newslette52004foratl

THE BEGINNING

Founded in Chiang Mai, Thailand in 1991, the ForATL has always concerned itself with the development of Asian library collections and the support of librarians. Under the auspices of the Programme for Theology & Cultures in Asia (PTCA), theological librarians from Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, and Thailand met May 21-26, 1991, at McGilvary Faculty of Theology, Chiang Mai, Thailand. The meeting, called the Consultation of Asian Theological Librarians, was initiated and organized by the PTCA librarian, Rita M. England. Fourteen founding members from nine countries participated in the Consultation: Rita M. England (New Zealand), Huang Po Ho (Taiwan), Karmito (Indonesia), P.C. Laltlani (India), Patrick Lambe (Singapore), Lau Jen Sin (Singapore), Arisa Lertpruk (Thailand), Lukas Mark (Taiwan), Joseph Patmury (India), Lillibeth N. Puyot (Philippines), Suntree Rattaya-anant (Thailand), Generoso A. Rosales (Philippines), Jitra Samsa (Thailand), and Rose Sinnathamby (Sri Lanka). The Consultation was recognized and approved by Asian senior theologians, such as Drs. Takenaka Masao, Yeow Choo Lak, Song Choan Seng, John C. England, Archie Lee Chi Chung, Lennart Hamark, Park Joon Surh, Zenaida P. Lumba, Salvador Martinez, and K.C. Abraham. Being part of the PTCA, which emphasizes the use of Asian theological resources, the group agreed that theological librarians in Asia should work closely with seminary professors to make Asian materials for doing contextual theology easily available.

The Consultation elected a core group of four to work with the PTCA librarian. The core included two Faculty members, Dr. Huang Po Ho (Tainan Theological College and Seminary, Taiwan) and Dr. Joseph Patmury (United Theological College, Bangalore, India), and two librarians to wit Ms. Lau Jen Sin (Trinity Theological College, Singapore), Mr. Karmito (Duta Wacana Christian University, Yogyakarta, Indonesia) and Mrs. Rita M. England, the PTCA librarian (New Zealand). The core group was formed to implement the decisions made. They held their first meeting in Singapore in October 1991 to highlight and work out some of the ForATL initiatives, such as:

q A Master’s Degree Course in Theological Librarianship under the SEAGST programme (located in Manila)

The second meeting of the ForATL Core Group members was held in the Philippines in July 1992. The results of the meeting among other things were:

2. That the establishment a Master’s Course and programme in theological librarianship with SEAGST was not viable.

3. That ForATL must be an independent organization and work out its programme and activities independently.

4. That national workshops for theological librarians, including an emphasis on the development of Asian resources, be held in India (October 1992), the Philippines (November 1992), and Australia/New Zealand (July 1993).

The majority of our members are librarians working in theological libraries; however, the membership is not confined to professional librarians. Any practicing librarian or anyone who has an interest in theology or any person committed to the development of Asian resources or Asian theological studies may join the Forum. Institutional members are represented by their librarian or appointee. Members are requested to share information about publications on theology and cultures in their areas. Members receive copies of occasional ForATL newsletters and are kept in touch with matters concerning Asian Resources and theological library development.

1. To facilitate the development and exchange of resources for theology in the Asian context.

c. Union Listings, Directory of Asian Theological Libraries, Guidelines, Indexes, Bibliographies, etc., for publication.

The second ForATL Consultation and Workshop, hosted by the Library of Duta Wacana Christian University, was held in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, October 17–23, 1997. The Consultation was funded by Asia-regional sources. The Consultation and Workshop focused on the theme, “Creativity and Partnership: Resourcing Asian Theological Libraries,” and was attended by 20 participants, including representatives from Australia, India, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand-Aotearoa, Republic of the Philippines, Taiwan, and the host country. The appointed Executive Committee and Adviser for the period of 1997-2003 was composed of:

In March 1998 the ForATL Executive Committee met in Taipei, at Taiwan Theological College and Seminary. As a result, the continuing agenda of the ForATL was confirmed, and plans were made to implement this, to wit:

1. To develop the work of ForATL using PTCA Bulletin and or ForATL Newsletter to link Asian Theological Librarians.

5. To encourage the preparation of national/regional or issue-centred bibliographies.

7. To encourage training of theological librarians and archivists involved in the field of theological librarianship and theological education.

Work has continued on the revision/extension of the Directory, and ForATL has assisted with the establishment of the Asia-wide Training Course for theological librarians (Hong Kong 1998 & 2000, co-ordinated by Mr. Tang Sui Tung at the Lutheran Theological Seminary, Shatin, Hong Kong), and the publication of the Manual for theological librarians in Asia (Ministering Asian Faith and Wisdom: A Manual for Theological Librarians in Asia, edited by Rita and John England).

Few other activities have been possible in the last two years due to the removal of two executive members from the region, illness, and national disturbances. The ForATL Committee was reconstituted and enlarged, retaining the original Convener and those members able to continue.

With the help of Ecumenical Theological Education (ETE) Asia-Pacific Consultant of the WCC and the Executive Director of the Association for Theological Education in South East Asia (ATESEA), a third Consultation was held in Bangkok (at Student Christian Center), Thailand, February 18-23, 2003, to consolidate the organization of ForATL and to identify and work on achieving its objectives. The following were selected to serve as the ForATL Executive Committee officers (2003-2006): Convenor - Mr. Karmito, Librarian, Duta Wacana UTC/Christian University, Yogyakarta, Indonesia; Secretary - Mrs. Elizabeth T. Pulanco, Librarian, Philippine Baptist Theological Seminary, Baguio City, Philippines; and, Treasurer - Mr.Joseph Lin Shi-Yang, Librarian, Taiwan Theological College and Seminary, Taipei, Taiwan.

It needs to be said that before, during, and even after the Bangkok meeting, much work was carried out, particularly to prepare for the coming agendas of Group Librarians Training in Archives to be held in Bangalore, in June 1-30, 2004.

It was assumed that training on mission and church archives is not only important for individual churches, but also essential for preserving Asian church. In the context of Asian theological seminaries, most theological librarians are also archivists in practice, and thus have taken on a lot of responsibilities.

2. Directory of Asian Theological Libraries and Who’s Who in ForATL 2002. Edited by: Cahyana E. Purnama and Karmito. Yogyakarta: Nafiri Offset & ForATL, 2002.

3. ForATL Newsletter published twice a year, editor in charge Ms. Christabel Wong (Email: christabel@seminary-stm.com.my), now available online at http://www.geocities.com/foratl

ForATL also has a free online discussion list for all its members who have access to email. Details and information can be found by accessing Electronic mailing list at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/foratl

ForATL is one channel where ‘Asian resources and Theological Library Develop-ment’ is seen to be taking place. Precisely because of this, ForATL deserves all the support and prayer it needs.

* KARMITO is Head Librarian of Duta Wacana United Theological College and Christian University, Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Since 1980 he has specialized in Theological Librarianship, and in 1991 was a core member in the establishment of ForATL, the Forum of Asian Theological Librarians founded in Chiang Mai, Thailand. He has been appointed as the Convenor of ForATL, from 1997.