TORONTO—Wycliffe College is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Stephen Chester to the position of Lord and Lady Coggan Professor of New Testament, effective August 1, 2019. In this role, Dr. Chester will be responsible for teaching a range of courses in New Testament and for supervising doctoral students.
Dr. Chester is an experienced theological educator whose entire career has been spent teaching and forming students preparing for ministry. He comes to Wycliffe from his position as Professor of New Testament at North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago, the seminary of the Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC), a growing, multi-ethnic denomination.
“Wycliffe’s entire faculty is delighted that Dr. Chester has agreed to join our number,” says Principal, Stephen Andrews. “This hire is Wycliffe’s first major action arising from our new Strategic Plan, and he will be a key figure in the development of our Centre for Scripture and Theology.”
“My approach to theological education is that it should be holistic, shaping the whole person as a disciple of Jesus Christ so that those called to ministry are empowered to bear witness to the truth of the gospel and to inspire others in their own discipleship,” says Dr. Chester. “Such an education requires academic rigour, a strong worship life, and deep commitment to practical Christian service. Wycliffe College is renowned for offering all of these things, so I am excited to be joining the Wycliffe community. I am looking forward to teaching and getting to know the students, and to all the various opportunities that my new role will bring to serve the church through scholarship.”
Dr. Chester says that his strong commitment to the theological interpretation of Scripture—which is a way of reading the Bible as the Word of the triune God centred on the person of Jesus Christ—has shaped his teaching and previous publications as well as his current research agenda, which includes a study exploring the theological interpretation of Romans 6. He is also working on a longer book focussed on the Apostle Paul’s ideas surrounding human identity as rooted in Christ. He is the author of several books, including Reading Paul with the Reformers: Reconciling Old and New Perspectives (2017, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans) winner of the 2018 Christianity Today award for best book in Biblical Studies.
About Wycliffe College:
Wycliffe College is a graduate theological school, affiliated with the University of Toronto and Toronto School of Theology. Located at the centre of the University of Toronto in the heart of Canada’s most multicultural city, Wycliffe College is an evangelical seminary with roots in the Anglican tradition, educating and equipping students to thrive as future Church and community leaders.
Founded in 1877, Wycliffe today is one of this country’s largest seminaries. It boasts a world-class teaching staff, fees among the most affordable in Canada, and a low student-to-faculty ratio. Known for an enduring commitment to intellectual rigour, evangelical vision, and practical action, Wycliffe College attracts more than 250 students from a broad range of denominations, backgrounds, and nations each year.
