ETSC July Update 2015
We praise the Lord for our faithful partners who have contributed to ETSC’s Faculty Development process. In order to provide a stronger core of academically prepared Egyptian faculty, ETSC embarked on a systematic Faculty Development program in mid nineties. Since then seven professors have earned their doctorate/ Th.M. degree.
Those include:
- Atef Gendy, (Ph.D.), University of Aberdeen 2001
- Ephraim Yacoub, (Th.M.), School of Mission and Theology, Stavanger, Norway, 2011
- Hani Hanna, (Ph.D.), Princeton Theological Seminary 2013
- Samuel Rozfy, (D.Min.), Northwest Graduate School 2003
- Samy Estafanous, (Ph.D.) Princeton Theological Seminary 2015
- Tharwat Waheeb, (Ph.D.) London School of Theology, 2009
- Wageeh Mikhail, (Ph.D.), the University of Birmingham, 2013
Sherif Salah has completed two terms of his Doctor of Missiology at Fuller Theological Seminary.
The International Mission Partners who presently serve on the faculty of ETSC include Darren Kennedy who earned his PhD. in Systematic Theology from University of Edinburgh after he started teaching at ETSC in late nineties. More recent appointments include Michael Parker, and Willem DeWitt who began their service with ETSC as faculty with earned Ph.Ds. Jamie Hazelwood, who teaches Theological English, is currently completing her M.A. Dr. Joshua Yoder served from 2013-2015 and will return for a six week assignment in the Spring of 2016.
The June Update reported on the successful completion of the Ph.D. by Dr. Samy Estafanos. Samy will return to Cairo by the end of August with his daughter and join his wife and son, Nayer who returned to Cairo at the beginning of July. In the Fall term Samy will be offering “Teaching Theories” and “Christian Education as Practical Theology” in the Spring Term in the Cairo campus and the Minia Extension.
The title of Samy’s dissertation is “Teaching for Christian Wisdom: Towards a Holistic Approach of Education and Formation in the Presbyterian Church in Egypt.” The research tries to illuminate and address an epistemological problem; the lack of developing and using critical thinking skills in the Christian education process in the Presbyterian Church in Egypt. Shortly, to do so is to teach Christian education as practical theology, i.e. reconciling faith with reason; theology with philosophy; Christian with secular; and theory with practice. It’s a reconciling dialogue between An American philosopher, psychologist, and educator John Dewey with a reforming theologian John Calvin within the frameworks of a practical theologian and Christian educator Richard Osmer.
Samy and his family will miss the USA but he is looking forward to being back in the noise of Cairo. He asks for our partners to pray for them all as they adjust to the “reverse culture shock” of returning to Egypt after six years in the USA and particularly for his children as they adapt to the new education process in Egyptian schools. He would welcome your prayers as he prepares for his new courses and begins to teach full time again in the Fall.
While we welcome Samy back into the ETSC Community, we say farewell to Medhat Nady who will leave August 10 to study for his Th.M. at the School of Mission and Theology (MHS) in Stavanger, Norway. He received the Quita Scholarship provided by the Norwegian Government to aid him in his studies. He intends to complete this two-year program by June of 2017. The Th.M. will qualify him in his specialty area of Old Testament studies for future teaching at ETSC and is the first step toward a PhD.
Medhat would appreciate the prayers of our partners as he adjusts to a totally different culture and climate. He needs God’s support to focus on his studies and peace to face the homesickness he anticipates being so far away from his family and friends.