When we think of a residential context for Ministerial Training, perhaps our thoughts are drawn to the leafy fields of Cuddesdon near Oxford’s dreaming spires or the lofty grandeur and history of somewhere like Durham. Saba’s context has been rather different. He lives in Nablus in the Occupied West Bank and is currently studying at the Near East School of Theology (NEST) in Beirut.
He follows a long line of distinguished alumni of the School. Anglicans have been involved since the 1940s. The Episcopal diocese of Jerusalem is one of several owners and managers of NEST. The present college building is in West Beirut and was dedicated fifty-two years ago. The then bishop of the diocese of Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, the Rt Rev Najib Cubain (the first local Arab bishop), was present. The School itself had seen various partnerships and locations since 1869, and between 1926 and 1962 it functioned as the Biblical Studies department of the American University of Beirut.
After the 1967 war and the occupation of the West Bank, travel between the state of Israel and Lebanon became more difficult, a situation not helped by the virtually continuous state of war in Lebanon between 1975 and 1990, so there are fewer Anglican Ordinands there now than hitherto. In fact, currently, Saba is the only one, but he says, ‘I love it. The community is amazing, the professors are profound scholars, and this is just a loving community’.
The community back home in Nablus is also dear to Saba. He says it is ‘fantastic’. Although there are many challenges, relations are generally excellent between Christians, Moslems and Samaritans. (Nablus is on the slopes of Mount Gerizim, the holiest place for Samaritans, hence the presence of a Samaritan community there numbering around 800). Ecumenical cooperation is good, and the Anglican diocese is responsible for St Luke’s Hospital and a kindergarten. At present the kindergarten has one Christian pupil and thirty-nine Moslem children. There are two church buildings used by a Christian congregation of around 120.
Saba came to recognize his vocation at a Diocesan Youth Camp – an annual feature of the diocese. More recently these have become more overtly vocation oriented. The next one is to be held later this year in Cyprus. Following his acceptance for training, Saba spent nine months at St George’s Cathedral in Jerusalem – a practical preparation for his time in Beirut.
The President of NEST, Dr George Sabra, says he welcomes the sense of liturgy that Anglicans bring to the college. He says they also have an ecumenical tolerance not always evident among students. Saba worships with the college community during the week and on Sundays attends All Saints’ Church in the centre of Beirut. Dr Sabra would love to see more Anglican engagement with the college and would welcome overseas partners.
Dr Sabra is retiring this summer after more than a decade as president, and his replacement has been named as Dr Martin Accad, formerly Chief Academic Officer of the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary in Lebanon. He serves on the faculties of the ABTS, Fuller Theological Seminary (USA), and NEST. He has authored over 20 academic journal articles, edited several volumes in his field, and is the author of Sacred Misinterpretation: Reaching across the Christian-Muslim Divide (Eerdmans, 2019). Dr. Accad is a regular blogger on Islam, Christian-Muslim dialogue, and current affairs. He is married to Nadia Khouri and they have two children, Mia and Alexandre.
The diocese of Cyprus and the Gulf has held two Summer Schools at NEST and found it an ideal location. The library is excellent, the accommodation is good, and the teaching facilities are modern, techno-friendly and of various sizes. The recently refurbished chapel is dedicated to theologian and author Kenneth Bailey, the last Canon Theologian of Cyprus and the Gulf.
There has been a tendency over recent decades to earth theological training in the ‘real’ world of lived experience, in places where profound questions about humanity are raised. Living and studying in the West Bank and Beirut surely ticks that box.
NEST – further facts
NEST is an ecumenical theological college that trains ministers and laity, both women and men, for work in the Protestant Churches in the Middle East and Africa. The school has academic and administrative staff, offers graduate and postgraduate courses and contributes to Continuing Christian Education throughout the area.
The school has a complex background with roots going back to the nineteenth century when a seminary was first founded in Beirut. Other schools in Greece and Turkey also became involved and NEST was formed in 1932. After the Second World War, leaders of several Evangelical Churches in the region became directors, including the Evangelical Churches from Syria and Lebanon, the Armenian Evangelical Church, and the Lutheran and Anglican/Episcopal Churches.
NEST moved to its present buildings in West Beirut in 1971.
Visit their webpage at www.theonest.edu.lb