Crossing the Divide
Redeemer Pacific College and TWU bring dynamic partnership to campus
March 21, 2007
J.J. Hutcheson
Eight years ago, a unique partnership began between Catholic Redeemer Pacific College and Evangelical Trinity Western University that established a new paradigm for Christian higher education. For the first time ever, a Roman Catholic college became an official teaching centre of an Evangelical university.
Since its beginning in 1999, RPC has brought Catholic students from around the world to study in a house across the river from TWU. These students study at both RPC and TWU, earning a degree from TWU in any area of study, while still retaining Catholic education. Currently, there are roughly 60 RPC students working towards degrees from TWU.
Not only does RPC offer education to Catholic students, but TWU students can also take courses at RPC that count towards a degree at TWU. For example, students can take courses in Catholic theology or philosophy, which count towards Christianity and Culture or Philosophy degrees.
The beginnings of RPC, located across the bridge from TWU, found their roots in the dream of RPC president and TWU alum Thomas Hamel. He decided that he wanted to start a Catholic college with what he calls a “faith-affirming atmosphere.” After talking with TWU administrators, Hamel decided that it would be easier to create a college that would be co-operative with TWU, rather than build a university from the ground up.
His vision for the college, he says “is about conservative Evangelicals and orthodox Catholics working together in higher education; sharing the gifts that God has given their respective communities; helping each other to see the fullness of God’s truth in Jesus Christ; and renewing Christian culture through higher education.”
The mandate of RPC is two-fold, explains Hamel. “First,” he says, “we are here to bring the Catholic perspective to (RPC) students through lower-level core courses taught by TWU-approved Catholic professors.”
The second mandate of the college is to provide upper-level courses that encompass Catholic-specific topics of interest for TWU and RPC students. Such classes include “Theology of the Body” (RELS 366) or “The Metaphysics of St. Thomas Aquinas” (PHIL 304).
However, the community at RPC is not simply academic. RPC facilitates its own form of student life for its students.
Frequently, students meet in d-groups, travel to Westminster Abbey in Mission, and participate in distinctly Catholic spiritual events. The classroom that students learn in is sometimes transformed into a church to celebrate Holy Mass with a visiting priest. The school also has a chapel in the basement.
The addition of RPC to the educational experience has been well received on TWU’s side of the river. TWU President Jonathan Raymond views the relationship between the schools as “healthy and deepening in its mutuality and significance with time.” Additionally, he says, “Our Catholic friends (students and faculty) remind [us] of the long, 2000 year tradition of Christendom and we remind them of the centrality of Scripture in the pursuit of truth.”
The presence of RPC at TWU also offers the potential for theological dialogue between the Catholic and Evangelical traditions, says Dr. Craig Allert, Chair of TWU’s religious studies department.
“The cooperation between these two institutions speaks volumes about ecumenical dialogue… and how far it has come in each of these two traditions.”
In fact, one of RPC’s “Capstone” courses is based on the premise of ecumenical dialogue between separated sects of Christianity. “Christian Theology in Ecumenical Dialogue” (RELS 387), taught by RPC academic coordinator Dr. Robert Stackpole, surveys the basic theologies of Evangelicalism, Roman Catholicism, and Eastern Orthodoxy, and the history of similarities and differences among these tradition. “It’s an exciting course,” he says, “because it brings together Catholic, Evangelical, and Orthodox traditions to look at a fair and peaceable way at the differences among the tradition and explore to what extent these can be overcome.”
RPC is active in pursuing opportunities in ecumenical dialogue. Last year, RPC released their first academic journal Fideles. The journal consists of academic essays written by both Catholic and Evangelical scholars. Volume two of Fideles is due this summer (see MH Nov. 1, 2006: RPC releases Fideles).
RPC also offers students who have completed a group of certain RPC courses a Catholic Theological Studies Certificate. “The purpose of the certificate is that while you’re pursuing any major at TWU you can do the equivalent of a minor in Catholic studies,” says Stackpole. While most recipients of the certificate are RPC students, TWU students may also receive the certificate. Another certificate RPC is hoping to institute is a Catholic Education Certificate. This certificate would require students to take requirements at RPC in preparation for teaching at a Catholic primary or secondary school. The certificate is currently in the process of being evaluated by TWU’s education department.
The reality of RPC’s status as a serious institute for Catholic education continues to grow. Moreover, its relationship with TWU and opportunities for growth and ecumenical dialogue are quite unprecedented in terms of Christian higher education. It seems that RPC and what it offers TWU will be a long-term convention. As Tom Hamel says, “My vision for RPC’s future is that it will always be a part of TWU—I believe God put us here and that he wants us to stay. “
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