This website is best viewed with CSS and JavaScript enabled.

Scottish bishops band together to boost full-time ordination training

Posted on: February 19, 2015 4:15 PM
Photo Credit: The Scottish Episcopal Church
Related Categories: Scotland

By ACNS staff

The Scottish Episcopal Church's bishops have this year banded together to appeal to its members to invest in the Church's future.

For this year’s Bishops’ Lent Appeals, all seven diocesan bishops have agreed to support the training and formation of those entering ministerial training in the Scottish Episcopal Church.

2014 saw the creation of the new Scottish Episcopal Institute (SEI), which replaced the former Theological Institute of the Scottish Episcopal Church (TISEC).

The province's statement issued yesterday said that the ethos of the Scottish Episcopal Institute has "a very intentional emphasis on formation – the shaping of a person for ministerial functions and ensuring that the person has sufficient maturity in Christ to carry those functions."

The Rt Revd Kevin Pearson, Bishop of Argyll & The Isles and Convener of the transitional Institute Council was quoted a saying, “We recognise the importance of investing substantially in a candidate’s training and formation, and to equip them as best we can for the wide and varied tasks that they will encounter as they develop their ministry.

“We are already very encouraged by the numbers of potential younger candidates exploring vocation, and funds permitting, we hope to be able to offer full-time training as a possible pathway for some in the future.

“Please give what you can to the Bishops’ Lent Appeal so that we can equip the Church for its future ministry.”

The Scottish Episcopal Church is one of the four Member Churches ministering to the British Isles - the others being England, Ireland and Wales. It has a crucial role in the history of the Anglican Communion as the Church that ordained Samuel Seabury as the first American Episcopal bishop in 1784.