• Thailand (1983)
  • Thailand Coordinator
  • Location
  • Registration
  • Schedule
  • History
• Philippines (1985)
  • Philippines Coordinator
  • Location
  • Registration
  • Schedule
  • History
• Myanmar (1988)
  • Myanmar Coordinator
  • Location
  • Registration
  • Schedule
  • History
• Hong Kong (1989)
  • Hong Kong Coordinator
  • Location
  • Registration
  • Schedule
  • History
• Singapore (1994)
  • Resident Staff Coordinating
  • Location
  • Registration
  • Schedule
  • History
• Papua New Guinea (2005)
  • Papua New Guinea Coordinators
  • Location
  • Registration
  • Schedule
  • History
• South Korea (2006)
  • Coordinator
  • Location
  • Registration
  • Schedule
  • History
• Australia (2007 Pending)
  • Coordinator
  • Location
  • Registration
  • Schedule
  • History
• Potential New Sites
  • Chiang Mai, Thailand
  • China
  • India-Nepal
  • Japan
• Students from outside site areas
  • Contact ABTS office in Singapore
  • Location
  • Registration
  • Schedule
  • History
• Southeast Asia Map

The program brought a renewed exuberance and passion to me and the ministry where God has called me. (Philippines, '05 Grad)

My primary purpose for entering the program was to get a degree, but as I started taking the courses, discussing and interacting with other students and our professors, I found myself a person of little learning. (Philippines, '05 Grad)

I learned very much from the examples and experiences of the lecturers -- and it clarified my theological thinking and my commitment to Christ's mission. (Indonesian Graduate '05)

God at work in and from Thailand

The Lillis family moved to Bangkok in October 1982.  Dr. Lillis soon called for a needs assessment meeting with regards to graduate theological education.  Names were gathered from around Asia of those who might be interested in coming to this first Consultation.  Letters were sent and many were invited to the Manila meeting.  Missionaries with ABWE, BMM and also other Southeast Asia missionaries, were invited to come together to determine the educational needs for the region.

Prior to that meeting, a Missions Interface was held in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in November of 1984.  Those in attendance were the leadership from ABWE, BMM and GRTS.  Ambacher, Beals, Buck, Commons, Ebersole, Grier, Kempton, Leslie, Lillis, Osborn and Smallman attended and all agreed in principle to cooperate in establishing a quality program for theological education in Asia.  It was also agreed that the planning for the actual structure would be done by the missionaries in Asia.

So in June of 1985, in Manila, the first Consultation was held.  Those participating were Barnard, Beals, Clark, Holman, Holman, John, Kennedy, Layton, Leones, Lillis, Pardini, Payton, Waldock, and Walsh. It was agreed that there was a need for a distance learning program to meet the need that residence schools could not meet. A decision was made to have Grand Rapids Baptist Seminary of Cornerstone University provide the Master of Religious Education degree (MRE) for those who had completed an undergraduate degree and had five years experience in ministry. The Master of Christian Studies degree (MCS) was to be developed for those who might not have enough in-ministry experience for the MRE.

At this meeting an Implementation committee was formed and they were given full authority to make decisions in the establishing this new educational venture.

In October 1985, in Hong Kong, the first Implementation Committee including Ambacher, Barnard, Layton and Lillis (with Leones and Willsey in absentia) met and a motion was passed to approve the establishment of  the Asian Baptist Graduate School of Theology as a cooperative effort between ABWE, BMM and GRBS.  It was also reported at this meeting that BMM, in September 1984, approved the establishment of the school and at the ABWE ExCo meeting in January 1985, a motion was passed to approve the establishment of this school.  A report from the first Consultation was also given.

The task of the Implementation Committee was to develop the formal structure for the school which included developing a constitution, a curriculum for the MCS, and to formalize a board to govern the school. The second Implementation meeting was held in February 1986 in Manila.

At the second Consultation in April 86, held in Bangkok, the Implementation Committee members were recognized as the new Executive Committee:  Ambacher, Barrick, Baucum, Brammer, Holman, Waldock and Willsey. 

It was also decided that the school would be called Asia Baptist Theological Seminary. Attending this Consultation in addition to those who also attended the first were Ambacher, Barrick, Baucum, Brammer, Ecate, Holmes, Ketcham, Leslie, McDonald, Osborn and Willsey.  The countries represented were Bangladesh, Hong Kong, India, Japan, New Zealand, Philippines, Taiwan, and Thailand. 

It was decided that the Exco would meet annually, and every third year a Triennial conference would be open to the broader leadership in Southeast Asia to obtain further input on how best to meet the educational needs in Southeast Asia.

From 1982 and for the upcoming years, the Lillis' sought to establish the extension site for the seminary. During the first year of operation effort was devoted to promoting the program as well as adapting and developing operational policies and procedures which would work in the Asian setting and which would be consistent with those in use at the home campus.

In September 1983 extension courses were made available through the Bangkok office and the first residence seminar was offered in Bangkok during May 1984 at the Bangkok Bible College’s older site in an old wooden house behind the current site of the college. Planning was done with Dr. Henry Breidenthal, a former missionary surgeon with OMF who was then the president of the college, concerning the need for graduate education in Bangkok.

PABWE missionary Lourdes Jardinico (now Holmes) became the first student and graduate.

From this initial root came many branches into other parts of Southeast Asia. Because of the difficulty in Thailand of getting visas for the growing need for additional staff, the headquarters was relocated to Manila in 1985.

Thailand continues to be a strong site. At the outset there were more westerners than Thais but in 2003 the class had more Thais than westerners. And in the recent past all in the class were Thai except two. As of the 2005 Annual Report, Thailand has had 41 graduates, and has 23 active students. It is hoped that classes will also be offered in Chiang Mai, in the northern part of Thailand in the future.

This is the ABTS staff sight-seeing
at an elephant farm not far from Chiang Mai

When the headquarters relocated to Manila in 1985, Arturo Ordonia (middle), a graduate of the ABTS program, a Filipino and missionary

   
in Thailand, became the ABTS Thailand Country Coordinator.  He was responsible to arrange the logistics for the seminars and to recruit students for the program. 

Mr. Teerawit Srisatidnarakul co-coordinated for a while with Art, but when Art left, Teerawit carried the ministry of Coordinator alone.  In 2007 Mrs. Alice Cole came on board to help with the administrative details.  

For the next part of the story read about Asia Baptist Theological Seminary in the Philippines.