THEOLOGICAL TRAINING

EBM INTERNATIONAL's partner association in Sierra Leone, the Baptist Convention of Sierra Leone (BCSL), is involved in theological education and further training of leaders in various areas. In addition to "The Evangelical College of Theology" (TECT), there is a Bible school that conducts training courses for already active pastors and those who want to become pastors: The Baptist Theological Seminary (BTS) in Lunsar.

The TECT in Jui is located about an hour's drive outside Freetown. It is an interdenominational training center jointly supported by several Protestant churches. Every year, 170 pastors and church deacons are trained here. Many of the students and teaching staff live on campus. TECT has been supported by missionaries for many years. Since 2023, Dr. Warren Fornah, pastor of the Wesleyan Church of Sierra Leone, is leading the college. Obstacles often arise from problems with power and water supplies. So the college maintains powerful generators that can step in if the local power grid fails again.

The fact that many young adults are unable to leave their home country to study has led to a number of decentralized theological education programs. TECT has branches in the provincial capitals of Sierra Leone, where classes are also held. This usually takes the form of block seminars.

Those who wish to study at TECT need an adequate high school diploma and the necessary financial means. However, since there are pastors in the BCSL who do not meet these requirements, the BTS gives courses as block seminars three times a year to give them a solid theological foundation for their ministry. So pastors from the provinces meet there, study God's Word, and hold practical mission outreaches. Thus, the BTS is a good complement to the TECT.

Since August 2022, the German pastor Christina Döhring is working as a missionary of EBM INTERNATIONAL for the BCSL. She supports the work of the TECT as a lecturer in theology and also trains students at the BTS in Lunsar. The main goal of her work is to train pastors in the best possible way for their work in Sierra Leone. In addition to lectures, her focus is on personal accompaniment and pastoral care.

In the area of training, EBM INTERNATIONAL also supports the nationwide youth work, which is led by Pastor Samuel Kortu Kamara.