch of the Master of Divinity class. Year 2000 is a milestone for launching new programs such as Summer School, Summer Seminar and Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies (BARS).

In 2004, MIT launched the Doctor of Ministry (D.Min) program in partnership with the Union Theological Seminary, Manila, the Philippines. The program ended in 2008 when MIT started a new partnership for Doctor of Ministry program with the Central Baptist Theological Seminary, Kansas, USA, to take effect from 2010-2011 academic year.

Master of Ministry (M.Min) degree program was inaugurated in 2006 in respond to the needs of the churches and communities to promote a quality leadership in the church and society.

The year 2010 saw the opening of a new program called Master of Theological Librarianship (MTL) and the termination of the old program called Master of Theological Studies (MTS).

Finally MIT is fully determined to launch PhD degree program in 2014 in the commemoration of the 200th anniversary of the arrival of the American Baptist missionaries, Adoniram and Ann Judsons in the soil of Myanmar.

Academics

Liberal Arts Program

In response to the current education crisis of the country, MIT planned to offer a four-year B.A. Religious Studies degree program with a Liberal Arts curriculum. This degree program was officially accepted by the Board of Trustees on December 14, 1999. The program was inaugurated in October 2000 introducing BARS degree curriculum. In 2010, the name was changed to Liberal Arts Program (LAP) because it tended to focus on offering Master courses. It is well known as BARS.

Business major

• Intro to Business
• Economics
• Business Statistics
• Business Accounting I; Biz Communication; International Biz Management

Year 3-BS-301:Intro to Biz Research BS-302:Marketing Essentials BS-303:Human Resource Mgt BS-304: Biz Accounting II BS-305: e-Biz Fundamentals Year 4- Project Management; Service Management Organizational Behavior; Biz Ethics & Laws; Production and Operation Mgt; Entrepreneurship

Computer Major

• Introduction to Computer Systems; Database Design;C++ Programming; A+; Object-oriented system development; Mathematics of Computing; Data Structure
• Year 3- Visual Basic (VB);Operation System; AI;

HTML/CSS; Math; C#.net; Advanced C#.net;Intro Networking

• Year 4- Web Application(Dynamic); Database (SQL); System Engineering; SAT; Multimedia; IS Management; Java; SE; Advanced Networking; Web Application Project

English major

• Introduction to Poetry; Intro to short stories & Novels; Shakespeare Stories; Writing Essentials
• Year 3: Conversational Competency; Modern Poetry; Novel; Sound & Writing Systems; Sociolinguistics; Modern Play; Extensive Reading
• Year 4: Writing Composition, Translation I, II; Drama

Modern Short stories, Student Seminar, Novel; Advanced Grammar; Film; Non-fiction, Composition, Musical Drama

Music major

• Music Theory I, II; Piano I,II; Sight singing I,II; Mus. History I, II
• Year 3: Music Theory III; Piano III, IV; Sight Singing III; String Instrument I, II, Choral Conducting I, II
• Year 4: Piano V, VI, Voice I, II; Music & Worship, Asian Music; Choral Ensemble, Music software, Fine Arts Instrumental Conducting

Religion major

• History of Christianity
• Hebrew Bible & Ancient Israel; Theravada Buddhism; Gandhi & His Legacy
• Reading in the NT -
• Religion & Gender; Islamic Philosophy & Theology -
• Christian Philo & Theology; Practices of Buddhist Meditation
• Contemporary Christian Thought - Christianity Today; Jihad; Buddhism Today; Religion & Spirituality; Islam Today.

Social Studies major

• Introduction to Social Studies -English for Social Studies South East Asia Studies; Social & Cultural Anthropology
• Year 3 -Environmental Politics -Social Studies; -Intl Relation & Intl Laws; -Political Geography

-Social Management

• Year 4 -Political Philosophy -Sociology

- Social Psychology -Social Work -Social Development -Political Science

Electives

• Chinese Language
• French Language
• Health
• Japanese Language
• Korean Language
• Music
• Cross-disciplines (each major has four electives)

Programs

At present MIT offers the following programs of study.

• D.Min (Doctor of Ministry)
• M.Th (Master of Theology: Full-time two-year program)
• MACS (Master of Arts in Christian Studies: Part-time three-year program)
• M.Div. (Master of Divinity: Full-time three-year program)
• M.T.L (Master of Theological Librarianship: Full-time two-year program)
• Liberal Arts Program (BARS—Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies: Full-time four-year program)
• Dip. CD and MACD; two-year full-time program
• In 2003, the BRE program was replaced with the Master of Arts in Christian Studies
• In 2014, Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D) program will be started.

Current president

• Rev. Dr. Samuel Ngun Ling, PhD.
• Rev. Dr. Maung Maung Yin, D.Min., vice president

Accreditation

Myanmar Institute of Theology is accredited by the Association for Theological Education in South East Asia (ATESEA).

See also

• Protestants in Burma

External links

• School Website
• outdated PC(USA) webpage
• Baptist World Aid