If you’re doing ministry outside the box (or thinking about it…), this is for you.
Substack Seminary is for pastors, ministry leaders, and serious Jesus‑people who are:
Trying to share the Gospel in a church system that clearly can’t keep going like this.
Experimenting with new forms of worship, community, and ministry — often on the edges of our ‘day jobs.’
Wondering if there is a way to stay rooted in Scripture and tradition without getting buried under buildings, budgets, bulletins - and politics.
If this sounds like you:
You’re not weird. You’re early.
Our unofficial tagline at Substack Seminary is ‘we’re a home for orphaned weirdo pastors’.
If you feel like somehow the way you’re thinking about ministry and the way you feel about church is not aligned with the traditional denominational and congregational culture we’re experiencing today…
this is the place for you.
We’re ministers - lay and ordained - who are:
Building something outside the institutional box (or inside the institution, trying to build a new ‘box’).
Seeing the changes in the church and already responding creatively.
Ready to name what we do, who we’re trying to reach, and how it gets financially supported.
Longing for real community, and real partners in ministry.
Really want honest, helpful critique of what we’re dreaming of and how to make it a reality.
Substack Seminary may NOT be for you if:
You’re not ready to challenge the traditional church model - or not ready to be challenged yourself.
You don’t have time to devote about five hours a week during Quarters (with time off between) to building your ministry.
You don’t have space to give as much support as you want to receive.
You’re not thinking about how what you’re doing right now as pioneering the Future of Church.
Substack Seminary is not a traditional seminary.
It is:
A community where you don’t have to add a whole paragraph of explanation after you say ‘I’m a ‘cage free’ minister’.
A year-long development, networking, and training community for ministers. We take on one theme per quarter and admit new enrollees four times a year.
A workshop – where you bring the real ministry you’re tinkering with and work on it in public with others.
A formation hub – where you get weekly teaching, questions, and practices that help you grow into the kind of minister needed for the Future of Church.
Where this is headed
As we go, Substack Seminary is becoming a developing pathway into the life and culture of the New American Orthodox denomination - a ‘digitally-centered, in-person worship and practice’ way of being church that is literally being born from the collaborative community we’ve formed here.
If you’ve felt orphaned by the traditional, institutional church model and your’e already dreaming about what comes next - or already building it - this is your place.
You’re not weird.
You’re early.
And now, you’re right on time.
Do more than read along from the sidelines
Become a Substack Seminary paid subscriber to join the conversation.
Our rollicking weekly livestream (hosted by , with co-hosts , , and occasional Substack Seminary Participants), goes in depth on all things ‘Future of Church’ and ‘Cage Free Ministry’
We’re even starting a denomination.
Join live Thursdays at 3:30pm Eastern (we read comments in real time) and get the recording in your inbox on Friday.
Bring your own questions - and where your ministry is ‘stuck’.
If you’re already a paid subscriber, enjoy the Conversation archives…
