Brief History

Saint Mary Theotokos Seminary (SMTTS) was founded in 2002 in the West Texas city of Lubbock. An agricultural hub with a population of 258,013, according to the last census in 2020. It is a university town, home to Texas Tech University and Lubbock Christian University. It is located in the downtown area in a house-like building, remodeled into offices, a chapel and library.

Originally a theological training center of the Independent Catholic Diocese of Texas, affiliated for years with the Philippine Independent Catholic Church, the Diocese and Seminary now are ministries of the Apostolic Episcopal Church, an Ecumenical Church, with Apostolic Succession from three branches of the Universal Church, the Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Anglican. With a twenty-seven-month, on-line curriculum, including practical training in Liturgics in three, on-campus weekend sessions, Candidates for Holy Orders are prepared for their ordained ministry, in their geographical areas of work and residence.

Tuition Cost

Tuition costs are affordable, at fifty dollars per credit hour, the average course is three hours. Online sessions are bi-weekly, at times scheduled with the professors, and learning is assessed by written, open-book, assignments in essay form. The academic degree granted is a Master of Divinity (M.Div.) Degree in Theology.