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By Bishop Joey Royal, Principal of the Arthur Turner Training School. ATTS is based in Iqaluit, but serves the entire Arctic through a ground-breaking competency-based distance training program.

The Way Forward for ATTS: Train “Peters” instead of “Pauls”

Back in 2016, when ATTS reopened in Iqaluit, one of the goals was that ATTS would be an education resource for the entire Diocese. Up to now, the focus has been on establishing ATTS in Iqaluit and training on-campus students. We are about to graduate our seventh student since 2016. Praise God.

When the Education Committee met last fall we had a sense that change was coming and change was needed for ATTS. We had a clear sense God was leading us to fulfill this initial vision – that ATTS would be a resource for the entire Diocese. And so, we have decided, for now, to shift away from on-campus training in Iqaluit. Instead, of people moving to Iqaluit to study, we will be bringing ATTS to people where they live!

This is the basis and background to the soon-tobe-launched Deacon Training Program (launching January 2023 in English and September 2023 in Inuktitut). The program will be a combination of meeting online and meeting in-person for two weeks per year in hubs like Iqaluit and Yellowknife. We have identified a number of prospective deacons across the Diocese and registration is now open.

One of the key principles of this training is that it is outcome-based. That means, rather than transplanting a “southern” education model to the north, we began with the needs of the north in mind. Rather than asking “what courses should be in this program” we asked “what skills and knowledge do northern people need to minister within their own context?” From that latter question we developed our outcomes, and then designed a 6 module program that would meet those outcomes.

The relevance of this education model for the north really hit home when, last fall, the education committee had a zoom meeting with the Principal of St. Miletus College in England. St. Miletus opened roughly 15 years ago and has grown exponentially since then. It, too, aimed for a different model in education and ministry training. During that conversation the Principal said: “For a long time now theological colleges have been training “St. Pauls”. Paul was an academic. He had a great education and training, and that’s all good and important, but we decided that we needed to train Peters. St. Peter was a fisherman, and Jesus established the church on him, not on Paul.”

Our thought was: the north is full of Peters! That is to say that the north is full of very practical people, whose intelligence is geared toward results rather than academic study. Not to mention the fact that the north is, quite literally, full of fishermen (and fisherwomen!).

And so we embark, in a matter of months, on this ambitious and exciting new initiative in ministry formation and training. Please pray for us! And if you feel so moved, you can donate to this project through the diocesan office. We are not charging students tuition; we are instead trusting the Lord for his provision to cover the cost of internet, flights to and from hubs, and the printing of materials. The Lord has provided all our needs thus far and we have no doubt he will continue to do so.

Future Arctic News issues will be full of updates about the progress of this program, the different students who are taking it, and some of the lessons we’ll be learning along the way. We’re thrilled at where God is leading us as a Diocese, and believe that even better days are ahead. Praise God for his faithfulness.