Taras Dyatlik was born into an Evangelical family with eleven children in the western Ukrainian city of Rivne. Raised during the Soviet period, he helped his father with an underground Christian publishing ministry as a child. He received Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior when he was 17. Taras and his wife Natasha were married in 1994, live in Rivne (Western Ukraine), and have two married children.

Taras graduated from Donetsk Christian University (Eastern Ukraine ) in 1997 with a Bachelor of Theology degree and earned his Master of Theology from the Evangelical Theological Faculty (Leuven, Belgium) in the area of the New Testament. Taras has more than 20 years of experience in teaching theology and the New Testament in Eastern Europe. He has served as Teaching Assistant, Librarian, Professor, and Academic Dean of Donetsk Christian University, as Coordinator of the Slavic Research and Resource Center (currently Eastern European Institute of Theology), and then as Director of Educational Development at the Euro-Asian Accrediting Association. He served as a project manager for the production of the Slavic Bible Commentary and now has the same role for the Central Asia Bible Commentary.  He is also a member of the Public Council of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, of the board of the International Council for Evangelical Theological Education, and serves as an Advisory Board member for Theologians Without Borders.

Taras is also involved in ministry at the “Rock” Evangelical Church of Rivne as a preacher, counselor, and Bible teacher. Taras Dyatlik joined Overseas Council in 2011 as the Regional Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, serving our partners in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Moldova, and Central Asia. His passion is to provide mission-minded theological education to fulfill the mission of God in the world.

Educational Background

  • 2002-2005 » Master of Theology and Religious Studies (magna cum laude) from the Evangelische Theologische Faculteit (Leuven, Belgium). Thesis: “The phenomenon of conflation in the textual witnesses of the New Testament: a tentative search for conflation in the Epistle to Galatians” (part of the research project at the ETF) under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Gie Vleugels.
  • 1994-1997 » Bachelor of Theology from Donetsk Christian University (Donetsk, Ukraine). Diploma paper: “The importance of using New Testament Greek in church ministry.”

Professional Background (current)

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Conference participation (not complete yet)

  • Дятлик Т. М. Служитель церкви і властолюбство. Конференція «Релігія після тоталітаризму» : онлайн (12 грудня 2020 р.)

Church Experience

  • Preacher at the Skelya Church (Rivne, Ukraine).

Visiting Professorships

  • Dnepropetrovsk Study Center of Lviv Theological Seminary (Ukraine)
  • IFES-Ukraine Annual Institute (Ukraine)
  • International Baptist Bible College (Rivne, Ukraine)
  • Kharkiv Center of Christian Education (Ukraine)
  • Kuban Evangelical Christian University (Krasnodar, Russia)
  • Kyiv Summer Bible Institute (Kyiv, Ukraine)
  • Lviv Theological Seminary (Ukraine)
  • North-Caucasian Bible Institute (Prokhladny, Russian Federation)
  • Odessa Theological Seminary (Ukraine)
  • Rivne Regional Bible College (Ukraine)
  • Slavic Theological Seminary (Mukilteo, WA)
  • Slavic University of Washington (Renton, WA)
  • Ukrainian Evangelical Seminary (Vinnitza, Ukraine)
  • Ukrainian Evangelical Theological Seminary (Kiev, Ukraine)
  • Vinnitza Regional Bible College (Vinnitza, Ukraine)
  • Yakutsk Bible School (Russian Federation)

Participation in Projects (not complete yet)

  • 2019-present » Seminary and Peacebuilding
  • 2018-present » Seminary and Churchplanting
  • 2009-present » Annual Institute for Excellence for Eastern Europe and Central Asia

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  • 2017-2022 » Project manager of the Central Asian Bible Commentary
  • 2016-2020 » Project manager of the Curriculum Assessment for Eastern Europe and Central Asia
  • 2015-2022 » Vital Sustainability Initiative of theological educational institutions (a qualitative research with ScholarLeader & Overseas Council)
  • 2013-2021 » Project manager of the Ukraine Doctoral Program (in partnership with Overseas Council Int., Eastern European Institute of Theology, State National Pedagogical University of M. Dragomanov, Erasmus+, Evangelical Theological Faculty [Leuven, Belgium]). The list of the graduates of the program: http://e-aaa.org/index.php/research-center-eaaa/nashi-zashchity
  • 2010-2016 » Project manager of the Slavic Bible Commentary. The initiator of the SBC is the Euro-Asian Accrediting Association (http://e-aaa.info). The Editor in Chief of the SBC is the President of the EAAA, Sergey Sannikov.
  • 2005-2007 » Performing qualitative research “What Expectations Do Pastors of Local Churches in the former Soviet Union Have of Higher Theological Education at the Beginning of the 21st Century?” During the course of this research, interviews were conducted with seventy pastors of local evangelical churches in five distinct parts of the former Soviet Union: Western Ukraine, Southern Ukraine, Eastern Ukraine, Southern Russia, and Yakutia (Russia).
  • 2004-2005 » Participating in a project “The Greek New Testament with 7471 textual notes, containing the collation of the four major recensions” (http://bibles.org.uk/gnt.pdf). Published under the same title by “Format Antique” (Rivne, Ukraine)

Languages

  • Ukrainian: mother tongue
  • Russian: writing, reading, and speaking
  • English: writing, reading, and speaking
  • NT Greek: reading

Papers read (not complete yet)

  • 2011 » “Clarifying Expectations of the Church from the Seminary“ \ Summit of six Ukrainian Evangelical Denominations “20 Years of Evangelism: Achievements and Failures” (Polyana, Zakarpattia, Ukraine)
  • 2010 » “What Expectations Do Pastors of Local Churches in the former Soviet Union Have of Higher Theological Education at the Beginning of the 21st Century?” \  Doctoral Colloquium at the Evangelische Theologische Faculteit (Leuven, Belgium)
  • ____ “Clarifying Expectations of the Church from the Seminary” \ Overseas Council Institute for Excellence (Kiev, Ukraine)
  • 2009 » “Worldview: The Lost Dimension of Theological Education in the former Soviet Union” \ Overseas Council Institute for Excellence (Minsk, Belarus)
  • ____ “The Phenomenon of Conflation in the Textual Witnesses of the Epistle to Romans” \ Doctoral Colloquium at the Evangelische Theologische Faculteit (Leuven, Belgium)
  • ____ “What Expectations Do Pastors of Local Churches in the former Soviet Union Have of Higher Theological Education at the Beginning of the 21st Century?” \ A closed conference of the leadership of the 10 theological seminaries and 2 Christian universities with the leadership representatives of the Ukrainian Baptist Union (Kyiv, Ukraine).
  • ____ “Textual Analysis of 1 John 5:18: protects him or protects himself?” \ 2nd Colloquium of the Colloquium Publishing House (Cherkassy, Ukraine)
  • 2008 » “The Phenomenon of Conflation in the Textual Witnesses of the Epistle to Galatians” \ Doctoral Colloquium at the Evangelische Theologische Faculteit (Leuven, Belgium)
  • 2007 » “Autonomy as a Path to Agony: a Possible Response of Evangelical Churches to Theological Schools” \ 1st Ukrainian Baptist Symposium “Are Baptists Autonomous? Relationships of Local Churches and Church Unions” (Kyiv, Ukraine)
  • ____ “Theological Education as an Organic Part of Worship: Biblical Foundations” \ 2nd Theological Forum “Theology in Worship” (Kyiv, Ukraine)
  • ____ “Agony of Theological Education in the former Soviet Union” \ 8th EAAA Conference (Irpen, Ukraine)
  • 2005 » “Textual Analysis of 1John 5:7-8, ‘Comma Johanneum‘” \ Theological Seminar at Donetsk Christian University (Donetsk, Ukraine)

Translations from English into Russian (not complete yet)

  • 2009 » Charles Stanley, RELYING ON THE HOLY SPIRIT
  • 2008 » David M. Levi, WHAT EVERY JEWISH PERSON SHOULD ASK
  • ____ William H. Brackney, AN HISTORICAL THEOLOGIAN LOOKS ANEW AT AUTONOMY (an article)
  • 2007 » Perry W. H. Shaw, TRAINING TO FAILURE, TRAINING TO SUCCESS: THE HIDDEN CURRICULUM OF SEMINARY EDUCATION (an article)
  • 2003 » Donald M. Fairbairn, EASTERN ORTHODOXY THROUGH WESTERN EYES
  • 1999 » David A. Black, USING NEW TESTAMENT GREEK IN MINISTRY

Publications (not compete yet)

  • “The Conflation In The Epistle to Galatians 4:7”. Гілея 134/7 (2018): 216-220. Print.
  • “Meтодологія дослідження конфляції у Посланні до Галатів”. Схід 3/155 (2018): 72-75. Print
  • “Уверенность в спасении: текстологическое сравнение концепций евангельского христианства и православия”. Науковий вісник Національного університету біоресурсів і природокористування України 280 (2018): 147-159. (http://journals.nubip.edu.ua/index.php/Gumanitarni/issue/view/429)
  • “The value of biblical Greek in theology and exegesis of Martin Luther”. Гілея 133/6 (2018): 174-178. Print.
  • “Богословско-экзегетический анализ темы суда в Вечере Господней”. Практична філософія 68 (2018): 103-110. Print.
  • “Expectativas Para a Educação Teológica Na Antiga União Soviética.” A Igreja Do Futuro. Ed. Manfred W. Kohl and Antonio Carlos Barro. Londrina: Descoberta Editora, 2011. 191-225. Print. Other contributors:  Jürgen Moltmann, Bill Fillebrown, Peter Brierley, David E. Ramírez, Riad Kassis, Wilson W. Chow, Bill Houston, Stuart M. Brooking, Jonathan Menezes.
  • “Non-Theological Reflections on Ecclesiastes 7.16-17.” Svychnkyk 1 (2011): 12-13. Print.
  • “God the Father.” Svychnkyk 3 (2010): 4-5. Print.
  • “Does He Who Has Been Born of God τηρει εαυτον or τηρει αυτον?” Theological Reflections 11 (2010): 20-29. Print.
  • “Fasting in the Old Testament.” Svychnkyk 1 (2010): 4-5. Print.
  • “What Expectations Do Pastors and Local Churches in the Former Soviet Union Have of Higher Theological Education at the Beginning of the 21st Century?” Theological Reflections 10 (2009): 97-119. Print.
  • “Israel, Humanity and God the Son in the Fullness of Time.” Svychnkyk 4 (2009): 4-5. Print.
  • “The Desire for Autonomy as a Possible Path to Agony: the Question of the Relationship between Local Congregations and Theological Institutions.” The Local Church Autonomy: First Symposium on Baptist Ecclesiology (6-7 December, Kiev) (Odessa: EAAA, 2009).
  • “Change as the Core of Education.” Dialogue 1 (2001): 9. Print.

Editor of (not complete yet)

  • November 2008 » Collected Papers of “The Second Theological Forum of Evangelical Theological Schools” (Kiev, Ukraine)
  • November 2006 » Collected Papers of the Conference “Christianity and Politics” (Donetsk, Ukraine)