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About Us

Trinity School for Ministry

Our Mission & Vision

Trinity School for Ministry is an evangelical seminary in the Anglican tradition. In this fractured world, we desire to be a global center for Christian formation, producing outstanding leaders who can plant, renew, and grow churches that make disciples of Jesus Christ.

To this end we are forming Christian leaders for mission.

Trinity School FOR Ministry

Our Values

The values that undergird this vision are:

  1. Welcoming evangelical, charismatic and catholic streams: We welcome students and faculty who long for a Church that is evangelical in faith, catholic in order, and Spirit-driven in mission. We have a vital commitment to students from Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) and also to students from The Episcopal Church (TEC) and from other Anglican jurisdictions both in North America and abroad. We also welcome students from other Christian traditions.
  2. Upholding a strong evangelical and Anglican identity: We stand in the great Anglican Evangelical tradition that is rooted in the primacy of the scriptures and the doctrine of salvation by grace alone through faith alone, and which is foundationally expressed in the classic Book of Common Prayer.
  3. Serving the Church faithfully: We are committed to serving the Church by preparing men and women to be leaders for its mission, its renewal, the planting and growth of congregations, and the proclamation of the never-changing truth in an ever-changing world.
  4. Providing excellent teaching and scholarship: We hold high standards of excellence in teaching and scholarship, believing that these will further both personal maturity and practical effectiveness in mission.
  5. Planting deep formational roots in our community: We value the deep formation in Christian ministry that is possible in the residential degree programs of the school.  In addition we believe in being flexible and innovative in providing theological education by extension with a global reach through the internet and off-campus classes and conferences.
  6. Engaging in active discipleship: We believe that the discipleship of the whole person is essential preparation for ministry.  We commit to foster in all our seminarians – men, women, single, married, married with children – spiritual and emotional maturity, integrity, grace, and holiness of life.
  7. Creating lifelong learners: We are committed to building a life-long community of learning among our graduates and other Christian leaders aimed at constantly improving their knowledge and ability as servants of Jesus Christ and His Church.
  8. Trusting God’s provision: We believe that “money follows ministry,” and therefore are accountable to our partners in ministry for careful stewardship of God’s money.  We prayerfully rely on God’s provision and the generosity of His people in providing quality theological education at a reasonable cost for this and future generations.
Trinity School FOR Ministry

Our History & Future

Trinity School for Ministry is an evangelical seminary in the Anglican tradition. In this fractured world, we desire to be a global center for Christian formation, producing outstanding leaders who can plant, renew, and grow churches that make disciples of Jesus Christ. To this end we are forming Christian leaders for mission.

Trinity School for Ministry was born in the renewal movement of the 1970s. In 1975, the Rt. Rev. Alfred Stanway, a retired Australian missionary bishop, answered a call from members of the Fellowship of Witness to be Trinity’s first Dean and President. He moved to the Pittsburgh area and set up an office in his home, using his garage for the library. Bishop Stanway had been recommended by John Stott, J.I. Packer, John Guest, and other evangelical leaders for his vision of renewal and his extraordinary ability to translate this vision into a lively Christian body. He called the Rev. Dr. John Rodgers, a professor and chaplain at Virginia Theological Seminary, to be the senior professor.

Classes began in 1976 with a small faculty and 17 students—none with sponsoring bishops—meeting in rented classrooms at a local college. Two years later, the seminary purchased an empty Presbyterian Church in Ambridge, PA and the abandoned supermarket across the street. These buildings were then converted into a campus. Since that time, the Trinity campus has grown steadily, and the same is true of our residential and distance programs, since more than 250 students are currently enrolled. Our alumni, both lay and ordained, are now spread all over the world, making an enormous difference leading institutions and strategic partnerships on every continent besides Antarctica.  

For many years, Trinity formed biblically faithful leaders for mission within the Episcopal Church and other provinces of the Anglican Communion. Many of those leaders were instrumental in the development of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA), the Global Anglican Futures Conference (GAFCON), and the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches (GSFA). In other words, Trinity’s role in the realignment of global Anglicanism for a future that is biblical, evangelical, and orthodox has been notable and will continue