Brief History                   

       Saint Mary Theotokos Theological 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 Costs

       Tuition costs are affordable, at fifty dollars per credit hour, the average course is three hours. Online sessions are weekly or bi-weekly, at times scheduled with the professors.  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.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       The Candidate  may apply for a St. John Vianney Scholarship  or an Anglican Heritage Society Scholarship after he has completed his first semester's coursework, which covers a full year of tuition costs.  These scholarships are based on academic performance, and financial need.    No applicant will be refused admission for  inability to afford tuition.  In such cases,  financial assistance will be provided, with a promissory note  to the Seminary, by the applicant.