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About Us

One Mission, Many Contexts

APTU brings together seminaries and theological colleges from across the Asia-Pacific region, creating a vibrant platform for learning, research, and collaboration. We are dedicated to strengthening theological scholarship, nurturing academic excellence, and fostering unity among institutions that serve the Church. Our mission extends beyond education—we work to share resources, build leadership capacity, and address the unique cultural, social, and missional challenges faced by our member nations. By encouraging cooperation, dialogue, and innovation, APTU seeks to equip the next generation of Christian leaders and support the Church’s transformative work across diverse Asia-Pacific contexts.

Through strategic partnerships, faculty development initiatives, research exchanges, and regional conferences, APTU empowers institutions to grow together rather than in isolation. We aim to elevate the academic standards of theological education, strengthen institutional capacities, and cultivate a shared vision for impactful ministry. By connecting educators, scholars, and leaders across borders, APTU helps create a collaborative environment where knowledge, faith, and culture intersect—ultimately enriching the Church’s mission throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

Objectives

The APTU Ph.D. program aims to provide a critical space for theological research candidates. The program equips graduates with the skills and knowledge to become leaders who can contribute meaningfully to the life of the Church, academic institutions,
and ecumenical and civil society formations. The program is expected to nurture “organic intellectuals” who are equipped with analytical prowess, practical wisdom, and a radical commitment to constructing communities of faith dedicated to realizing the
values of the Reign of God in a globally interconnected world.

An undergirding principle of the program will be the pursuit of a genuine Asia-Pacific perspective in theological knowledge. The replication of the colonial constructs in theology and biblical studies, inherited by Asia-Pacific countries, has hindered the development of a genuinely Asia-Pacific articulation of theological truths and a distinctively Asia-Pacific Christianity.

who will be able to comprehend and reinterpret the text and its history of interpretations, informed by the contextual challenges from an Asia-Pacific perspective.
will have the critical acumen to discern and reconstruct the colonized mind and have abilities to decontextualize, contextualize, and recontextualize theological truths.
will have the competence to comprehend and analyze the socio-economic and political systems and their ideological roots and use this knowledge to construct theological nuances for promoting radical social transformation.
will have critical knowledge of the culture and its varied interpretations, and the ability to relate heuristically to cultural traditions.
will have the ability to navigate and lead the collective search to identify the meaning of life to build inclusive communities that respect the inherent values of life of all created beings, including nature and humans.
will develop sensitivity to do theology in service of a world free of discrimination based on gender, ethnicity, language, race, or caste.
will develop skills in doing theology with and for the marginalized, especially the communities of the poor, sexual minorities, and persons with disabilities to achieve total social transformation.
will develop skills in oral and written communication.
will equip graduates to become effective teachers in both theological and secular academic settings. They will be prepared to lead and teach graduate and postgraduate programs, guiding future scholars in their theological research journeys.