The Evangel Seminary, HK [1932- ]

The Evangel Seminary in Hong Kong owes its origins to the vision and leadership of Arthur G Lindquist, a Swedish American missionary with the Evangelical Free Church of America. Lindquist, serving in China and Hong Kong during the first half of the 20^th century, was the founding president of the Seminary and played a key role in its establishment and growth.

In the wake of the spiritual revival brought about by the 1927-1928 Guangzhou Bible Conferences, Lindquist and his wife and others began teaching at a Bible evening school sponsored by the Evangelical Free Church of China (EFCC) in 1929. 

As attendance grew, it was felt that the teaching should become daytime and mainstream.  Lindquist then spearheaded the creation of a Bible school in Guangzhou's Henan district in 1932, named the Guangzhou Bible College, and later the Canton Bible Institute.  It operated for five years before the Sino-Japanese War forced its closure in 1937.

Lindquist then relocated the college to Hong Kong, where it continued to flourish. There was a return to Guangzhou three years later.

The Lindquists avoided the Japanese invasion of Hong Kong, as they were on furlough in the USA, but Arthur Lindquist returned to Canton in December 1945 to continue the work.

In 1949, because of the Civil War, he moved the Institute permanently to Hong Kong, re-establishing it in Kowloon City and Kowloon Tong. Under his guidance, the college secured its official campus at 59 Cumberland Road in 1957 and expanded to include properties at 15 and 55 Cumberland Road for dormitory and library facilities.

Arthur Lindquist stepped down as President in 1955, and was succeeded by Mr. Woo, Yan-Tak.

The Institute became Evangel Theological College in 1965 and was renamed Evangel Seminary in 1996. 

The Seminary moved to the Mei Foo Sun Chuen campus in August 2019, securing its place as a cornerstone of theological training in Hong Kong.

Today, the seminary is still closely affiliated with the EFCC, and its mission is to train pastors, teachers, and missionaries for Chinese churches in Hong Kong and overseas.

Sources:  

Evangel Seminary HK - Our History

The Tale of Two Steamer Rugs by Annie Hall-Lindquist.