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| Photograph of stained glass window bearing the seal of St. George Theological Seminary, formerly St. George's School of Theology. Photograph Copyright URRC 2018. |
ROME-RUTHENIA 1 December 2025 (NRom)
In 2010, during a period of renewed growth and academic restructuring, the then-Archdiocese of the Southwest (which later became the Diocese of Rome-Ruthenia) explored an external academic pathway for clergy formation through Trinity School for Ministry in Ambridge, Pennsylvania (now known as Trinity Anglican Seminary). Trinity, an internationally respected Anglican seminary known for its rigorous academics, was firmly evangelical in identity, yet included a strong and active Anglo-Catholic presence. At the time, it represented one of the few accredited North American seminaries willing to engage constructively with smaller traditional jurisdictions.
The pathway was opened through formal correspondence between the Metropolitan of the Southwest (now H.A.H. Pope Radislav I of Rome-Ruthenia) and the Very Rev. Dr. Justyn Terry, then Dean and President of Trinity. In his reply, Dean Terry warmly welcomed seminarians from the Archdiocese's seminary, St. George Theological Seminary (now Pontifical Georgian College). He also affirmed the academic compatibility of the program and noted that Trinity could provide “appropriate field-education placement for these students” in explicitly Anglo-Catholic settings.
While no seminarians ultimately enrolled through this avenue, the arrangement and correspondence reflected the Archdiocese’s ongoing commitment to high academic standards in clergy formation and demonstrated recognition and support by respected external institutions for its evolving clergy-training program.
In retrospect, the 2010 Trinity initiative stands as a small but meaningful chapter in the ongoing development of the Pontifical Georgian College and its predecessors. It also highlights an important historical point: although the Diocese of the Southwest originated within the broader “continuing Anglican” milieu, it had ceased meaningful participation in that movement well before its full canonical restoration in 2008. Under the path established by St. Edwin, the Archdiocese had already moved decisively toward its present Orthodox-Catholic identity long before the later emergence of the United Roman-Ruthenian Church.
Today, the Seminary’s lineage continues through uninterrupted ecclesiastical authority, lived tradition, and spiritual mission entrusted to it. The Trinity correspondence remains a reminder that, even in transitional moments, the Church consistently sought excellence, legitimacy, and faithful formation for her clergy—a commitment that continues unchanged.
