Walid Zailaa

Education

MDiv, Arab Baptist Theological Seminary, Lebanon.
MTh, International Baptist Theological Seminary, Prague. Research Subject: Challenges of Teaching the Old Testament in Lebanese Baptist Churches.
DMin, Acadia Divinity College, Canada. Research Subject: Engaging Orality in Theological Education: Teaching the Story of The Old Testament in the MENA Context.
PhD Candidate, Oxford Centre for Mission Studies, UK. Research Subject: The Spatial Consciousness of Isaiah 2: A Space-Driven Vision.

Bio

Born and raised in Lebanon to a Lebanese father and a Turkish mother, Walid Zailaa joined ABTS as a theology student in 2007. The desire to study theology was first triggered by the late ABTS president Dr. Ghassan Khalaf who happened also to be Walid’s pastor at that time.

For several years, before joining ABTS, Walid worked in Qatar as a sales and marketing coordinator before moving to Germany where he dedicated his time to study Deutsch.

The desire to study theology at ABTS was compelling and beyond his reach to turn it down. Walid completed his MDiv at ABTS, MTh at IBTS, DMin at Acadia, and recently embarked on a PhD at OCMS. For Walid, this journey would not have been possible without the support of ABTS.

In addition to his involvement at the seminary and appointment as Academic Dean in January 2021, Walid pastors Faith Baptist Church (FBC) in Mansourieh. He is married to Rana Wazir and they both serve at ABTS and FBC.

Areas of Research, Writing, and Teaching

Old Testament, Biblical Theology, Biblical Languages, Biblical Narrative

Publications

Book Chapter

“Leadership Formation in the Mission of God,” in Jonathan Andrews (ed.), The Missiology Behind the Story: Voices from The Arab World (Langham Global Library, 2019).

Blog Posts/ Articles

“Though Ashamed of My Country, I Am Not Ashamed of the Gospel,” January 6, 2022.

“The Re-Modeling of the 21st Century Church into a Business-Like Enterprise: An Unsettling Trend of Ecclesiology,” September 30, 2021.

“Making a Bad Situation Worse: The Ravi Zacharias Scandal and The Temptation to Whitewash Sin,” April 8, 2021.

"It is Ok for Christians to Love Their Country," November 25, 2020.

“Wading Through the Challenges Toward a New Operational Framework,” July 14, 2020.

“The Power of Stories,” June 4, 2020.

“The Power of Having Nothing to Lose,” December 12, 2019.

“Education, Leadership, and Mission: A Critical View in a Critical Age,” January 31, 2019.

“The Story of Ruth in its Revised Version,” April 10, 2018.

"Hope: An Ecclesiological Identity or a Prophetic Act," June 30, 2016.