Ministry Apprenticeship Program

The Ministry Apprenticeship Program (MAP) at St. Paul’s Bloor Street offers a fully-funded, immersive experience for young adults who wish to consider a possible vocation in ordained ministry in the Anglican Church of Canada.

Each annual cohort of 3-5 Apprentices will undertake a year-long program that combines service, study, and spiritual formation. Over the course of the MAP experience, Apprentices serve in a rotation through each of St. Paul’s ministry departments, gaining exposure to the diverse set of skills required for vibrant urban ministry—including St. Pauls’ ongoing work to serve God’s mission in Toronto by planting and reviving downtown churches. They also enjoy exposure to graduate-level theological education, one-on-one mentoring from ordained and lay leaders, and training in the holistic spiritual discipline of the SPBS “Rhythm of Life”.

MAP seeks to serve the national and global church by recruiting a new generation of leaders to serve the church of Jesus Christ. Apprentice cohorts are intentionally diverse in their makeup, with the goal of raising up pastors and priests from groups that are currently underrepresented in church leadership. We are committed to bringing a gospel-driven concern for racial and economic justice to the vocational discernment process.

“…with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel”
Philippians 1:27

Discernment requires a community centred around the Bible and reliant on the Holy Spirit. With its deep history of shaping and training future church leaders, the St. Paul’s congregation is an ideal setting for young adults to explore whether God is calling them to service through ordained ministry. As part of this ongoing discernment, Apprentices meet regularly with the MAP Director, both individually and as a cohort, as well as designated sponsors within the congregation. MAP Apprentices also benefit from living in community with the students at nearby Wycliffe College, an evangelical Anglican seminary at the University of Toronto.

“We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us…”
Romans 12:6

The vision of MAP is to provide a space for young adults to discern a possible calling to ordained ministry in the Anglican Church of Canada. We encourage applicants from all backgrounds to apply—SPBS is an exceptionally diverse and growing community, and we want to raise up future leaders who look like the church.

Faith background: Applicants should be able to affirm the historic Christian faith as articulated in the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds. Applicants do not need to be Anglican to apply, but need to be open to serving in the Anglican Church.

Educational requirements: Our goal is to prepare Apprentices to take the next step of seminary education, if they have not already done so. MAP applicants must have completed at least a post-secondary degree (a prerequisite for seminary admissions) prior to starting the program.

Residency requirements: A core part of the MAP formation process is the community life in residence at Wycliffe College, which has single-occupancy rooms only. We regret that we cannot accommodate requests for alternate housing arrangements.

Employment status: MAP is a full-time commitment, and Apprentices should not plan on holding additional employment for the duration of their program. For the inaugural 2023-24 term, Apprentices must be Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or work-permit holders. We hope to be able to open MAP to international applicants in the future.

A commitment to economic justice is a core part of the MAP mandate to raise up a diverse group of leaders for the church. Our intention is that the program be possible for individuals from every economic background. Toward this end, MAP Apprentices receive full room and board for the course of the program (September-August), plus a modest $500/month stipend for living expenses.

Core program expenses are covered by generous donations from the St. Paul’s community. To situate the program within a broader community of support, we also ask Apprentices to secure prayer commitments and financial sponsors for MAP from among their home church communities. MAP will help Apprentices in these efforts by supplying materials describing the program and sponsorship cards for people to indicate prayer and financial support.

A $500 nonrefundable program fee is due upon enrolment into MAP to hold the Apprentice’s space. Apprentices are responsible for their own travel costs to/from Toronto.

St. Paul’s Bloor Street, located in the heart of downtown Toronto, is the largest Anglican church in Canada. It combines the deep traditions of a 180-year history with a vibrant, living, and extraordinarily diverse community of faith that is growing in new ways, especially among the young professionals who live near the church. St. Paul’s strives to offer the best of both contemporary and classical expressions of Anglican worship in its Sunday services, along with Biblical preaching, children’s, and youth ministries. We encourage weekday discipleship through widespread small-group membership and courses like Alpha and Turning to Christ. The “Rhythm of Life”—a set of five spiritual practices that have nourished Christians for centuries—offers a holistic framework for practical discipleship that informs everything that St. Paul’s does.

The inaugural MAP term will run from September 2023–August 2024.

Applications and program timeline:
February 15: Applications open
April 14: Applications close (late applications will not be considered)
Early May: Notification of candidates selected for a Zoom interview
May: Candidate interviews
Late May: Notification of acceptance/waitlist decisions
June 12: Accepted candidates must indicate their decision. A $500 nonrefundable program fee is due upon enrollment in the program.
September 5: MAP term begins

Please contact Tyler Wigg-Stevenson, MAP Director, with any questions.