Welcome!
Christ-centered Pursuit of the Liberal Arts
- Tokyo Christian University is an evangelical institution accredited by the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), an accreditation that is recognized around the world.
- In its undergraduate Department of Global Liberal Arts for Christian Life and Ministry, TCU offers the Bachelor of Arts degree (English and/or Japanese). English-track students can major in Theological Studies or Global Studies. They can also choose from several minors, including Japanese Studies.
- In its Graduate School of Theology, TCU offers a Master of Arts degree in Theology (Japanese only), as well as a Ph.D. in Theology (Japanese or English).
- TCU aims to provide a Christ-centered liberal arts education in our Japanese context, focusing on educating the heart and the mind for service and leadership. Our program unites students from all over the world to live, learn, and serve with a high purpose.
Offered Programs
Global Liberal Arts for Christian Life and Ministry Deepartment
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East Asia Institute
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One semester in Japan to study about Japan, live and worship with Japanese.
Learning to Ask the Right Questions
Human beings are creatures who seek meaning.
What questions do you carry within you? The meaning of learning? The meaning of work? The meaning of ministry? The meaning of entrepreneurship?
When God created humanity, He gave people partners in life and meaning through the Cultural Mandate. Human beings were created to find meaning by living in relationship with God, existing before Him, and walking in the purposes He has given.
However, when sin entered the world, different standards and interpretations emerged in human life. Human history seems to have been shaped by the rise of countless philosophies and ideologies, constantly producing new standards and counter-standards. We now live in a world overflowing with competing perspectives.
In such an age, we who live in this world as sojourners can easily lose our footing between conflicting standards unless we learn to ask the right questions. Therefore, grounding ourselves in the Bible—the absolute standard through which God has revealed Himself—and learning to view the world through the lens of Scripture is an immeasurable treasure for the journey ahead. TCU offers such an opportunity.
Would you consider studying at TCU to be trained to ask the right questions, stand in the gap, and bring the peace of Christ into this world?
Shinichi Hirohashi
Chairperson of the Board, Tokyo Christian Educational Foundation
Profile
Born in 1967 in Tokyo, Japan. After graduating from university in 1990, he entered Tokyo Christian Seminary and graduated in 1993. He subsequently served as a staff worker with the Christian Student Association of Japan (KGK), and as pastor of Kokubunjidai Christ Church, Oyumino Christ Church, and Sakura Ojidai Chapel within the Presbyterian Church in Japan. He currently serves as a minister of the Higashi-Kanto Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church in Japan, as pastor of Sakura Ojidai Chapel, and as acting pastor of Grace Center Church Sendai. In 2021, he was appointed as a board member and executive board member of the Tokyo Christian Educational Foundation as a representative director dispatched by the Presbyterian Church in Japan. Since April 2024, he has served as Chairperson of the Board of the Tokyo Christian University.
Connecting: The Bible, the World, and Myself.
One distinctive feature of TCU’s education can be expressed through what I call the “Two Ws.”
The first W stands for “Word” (the Bible), and the second W stands for “World.” At TCU, students learn with these “Two Ws” functioning together like the two wheels of a cart.
By studying the Bible and theology, we begin to see how to think about the many issues facing our world today. Conversely, by studying the world, we become aware of the questions and challenges being posed to theology and the church.
The study of theology is by no means narrow or limited. To study theology is to seek to understand the will of God. It is to understand humanity, to reflect on the meaning of life, and to engage with the issues of history, society, and culture.
In this sense, the “and” in the Department of Theology and Intercultural Studies carries the meaning of a cross-multiplying connection. If I were to summarize TCU’s education in a single phrase, it would be:
“Connecting: The Bible, the World, and Myself.”
I believe that the true strength of TCU’s education is demonstrated through our students and graduates.
Motoaki Shinohara
President, Tokyo Christian University
Profile
Graduated from the Department of International Christian Studies, Faculty of Theology, Tokyo Christian University. After serving with Japan International Food for the Hungry (Hunger Zero), studied at the Kyoritsu Christian Institute and Kyoritsu Training Center, earned a Master of Theology (Th.M.) in Systematic Theology from Calvin Theological Seminary in the United States, and completed a Ph.D. in Missiology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.
Specializes in missiology and currently serves as Professor at Tokyo Christian University. Courses taught include “Missiology,” 「現代における宣教と教会」 (Mission and the Church in the Contemporary World), 、「キリスト教と文化」(Christianity and Culture), “Intercultural Communication,” and 「平和学」(Peace Studies).
Selected Publications 宣教と教会―20世紀の宣教思想史を踏まえて （『福音と世界』12月号、2015年） 「宣教の神学から考える神学教育―序論的考察―」（『福音主義神学』 第50号、2019年) etc.
Translation Supervision: Timothy Keller, Center Church (Inochi no Kotoba Sha, 2022)
Professional and Ministry Service: Member, Theological Commission of the Japan Evangelical Association (JEA) (until March 2023) Board Member, Japan International Food for the Hungry (Hunger Zero) Member, Japan Lausanne Committee- Secretary, ATA/J (Asia Theological Association, Japan Chapter) Editorial Board Member, 宣教学ジャーナル of the Japan Society for Missiology