From Chaplain Support to National Formation Leadership, A Timeline of Concordia Clinical’s Growth and Vision.
The story of Anam Cara CPE begins with our parent organization:
Concordia Clinical—founded in 2016 to support chaplains serving in high-pressure, underserved environments. At the time, too many chaplains were doing sacred work in isolation. They had little supervision, few resources, and no structured path for growth. CCI was created to change that.
2016: The Birth of a Mission
Concordia Clinical launched as a mentoring and support initiative—offering reflective supervision and pastoral care for chaplains in the military, healthcare, and nonprofit sectors. We weren’t promoting a single tradition, theology, or method. We were simply committed to one thing:
Support the chaplain. Wherever they serve. However they believe.
2020: Our First CPE Program – Concordia Clinical Institute
(ICPT-Accredited)
As our mentorship work deepened, it became clear that chaplains needed more than support—they needed formal, accredited formation. So in 2020, Concordia Clinical launched its first Clinical Pastoral Education program:
Concordia Clinical Institute, accredited through the Institute for Clinical Pastoral Training (ICPT).
Built around ICPT’s strong healthcare-focused curriculum, Concordia Clinical Institute quickly became one of the largest CPE programs in the nation, serving hospital and hospice chaplains, clergy, and spiritual care providers in clinical environments across the country.
2022: Launching SMSF – Focused Support for Military Chaplains
(CPEI-Accredited)
Recognizing the distinct challenges faced by military chaplains, CCI launched its second CPE program in 2022: The School of Military Spiritual Formation (SMSF)—an intensive, online formation track, accredited by Clinical Pastoral Education International (CPEI).
SMSF quickly became a leading destination for hundreds of military chaplains across all branches, offering CPE in a format that met the realities of service life, deployment, and spiritual leadership in uniform.
2025: SMSF Becomes Anam Cara CPE
As the reach of SMSF expanded, so did the diversity of those enrolling. What started as a program for military chaplains began drawing spiritual caregivers from healthcare, corrections, corporate, and congregational settings.
In 2025, to reflect that broader student base, SMSF was rebranded as Anam Cara CPE.
The name Anam Cara—meaning soul friend—captures the spirit of what we’ve always been:
A formation community for those called to care. SMSF continues today as a subsidiary of Anam Cara CPE, remaining a national leader in military chaplain formation.
2025 (Also): Launching CISF –
An ACPE-Accredited Site
CCI is currently in the process of launching its third CPE program to serve chaplains pursuing
ACPE CPE: The Center for Integral Spiritual Formation (CISF)—a fully online ACPE-accredited
program offering extended-format CPE grounded in integration, depth, and accessibility.
CISF was created not as an alternative to Anam Cara, but as a complement for those chaplains serving institutions requiring ACPE CPE—another doorway for chaplains seeking a different pace, accreditation path, or theological context.
One Mission. Many Paths. One Commitment.
Today, Concordia Clinical serves the chaplaincy world through three distinct programs:
Concordia Clinica – ICPT-accredited, healthcare-focused, intensive format
Anam Cara CPE – CPEI-accredited, interdisciplinary, intensive format
The Center for Integral Spiritual Formation (CISF) – ACPE-accredited, extended format, supporting broad professional certification.
We don’t push one accrediting body over another.
We don’t play favorites.
Because our loyalty isn’t to a system.
It’s to the chaplain.
Wherever you serve, however you’re called—
we’re here to walk with you.
