The Philosophical-Theological Faculty S.V.D. St. Augustine is a School of Higher Academic Studies in the fields of theology, philosophy and social sciences, recognized both by the competent authorities of the Roman Catholic Church as well as the Land of Nordrhein-Westfalen as complying with the required standards of graduate Faculties. The juridical and financial subject of the Faculty is the German Province of the "Society of the Divine Word (S.V.D.GER)," registered in Germany under the title of "Steyler Missionare e.V.".

Three special autonomous institutes of scientific research, the "Institute of Missiology," the "Anthropos Institute" (anthropological institute), the "Institute Monumenta Serica" (institute of Chinese culture) as well as the ethnological museum "Haus Völker und Kulturen" and the "China Center" (for contacts with the Catholic Church in China) operate in close cooperation with St. Augustine's Philosophical-Theological Faculty.

The Philosophical-Theological Faculty S.V.D. St. Augustine at the town Sankt Augustin offers the required all round academic training to the students of the Society of the Divine Word, to students of other religious orders and communities and to members of the secular clergy and lay people as well. We address ourselves to all people interested in an encounter of and prophetical dialogue with other cultures and religions, main points of the program and self-understanding of the S.V.D., and in questions of worldwide solidarity. Various course programs prepare for the degrees of Magister, Licentiatus, and Doctor in Catholic Theology to be conferred by our Faculty.

Among our study programs, the module "Missions, Cultures and Religions" introduces students to a field of research specifically elaborated at the Philosophical-Theological Faculty. This module resulted from the original mission program of the S.V.D. and has no equivalent at any other academic institution in Germany. We emphasize solid information in the fields of missiology, science of religion, and anthropology. This should enable the students to assess the worldwide missionary dimension of the Christian faith, the Church, and of Catholic theology. Along the road indicated, the students are led to approach various historical-cultural contexts in their face to face with other cultures and religions encouraged by solid standards of social and methodical competence to impressively convey the Christian message in word and deed.

Life at campus is visibly marked by the international milieu both of the student body and of the faculty members, a genuine training ground for life and dialogue in multicultural settings and for the interpenetration of both learned and lived theology. We may say that it is this link between spirituality and the endeavors of scholarship which has distinguished the Philosophical-Theological Faculty of the S.V.D. St. Augustine as a center of a distinctive intellectual apostolate both within and on behalf of the local Church in Germany and the Church at large.

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