Sandy Webb is a seminarian at Virginia Theological Seminary and formerly staff at the Episcopal Church Center.
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“When talking about seminary selection, I have discovered that many people had the same experience that I did. It’s what I have come to describe as a “spoon drop moment.” You do all of your research, you weigh all of your options, and you can’t decide. Then, one day, you’re eating your breakfast cereal, and you drop your spoon and say, “I have to go to ___.”
Each of the Episcopal seminaries is unique, and your overriding criterion should be which of them will be the best fit for you. This is an extremely important decision, but it is also important that we remember the role of divine providence in making this decision. God has a seminary in mind for each of us, and we need to make sure that we’re keeping our eyes, ears and hearts open to what God intends rather than what we personally desire.
When I was searching, I thought that I wanted the strongest possible academic environment. But, what I discovered in my discernment process is that I really needed a place whose primary focus was on formation in the context of Christian community. I needed to let go of my own understanding of what I needed as an intellectual and grab on to what God needed for my formation as a priest.
The balance between academic rigor and priestly formation is an ongoing conversation at all of our seminaries. In a recent Ember Day letter, my bishop suggested to me that he will be concerned when we think we have that question resolved. You may want to ask about this as you visit different seminaries. As young people, recently out of college, with thirty-five or forty years of ministry ahead of us, this question is particularly relevant. However, those circumstances also make it supremely important that we listen to what God wants for us rather than what we want for us.
In looking back on this whole process, in the midst of my second semester at Virginia Seminary, I can tell you with absolute honesty that I have never regretted my decision to follow God’s path rather than insisting on my own. Good luck, and godspeed!”
Cheers,
Sandy Webb
