Crossing continents

Wycliffe Hall enjoys a long-standing collaboration in Cairo with St. Athanasius Provincial Seminary. It’s an exciting time for our Egyptian colleagues as the seminary has recently achieved accreditation status to award its own degrees.

Revd Dr Justyn Terry, Wycliffe's Vice Principal and Academic Dean, picks up the story of the relationship – which began in 2006, when he received an invitation from the Anglican Bishop of Egypt.

"I was teaching at Trinity School for Ministry near Pittsburgh, USA, where the Bishop of Egypt sat in on some of my classes. He asked me to come and teach for him at Cairo cathedral and its seminary. So, I travelled out with my family to take up the opportunity".

From its Cairo hub, Anglican activity has continued to grow. "There is a huge amount now going on", says Justyn. "Refugee outreach, lecture courses in Arabic and English, Christian-Muslim engagement, youth outreach. Theological education and ministerial training has expanded across multiple sites and now attracts students from beyond Egypt."

Notably, the seminary is also attracting Christians from outside the Anglican tradition. "This is thanks to the seminary's excellent reputation", explains Justyn. "Among non-ordinands there is enough common ground - between Coptics, Presbyterians and Anglicans, - for faith-based study to appeal to all comers".

Justyn, who remains a Board member of the seminary and still delivers occasional online teaching, has helped guide the institution through this journey of development.

He reflects: "It has been a joy to bring experience from theological education and previously in the business world to help the seminary improve its organisation and especially its financial reporting and transparency. It has meant that potential donors have had greater confidence to support the work, which in turn played a part in securing accreditation to award degrees."

What has Wycliffe Hall gained from the Cairo relationship?

Justyn reflects: “Wycliffe has an internatioanl vision - we want to help the global church in its work. We've had a Wycliffe graduate go to Cairo to teach some courses, and in future maybe we’ll have Cairo faculty members coming to Wycliffe to take their doctorates. At a personal level, I’ve found this relationship so inspiring! It has given me a much greater appreciation of the worldwide Anglican communion and my teaching and writing and frequently enriched by real-life examples from Egypt".

In April 2024, the seminary gained accreditation to award bachelor’s degrees.

Justyn says: "Wycliffe Hall congratulates St Athanasius Provincial Seminary on all that they've achieved. We greatly value and appreciate the opportunity of our ongoing collaboration and together we look forward to the day when St Athanasius will be able to award degrees at postgraduate level."