Tahlee Bible College

[http://www.tbc.edu.au Tahlee Bible College] (TBC) is an interdenominational training centre situated at Tahlee, a 170-acre property on the shores of Port Stephens, less than one hour north of Newcastle and less than three hours north of Sydney.

TBC operates classes in learning English, teaching English, Bible topics and ministry skills. The Bible College is just one of several ministries that operate from the property. Camps and events for children, young people and families are held onsite, as are tours of the historic buildings. [http://www.tahlee.org Tahlee Ministries Inc.] is the organisation that oversees the running of Tahlee Bible College and the other ministries.

History

The Gospel Fishermen
In 1943, the Gospel Fishermen Mission leased Tanilba House, which is eight kilometres directly across the bay from Tahlee. The Director, Godrey Theobald, had developed a three pronged approach to mission.

* Evangelists travelling in 'Gospel Vans' visited isolated districts.
* Large meetings were held in churches in Newcastle and the Hunter valley.
* Children's camps were held at Tanilba for the purpose of evangelism.

In 1948, the staff of Gospel Fishermen visited Tahlee for a picnic. Over the next year, applications to rent the property to the mission were forwarded to the owner, Mr Alfrey Beecher Stewart White, who used Tahlee as a holiday house. In June 1949, the Theobold family moved into the Waterfront Cottage and began using the Ballroom and Billiard Room for their work. In 1959, Mr White offered the property to the Gospel Fishermen, who bought the land and buildings using large donation.

Discussions with leaders of Mission Societies had revealed a certain need. Although excellent Bible, theological and missionary training was available, missionary candidates could not learn skills in carpentry, mechanics, bushcraft, agriculture, electrical work and other related skills. A committee of Mission Society leaders had been formed to inaugurate this course and Tahlee was eventually chosen as the most suitable venue. Mr Frank Briggs, who had been a missionary in Papua New Guinea, became the Superintendent of this Pioneer Missionary Training Camp in 1951.

Rev Eric Potter, a Methodist minister, was the first Principal of Tahlee Bible College and Godfrey Theobald held the position of the first College President. Lectures commenced on June 10, 1959, while the public opening held on October 31 of that year attracted 400 people.

Decline

By the late 1970's the Bible College ministry was in serious decline, with less than twelve students enrolled. The appointment of Rev. Ray Laird as principal helped to reverse this decline. His primary achievements were gaining accreditation with the Australian College of Theology so that degree programs (Licentiate of Theology; Diploma in Ministry; Diploma in Missiology) could be offered. For a period of time, this helped to improve both the standards of education, as well as the viability of the Bible College. Laird's departure marked the beginning of another downturn in the Bible College's offerings. By 2008, the College was only offering a one year, Certificate IV in Christian Ministry.

This downturn was brought about by several factors:

The first factor was the isolation of the campus. Being located in a rural area, this eliminated the possibility of part-time employment for students, which increased the potential economic hardships upon them, and led to students choosing colleges with better access to housing, employment, health facilities, and schools for their children. A proposal put to the College by a former student to relocate the college into Newcastle itself was rejected.

A second factor was the inability of the college to change its focus from "missionary training" to "Christian life preparation". The College, and especially the Mission that controlled it, failed to recognise that the needs of the 1950's and 1960's had changed by the 1980's and later periods. This failure to adapt to change led to a decreasing relevance of the College to the wider Christian community.

The third factor was in the lack of demarcation between "Mission" and "College". Those who had long been associated with the Mission continued to exert an excessive control over the College and its directions. This led, at times, to staff of the Mission using students to meet their own agendas, and working on their own projects, rather than allowing the College to determine the academic and spiritually developmental activities and direction of the students. Bullying by Mission staff, attempts to dominate, and the attitude promoted by some Mission staff that they were "missionaries" and therefore superior to students, led to conflict between Mission staff and students. This in turn led some former students to dissuade potential students from attending.

The conflicts between the aims of the Mission and that of the College are best represented by a sign in the College Library, which indicated that the viewpoints presented in some of the reference and scholarly works, were not those of the Mission. The Mission sought to be an ultra-conservative institution while the College was seeking to be an educational facility. The aims of both clashed, and because of the power of the Mission, the ability of the College to be an educational facility were hampered, and as a result, declined.

While more than 1,000 students have trained at the College and many of these are now in Christian service in Australia and countries all over the world, the future of this organisation is uncertain.

Important dates 1970 Swimming pool installed. Library established. 1972 4 Nissan huts purchased for $21 each. 1973 Rev Ron Farquhar appointed as Principal. Student fees set at $400 per annum. 1975 First Graduation held in Auditorium. 1976 "Gospel Fisherman Mission" becomes "Gospel Service Mission." 1979 Rev Ray Laird appointed as Principal. 1979 Licentiate of Theology (LTh) degree accredited by Australian College of Theology 1981 The first three students to earn an LTh, Brian Marsland, Gene Png, and Jim Sparks (later Rev. Dr.) graduate. 1983 Diploma in Ministry and Diploma in Missiology accredited by Australian College of Theology. 1986 Sewage plant installed. 1988 Bible College Council meets for the first time. 1991 Rev Howard Green appointed as Principal. 1993 New library opened. Godrey Theobold retires. 1996 Rev Lindsay McKenzie appointed as Principal. 1998 TESOL Course offered for the first time. "Gospel Service Mission" becomes "Gospel Service Ministry" 2002 Rev Geoff Case appointed as Principal. 2004 "Gospel Service Ministry" becomes "Tahlee Ministries Inc." 2007 Mr Edward Bridge appointed as Acting Training Manager.

External links

* [http://www.tbc.edu.au Tahlee Bible College ]

* [http://www.tahlee.org Tahlee Ministries Inc.]