Fr Simington, a recent graduate of Nashotah House, was required to do two years of further residential seminary training before being ordained deacon, and then another year before being ordained priest, while assisting the chaplain at St John XXIII School. When we compare this preparation period to that of, say, Fr Erdman it is quite lengthy. Why? I think it was because he had not been previously ordained and had very limited parish experience. As you have pointed out, getting an appointment in TEC is quite difficult. There is vast oversupply. So we can assume that a man who found a position relatively recently must have something going for him, and must have some pastoral and administrative skills. I agree that a solid intellectual and spiritual formation is vital for a priest. But the situation of an Ordinariate priest, isolated in many ways and heading a start-up operation, is not typical. Further gifts are required, and successful pastoral experience should not be underestimated.I don't believe, though, that an OCSP priest who came from a normal carer path, TEC seminary through transitional deacon through associate or rector, in TEC is the usual case. Several were swept into early retirement when Bp Lopes came in, probably with very good reason. Others were passed over, with less reason.
We frequently find, instead, men with inchoate moves at the fringes, especially in the later waves of recruitment. And these men, whom I would estimate are at best curate material, are sent out with essentially no supervision or mentoring. The evidence I have from my own e-mails is that Fr Bartus, who by his own admission could not get ordained in TEC or the ACNA, had been inhibited by one ACA bishop and was on a collision course with another, is in frequent communication with some of the weaker men. In the absence of constructive supervision, this is to be expected.
