Nuts and Bolts

I get asked about the "stuff" behind becoming a minister a lot, so I thought I'd give a quick overview of what, exactly, I'm doing right now. In the United Methodist Church, we have a long and slightly complicated candidacy process. I'm not the only one who gets to decide if this call is the right one for me, it's up to me, God, and various other people along they way. (But really, mostly God.)

So, anyone who is even thinking they are interested in ministry gets to read a fun little book called "The Christian as Minister" which is a nice overview of the duties, areas, and questions around ministry. Then, at some point, in some order, they write the district superintendent of their little area of the world that they are interested in pursuing candidacy. The DS gets very excited about this new little recruit and assigns a mentor to help guide the process.

Janine is my mentor and she's amazing. She's actually a deacon, which is different than an elder in many very confusing but important ways. (In the Methodist church both deacons AND elders are ordained clergy. The head pastor at a church is almost always going to be an elder.) I am on the "elder track" for now, which means I want to be a pastor in a little country church in the middle of Idaho. Anyway, Janine and I met all summer and talked through an impressive workbook as required by the various boards that require these things. She's an invaluable source of knowledge and wisdom. It is SO helpful to have a mentor, because there are a million questions that I needed help sorting out. I ranged from the major "wait, what am I thinking" to the practical "how much vacation time will I be getting?" In talking through everything that got me to this point and all my ideas for the future, I realized that I am heading in to the right call. She will continue to be my mentor for awhile (well, she'll be my unofficial mentor forever, of course) as I continue through this process.

In about a month, I meet with the District Council on Ministries, who will decide if I can continue on to be a certified candidate in ministry. They aren't actually deciding that in a month, I'm just having a preliminary interview. I also get to take a ridiculously long pysch profile to make sure I'm fit, or something. I'm not entirely clear. Sometime this spring they'll vote officially to make me a certified candidate.

Assuming that goes well, I will continue on with seminary. Once I've graduated, I meet with the Board of Ordained Ministry at the conference level. They ask me fun questions, I write essays, it all sounds very exciting. If I meet with their approval, I am then ordaaaai....

Nope, not fully ordained yet. If I get through all that with flying colors, I become a probationary elder. I will be commissioned to a church somewhere in the conference. I believe probationary ministry is about three years. After that I am finally, really, fully, ordained as an elder in full connection.

Lost yet? I usually am. It seems long and complicated, but it also ensures that the right people are heading to the right directions. And really, just because it is a church doesn't mean it is not a crazy bureaucracy too.