Dear Friends,
You want to be faithful to God’s Word. We want that too! You are looking for an affordable seminary education. We provide that.
The Sangre de Cristo (Blood of Christ) Mountains are a beautiful location to study and grow in the knowledge of God’s Word. The breathtaking peaks are a constant reminder of God’s majesty and power. Although we are remote in location and small in size, our graduates are spread throughout the United States and several other countries, proclaiming the eternal Kingdom of Christ.
We are known for our unique location and generous scholarships, but we prefer to emphasize our training in exegetical and preaching skills. Our heavy requirements in the Biblical languages set us apart from most seminaries. We want our students to be competent in using Greek and Hebrew in their Bible study. We then equip the students to effectively preach what they have learned from their faithful study of the Word.
Because exegetical and preaching skills are best taught in small groups or one-on-one, we choose to be a small school. We accept approximately five students each year into the three-year program, making our classroom size on average about 10-12 full-time students. This design also allows for a mentoring environment in which students are individually challenged to grow spiritually.
We invite you to become a partner with us in this part of Christ’s work. We welcome you as a learner or as a supporter of our ministry. Please feel free to visit us at the campus, on the web, or by phone. We would be happy to answer any questions.
In Christ’s Service,
Dr. Andrew S. Zeller
About Us
Sangre de Cristo Seminary, located in the majestic mountains of South Central Colorado, teaches the principles of the Reformed faith, seeking to prepare students to enter Christian service as effective teachers and preachers of God’s Word.
The school was incorporated in 1976 as a non-profit institution. First conceived and operated as a summer school, it was expanded in 1979 as a full seminary offering a Master of Divinity Degree.
Due to the elevation (at nearly 9000 ft) the seminary has a somewhat unique schedule (June – December) compared to most traditional seminaries. The summer semesters are comprised of one or two week condensed courses focusing on theology, church history, and pastoral duties, while the fall term concentrates on the Biblical languages and exegesis.
Because of our cool summers, Sangre de Cristo is able to attract some outstanding visiting professors who combine teaching with family vacations to teach our condensed courses. Our permanent faculty teaches the Biblical languages and exegetical courses during the fall, which follows a traditional semester structure.
Emphasis in Biblical Languages
The Scriptures were not written in English. This is not to say that a Christian is unable to understand the word of God in English, but a translation of the Bible carries with it an element of interpretation by the translators. We believe that it is important that those preparing for ministry are able to use Greek and Hebrew in preparation to teach and preach the Word. Many people in ministry solely rely on others to deal with the original languages for them; Thus they rely wholly on commentaries and grammars to tell them what to think about a given text. We train our students to not only read these works, but to interact with them on a technical level and to give them the tools to come to their own conclusions. This shapes how our students view the Scriptures and how they use them. The Bible is not a book to be bent to fit our every need but rather it is the revelation of God that is to be understood and submitted to. It is a book worthy of being handled well.
Christian Community
Here at SDCS we foster teacher-student interaction. We think it is essential for students to have the ability to dialogue with their professors and fellow students. This is such an integral part of the learning process. Thus we keep our classroom sizes small. At maximum, we will have 12 students in a given class. This allows students the ability to feel connected to the learning process as a whole. They know that they are not just another face in a classroom; instead, they are a person who’s skills are to be nurtured.
“A seminary is a church institution in which a community of learners endeavor more effectively to understand and minister the gospel of the Scriptures in this sinful world.” – Dr. Dwight F. Zeller, Founder