The Ragged School of Theology

Imagine Billy, a former gang member and drug dealer, now leading a church plant in one of the poorest schemes in Scotland.  

Imagine Tina, who used to deliberately disrupt the youth group as a teenager, now lead it as an adult.  

Imagine Dean, once dead in sins and addicted to alcohol, now serving others with joy in the local church.  

Imagine Cheryl, former heroin addict, now working in full-time employment as a carer.  

Imagine Gary, once racking up huge debts through gambling, now giving sacrificially back to the church and community with his time, money and possessions.  

Imagine Stacey, who used to live for partying at weekends, now serving as a female gospel worker reaching vulnerable women and a community that hasn’t had a gospel witness in decades.

Seem too far-fetched?  Unrealistic?  Wishful thinking?  Think again.  God is at work in the schemes of Scotland.  While most of us desire these stories to be multiplied throughout our land, how will that happen?  After someone is saved by the grace of God, how does the church train these indigenous converts to become future leaders and workers in the church and in society?

This is where the Ragged School of Theology (RST) comes in.  Named after Britain’s ‘ragged schools’ of the 19^th century and made famous in Christian circles by Dr Thomas Guthrie, the RST is one part of an ‘all of life’ discipleship training program.  The RST has been established as a campus of Vocational Bible College, Australia - to train ordinary, everyday people (Acts 4:13) for the extraordinary work of spreading God’s Kingdom.  The RST offers Christian vocational training which will equip a person with foundational knowledge and skills to serve Christ through the local church and in the workplace.

Many indigenous converts from the schemes are unlikely to flourish in a Higher Education model of education.  Unlike many other Bible colleges, RST’s qualifications are delivered through the Vocational Education and Training (VET) sector where training focuses on what you can do rather than what you have read and how many words you have written.

As a result, RST’s courses are delivered through a blend of small discussion groups and a ministry placement in a local church.  Assessments mimic ministry activities with presentations, simulations, reports and portfolios.

RST aims to provide Christian ministry training that suits those who learn best on the job.  Much ministry training today is academic and suits those who’ve been to university. RST is different.  RST training suits the gifts and abilities of people who love to learn practically and actively.  The sorts of people who often go straight into the workforce from school.

Converts from the schemes going into traditional models of higher education with a view to Christian ministry are nearly as common as a unanimous Brexit vote.  Rarer still are indigenous converts coming through traditional higher education models and choosing to invest their training in the most deprived areas of our nation.

The RST, working in partnership with local churches, seeks to train and equip indigenous scheme converts to serve wherever God calls them.  Hopefully, for many, that will mean serving in the poorest schemes of our land - whether that be as a church planter, gospel worker or an active serving member of a local church. 

Please partner with us in this - to God’s glory!

https://20schemes.com/get-involved/   

Article by Steven Hutchison, Principal, Ragged School of Theology