Adelaide College of Divinity (ACD) was an accredited

higher education Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational schools ...

provider offering diploma, associate and bachelor's degrees, graduate diplomas, master and doctoral degrees in ministry, it also was a

Registered Training Organisation A registered training organisation (RTO), in Australia, is an organisation providing Vocational Education and Training (VET) courses to students, resulting in qualifications or statements of attainment that are recognised and accepted by indust ...

offering certificates and a diploma. The ACD offered qualifications in its own right in the vocational and higher education sectors and, except for the period 2011–2013, its teaching staff have formed the Department of Theology at

Flinders University Flinders University, established as The Flinders University of South Australia is a public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia, with a footprint extending across a number of locations in South Australia and ...

in the

Faculties Faculty or faculties may refer to: Academia * Faculty (academic staff), professors, researchers, and teachers of a given university or college (North American usage) * Faculty (division), a large department of a university by field of study (us ...

of Education, Humanities and Law. The ACD brought together the Adelaide Theological Library, from the collections of the three colleges which had merged for form ACD. The library has grown since the merger and in 2006 held over 60,000 volumes, including many dating back before 1850 and some to the 17th century. Within the college grounds was a

labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth () is an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the h ...

stained glass Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

artist Cedar Prest to honour the journeys of refugees and migrants. Symbols incorporated in the labyrinth include a large chalice and a central wafer – a reference to

Holy Communion The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an ordinance in others. Christians believe that the rite was instituted by J ...

. A stylised version of the labyrinth was used as the college logo.

History

The ACD started as an

ecumenical Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...

consortium of the theological colleges of the

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

(St Barnabas College),

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

(Burleigh College),

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

(the St Francis Xavier Seminary, now the Catholic Theological College) and Uniting (Parkin-Wesley College, from December 2008 known as Uniting College for Leadership and Theology) Churches in 1979, with the

Bible College of South Australia The Bible College of South Australia (BCSA), formerly known as the Adelaide Bible Institute, is an interdenominational and evangelical Bible college in Adelaide, South Australia. It offers courses accredited by the Australian College of Theology. ...

in 1980, in

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

. In late September 1997, the then three constituent colleges in Adelaide moved to a campus at

Brooklyn Park, South Australia Brooklyn Park is a western suburb of the South Australian capital of Adelaide. It is located immediately north-east of Adelaide Airport and the Australian Federal Police (AFP) base on Sir Donald Bradman Drive (the Boulevard of Honour ) . It is b ...

which had been vacated by the Salesian College. Teaching began on 7 October and the ACD campus was officially opened on Sunday, 9 November by the Governor of South Australia, Sir Eric Neal. Nungalinya College was associated with the ACD at one time. Nungalinya College is

with a focus on theological education and training for ministry for Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander Torres Strait Islanders ( ) are the Indigenous Melanesians, Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal Australians, Aboriginal peoples of the res ...

people. It is located in Darwin,

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...

. In 2003, the

Uniting Church The Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) is a united church in Australia. The church was founded on 22 June 1977 when most congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, about two-thirds of the Presbyterian Church of Australia and almost a ...

moved its distance education focused Coolamon College from

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

to Adelaide where it joined the ACD In Brisbane it had been a member of the

Brisbane College of Theology Brisbane College of Theology, located in Auchenflower, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, was an ecumenical theological education consortium (1983–2009), comprising St Francis' Theological College (Anglican), St Paul's Theological College (Roman ...

and also offered

Sydney College of Divinity The Australian University College of Divinity (formerly Sydney College of Divinity) (AUCD) is a consortium of Christian theological educational institutions and Bible colleges based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The college is structured ...

courses. In 2009 the

Anglican Diocese of Adelaide The Anglican Diocese of Adelaide is a diocese of the Anglican Church of Australia. It is centred in the city of Adelaide in the state of South Australia and extends along the eastern shore of the Gulf St Vincent from the town of Eudunda in the ...

's synod voted in favour of withdrawing St Barnabas' College from the ACD and affiliating with the

Charles Sturt University Charles Sturt University is an Australian multi-campus public university located in New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory and Victoria, Australia, Victoria. Established in 1989, it was named in honour of Captain (British Army and Royal ...

School of Theology via

St Mark's National Theological Centre St Mark's National Theological Centre is a theological college in Australia. It is owned and operated by the Anglican Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn. History Ernest Burgmann, Bishop of Goulburn from 1934 and then the renamed Canberra & Goulbu ...

in Canberra. In 2010, the Catholic theological college withdrew from the consortium to become part of the new Adelaide Theological Centre. The

Uniting Church in Australia The Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) is a united church in Australia. The church was founded on 22 June 1977 when most Wiktionary:congregation, congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, about two-thirds of the Presbyterian Church o ...

Trinity College Queensland Trinity College Queensland is a theological institution of the Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of Queensland, Queensland Synod of the Uniting Church in Australia. Trinity College Queensland is responsible for the delivery of undergraduate a ...

, previously a member of the

, initially offered

Australian Catholic University Australian Catholic University (ACU) is a public university in Australia. It has seven Australian campuses and also maintains a campus in Rome. History Australian Catholic University was opened on 1 January 1991 following the amalgamation ...

qualifications, before joining the ACD. This arrangement ceased at the end of 2019, when Trinity joined the

Australian College of Theology The Australian University of Theology (AUT), formerly known as the Australian College of Theology (ACT), is an Collegiate university, collegiate Theology, theological university based in Sydney, New South Wales. The university delivers awards i ...

. The Uniting College for Leadership and Theology, the last remaining collegiate of the Adelaide College of Divinity, joined the

University of Divinity The University of Divinity is an Australian collegiate university with a specialised focus in divinity and associated disciplines. It is constituted by twelve theological colleges from seven denominations and three schools. The University of Di ...

at the beginning of 2023. This resulted in the formal closure of the Adelaide College of Divinity.

References

External links

Adelaide College of DivinityFlinders University – School of TheologyThe Centre for Theology, Science and Culture
at

Uniting College for Leadership and TheologyTrinity College, Queensland
{{authority control Education in Adelaide Seminaries and theological colleges in Australia Educational institutions established in 1979 Uniting Church in Australia 1979 establishments in Australia 2022 disestablishments in Australia