The Christian International Training Centre (CITC) was set up in Edinburgh, Scotland in July 2019 to provide systematic theological education for the purpose of training leaders for the Chinese churches. This vision was a response to the longstanding shortage of pastors and mature lay leaders in the Chinese churches on the one hand, and the vast mission field among the Chinese in the UK on the other. The former difficulty was aggravated by the fact that there was scarcity of theological education offered in Chinese.

The scene has undergone a dramatic change in recent years. With the influx of Cantonese-speaking Chinese immigrants into the UK, most Chinese churches enjoy a twofold or even manifold increase in Sunday service attendance. This signals an even greater demand for Chinese theological education. A golden opportunity has presented itself before us. If we seize the opportunity to train leaders with a view of building stronger and mission-oriented Chinese churches, we will be in a better position to meet the spiritual needs of the vast non-Christian community in the UK.

CITC is the first Chinese theological college in Scotland. It is also the only locally based theological college that offers Cantonese instruction (CITC also offers simultaneous translation into Mandarin). Our students come from more than 10 cities in the UK, Hong Kong and East Asia. Currently our registered students exceed 100, about 60 of them are regularly taking classes. Due to the pandemic, our courses have gone online. In the long run, we hope to adopt a hybrid mode of teaching, with on-site instruction for those who can attend classes in person and online teaching for the others. We believe this is the most effective mode of instruction. Because of the need for a physical place for future development, we started praying for a property more than two years ago.

CITC has only a short history. The tuition fees we collect are minimal. The main source of our income is donations from within the UK and Hong Kong. Understandably with our limited funds, we cannot afford to buy this building. Though the task is seemingly insurmountable, we have seen God’s hand along the way. We thank God for many brothers and sisters who have already responded positively. A foundation has generously pledged a matching fund of up to £1,000,000 (about HKD 10,000,000). We believe that all these are signs given by the Lord that we are on the right track. Though we were not able to secure the building we had mentioned previously, we will continue to look for a suitable property in the city of Edinburgh.