In 2022, St Augustine’s Foundation gave an Innovation Grant to enable four students to study theology at the Anglican University of Congo over two years.

What a joy to see them graduate, pictured here with Rev Dr Kahwa Njojo, the Rector from the University.

The students came from 4 Dioceses of Boga, Goma, Kinshasa and Kasaï and graduated with an MA in Theology. The grant was hugely beneficial to these students covering tuition fees, monthly allowances for food, house rent, medical care and books.

We were delighted to give an Innovation grant to enable a team of African Anglican Theological Educators to meet in Kenya in July 2024, for a collaborative consultation on priorities for mission and theological education in the next decade.

This conference was hosted by the Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa (CAPA) and the Commission for Theological Education in the Anglican Communion (CTEAC). It gathered together theological educators from Anglican universities and theological colleges across 11 provinces.

Their focus was on how Anglican theological education in this African context can progress themes raised by the Lambeth Calls from the Lambeth Conference in 2022 and resolutions from ACC-18 in Ghana in 2023. Both events listed specific calls and actions for CTEAC, in relation to theological education design and planning. The Limuru consultation was held as a direct response.

The themes of the conference prioritised by CTEAC were

• Intentional Discipleship,

• Reconciliation,

• Safe Church and Safeguarding,

• Science and Faith &

• Slavery to Freedom.

The keynote address speaker was Prof Esther Mombo, Professor of Theology at St Paul' University, Limuru, Kenya. She challenged the church, asking whether Anglican churches are guilty of the accusation from the Gen Z protests in Kenya, that on the injustices of the government…

“The silence of the Church is too loud”

— Professor Esther Mombo

Sessions were facilitated by a number of contributors, including Venerable Kofi deGraft-Johnson, Canon Dr Stephen Spencer, Professor Esther Mombo, Dr Percy Chinganga, Bishop Alinafe Kalemba, Canon Dr Peniel Rajkumar and Rev Daniel Karanja.

On the last day, the Rt Rev Anthony Poggo, the Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, joined the consultation to commission the participants for the work ahead. He encouraged ongoing collaboration and the swift implementation of action plans. His final prayer was:

“May we be equipped as theological educators and church leaders across the Provinces of Africa. Keep us skilled in what we must do, knowledgeable in what we teach, wise in the leadership we provide and united in love.”

— Rt Revd Anthony Poggo

Since 2021, we have been partnering with Missio Africanus and CMS to enable a total of six students to train in their pioneer leadership training programme.

One student is Jacqueline Abbedu Baffoe: Jacqueline started studying with CMS in 2024 and is the first recipient of a bursary on the new African Christianity undergraduate certificate course. She is originally from The Gambia where she worked for many years with Scripture Union before moving to the USA where she is exploring church planting in her local community.

She writes:

“I have realised that my ministry experience is without appropriate academic rigour. I am confident it is now time for me to pursue some formal theological education to support my experience and help me become a more effective missionary in my current context. Being an African and having worked in African Christian contexts, I am hoping your African Christianity course will help me understand my history and equip me for doing ministry in the western context as an African.”

Another student is Rachel Karanja (see photo above). She has been studying with CMS since 2021 and she graduated from the African Christianity MA last year. She writes:

These scholarships have changed my life; if I hadn’t gotten my scholarship, I might not have continued with my studies. The skills and knowledge I acquired from this course will benefit both the current and future generations. After graduation I intend to become a champion of African Christianity, starting by establishing a cluster to study African heritage and spirituality, as well as write a book about how Africans may recover their cultural identity while inviting Christ to restore its negative aspects.

The Diocese of Mara in Tanzania recently received a grant to run a Church & Community Integrated Training Programme for 168 participants.

This training programme is important for for these clergy and lay people because it helps give them necessary skills to grow self-reliance. Some of the participants have gone on to set up small micro-enterprise groups, having a positive impact on their own personal economic situations and communities.

“Poverty is still a big challenge in our communities. I believe that through this training, things are going to change...the topic of the advantages of micro-economy was very interesting.”

— Neema Magangira, Kibara Parish

The short answer is across the world! We work with theological institutions, dioceses and provinces across the Anglican Communion and are especially keen on receiving applications from areas we have not funded before in the majority world.

This map above gives you an idea of the Fellowship grants given in 2022. But this is just a snapshot as many other grants have been given to a wide range of places over the years. Below is the scholarship grants from last year.

We’d love to hear from new institutions or dioceses who would like to apply for a grant. Get in touch!

The Amos Bible School in the Episcopal Diocese of Ezo, (Western Equatoria Internal Province) in South Sudan received a grant from St Augustine’s to run a theological training course enabling students to outreach to traumatized communities. The course received students from 18 parishes in the Diocese and these students go back to their churches and communities to pass on their skills.

Hear what John Elias Elisama said about this course:

“I am happy that I have been a student of Amos Bible School in the whole of this year. In the time that I spend here, I have learnt new ways of facing challenges that come my way. I have been able to know why my family and community have not been able to move along well. This has changed my way of relating to my family and the people around us. Humility, love, forgiveness, care and peace now rings in my mind all the time. I am also able to understand the importance of living and working in unity with one another. Three of us in ABS come from Bafuka parish, and we have already agreed that once we go back to our Church, we shall work jointly to see that we train at least 10 people for a start who can join us in reaching out to our communities in a number of ways including door to door, open air, visit to places like health Centres, prisons and other places of gatherings. Thank you so much.”

Emmanuel (pictured here with his wife Vicky) is the Principal of Bishop Allison Theological College, Yei in South Sudan. Recently he received a grant from St Augustine’s to complete a masters degree. The topic of his thesis is fascinating and very pertinent:

“The effect of civil conflicts on the development of the church: A Case of the Episcopal Diocese of Yei.”

HIs thesis had three main objectives:

1. Investigating the causes of civil conflicts in South Sudan

2. Assessing how civil conflicts affect the development of the church

3. Examining strategies devised by the Church to maintain its development amidst civil conflicts in South Sudan.

His thesis helps the church and the community to prevent the emergence of civil conflicts after identifying the causes of the conflicts in the society and how it affects the development of the Church and the community so that the church should keep its development awake amidst conflicting civil societies.

Emmanuel pointed out that, “Most researchers focused on the conflicts within the church and how it affects her development and growth; the role of the Church in conflict resolution and peace building. But few research is done on how the external factors influence the affairs of the Church and affects her state of development and growth. In this regard, my study established its foundation from this phenomenon based on the theories of conflict emergence and its effect on the society.”

We have three areas of our grant programme: Scholarships, Fellowships and our Innovation Fund.

The main aim of our grant programme is to support theological education for church leaders, theological educators and students across the world but specifically in the Majority World.

Funding is often one of the biggest barriers to in depth and quality theological study and so have a look at how we can support you, your Diocese, church or Province.

Keila Bichet da Silva Gomes is a Priest and the secretary of the Anglican Diaconry and Development service in Diocese Meridional, Brazil. A grant from St Augustine’s Foundation enabled her to study English at a higher level enabling her to better communicate with the Anglican church globally and with local foreigners and international missions.

She serves in three communities: Missao da Santa Criz, Missao do Bom Pastor and Missao Maria Madelana doing a wide variety of work on top of teaching and lecturing. In one, she works as a University Pastor providing a space for young people of different nationalities. The project aims to serve vulnerable people prone to depressive and suicidal thoughts. Communicating in English in these situations is a vital tool.

Judy is a full-time Lecturer & Dean of Studies in Sabah Theological Seminary in Malaysia. She is also a tutor in the Anglican Training Institute of the Diocese of Sabah and has been teaching in the Sabah Theological Seminary too. She is a licensed Pastor and preaches regularly at All Saints Cathedral in Kota Kinabalu, Sabh as well as in other Anglican & indigenous churches in Malaysia.

A grant enabled her to have a refreshment programme in Ridley Hall, Cambridge and finish her PhD thesis and write a book on worship in the Malay language. It is wonderful to see this photo of her at the Christian Conference Asia this year.