Credentials of King James Only "scholars"

[Daniel_Marsh]

Yesterday I recieved a letter from “Dr.” Samuel C. Gipp “Th.D.”

He lists his credentials as

Bachelor of Divinity, Pensacola Bible Institute, Pensacola, FL
Master of Theology, Clarksville School of Theology, Clarksville, TN
Doctor of Theology, Clarksville School of Thology, Clarksville, TN
Doctor of Philosphy, Pensacola Bible Institute, Pensacola, FL

looks impressive right?

According to investigative writer Bob Trebilcock, in l976, Stevens purchasedhis “Dr.'s” degree for $160 from Clarksville School of Theology (“a Tennessee diploma mill since put out of business by [the] state’s attorney general” - Trebilcock, p. 54). “Delegated Authority”

watchman.org/cults/stevens.htm

Clarksville School of Theology

Clarksville School of Theology is a now defunct seminary in Clarksville, Tennessee that was shut down by a court battle in 1982 after it was determined their curriculum did not meet State standards for granting an academic degree.

answers.com/topic/clarksville-school-of-theology

**List of unaccredited institutions of higher learning **

Clarksville School of Theology

…

Pensacola Bible Institute
Pensacola Christian College

answers.com/topic/list-of-unaccredited-institutions-of-higher-learning

Check out this list of unaccredited institutions of higher learning, I was surprised by the number of bible colleges on it.

Pensacola Bible Institute

Ruckman founded Pensacola Bible Institute (PBI) in 1965, in part, because of his disagreements with other institutions in regard to Biblical translations. **Pensacola Bible Institute is not accredited by any agency recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation or the United States Department of Education.**20] It does not accept government funding nor participate in the student loan program. The school has no website.

answers.com/topic/peter-ruckman

 

[Daniel_Marsh]

Accreditation

Pensacola Christian College is not accredited by any accreditation body recognized by its country. As such, its degrees and credits might not be acceptable to employers or other institutions, and use of degree titles may be restricted or illegal in some jurisdictions. [1] The Chronicle of Higher Education reported:[5]

“ Pensacola [Christian College], however, has shown no interest in outside approval of any kind. Nor does it advertise its unaccredited status. A search of the Web site turns up no mention of accreditation. It is not mentioned in the college’s viewbook either, which dedicates four pages to sports activities and two to campus facilities. It is mentioned, in small print, on the inside flap of the course catalog: “Pensacola Christian College has never made application for regional accreditation as the College believes it would jeopardize the College’s philosophical distinctives.” The catalog goes on to say that getting other colleges to accept Pensacola’s credits “has seldom been an insurmountable problem.” ”

As PCC is not accredited pursuing a graduate degree, or getting employment where an accredited degree is required, may be difficult for PCC graduates.[6]. This is not due to a lack of accreditation bodies, as there are at least three bodies recognized by the United States who accredit religious colleges. All students at PCC are required to sign a statement that they understand that "Pensacola Christian College has never made application for regional accreditation because the College believes it could jeopardize the College’s philosophical distinctive. It is the practice of Pensacola Christian College, and other colleges and universities, to accept or reject credits based on their own institutional criteria regardless of whether or not that particular school transferring credit is accredited. "[citation needed]

Former PCC students interviewed by The Chronicle of Higher Education on their experiences with transferring PCC credits to other institutions, and utilizing the degrees they earned at PCC have reported mixed results:

“ [Abel Harding] applied to the University of Florida and was told that none of his credits would transfer. “I had to start over,” he says. So, after three years at Pensacola, he enrolled as a freshman at nearby Santa Fe Community College ”
“ [Amy Brown] graduated from Pensacola in 2003 with a degree in early-childhood education. But because the college is not accredited, she cannot teach in public schools ”

PCC Education majors are informed their freshmen year that the degree will earn is geared toward teaching in Christian Schools, in particular Christian schools that use the A Beka Books curriculum. Education majors are also informed that because most states require their teachers to be state certified in order to teach, they would not be able to teach in a public school in their home state following graduation simply with a PCC Education degree. It is generally accepted however that it is difficult to become state certified if the applicant’s undergraduate degree is unaccredited.

“ >Many Christian colleges do accept Pensacola’s credits, as do some secular institutions. Several former students say they have had no difficulty transferring credits or applying for jobs. But others have. And as more states crack down on degrees from unaccredited colleges, it may get even tougher for Pensacola graduates. ”

In the summer 2007 issue of the PCC Update, a quarterly magazine published by PCC containing PCC announcements and reviews, a column by PCC President Dr. Arlin Horton stated the following:[7]

“…the success of our graduates demonstrates PCC’s excellent quality of education. Their credits have been accepted by over 700 colleges and universities, including over 375 accredited graduate schools, 72 medical schools and 66 law schools. This reputation for excellence is also based on each student’s academic achievement as he [or she] seeks to transfer to other institutions or admission to graduate schools. PCC graduates further demonstrate academic excellence by being accepted to and successfully studying at some of he most prestigious accredited Graduate schools in America.”

Although PCC is not accredited, the nursing program is certified by the Florida State Board of Nursing.[8] The nursing program at PCC has demonstrated time and again that it is among the top nursing schools in the nation based upon the number of Nursing graduates who successfully pass their regional and state boards of nursing exams on their first attempt[9]

answers.com/topic/pensacola-christian-college

 

[Daniel_Marsh]

Gail A. (G.A.) Riplinger (**Gail Anne Riplinger), **born October 10, 1947 in Columbus, Ohio, is an advocate for King James Only conspiracy theories. Her major work is a book entitled New Age Bible Versions (privately printed by Riplinger’s A.V. Publications, 1993). The work is controversial because its theme is that a New Age conspiracy has been working to undermine the historical Christian Bible by replacing Christian doctrines with New Age doctrines.[1] The work is polarizing because few among the King James Only movement hold this view. As James Richard May elaborates[2], the scholarship and reasoning employed by Riplinger in this work is questionable.

Little is known about Riplinger personally. According to James Richard May, her educational background is in home economics.[3] It is unclear what qualifications she has in the issue of Bible Versions and textual research, since she does not reveal them herself. James White states: “Mrs. Riplinger did indeed teach at Kent State, but she did so in the Home Economics department, teaching classes in interior design.”[4] Cornerstone Magazine has a review by Bob & Gretchen Passantino that says, “Riplinger has advanced degrees in Industrial and Environmental Design (a branch of what used to be called Home Economics) and taught Family and Consumer Studies and Retail Space Plans (Home Economics) for a few years at Kent State University in Ohio. When she is asked what facility she has in biblical languages, she says that as a school girl she took Latin, and after graduation from high school, she worked as an English tutor with Greek immigrants. **On a radio program she admitted she could not read Greek or Hebrew.”**5]

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gail_A._Riplinger

google.com/search?hl=en&sa=X&oi=spell&resnum=0&ct=result&cd=1&q=new+age+bible+versions+degree+interior+design&spell=1

Rev. Frank Camp (1994)
Instructor - Bible, Greek
B.S., Industrial Arts Education, 1977, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC
Full-time Teaching/Ministry since 1978

ambassadors.edu/SchoolInformation/faculty.shtm

How does a degree in Industrial Arts Education qualify one to teach Biblical Greek?



So, when a King James Only person appeals to an argument based on authority. Find out, who the authority is, what are his credentials, is those “colleges” accredited, and who taught them what. where his / her teachers qualified to teach say biblical greek, or biblical hebrew for example.

 

[Daniel_Marsh]

If there is anything good to say about Riplinger’s New Age Bible Versions (hereafter NABV), it is that the book is not any longer than it is and that the foolishness of its various claims are transparent when one takes the time to study them. Unfortunately, NABV has received considerable praise from many popular authors who either did not really take the time to evaluate the book or apparently share Riplinger’s ignorance of the issues of textual criticism and translation.

NABV is replete with logical, philosophical, theological, biblical, and technical errors. Riplinger lacks the proper training to write this book (her M.A. and M.F.A. in “Home Economics” notwithstanding). Many of her errors arise from a lack of understanding of Old and New Testament textual criticism as well as biblical and theological studies. In a two-hour debate I had with her, I found her very able to articulate her position. But she repeatedly mispronounced terms used by biblical scholars and did not seem to understand the development of the textual tradition from the Byzantine/“majority” manuscripts to the Erasmian text used by the translators of the KJV. Moreover, I had to ask her four times before she hesitatingly admitted that she really could not read Greek.

A seminary degree is not required to understand the matters of Bible transmission and translation. But one must learn the history and methodology of textual transcription and transmission, and gain a good grasp of the Hebrew and Greek languages, before one “pontificates” on the subject as Riplinger has done. Simply comparing the KJV with the NIV and NASB through endless charts does not prove a thing. She needs to demonstrate that the specific translations she accepts are really better textual renditions than the alternatives she rejects, rather than merely assuming the superiority of the majority text type or the KJV.

I have no personal interest in defending the NIV or NASB. I prefer to use the NKJV (New King James Version), though I adopt a more eclectic view of textual criticism than its translators, who hold to the majority text theory.

In order to do justice to a review of NABV in such short space, I will categorize the types of errors Riplinger makes throughout her work and then provide an illustration of each.

THE APPEAL TO DIVINE AUTHORITY

Riplinger commits a logical fallacy commonly employed by those whose arguments are weak: an appeal to authority. In a newsletter, she explains her reason for writing the book and claims some sense of divine inspiration for her work: “Daily, during the six years needed for this investigation, the Lord miraculously brought the needed materials and resources – much like the ravens fed Elijah. Each discovery was not the result of effort on my part, but of the direct hand of God – so much so that I hesitated to even put my name on the book. Consequently, I used G. A. Riplinger, which signifies to me, God and Riplinger – God as author and Riplinger as secretary.”[1]

iclnet.org/pub/resources/text/cri/cri-jrnl/web/crj0187a.html

 

[Daniel_Marsh]

WHY DEAN BURGON WOULD NOT JOIN…
“The Dean Burgon Society” by GARY R. HUDSON
members.aol.com/pilgrimpub/burgon.htm

google.com/search?hl=en&q=Would+Burgon+join+the+dean+burgon+society

Often they will apeal to a qualified scholar, but when you investigate that scholar, you will find that he would not buy into their positions.

 

[Daniel_Marsh]

List of unaccredited institutions of higher learning
answers.com/topic/list-of-unaccredited-institutions-of-higher-learning

Ambassador University Corporation
American Bible College and Seminary (there was an accredited school by this name that closed)
American Center for Religion and Society Studies
American University of Biblical Studies
Andersonville Theological Seminary
Arkansas Biblical Graduate School
Atlantic Baptist Bible College
Baptist Christian University in Shreveport, Louisiana (Renamed in 1993 to Louisiana Baptist University)
Baptist College of America
Baptist College of Ministry
B. H. Carroll Theological Institute (aka Benajah Harvey Carroll Theological Institute)
California Biblical University and Seminary
California Graduate School of Theology
California Pacific School of Theology
Calvary Chapel Bible College
Calvin School of Apologetics and Theology (Kerala, India)
Champion Baptist College
Chicago Graduate School of Theology[citation needed]
Christ For The Nations Institute
Christian Bible College (Rocky Mount, North Carolina)
Clarksville School of Theology
Commonwealth Baptist College (Kentucky)
Compassion Bible Institute (Dallas, Texas)
Concordia College and University (This institution is in no way connected to the Concordia University System or with Concordia University)
Crescent City Christian College (Metairie, Louisiana) (“basically a coach’s house — no campus, no facilities, no faculty, no library that anyone could discover”)[9]
Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary in Allen Park, Michigan
Eastern Baptist Institute
Elim Bible Institute
Faith Theological Seminary and Christian College
Faith Way Baptist College
Focus on the Family Institute
Geneva Reformed Seminary
Golden State Baptist College
Golden State School of Theology (Stockon, California)
Grace Baptist College
Great Lakes Bible College
Greenleaf University
Gulf Coast Bible Institute
Heartland Baptist Bible College
Holy Trinity College and Seminary (New Port Richey, Florida)
Holy Trinity Orthodox Seminary (Jordanville, New York)
Illinois Theological Seminary Online
Indiana Christian University
Internet Bible College
International Theological Seminary
Islamic Institute of Philosophy
Islamic Online University
Jackson Hole Bible College (Jackson Hole, Wyoming) (a one year only school)
Kansas City College and Bible School
Kingsway Christian College (aka Kingsway Christian College and Seminary) (Norwalk, Iowa)
Logos Christian College and Graduate Schools
Louisiana Baptist University in Shreveport, Louisiana (Originally called Baptist Christian University, but renamed in 1993)
Maimonides University
Maritime Christian College
Master’s Divinity School (not to confused with the Master’s College and the Master’s Seminary)
Midstates Bible College (Des Moines, Iowa)
Midwestern Baptist College (aka Midwestern Bible College)
Miracle Valley Bible College (aka Miracle Valley Bible College & Seminary)
Mountain States Baptist College
New Life Theological Seminary
New Geneva Theological Seminary (Colorado Springs, Colorado)
New Testament Christian Seminary (Graham, Washington)
North Tennessee Bible Institute
Pacific Baptist Bible College (Long Beach, California)
Patriot Bible University (aka Patriot University) in Del Norte, Colorado
Peace River Bible Institute (in Sexsmith, Alberta, Canada)
Pensacola Bible Institute
Pensacola Christian College
Providence Baptist College
Queensland Christian University (Australia)
Seattle Bible College
Shepherd Bible College
Slidell Baptist Seminary
Southern Christian University
Southwestern Christian University (renamed Regions University)
St. Elias School of Orthodox Theology
St. Luke Evangelical School Of Biblical Studies
Summit Christian College (in Scottsbluff, Nebraska) (aka Platte Valley Bible College)
Summit Theological Seminary
Tabernacle Baptist Theological Seminary (in Virginia Beach, Virginia)
Temple Baptist College
Tennessee Bible College
Tennessee Temple Theological Seminary
Texas Baptist College
Trinity College and University (not to be confused with institutions listed at Trinity College) (aka Trinity College & University)
Trinity School of Apologetics & Theology (aka Trinity Graduate School of Apologetics And Theology) (Kerala, India)
Trinity Southern University (See: Colby Nolan)[28]
Trinity Theological Seminary (not to be confused with Trinity Evangelical Divinity School)
Urban Harvest Bible Institute & Seminary
Victory Baptist College
Vision Christian University (Ramona, California) (aka Logos Bible College)
Vision Christian Bible College and Seminary
West Coast Baptist College
World Mission University
Zion Ministerial Institute

When there are this many “christian” bible schools who are not accredited…It appears anyone can open a bible college.

 

[1ke]

You forgot to list Box of Cracker Jacks.

 

[Daniel_Marsh]

no cracker jacks relates to driver’s licenses. smile

 

[Daniel_Marsh]

In May of 2003, Pensacola Christian College continued its “noble defense of the KJV” by granting an honorary doctor’s degree to Lloyd L. Streeter. He was noted for writing a book which supposedly answers Central Baptist Seminary’s book, The Bible Version Debate. Two quotations from the doctor display typical KJV inconsistency:

kjvonly.org/james/may_great_inconsistency.htm

 

[Church_Militant]

I’m all too familiar with PCC and PBI since I live relatively near where they are.

Pensacola Christian College is one of the strictest fundamentalist schools around and have a reputation for offering hard classes and having high standards, I have known some people whose kids have gone there and once they get out of the math and science areas their curriculum is very badly tainted with bias. They are extremely anti-Catholic. BTW, they are not just a college. They go from kindergarten up. Their campus IMO looks like an ugly mall.
Picture of Campus

PBI- Ruckman’s church/school is a hotbed of anti-Catholic intolerance and rhetorical propaganda. His people are often seen standing on street corners shout preaching to the passing traffic and literally waving a Bible in the air. The cars & trucks of members of his church are often spotted on the road because they are festooned with magnetic signs with things like “Hell Burns Forever” or some Bible verse.

Ruckman likes to preach on TV and while he does he will usually draw with colored chalks some illustration related to his message. (He might as well. He’s not nearly as eloquent or and knowledgeable as Bishop Fulton J. Sheen was!) His writings are some of the most biased and misinformed you will find where they concern the Catholic faith.