A new Course Organiser and Lecturer in Greek and New Testament has joined the staff team at Edinburgh Theological Seminary.
Rev Ben Castaneda, who started his new role at ETS on 1 July, said he is excited about training people for ministry in the church. He has replaced Prof John Angus Macleod who has recently retired.
Mr Castaneda said: “I’m looking forward to meeting students and seeing how God is going to work through ETS over this coming year.”
Speaking about his role as Lecturer, he said: “I love teaching Greek and making the language come alive, and I’m excited about the opportunity to open up the New Testament with students.”
He is also working closely with Alistair Wilson, Lecturer and Postgraduate Supervisor, to organise course timetables and modules for ETS students.
Mr Castaneda, who is keen to encourage students in their faith and ministry, has spoken about his own testimony of faith and how God has worked in his life from a young age.
He said: “I was born into a Christian home in Virginia and grew up in Texas. My family read the Bible and prayed together, and we grew up going to church. It was through watching the example of my parents that led me to accept Jesus as my Saviour when I was six years old.”
As a teenager he wrestled with big life questions, and it was through this experience that his faith in Jesus grew and strengthened.
“I struggled over the doctrine of the assurance of my salvation and worried how I knew I was truly converted. It was through this inner wrestling that I became convicted of the Reformed faith when I was about 16 years old. About the same time, my family started going to a Presbyterian church where the doctrines of grace and the sovereignty of God were presented. The Gospel came alive!”
It was at that point in life that he sensed a call to ministry.
Mr Castaneda first completed an undergraduate course in business and then graduated with an MDiv from Westminster Seminary California in 2012. He spent a year as a missionary in Uganda and then six years in ordained pastoral ministry in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA).
This year he completed a PhD in New Testament from the University of St Andrews and currently serves as an elder in the St Andrews Free Church congregation. He and his wife, Bethel, have five children.
Do pray for Mr Castaneda and his family as he settles into these new roles at ETS.
