The establishment of the Faculty of Theology had been provided by law since 1925, when the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki was founded, but was finally realized in 1942.
Since 1964, the Faculty, after modifying its regulation, had its undergraduate studies divided into three different Schools. One of those three Schools, Department of Social Ministry, did not have a successful course due to the low student enrollment. The other two schools a) the School of Theology and b) the School of Pastoral Theology were fully functioning schools for about twenty years, under common administration, a common assembly of the professors and jointly taught courses. Students enrolled in the School of Pastoral Theology had to attend extra courses of Pastoral Psychology, instead of only that of Pastoral Counseling and in the second year a course of Old Testament Exegesis. The Hebrew course was obligatory for only one year.
In 1962, the AUTh Faculty of Theology was the first to organize a postgraduate programme curriculum, which had four different specialization fields up until 1992. It moved then on to a transitional period until 1994, when finally two different Postgraduate Programmes were created by the two Schools.
Under law 1268/82 regarding Universities, the personnel working at the unified Faculty of Theology had to declare their preference for one of the two Schools. This led to the creation of two different General Assemblies, one for each School, and to separate departments in each of them. Both Schools were administratively, as well as academically, independent. Under the Presidential Decree 316 (Government’s Gazette 166/6.10.94) the School of Pastoral Theology was renamed into “School of Pastoral and Social Theology”, without changing its academic domain. According to law 1351/1983, article 6, paragraph 10, “graduates from the Athens and Thessaloniki’s Schools of Pastoral and Social Theology are entitled to assuming positions in Church, General, Technical-Vocational Education”. This specific provision emerged from the fact that in 1982 a School of Pastoral and Social Theology was founded in Athens. This specific School had run, over the period of 1974-1982, several training programmes under various names, while at the same time it was functioning as a single department. On the other hand, Thessaloniki’s Faculty of Theology, since its establishment in 1964, had provided its graduates from both Schools with equal degrees as well as equal professional rights. With Government’ s Gazette 5710/24-12-2020, the Department of Pastoral and Social Theology was renamed Department of Social Theology and Christian Culture.
The Faculty of Theology has a library which emerged from the unification of the prior libraries of the minor designated study areas and libraries of the Faculty, which were situated all over its premises. The library is very rich and organized; there is an Incunabula Department as well as studying areas for the students. Its administration belongs to the Deanery of the Faculty according to AUTH’s Central Library Regulation.
The Faculty of Theology used to publish an academic journal under the name “Yearbook of the Faculty of Theology”. The publication, initially, consisted of a common volume including papers published by the professors of both Schools. Since 1990 it has been published in two separate volumes, one by each School.
Furthermore, the Faculty of Theology is an active member of the Center for Byzantine Research (C.B.R.), which is under the administration of the University’s Senate. C.B.R. consists of five departments (Greek Medieval Literature, Byzantine History, Byzantine Archaeology and Byzantine Law) and is administered by a five-member board of directors, to which the Department of Theology is represented every two years by alternate representatives from the two departments.