This page updated on February 21, 2008

Preparing candidates for active ministry in the Old and Independent Catholic Tradition

Vilatte Theological Seminary

NOTICE: The Vilatte Theological Seminary has been approved by the Missouri Department of Higher Education to operate in the State of Missouri as an exempt proprietary educational program pursuant to Subsection 173.616.2 RSMo.
(June, 2003)

About Vilatte Theological Seminary….

The Vilatte Institute was established on July 2, 1992 as a church to provide religious worship services, to promote Christian living, to promote the Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy and to assist in the establishment of congregations desiring to witness the Christian message in the Catholic tradition.

In order to advance the unity of independent Catholic ministries, the Vilatte Institute promoted the founding of the Ecumenical Catholic Church+USA on November 1, 2001. The ECC+USA is incorporated as a not-for-profit organization in Missouri and serves as an endorsing organization for a growing number of independent Catholic ministries. Currently, there are member ministries (congregations, chaplaincies in Kentucky, Maine, Missouri, Ohio, Illinois, New Hampshire, and Hawaii). The Vilatte Institute is now a member ministry of the ECC+USA. (Please refer to our website at www.ecc-usa.org for details about our beliefs, mission, and ministries.)

In order to train deacons and priests for ministries endorsed by the ECC+USA, the Vilatte Institute established the Vilatte Theological Seminary (VTS) as a mentored, self-paced, Internet facilitated theological studies program. The VTS provides courses that are particularly designed to prepare ECC+USA clergy candidates, lay leaders in this church and other churches which are formally or informally associated with the ECC+USA.

The Vilatte Theological Seminary is a ministry of the Vilatte Institute OCC and as such is owned and operated by the Institute. At present, there is no "physical school" other than a home office located in O'Fallon, MO where the program is organized and facilitated through email communication with the students and mentors/instructors.

Clergy and laypersons who have training or expertise in areas of ministerial studies serve as mentor/instructors for courses related to their expertise.

 

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About our seminary program….

Coursework in our seminary program is limited to those content areas supportive of competencies deemed necessary and appropriate for ordained ministry within our church: Theology, Sacred Scripture, Liturgy, Church Law, Prayer, Preaching, Spiritual Direction, Religious Pedagogy, and Pastoral Management.

Internet Access and E-mail. The VTS program is Internet based and the interchange between instructors and students is handled through email and email attachments. The Internet offers significant opportunities for research in theological studies. Therefore, a student must have and maintain Internet and email access while taking coursework.

Certificates/Degrees. The following certificates and degrees are available to students in our program.

Certificate for the Successful Completion of Deaconate Studies

Certificate for the Successful Completion of Priesthood Studies

Master of Divinity (M.Div.)    (Click HERE for details on the M.Div. program)

Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.)    (Click HERE for details on the D.Min. program)

The requirements for certificates and graduate degrees are listed below.

Credit Hour. While the term "Credit Hour" is used throughout our materials and while we fully intend to approximate the traditional semester hour in amount of content covered in any given course, the nature of our mentor directed self-paced study program will not necessarily approximate the length of a typical semester hour defined program. In fact, we would expect a focused and dedicated student to complete the 32 semester hours course of studies for a deacon in one year and the 32 semester hour course of studies for the presbyter in a second year of study. Research and writing for the M.Div. and D. Min. degrees would add another four to twelve months each.

Prerequisites and Transfer Credit. A Bachelor Degree or its equivalent in total courses or career/work/volunteer related experience is required for admission into this graduate seminary program. Prior coursework will be accepted as transfer credit in certificate and degree programs as appropriate to fulfillment of ministry competencies.

Tuition and Fees. Since the VTS program is designed to prepare ministers for our church, costs to the student will be kept as reasonable as possible and will be based on actual costs to operate a reputable and respected ministry preparation program within the perimeters set by our educational design.

 

 

 

Administration & Faculty

2008

Graduate Course of Studies for the Sacred Order of Deacon.

General Information All course content at VTS is designed to meet the Deaconate and Priesthood ordination requirements of the Ecumenical Catholic Church+USA. + "Transfer Credit" is granted for Courses accepted as fulfilling particular VTS course content requirements. "Experience Credit" may be granted for life or job experience related to course content to a maximum of six (6) credit hours. "Transfer" and "Experience" Credits are not included on "Official Transcripts" unless a "Certificate Program" or Degree program has been completed at VTS. Transcripts for courses accepted as "Transfer Credit" from other institutions are on file. Descriptions of life and/or job experience accepted for "Experience Credit" are also on file. These transcripts and descriptions are not included on or with Official Transcripts.

Grading System: P = Passed (used for all courses transferred into VTS).

E = Excellent (Approximate equivalent to: A+, A) S = Satisfactory (Approximate equivalent to: C, B, A-) U = Unsatisfactory (Equivalent to:F)

Subject Area Display Color Key
(AD) Ministry Admin	(DT) Dogmatic Theology	(SS) Sacred Scripture
(CA) Catechetics	(HO) Homiletics	(TC) Transfer Credit
(CH) Church History	(LI) Liturgy
(CL) Church Law	(MT) Moral Theology	(MD) Master of Divinity
(DR) Directed Reading	(SD) Spirituality	(DM) Doctor of Ministry

1. Sacred Scripture

2. Church Doctrine

3. The Deacon as Catechist

4. The Deacon at Liturgical Rites

5. The Deacon as Homilist

6. Electives

                                                       Total Credit Hours. 32

Masters Degree Program (M.Div):

Thirty-two (32) Credit Hours with a "B" or higher average and a research thesis on a topic mutually agreed upon by the students and the school Graduate degree program committee.

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Graduate Course of Studies for the Sacred Order of Priest

1. Sacred Scripture

2. Church Doctrine

3. The Priest as Sacramental Minister

4. The Priest as Homilist

5. The Priest as Spiritual Advisor

6. The Priest as Pastor

7. Electives

                                                       Total Credit Hours. 32

Doctoral Degree Program (D.Min.):

Sixty-four (64) Credit Hours with a "B" or higher average and a research dissertation on a topic mutually agreed upon by the students and the school Graduate degree program committee.

DM398

Research for the Doctoral Degree (Click HERE for details on the D.Min. program)

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Elective Courses

Transfer Credit for other than specific ministry related coursework and related life experiences.

The following Directed Reading Courses (DRC) may be designed as 1, 2, or 3 credit hours depending upon the extent of readings, research of presentation development.