The Future of Anglican Theological Formation

A Vision for Future Collaboration

This past week, Trinity Anglican Seminary hosted our first Symposium on Anglican Theological Formation, bringing together leaders from across the ACNA to discuss the future of our movement. What follows are my opening remarks, adapted for a broader audience interested in the health and future of Anglican Christianity in North America.

Introduction

While I cannot actually predict the future, I can share the vision that drives our work at Trinity and our hopes for Anglican formation in North America. I speak as someone who cares deeply about the ongoing health and long-term future of the ACNA because -- institutionally -- the future of Trinity depends on a healthy, growing Anglican movement in North America.

We have put all our eggs in the ACNA basket, so to speak.

We want to see the movement flourish because we believe that the Anglican Way is an excellent way to be Christian -- especially in our increasingly shallow and fragmented Evangelical landscape.

What We Mean by Anglican Formation

Let me be clear from the start about what we mean by "Anglican theological formation." We aren't speaking only of theological education in the academic sense.

As I'm sure you realize - We're talking about forming the whole person - heart, soul, mind, and strength, as Jesus instructed in the Great Commandment. And we are talking about forming those who will go on to form others -- whether lay or clergy -- our interest is in forming leaders for the church and its ministries.

Over the next two days, you'll see some of the breadth of what this means. We'll explore seminary education and how the ACNA standards should shape our work, examine formation on college campuses and in Christian study centers, look at parish education from family catechesis to confirmation to fellowship programs, consider diocesan education through catechist training and canonical testing, and discuss continuing education for clergy and for laypersons.

Anglican formation takes many forms across many contexts -- and we care about all of it. Anglican Formation always involves the whole person shaped by the distinctive rhythms and convictions of the Anglican Way - through Prayer Book spirituality, character formation in Christian community, and appreciation for the Reformed Catholicism of the 39 Articles and other formularies.

This kind of formation takes time. It cannot be rushed, and it requires us to work together -- as a Church.

But, before I describe some of the hopes we share at Trinity, I'd like to spend some time talking about the past and the present.

It's important to consider past efforts at theological formation because it provides some clarity on our current situation. Some of you will know this history, but some of you may not.

Our Historical Foundation

So let's start with where we've been:

The Episcopal Church had a network of 11 theological seminaries -- Trinity, founded in the mid-1970s, was part of TEC's theological ecosystem. Among the TEC seminaries, Trinity was the evangelical voice -- we were the subversives working against the grain of a province drifting from Christian orthodoxy.

But the landscape was clear and easy to understand back then: Trinity championed evangelical Anglican formation, Nashotah represented the Anglo-Catholic tradition, and Reformed Episcopal Seminary -- was not part of that ecosystem - they served the REC. There was diversity, but also coherence within a shared Anglican framework.

Our Subversive Mission

In the early years, we knew exactly who we were: evangelical Anglicans forming leaders to renew The Episcopal Church from within. We emphasized orthodox biblical theology, missions, and evangelism. Our strategy was straightforward - inject Spirit-filled evangelical faith into TEC's increasingly liberal trajectory. We were forming leaders to revitalize the Episcopal Church in the hopes that it could be saved.

In many ways, Trinity succeeded beyond the wildest dreams of its founders. Generations of evangelical leaders came through Trinity and now serve as archbishops, bishops, and clergy on every continent besides Antarctica.

But the apostasy and decline of TEC continued despite our efforts. So our greatest achievement was never intended -- Trinity was among the key institutions instrumental in creating a faithful Anglican Province for North America. Our success helped birth the ACNA and launch a global Anglican realignment.

The ACNA Era: Progress and Challenges

When the ACNA was formed in 2009 and we gained ecclesiastical freedom -- we lost something crucial. The ACNA had no established theological ecosystem.

Unlike TEC's established network of seminaries, academic journals, magazines, publishing houses, and large endowed churches providing financial support - the ACNA began with no coherent formation strategy and no network of Anglican institutions dedicated to forming leaders for our province.

The problem was obvious, so the ACNA created a Seminary Consortium, which included Trinity, Nashotah House, Reformed Episcopal Seminary, and several evangelical institutions including Asbury, Gordon-Conwell, Regent College, and Beeson Divinity School.

The deans of these schools met monthly for years to discuss the ordination standards outlined in the ACNA's constitution and canons.

The ACNA Constitution & Canons requires nine comprehensive formational standards for the ordination of a priest - covering Holy Scripture, Church History, Anglican Church History, Doctrine, Liturgics, Moral Theology and Ethics, Ascetical Theology, Practical Theology, and the Missionary Work of the Church. These standards represent the minimum foundation for clergy formation and should shape the way we form clergy and, to some extent, lay leaders. The nine standards are meant to be the foundation of a comprehensive curriculum, which is what Trinity has done with them, as you can see here.

Each month, leaders from the consortium institutions would meet to go carefully through the standards and discuss how they would be integrated into curriculum and implemented in each institution to ensure thorough formation.

In other words, the goal was noble and made good sense in a context with no theological ecosystem.

However, the consortium was -- in my assessment -- mostly unhelpful. Here's why:

1. Non-Anglican institutions could not reshape their curricula -- Those nine standards cannot be met through a four-course track, and non-Anglican seminaries lacked the structural capacity for genuine Anglican formation integrated into their overall curriculum. They neither had the room in their curriculum nor the structure to require sufficient liturgical immersion and instruction.

2. Faculty turnover plagued our partners -- they couldn't maintain qualified Anglican instructors and thus have not been able to keep up a robust Anglican formational track.

3. Many bishops ignored the consortium, often for their own good reasons -- they sent students wherever it seemed best, rendering the work of the consortium largely irrelevant.

4. No real accountability existed for meeting ACNA formation standards. Some dioceses pay close attention to the standards in their ordination processes -- others do not. Some clergy have never heard of the standards -- I know this from experience.

5. The kind of formation we need requires a complete theological ecosystem that involves the whole church and many different kinds of formative institutions -- a consortium of seminaries could never have been enough.

In other words, we need to think much more holistically. Our formation efforts cannot be achieved by seminary courses alone -- which is why collaborative efforts like our recent symposium are so important.

Where We Stand Today

I believe the consortium was a noble effort and an important step along the way -- a lesson learned. But we need to be honest about where we are now -- our efforts have not built the formative network that we need.

Our Current Challenges:

1. Neglected Anglican Standards: Too many new clergy receive insufficient Anglican formation - lacking deep grounding in our liturgical, theological, and spiritual traditions.

2. Creeping Pragmatism: Some dioceses and churches, driven by cultural pressures for success and efficiency, lose sight of proper formational goals. We risk accommodating our culture's impatience rather than forming character through time-tested Anglican formative practices.

3. Fragmented Formation: Too many clergy are being formed not for the whole Province or even an entire diocese, but for particular congregations. It is too easy to receive theological training online or locally and never be required to engage with Anglicans from around the Province or around the world. This is a problem for the ACNA’s claims to catholicity. We are not congregationalists.

4. Structural Incapacity: Many consortium seminaries simply cannot be reliable, long-term partners. They lack the institutional commitment to Anglican formation that our province requires.

5. Increasing Tribalism: As Steve Noll recently observed, without a commitment to unifying institutions, some dioceses have become increasingly extreme versions of themselves. We lack the forces that can pull a healthy province together.

6. Leadership Pipeline Crisis: Without our own theological ecosystem, we cannot effectively identify, form, and deploy leaders. Too many parishes cannot find qualified clergy. The shortage is evident even in attractive positions that should draw strong candidates.

7. Weakening Anglican Institutions: With only 128,000 members, the ACNA cannot sustain multiple competing Anglican seminaries and certainly cannot support 10+ Anglican tracks. As I've suggested to the bishops repeatedly, if we cannot get behind our own institutions, the ACNA will have no Anglican seminaries at all.

Strong institutions are absolutely crucial for provincial health. They require intentional stewarding and will be neglected to the detriment of us all.

Our Assessment: The ACNA is fractured and relatively weak in terms of its formative institutions. We have not yet learned to work together and to support institutions that promote the common good of our province. This is where we are now in terms of Anglican formation for the ACNA.

Trinity's Vision Forward

Among the consortium seminaries, Trinity is the only institution that can serve the ACNA exclusively -- in order to build the kind of unity we need. We don't need to be the only seminary and certainly won't be.

But no other province or tradition has a claim on Trinity’s loyalty. We are devoted to the ACNA -- so our board of trustees -- wisely -- decided that we should take the lead and help the province move beyond some of the weaknesses I mention above.

We are working to build the Anglican Formation Network to encourage and support a robust theological ecosystem for the good of the whole province -- for Trinity and for competing institutions.

For the past three years, Trinity has rebuilt itself to serve the ACNA more effectively. Our Strategic Plan, adopted in October 2023, centers on four goals:

1. Goal 1: Trinity will double-down on Anglican Formation grounded in biblical, prayer book spirituality and Reformation teaching, including Daily Office, Wednesday Eucharist, common meals, fellowship, and witness to Ambridge.

2. Goal 2: Provide robust Anglican Formation via multiple pathways, including our new Church-Based Pathway launching this fall, combining local mentors and instructors in a parish context, online courses through Trinity, and intensive courses in Ambridge.

3. Goal 3: Serve the ACNA as no other seminary can - with complete alignment to the 2019 Book of Common Prayer and thorough integration of all nine ACNA standards for ordination. Our curriculum is entirely tethered to ACNA Standards, and our new Trophimus Center will be a gathering place for an increasing number of meetings focused on topics from great texts, to catechesis to music and liturgy to emotional well-being and resilience and much more.

4. Goal 4: Continue our commitment to Anglican formation globally, building on our historic mission legacy and remaining all-in for the global realignment of Anglicanism.

The Anglican Formation Network Vision

The Lilly Foundation has provided Trinity with a $50,000 planning grant to develop what could become a $10 million initiative - the Anglican Formation Network.

The AFN will have three primary areas of focus:

1. Leadership Pipeline Cultivation

We can't just wait for potential Christian leaders to find us -- we need to build a culture in our churches where far more young people are encouraged to seriously consider Christian vocations. Too many capable people never consider Anglican ministry because they've never encountered focused encouragement or clear pathways to formation.

This initiative will establish regional discernment programs across North America, strategic partnerships with Christian colleges and study centers to identify potential leaders early, pre-seminary preparation programs that begin formation before formal theological education begins, and scholarship support removing financial barriers for promising candidates.

2. Enhanced Clergy Formation Standards

As I’ve already described, the ACNA Constitution requires nine formation standards for ordination, but implementation has been inconsistent across dioceses. Many newly ordained clergy have insufficient grounding in Anglican liturgical, theological, and spiritual traditions.

Our efforts may include comprehensive curriculum development aligned with all nine ACNA standards, assessment tools ensuring consistent preparation across all formation pathways, faculty training programs for diocesan instructors and mentors, and shared digital resources making quality Anglican education accessible everywhere.

3. Integrated Formation Pathways

Knowing how many well-trained clergy and lay leaders are involved in regional parish and diocesan formation, we want to partner with everyone who will work with us to develop a rich and vibrant formational ecosystem.

Key components may include recruiting and training a larger network of adjunct professors and church-based formation mentors, providing substantial scholarship support for both residential and church-based students, connecting church-based and residential students with the broader provincial community, and developing new learning communities which extend formation throughout ministry careers.

We currently have the enthusiastic support of the Provincial office and the majority of bishops in the ACNA. Trinity currently has at least one student either enrolled or in the application process from every diocese in the ACNA except the REC dioceses. We certainly don't need to be the only seminary forming leaders for the ACNA, but we are the only seminary focused exclusively on forming leaders for the ACNA.

Partnership Opportunities

Whether or not we receive full Lilly funding, our symposium represents the beginning of an ongoing effort to build a formational ecosystem for the ACNA. The ACNA has the talent, wisdom, and passion needed - we simply need better coordination and shared resources.

Moving Forward Together

The leaders gathered at our symposium represent Anglican seminaries, diocesan training institutes, study centers, parish formation programs, and fellowship initiatives that are already shaping future leaders. The ACNA is well-gifted for theological formation---it's happening across the province. What we need is better coordination and stronger partnerships.

Here is what Trinity plans to do:

Cultivate Vocational Discernment - Help us change the culture of our churches so that Christian vocation becomes a regular part of the conversation in parishes, programs, and mentoring relationships across the ACNA.

Share Formational Resources - Coordinate our efforts rather than duplicate them. Develop and share curriculum, collaborate on faculty development, and build unity by connecting people with provincial efforts.

Partner in Theological Formation - Send promising leaders for intensive courses, help us test church-based formation models, and join us for future symposiums.

The Anglican Way offers precisely what North American Christianity needs: liturgical richness, biblical orthodoxy, theological depth, and evangelical vitality. But we need strong institutions working together rather than competing for limited resources.

This symposium marks the beginning of something important. The ACNA's future depends not just on numerical growth, but on the quality of leaders we form together.

Paul reminds us in Ephesians that Christ gave gifts "to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God" (Ephesians 4:12-13).

This is our calling - not just to train individual clergy, but to build up the body of Christ through excellent formation that serves His church. The vision outlined here represents more than institutional ambition; it reflects our commitment to the flourishing of Anglican Christianity in North America and beyond.

For those interested in supporting this vision, whether through prayer, partnership, or financial investment, we are ready to serve as a catalyst for the collaborative excellence our movement needs. The future of Anglican theological formation depends not on any single institution, but on our willingness to work together for the common good of Christ's church.

For more information about Trinity Anglican Seminary, visit www.tas.edu. To inquire about the Anglican Formation Network, send an email to our Associate Dean for Special Projects - Dr. Alex Fogleman. Alex can be reached at alex.fogleman@tas.edu.

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