The seminary offered at St. Mary's the Theotokos Church appears to vary from traditional training by an established Orthodox educational institution.
St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary in Crestwood, N.Y., for example, provides a campus-like atmosphere with classrooms and trained professors, said the Rev. Thaddeus Wojcik, a dean of the Orthodox Church of America.
The Rev. Ted Sass, the minister of the Twelve Holy Apostles Orthodox Church in Duluth, which is affiliated with the Greek Orthodox body, said he knows of only two people in the city who would be qualified to teach Orthodox seminary, and neither are affiliated with St. Mary's the Theotokos Church or its school, Romano Byzantine College.
After reviewing the school's online catalog, Sass said the school seems to offer some courses that "loosely resemble a typical Orthodox Christian seminary program for preparation leading to ordination."
"But it's also missing a whole lot," he said. "For example, they are missing sections of pastoral theology, liturgical studies and church history."
