Iona Collaborative is a cooperative project now directed by Seminary of the Southwest and currently including twenty-four Episcopal Dioceses throughout the country. Iona Collaborative provides high-quality theological education for the formation of priests and deacons in their local diocesan settings, educating a new generation of ordained leaders who for various reasons cannot attend a residential seminary. The core values of the program include Educational Excellence, Local Adaptability, Collaboration, Visionary Leadership, Community, and Transformation.
The IONA School of Ministry in the Diocese of West Texas includes ten weekend sessions per year, where instructors and mentors present rigorous teaching and training. Most of the courses taught in the curriculum mirror similar courses in residential seminaries, requiring students to read and study extensively in the six canonical areas of concentration described below.
Courses are held at the Bishop Jones Center in San Antonio (111 Torcido Dr, San Antonio, TX 78209) in the Chapel House, and normally take place from Saturday at 8:00am to Sunday at 11:30am. Attendance is mandatory for all ten weekend sessions. There are limited accommodations available in the Chapel House for those students unable to acquire accommodations off campus.
Iona Collaborative curriculum is a rigorous, yet accessible educational program designed specifically for those who will be ordained as bi-vocational priests in the Diocese of West Texas. The curriculum has been designed to train and form clergy in a wide variety of subjects. Most of the courses taught in the curriculum mirror similar courses in residential seminaries. They require students to read and study extensively in the six canonical areas of concentration in which a candidate for ordination must be examined and show proficiency.
The curriculum covers intensively the following major areas of focus: Bible, Church History, Theology and Ethics, Anglican Studies, Homiletics, Liturgy and Music, Spiritual Practices, Pastoral Ministry and Offices, Theory and Practice of Ministry, Congregational Life and Leadership, and Multicultural Engagement.
Weekend sessions begin with orientation in September of each year, and usually take place on the first Saturday and Sunday of each month through the following June.
Interested persons should contact their local Parish Priest to begin the formal discernment process toward Ordination in the Diocese of West Texas. This process is outlined on the Ordained Ministry page of the website.
Once the discernment process is complete and permission is granted to begin the IONA program, there is no cost to the student to participate in the IONA School for Ministry.
The faculty of the Iona Collaborative includes most members of the teaching staff at the Seminary of the Southwest, as well as highly experienced teachers and leaders from neighboring dioceses, who in many cases are also ordained and academically-credentialed. They will present their lessons mainly through video recordings that you will access through the seminaries Iona website. The mentors will be both priests and lay from the diocese of West Texas who will be with you throughout the weekend as facilitators and instructors. Students will be required to watch the video lectures and do the assigned reading before the weekend and then the weekend mentor will expand on what they have learned.
Dr. Scott Bader-Saye, Academic Dean & Helen and Everett H. Jones Professor of Christian Ethics and Moral Theology, Seminary of the Southwest
Dr. Anthony Baker, Clinton S. Quin Professor of Systematic Theology, Seminary of the Southwest
Dr. Steven Bishop, Associate Professor of Old Testament, Seminary of the Southwest
The Rev. Mark Crawford, Ph.D., Dean for Priest Formation Iona School for Ministry, Diocese of Texas
The Rev. Mary Lenn Dixon, Ph.D. Dean, Diaconal and Lay Formation Iona School for Ministry, Diocese of Texas
The Rt. Rev. Andy Doyle, Ninth Bishop of Texas Diocese of Texas
The Rt. Rev. Jeff Fisher, Bishop Suffragan Diocese of Texas
The Rev. Micah Jackson, Ph.D., President, Bexley-Seabury, An Episcopal Center for Learning and Discipleship
The Rev. Nathan Jennings, Ph.D., J. Milton Richardson Associate Professor of Liturgics and Anglican Studies, and Director of Community Worship, Seminary of the Southwest
The Rev. Daniel Joslyn-Siemiatkoski, Ph.D., Duncalf-Villavaso Professor of Church History, Seminary of the Southwest
The Very Rev. Cynthia Briggs Kittredge, Th.D., Dean & President, Professor of New Testament, Seminary of the Southwest
The Rev. John Lewis, D.Phil., Director of the Iona Center, Lecturer in New Testament and Spirituality, Seminary of the Southwest
The Rev. Jane Patterson, Ph.D., Associate Professor of New Testament, Director of Community Care, Seminary of the Southwest
For more information, contact the Rev. John Badders, Dean, Iona School for Ministry, Diocese of West Texas.
Email: badders1969@gmail.com
Phone: 210-240-0408
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