MLTC Prospectus
The information in this Prospectus is believed to be correct at the time of going to press, but is subject to alteration without prior notice, in which case MLTC is not liable. The information provided here does not constitute a contract.Additional information and applications can be obtained by
writing the Office of the Principal at
| Matongo Lutheran Theological College Box 45 Sondu via Kisumu 40109 KENYA +254-722-337397 harjula@leafkenya.com theological.matongo@gmail.com |
|
The College’s seal is the Luther Rose
Luther explains the meaning of this Rose in a letter to Lazarus Spengler dated 8 July 1530. Luther calls it the “compendium of his theology.” “There is first to be a cross, black [and placed] in a heart, which should be of its natural color, so that I myself would be reminded that faith in the Crucified saves us. For if one believes from the heart he will be justified. [Rom 10:10] Even though it is a black cross, [which] mortifies and [which] also should hurt us, yet it leaves the heart in its [natural] color [and] does not ruin nature; that is, [the cross] does not kill but keeps [man] alive. For the just man lives by faith, [Rom 1:17] but by faith in the Crucified One. Such a heart is to be in the midst of a white rose, to symbolize that faith gives joy, comfort, and peace; in a word it places the believer into a white joyful rose; for [this faith] does not give peace and joy [John 14:27] as the world gives and, therefore, the rose is to be white and not red, for white is the color of the spirits and of all the angels. Such a rose is to be in a sky-blue field, [symbolizing] that such joy in the Spirit and in faith is a beginning of the future heavenly joy; it is already a part [of faith], and is grasped through hope, even though not yet manifest. And around this field is a golden ring, [symbolizing] that in heaven such blessedness lasts forever and has no end, and in addition is precious beyond all joy and goods, just as gold is the most valuable and precious metal.”Martin Luther (1999, c1972) Luther's Works, vol. 49: Letters II edited by J. J. Pelikan. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, pp. 358-359.
Registration
MLTC is fully registered in the year 2005 under the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Kenya.Accreditation
MLTC holds the Accrediting Council for Theological Education in Africa (ACTEA) Correspondent Status (2002). It is also in the process of seeking charter along with some other faculties for a university from the Republic of Kenya.Vision
Our vision is to build academically high level educational institution which is training servants for the Christian Church in Africa as a founder faculty of the NEEMA LUTHERAN UNIVERSITY OF KENYA with a motto: “genuinely Biblical, genuinely Lutheran, genuinely African”.Mission
Matongo Lutheran Theological College (MLTC) serves the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Kenya (ELCK) and the people of Kenya by preparing pastors, teachers, evangelists and deaconesses for works of service. (Ephesians 4:11-12)Philosophy
Our philosophical basis is a Christian world view and our doctrinal basis is said in the constitution of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Kenya,Article II: “DOCTRINAL BASES
1. This Church believes and professes that the Holy Scriptures contained
in the thirty nine (39) canonical books of the Old Testament and
the twenty seven (27) canonical books of the New Testament are
the inspired Word of God and the only infallible authority in all matters of
faith and life.
2. This Church professes the Christian doctrine and belief that is
founded on the Holy Scriptures, which belief is comprised in each
and all of the ecumenical creeds, viz. the Apostles' Creed,
the Nicene Creed and the Athanasian Creed, and is also expressed in
the Unaltered Augsburg Confession of 1530 as well as in
Martin Luther’s Large and Small Catechisms and the other
symbolical books of the Lutheran Church.
3. This Article II is unalterable.”
Aims and objectives
to provide a context where students| .. | learn to know Jesus Christ as Savior, Lord, Friend & Shepherd. (2 Peter 3:18; Luke 7:34; 1 Peter 2:25) |
| .. | learn to live together in Christian community, bearing each other’s burdens (Galatians 6:2), and recognizing their cultural diversity as God’s gift to each other, the church and the nation. |
| .. | become knowledgeable interpreters of the Bible and the Lutheran tradition. |
| .. | become knowledgeable interpreters of their present cultural contexts. |
| .. | are professionally equipped to perform the complex variety of tasks which comprise ministry and mission in Kenya. |
| .. | are enabled to witness in Word, sacrament and/or deed to God’s reconciliation in Jesus Christ. |
| .. | are empowered to be God’s instruments for revitalizing church and society. |
Although its mission is primarily to serve the ELCK and its work, MLTC aims to make training in theology available to all people without regard to nationality, ethnic identity, social status, economic status or denomination.
A BRIEF HISTORY
Matongo Lutheran Theological College (MLTC) located 60 km SE of Kisumu in Western Kenya was founded in 1957 as a Bible School by missionaries from Sweden. In 1978, it became a theological seminary when the first Pastoral Training Course commenced with eight students. Since its inception it has completed thirtyone different courses of study in theology (see Table 1) and has trained 317 evangelists, 4 deaconesses and 131 pastors for the ELCK and for its sister churches in Ethiopia, Zambia, Congo (DRC), Rwanda, Liberia and Sudan. (Many of those who have graduated from evangelist courses have gone on to graduate from pastoral courses.) Although outstanding national teachers have been present from the beginning, MLTC’s early staffs were composed primarily of missionaries from the ELCK’s mission partners all of which represent different varieties of pietistic and/or confessional Scandinavian Lutheranism: the Swedish Lutheran Mission (SLM), the Swedish Lutheran Evangelical Association of Finland (SLEAF), the World Mission Prayer League - USA (WMPL), the Lutheran Evangelical Association of Finland (LEAF) and the Norwegian Lutheran Mission (NLM). Each mission brought its own distinctive characteristics to and rich resources for the development of the College. Since the mid 1990s, the College has made an effort to train and employ qualified national Kenyan teachers. Currently only one of the full-time teachers is expatriate, all others (5) are Kenyans with Master or Doctor degree in Theology. From ELCK’s Partner missions and seminaries, like St Louis and Ft Fayne Concordia seminaries, U.S.A, we have had many qualified Visiting Professors during last years.Courses Completed at MLTC
| Course Name | Dates | Number of graduates |
Course Name | Dates | Number of graduates |
| ETC 1 | 1960 | 17 | ETC 17 | 1993- 95 |
21 |
| ETC 2 | 1961 | 13 | ETC 18 | 1998- 2000 |
27 |
| ETC 3 | 1962 | 14 | BC 1 | 1999- 2000 |
7 |
| ETC 4 | 1963 | 17 | BC 2 | 2001- 2002 |
17 |
| ETC 5 | 1964 | 18 | SOC I | 1990- 1992 |
18 |
| ETC 6 | 1966- 67 |
9 | PTC I | 1977- 1981 |
7 |
| ETC 7 | 1967- 68 |
8 | PTC II | 1982- 1986 |
11 |
| ETC 8 | 1970- 72 |
11 | PTC III | 1988- 1992 |
13 |
| ETC 9 | 1975- 77 |
16 | DC I | 1991- 1993 |
7 |
| ETC 10 | 1977- 79 |
17 | DC II | 1995- 1998 |
5 |
| ETC 11 | 1979- 80 |
19 | DT I | 1993- 1998 |
22 |
| ETC 12 | 1980- 81 |
15 | DT II | 1995- 2000 |
22 |
| ETC 13 | 1981- 82 |
15 | DT III | 1999- 2004 |
10 |
| ETC 14 | 1986- 89 |
20 | DT IV | 2001- 2005 |
16 |
| ETC 15 | 1989- 91 |
20* | DT V | 2002- 2006 |
12 |
| ETC 16 | 1991- 93 |
20 |
*of whom four were graduated as deaconesses.
Currently we are running 2 Diploma in Theology courses (DT6 & DT7). DT6-class with 23 students (19 Kenyan, 2 Sudanese, 1 Ugandan and 1 Rwandese citizens) started 2005 and DT7-class will start in the end of August 2007. Duration of a DT-course is four (4) years: two (2) academic years at Matongo, one (1) year internship in the field and one (1) final academic year at Matongo.