Regional Seminary – teaching Theology to all faiths in its own way

By Klysha Best

If the state of the country and the world at large has you pondering things from a religious perspective, if you have a burning desire to know more about God and His plans for us, if religious beliefs have fascinated you and you simply have questions about the meaning and purpose of life, then maybe you should consider signing up for theological studies at the Regional Seminary of St John Vianney and the Uganda Martyrs at Mount St Benedict.

The word theology comes from the Greek words theos (God) and logos (word).

It is the study of the nature of God and religious beliefs.

While many assume theological studies are for those interested in becoming priests, nuns or even pastors, that is far from the case.

Theology is taught as an academic discipline in universities and seminaries, and it can have practical implications for how people live, affecting their beliefs about truth, reality, ethics, and meaning and purpose in life.

Dr Adanna James, the first female Dean of the Seminary’s academic block/Theological Institute, said: “theology is not just for persons interested in ordained ministry. If that were the case, then I would not be here.”

“I joined the Seminary in 2005. I started off as a student with The University of the West Indies (UWI) doing Carnival Studies, and the Seminary was on the plate in terms of choosing elective courses and I was drawn to the Bible and came up here. And once I started, there was no turning back. I fell in love with theology.”

Dr Adanna James

Dr James became the Assistant Dean in September 2021, and by the following year, September 2022, was officially made Dean.

She is responsible for the administrative process of the school, dealing with everything from the rollout of classes, overseeing the registration, overseeing the pedagogy and the learning, and trying her best to maintain an ethos.

Dr James said, “The Seminary has its own ethos, it’s not just that it offers theology, but it offers theology in a particular way.

“We are happy with the changes that are coming forth from the Synod, because we have already been on-track with a lot of what Pope Francis and some of the other Synod documents have been pointing too. So, there is a lot of inter-mixing in the way that we approach our courses, from the pastoral context, so it’s not just theory.”

Dr James noted that they are also an affiliate institution with The UWI.

The Seminary offers several courses and persons can take a degree.

However, for persons who want a slower pace and who may just want to do one course at a time, the Seminary is also open to that kind of purpose.

Dr James said, “The Introduction to the Old Testament is generally very popular, along with other Bible courses we have….Since September 2022, we have been able to facilitate, livestreaming in our classes, and so those who want to participate online are also able to do that.”

The Seminary is also open to persons of other faiths and not just Catholics.

The Seminary offers about 12 to 15 courses per semester and runs along with UWI’s academic calendar, which means that they start their intake in September, with the second intake in January.

“Right now, we have enrolment that is almost 50, but it’s still quite low when you look at the enrolment across the board,” said Dr James.

She said there are some courses that are quite undersubscribed and it’s basically because people don’t know that much.

“I am sure if people were to know that ‘yes’, the Seminary is open to any and everybody and ‘yes’ if you would like to, you can come study and you can do it from the comfort of your home. I’m sure that I would see more persons coming.”

Dr James pointed out that they have different types of students—BA students who study with the University along with the Seminary for about three years on average.

“But we also have part-time students who take a little bit longer to finish the programme, because they’re doing less courses, so that’s also an option for those who work. Then, we have ‘house’ courses. The house students follow a course individually, so they just take one course. If you have an interest in philosophy, you’re free to take an Introduction to Philosophy course.

“Then we have ‘audit’ students. These are just like the house students who take a one-off course. But the audit students opt out of exams, because there are some persons who don’t want the rigour of the exams, and they just like to follow it at their own pace.”

Dr James added, “We offer group packages, especially for persons coming through parishes. We also have a lot of incentives for persons who are studying online, because classes are recorded and so people can also follow it online, whenever they would like. So, there are a number of opportunities and ways for you to be part of the Seminary community.”

Interested individuals can contact the Seminary via email at: secretary.dean@sjvum.edu.tt or via WhatsApp at 290-1683 or at the office at 662-4983 for further information on courses and registration.