the story of Florica Saracut
Florica Saracut was raised in a small mountain village in Romania. “Thankfully, I was raised in a Christian home and attended a Pentecostal church. But we had similar to many peoples’ experiences growing up in the rural South.” Her family later moved to the city of Oradea where she attended high school and college. “Throughout my teenage years and into college I was always involved in church roles, especially Bible studies and music programs.” After graduating from college, she moved to the city of Brasov, where she en- gaged in social work with street children. “Our mission was to place those children in schools, nurture their social life, and, in some cases, even return them to their those who were so vulnerable and in need of our mercy and care.” Following her social work experience, she sensed that she was being called to pursue further education in theology. “My sister was living in Greenville, South Carolina, and her husband was a student at Erskine Seminary,” she explains. “So, with that connection, I enrolled at Erskine. I fell in love with the town, the seminary, and the people. It felt like home to me.”
Saracut’s successful studies at Erskine netted her two degrees—a Master of Arts in Christian Education and a Master of Divinity. She then began pursuing a doctoral degree in education at another institution. Soon after she started her new studies, her life took a surprising turn.
“I traveled back to Romania to visit my family and renew my student visa so that I could continue my studies in the United States,” she recalls. “But due to the international political situation, I was not allowed to return to America. What was supposed to be a ten-day trip turned into over ten years!” Facing the reality that her own educational plans had to be placed on hold, Sara- cut decided to assist in educating others.
“I set out to put my theological training and knowledge of various languages to work for the people of my home country,” she says. She began working with a Christian publishing house, translating English commentaries and books on spiri- tual growth into Romanian. She became editor-in-chief at the Romanian Bible Society, which produced a re- vised version of the Cornilescu Bible, a translation of the Bible into Romanian. “I’m proud of the work I accomplished during that time of my life, and I know God kept me in Romania for that reason, but I became burned out in that role and felt the call to new opportunities.”
When the international political situation changed, Saracut was again allowed to return to the United States. “Through various events and the en- couragement of others, especially for- mer seminary professors, God kept pushing me back to Due West and Erskine Seminary,” she says. “After over a decade on hold, I completed a Doctor of Ministry degree and joined both the faculty and the staff at Erskine Seminary.”
Saracut stays busy these days as an assistant professor as well as in administrative roles at the seminary. She is active at Due West ARP Church, serving as a member of the choir, a member of the Erskine College Out- reach committee, and president of Women’s Ministries. “It’s never a dull day around here,” she says. “I have been blessed with many opportunities to serve this com- munity. I’m glad to be here and feel that God has brought me back home.”
Dr. Florica “Flori” Saracut is Assistant Professor of Christian Education, Director of Seminary Assessment and Effective- ness, and Coordinator of Seminary Outreach at Erskine Seminary. She is an Erskine Seminary alumna, earning a Master of Arts in Christian Education in 2000, a Master of Divinity in 2002, and a Doctor of Ministry in 2020. She is an active member of Due West ARP Church and resides in Due West, S.C.
Florica at the podium in the Founders Room during the seminary dinner.
January/February 2023
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Erskine Seminary
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