Jinling Union Theological Seminary

Jinling Union Theological Seminary in Nanjing is the only national Protestant seminary in the PRC. It was founded in the early twentieth century as the Theological College (Shenxueyuan) of Jinling University. The seminary got its present name in 1952 after uniting with several other eastern Chinese seminaries. It is the only Protestant seminary in China to confer degrees to its students, the highest being a Master of Theology.

Bishop Ding Guangxun has been President of the seminary since 1953. During the Cultural Revolution the seminary was closed and did not re-open until 1981.

The seminary normally has approximately 170 students, but also has a great number of students enrolled in correspondence courses in theology. These students are mainly local evangelists from all over China who are not able to study full-time in Nanjing or at a local seminary. Many students graduating in the mid 1980s later became leaders in regional Christian councils and in local seminaries around China. Jinling Seminary is the centre for theological development in China, and many of the most well-known Chinese theologians have worked or still work there, e.g. Zhao Zichen, Wang Weifan and Chen Zemin. The seminary also publishes a theological journal, Nanjing Theological Review (Jinling Shenxue zhi).

FREDERIK FÄLLMAN