Guidelines - DCOM PM

Holston Annual Conference District Committee on Ordained Ministry Guidelines: Recommended Process for Those That

Are Seeking Provisional Membership

This material was developed by the Holston Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. Permission is given for other annual conferences to use this material and/or modify it for use in their annual conference. The original format is Microsoft Publisher. For a Publisher file of this document, please contact the Office of Clergy Services: clergyservices@holston.org

Revised March 2021

These guidelines were developed following a conversation with the District Superintendents regarding how the DCOM’s could better determine if a seminarian is ready for recommendation as a Provisional Member.

These guidelines lay out a more involved process/ interaction between the seminarian and the DCOM. One of the comments, in the aforementioned discussion, was that the DCOM does not get to see the paperwork of the person that is recommended for Provisional Membership. The DCOM has to recommend, the paper is written, and the BOM makes a decision on whether or not the candidate has met the readiness criteria.

The process outlined in this document seeks to engage the seminarian in three written question sets that are completed before the seminarian meets with the DCOM. This document assumes that there will be two regularly scheduled yearly January meetings. In addition, it assumes that the DCOM will meet with the candidate in late June/early July after they have completed their second year (or 2/3’s of classes for those on a more than three year track) of seminary. At this meeting the DCOM will make its recommendation for Provisional Membership.

It is hoped that by having the seminarian complete the assigned questions prior to each meeting, that a substantial body of work will be produced to allow the DCOM to more effectively make a recommendation for Provisional Membership.

I offer this to the DCOM’s for their use with seminarians.

Respectfully Submitted, Rev. Terry Goodman Director of Clergy Services

“Preach

the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.”

2 Timothy 4:2

Section 1: Seminarian Progression Timeline and Checklist In the pages that follow, you will find an outline/checklist of the things that must happen as a person progresses towards Provisional Membership in the annual conference. This checklist begins with Pre-candidacy (Year A) an proceeds through the conclusion of the Provisional Membership process. Please note that Year B contains elements of decision making in regards to whether or not the candidate will pursue a seminary track or a local pastor track. Year C onward focuses solely on the assumption that the person is on a seminary track and is ultimately seeking Provisional membership. There is a separate set of guidelines for those that are pursuing the Local Pastor route.

This document should be used with ALL persons as they begin pre-candidacy and be completed with only those that are on the seminary track. Those that choose local pastor track will use a different document.

It is recommended that you enter the calendar year in the blank after each of the YEAR classifications. This will help the DCOM and the seminarian better track the chronology of their progress through this process.

Year A: ____________ •

Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.

-Acts 20:28

•

Pre-candidacy

September-November •

Person has felt a call to ministry

•

Person has discussed call with their pastor

•

Pastor arranges conversation between person and the DS

•

DS enters person into UMCares

December •

DS registers person for Candidacy Summit

Year B: _____________ Candidacy & Track Choice •

January • •

•

February –April •

•

Candidate meets with DCOM to become Certified Once Certified, DCOM informs Office of Clergy Services of the certification At time of certification, DCOM asks Candidate about next steps: • Are you planning to attend seminary?

• If YES: • Which seminary will you attend?

• Recommend to them a United Methodist Seminary • Inform them of the availability of MEF • Report to Office of Clergy Services • If NO: • Recommend that the Certified Candidate attend LPLS • Give Certified Candidate link to LPLS registration

July • •

•

Candidate • Completes Psychological Assessment • Candidate Gets SPPRC Endorsement • Candidate Gets Charge Conference Endorsement

May-June • • •

•

Person attends Candidacy Summit Person Assigned a Candidacy Mentor • Person meets with Mentor in Candidacy Group and works through book

Certified Candidate must have registered for LPLS Certified Candidate should have been in contact with a seminary and sought admission

August •

•

First Weekend of LPLS • Seminary classes begin September •

•

October •

•

Final Weekend of LPLS

November • • •

•

Second Weekend of LPLS

DCOM should send seminarian the interview packet for the upcoming Year C interview.

Certified Candidates that have successfully completed LPLS and met all requirements are eligible to receive license to preach.

DCOM’s at this point should begin to use Local Pastor Track master document with those persons that are seeking to minister via the Local Pastor route.

December •

Seminarian submits interview packet to the DCOM by December 31st.

YEAR C: __________ Completing First Year/Beginning Second Year of Seminary This is a transition year for the manner in which the DCOM will relate to the person. Some will be seminarians and others will be certified candidates that are ready to be given license to preach as a local pastor. The remainder of this document will focus on those certified candidates that have chosen the SEMINARIAN track.

•

•

January-February •

DCOM interview teams are given the seminarian’s interview packet materials.

•

DCOM schedules meeting with seminarian

•

DCOM instructs Seminarian to submit copy of Fall transcript to the Office of Clergy Services and reminds Seminarian to do the same at completion of the Spring term.

Seminarian should: •

Submit seminary transcript to the Office of Clergy Services.

•

If utilizing MEF, seminarian should re-apply for the coming school year.

August •

•

DCOM uses First Year Seminarian Interview Form

June-July •

•

•

Seminarian enters into Year 2 of Seminary

November •

Seminarian receives Interview Packet from the DCOM and is asked to complete packet and submit it to the DCOM by December 31st.

Year D: _____________ Completing Second Year/Beginning Third Year of Seminary •

January-February •

• • • •

April •

•

• • • •

•

•

•

Seminarian must complete Provisional Interview Recommendation Packet and return to the DCOM by May 31st

June– early July •

•

DCOM will send seminarian Provisional Interview Recommendation Packet on April 1st.

May •

•

DCOM members receive Interview Packet from Seminarian and review it prior to seminarian’s meeting with the DCOM FOCUS: This meeting will be the meeting at which the DCOM will begin to talk to the seminarian about Provisional Membership DCOM will remind seminarian to submit copy of transcript to the Office of Clergy Services Seminarian will begin fourth term in seminary.

Seminarian will submit transcript to Office of Clergy Services Seminarian will complete application for MEF for the coming school year.

Seminarian Interview Packet will be given to members of the DCOM interview team.

Seminarian will meet with the DCOM for a Provisional Interview Recommendation meeting.

DCOM will determine if they will recommend seminarian for Provisional Membership (seminarian will have completed 4 semesters of seminary at this point or if on a non traditional (more than three year schedule have completed 2/3 of required seminary classes.)

If DCOM determines that seminarian is on path to meet the READINESS standards, the DCOM will recommend seminarian for Provisional Membership and submit Action Outline AO06: Provisional Membership Recommendation to the Office of Clergy Services.

DCOM will inform Seminarian that there will be a required Recommended Provisional Member Process meeting that will be conducted by the Division of Elders and Deacons on a date to be determined each year.

Late July-Early August •

Provisional Member Process meeting occurs • Provisional Member will be given the Provisional Membership Application packet and will be walked item by item through the packet with instructions and expectations laid out as to how to complete the items in the packet.

•

Seminarian will begin the fall semester.

September –December •

Seminarian will work on Provisional Membership packet and will seek feedback from DCOM Provisional Candidate Mentor on work that is about to be submitted. This is a time for the seminarian to begin forming ideas and putting on paper the answers to the Disciplinary questions.

A DCOM Provisional Mentor will be available to read rough drafts and offer guidance. The seminarian should not wait until the last moment to answer these questions and to produce the required Bible Study. Work should be done in segments and each segment shared with DCOM Provisional Mentor. If seminarian waits until the last minute, then the seminarian will have lost the opportunity to fine tune the document.

Year E: ___________ Final Semester of Seminary •

January •

• • •

February •

• • •

• •

The Divisions will submit the names of those recommended to the full BOM and the BOM will vote on the recommendation. The names of those approved by the BOM will be sent to the Clergy Session for final approval.

May •

•

•

Early in the month on a Monday (usually before the 15th) the BOM will schedule a day on which all Provisional Members (Elder/Deacon) will come to a specified location for an interview with a BOM interview team.

This will be a mandatory event and the person should be prepared to spend the entire day at the interview site.

Upon completion of the interview, persons will be given an exit interview to see how the process worked/ didn’t work for them. Once the exit interview is completed, the person is free to leave.

By Friday of the interview week, the potential Provisional Member will be contacted by the chair of either the Division of Elders or the Division of Deacons. They will be informed of whether they were recommended or not recommended for Provisional Membership.

If the they were not recommended, then a meeting between the seminarian, DS, and Chair of the Division will be scheduled to talk about the specific reason that the seminarian was not recommended.

April •

•

DEADLINE for submission of provisional paperwork to the BOM. (Usually on the Monday nearest to January 6th) This is a FIRM deadline. If seminarian does not submit all of the required paperwork, then seminarian will not be scheduled for an interview and must apply in the following year.

DCOM meeting will focus on affirming the person and praying for them as they await the upcoming interview.

Remind provisional candidate to send transcript to Office of Clergy Services.

At some point during the month there will be a mandatory meeting called The Bishop’s Day Apart. All Provisional, Full Connection and Associate Members will meet for a day long meeting with the Bishop.

Consider this a time for the Bishop to get to know you and hear your stories. It is not a high stress kind of day.

PROVISIONAL CANDIDATE’S MUST SUPPLY A CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT TO THE OFFICE OF CLERGY SERVICES AT LEAST FIVE DAYS PRIOR TO THE CLERGY SESSION OF THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE. THE BOOK OF DISCIPLINE REQUIRES THAT ALL EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS HAVE BEEN MET BEFORE A PERSON IS MADE A PROVISIONAL MEMBER. FAILURE TO SUPPLY THE CERTIFIED TRANSCRIPT WILL RESULT IN YOUR NAME BEING WITHDRAWN FROM THE LIST PRESENTED TO THE CLERGY SESSION AND WILL RESULT IN YOU NOT RECEIVING A VOTE FROM THE CLERGY SESSION AT THIS ANNUAL CONFERENCE.

June • • •

The Clergy Session will meet prior to Annual Conference and will vote on those recommended as Provisional Members.

Those who receive an affirmative vote of the Clergy Session become Provisional Members and will then be commissioned during the upcoming annual conference.

The Provisional journey has just begun.

Section 2 : SEMINARIAN INTERVIEW PACKETS In the section that follows, you will find a series of documents keyed to a specific year and interview. These documents will collect basic contact information on the seminarian to ensure that we can remain in contact with them. The information that they supply should be checked against the information that is in Brick River on them. If there is a difference, then the District Administrative Assistant should go in and update the contact information.

The most important aspect of these packets is that they pose a series of questions to the seminarians. The seminarians must answer these questions in written form and submit them to the DCOM prior to the scheduled interview session. The DCOM will need to specify to each seminarian how (written, electronic, both) the information is to be supplied. In addition, each DCOM should clearly indicate the physical and/ or email address to which the materials should be sent.

Once the materials have arrived, they must then be given to the interview team prior to the scheduled meeting so that the team may review the materials and be prepared to talk with the seminarian about his/her responses to the questions.

These materials were developed in response to a request from the District Superintendents to help the DCOM’s get a better understanding of whether or not a seminarian has met the readiness standard that is required for Provisional Membership. It is hoped that requiring written responses to specific questions will better equip the seminarian to respond to the questions related to their Provisional Membership submissions. In addition, by engaging the seminarian in reflection and discussion on their written materials the seminarian is also prepared for a more rigorous discussion with the BOM. For this process to work, please follow the instructions in the YEAR A-E timeline and send the applicable instructions to the seminarians in time for them to reflect, respond, and return to the DCOM by the assigned date.

It is my hope and prayer that this process will better equip our DCOM’s to assist our seminarians in the process that leads to their becoming Provisional Members of the annual conference.

Please direct any questions, comments, or suggestions to the Office of Clergy Services.

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up .

Ephesians 4:11-12

Use this page to records notes or requirements that might arise from one of the yearly interviews. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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Year C: Seminarian Interview Packet By now, your first semester of seminary is almost over. As members of your DCOM, we know that you are probably gearing up for finals. We pray that this first semester has been a time of growth for you and expanded your knowledge of God and the church and helped you to gain new insights into your faith and your walk with God. In January, you will be coming back before the DCOM for a meeting. This will be the first of a yearly set of meetings that will happen while you are in seminary. In preparation for that meeting, we would like for you to answer the following questions and submit them to the DCOM by December 31st. Members of your January interview team will be given your answers and will talk with you about them in the upcoming meeting.

Don’t look at this in terms of pass/fail. You will pass. Think of this as a time for the DCOM to learn more about you and your seminary journey. Perhaps, the DCOM interview team may even have some words of advice for you, but rest assured they will be praying for you and are there for you as you continue your seminary journey.

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BASIC INFORMATION: Name: _________________________________________________ Best Contact Address: ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ Preferred Phone Number: _____________________________________________ Preferred Email Address: ______________________________________________ Seminary you are attending: _____________________________________________ Are you receiving MEF service loans? ___ Yes ___No Are you a student pastor? ___ Yes ____ No If YES: Name of the Charge: _____________________________________ District:__________________

Annual Conference: ______________________________________ Approximate distance of the Seminary from the Charge:_____________________ Do you reside near the seminary? ___ Yes ___ No

Do you reside in the charge parsonage? ___Yes ___No

Do you reside near the seminary during the week and the parsonage on the weekend? ___ Yes ___ No

———————————————————— Please answer the questions on the following page. You do not need to write a thesis. We are looking for clear and concise answers to the questions. Please type your answers on a separate sheet and include the question prior to your answer.

Please return this sheet and the completed questions to your DCOM by December 31st.

Year C: Seminarian Reflection Questions The following questions are to be answered by all persons: 1.) What have you found to be the most difficult aspect of seminary?

2.) What have you found as your favorite aspect of seminary?

3.) What new thing (idea, concept, practice) have you learned at seminary?

4.) Starting seminary, you had ideas/expectations about what the experience would be like. In what ways has seminary lived up to or not lived up to those ideas/expectations?

5.) In what way is your seminary experience stretching you to grow in your faith?

6.) Briefly describe your spiritual disciplines?

7.) Is there anything other thing you would like to share with the DCOM or that you would like to ask the DCOM?

If you are a student pastor, please answer the following questions.

8.) What are some of the strains that you find as you seek to be in ministry with your congregants while at the same time being a seminary student?

9.) Is there any type of assistance that you feel you need to better equip you for your dual role as pastor/student?

10.) What is the most difficult aspect of being a student pastor?

Year D: Seminarian Interview Packet At this point, you are most likely finishing your third semester in seminary. Finals are looming on the horizon. In January you will meet with your DCOM. At that meeting you will be discussing whether or not you will seek Provisional Membership in the annual conference. Prior to that meeting, the DCOM needs you to respond to the questions in this packet.

There are no right or wrong answers. However, the DCOM may push you for clarity and ask you to expound on your answers. The goal is not to write a thesis, but more than a simple sentence or two will be needed for each of these answers. We are asking you to prayerfully consider your responses and offer your best work in the way that you answer these questions.

In June or July of next year, you will meet with your DCOM to seek their recommendation for Provisional Membership. The manner in which you answer these questions and the questions that come from that second meeting will help the DCOM to determine if you meet the readiness standard that is expected of all persons that seek Provisional Membership in the annual conference.

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BASIC INFORMATION: Name: _________________________________________________ Best Contact Address: ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ Preferred Phone Number: _____________________________________________

Preferred Email Address: ______________________________________________ Seminary you are attending: _____________________________________________ Are you receiving MEF service loans? ___ Yes ___No Are you a student pastor? ___ Yes ____ No

If YES: Name of the Charge: _____________________________________ District:__________________ Annual Conference: ______________________________________ Approximate distance of the Seminary from the Charge:_____________________

Do you reside near the seminary? ___ Yes ___ No

Do you reside in the charge parsonage? ___Yes ___No

Do you reside near the seminary during the week and the parsonage on the weekend? ___ Yes ___ No

Year D: Seminarian Reflection Questions Please type your answers to these questions (be sure to type the question before your answer.) Submit you answered questions along with this sheet to the DCOM by December 31st.

1.) What is your understanding of grace from a Wesleyan perspective?

2.) What is your understanding of baptism from a Wesleyan perspective and how does that differ from other perspectives?

3.) How often should communion be celebrated in the local church?

4.) In what ways has your experience in study and in ministry confirmed or questioned your sense of being called to ordained ministry?

5.) How has your experience of God changed/deepened during your preparation for ministry?

6.) How has your reading (understanding) of the scriptures changed because of your studies?

7.) How has your understanding of the church changed through your studies?

8.) Why does the UMC expect local congregations to support financially the connectional ministries of the church?

9.) What areas of study have you found most challenging? Most helpful? Why? 10.) What have you learned about yourself (through your studies and in your ministry setting) that will be important in your ministry in the UMC?

———————————————— Please note that the DCOM interview team will review these questions and your answers. You will be questioned about your responses. The DCOM, after their discussion with you, may ask that you re-write some of your responses in light of the discussion at the meeting. You need to think of this as a very simplified trial run. Should the DCOM recommend you for Provisional membership later this year, then by the end of the year you will have had to respond to the required Disciplinary questions, developed a Bible Study series, recorded and submitted a sermon in preparation for your interview with the BOM in Year E. If you struggle with the DCOM process, you will struggle with the BOM process. This DCOM process is designed to help prepare you for what will come at the BOM interview stage.

Year D: Provisional Membership Recommendation Interview You are coming to the end of your second year in seminary and it is now time for you to seek a recommendation from your DCOM for Provisional Membership. If you receive that recommendation, you will be entering into an intense process that will involve you responding in writing that typically produces a document between 125-200+ pages. At the same time you will be completing your fifth semester of seminary.

At this interview, the DCOM needs to determine whether or not they feel you have met the Readiness standard. This will have been your third meeting with them since you began your seminary experience. Just two or three months ago, you met with them and submitted a series of answers to some very important questions. Your answers gave them insight into your level of readiness. It is the same with the questions that are a part of this packet.

The DCOM needs your thoughtful response to each of the questions on the next page. Be thorough. If you quote or use a an external source in your answer, then make sure that you properly attribute that source.

Pay attention to grammar. Run a spell checker and grammar check on your submissions. Give them your best work not some half hearted last minute answer. Just so you know, half-hearted last minute answers will not be tolerated if you interview with the BOM next February. The DCOM deserves your best answers as well.

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BASIC INFORMATION: Name: _________________________________________________ Best Contact Address: ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ Preferred Phone Number: _____________________________________________ Preferred Email Address: ______________________________________________ Seminary you are attending: _____________________________________________ Are you receiving MEF service loans? ___ Yes ___No Are you a student pastor? ___ Yes ____ No If YES: Name of the Charge: _____________________________________ District:__________________ Annual Conference: ______________________________________ Approximate distance of the Seminary from the Charge:_____________________ Do you reside near the seminary? ___ Yes ___ No

Do you reside in the charge parsonage? ___Yes ___No

Do you reside near the seminary during the week and the parsonage on the weekend? ___ Yes ___ No

Year D: Provisional Recommendation Interview Questions Please type you response to these questions in a separate document. Please be sure to type each question prior to your answer.

Include this document along with the answers and return to the DCOM by May 31st.

1.) Did you have any rewrites from the previous meeting with the DCOM? Did you submit those rewrites? Have you received feedback from the DCOM on the re-writes? Do you have any questions about that feedback?

2.) What gifts and abilities do you feel that you bring to ministry in the UMC? 3.) What habits or vulnerabilities make your ministry more difficult or your efforts less effective?

4.) Distinguish between the ministry of all Christians and the set-apart ministry of an Elder or a Deacon. What are the distinctive marks of the Order of Deacon and the Order of Elder?

5.) In what ways have you grown in your understanding of the person and work of Jesus Christ?

6.) How will you respond to a parishioner that insisted on the literal accuracy of the Bible?

7.) If you were to establish a new congregation, how would you describe its mission and purpose?

8.) Has your understanding of itinerancy changed or deepened because of your studies? Are you ready to make yourself available to the itinerate ministry?

9.) How do you stay in love with God? 10.) What have you learned about responding to conflict in the local church either through your academic work or through actual experience?

11.) What boundaries are important in working with parishioners and others whom you will serve?

12.) How would you describe the ideal church to which you could be appointed as a provisional member? What is it about such a setting that appeals to you?

13.) How would you describe the church setting, to which you could be appointed, that creates the most anxiety/fear/ trepidation in you? Why does such a setting make you anxious/fearful/trepidatious?

—————— Helpful Hints: The DCOM is looking for thoughtful answers. Don’t be surprised if you end up with ten or more pages. However, thirty or more pages might be overkill to this set of questions. You need to learn a balance in your written responses. Make sure to thoroughly answer the question but don’t go overboard. Learn to find the balance. Such a practice will benefit you in your ministry as well. For instance, you will learn that a sermon has a sweet spot of being too short and being too long. Also, don’t be afraid to quote an external source, but give proper attribution to all those sources. However, don’t make your answers long quotes from someone else. The DCOM wants to know what you are thinking and how you respond.

Section 3: Alternate Seminarian Interview Packets The questions posed in the previous section are drawn from of Fitness, Readiness, Effectiveness Guidelines. They are not the only questions that can be asked. Some have advocated for the use of the actual questions from the Book of Discipline that those applying for Provisional Membership would have to answer.

In the section that follows, is an alternate version of the three interview packets using those questions.

As a DCOM, you should decide which set of questions you are going to use. However, you have the authority to ask whatever questions that you think will help you best understand whether or not the person you are about to recommend for Provisional Membership has met the readiness standards. Keep in mind the concept of fairness.

All candidates should be treated in an equal manner, in as much as is possible. So don’t develop a strenuous set of questions for one candidate and a much easier set for another candidate.

Provisional Questions as Found in The Book of Discipline—2016: What follows are the actual questions that each candidate for Provisional Membership must answer as a part of their submission to the Board of Ordained Ministry. As a DCOM you can use these questions in any manner that you deem fitting. They have been incorporated into the packets that follow. ¶324.9. Each candidate shall respond to a written and oral doctrinal examination administered by the conference Board of Ordained Ministry. The examination shall cover the following: a) Describe your personal experience of God and the understanding of God you derive from biblical, theological, and historical sources. b) What is your understanding of evil as it exists in the world? c) What is your understanding of humanity, and the human need for divine grace? d) How do you interpret the statement Jesus Christ is Lord? e) What is your conception of the activity of the Holy Spirit in personal faith, in the community of believers, and in responsible living in the world? f) What is your understanding of the kingdom of God; the Resurrection; eternal life? g) How do you intend to affirm, teach, and apply Part III of the Discipline (Doctrinal Standards and Our Theological Task) in your work in the ministry to which you have been called? h) The United Methodist Church holds that the living core of the Christian faith was revealed in Scripture, illumined by tradition, vivified in personal experience, and confirmed by reason. What is your understanding of this theological position of the Church? i) Describe the nature and mission of the Church. What are its primary tasks today?

j) Discuss your understanding of the primary characteristics of United Methodist polity. k) Explain your understanding of the distinctive vocations of the Order of Elders and the Order of Deacons. How do you perceive yourself, your gifts, your motives, your role, and your commitment as a provisional deacon or provisional elder in The United Methodist Church? l) Describe your understanding of diakonia, the servant ministry of the church, and the servant ministry of the provisional member. m) What is the meaning of ordination in the context of the general ministry of the Church? n) Describe your understanding of an inclusive church and ministry. o) You have agreed as a candidate for the sake of the mission of Jesus Christ in the world and the most effective witness of the gospel, and in consideration of their influence as ministers, to make a complete dedication of yourself to the highest ideals of the Christian life, and to this end agree to exercise responsible self control by personal habits conducive to bodily health, mental and emotional maturity, integrity in all personal relationships, fidelity in marriage and celibacy in singleness, social responsibility, and growth in grace and the knowledge and love of God. What is your understanding of this agreement? p) Explain the role and significance of the sacraments in the ministry to which you have been called.

Year C: Seminarian Interview Packet By now, your first semester of seminary is almost over. As members of your DCOM, we know that you are probably gearing up for finals. We pray that this first semester has been a time of growth for you and expanded your knowledge of God and the church and helped you to gain new insights into your faith and your walk with God. In January, you will be coming back before the DCOM for a meeting. This will be the first of a yearly set of meetings that will happen while you are in seminary. In preparation for that meeting, we would like for you to answer the following questions and submit them to the DCOM by December 31st. Members of your January interview team will be given your answers and will talk with you about them in the upcoming meeting.

Don’t look at this in terms of pass/fail. You will pass. Think of this as a time for the DCOM to learn more about you and your seminary journey. Perhaps, the DCOM interview team may even have some words of advice for you, but rest assured they will be praying for you and are there for you as you continue your seminary journey.

—————————————————————

BASIC INFORMATION: Name: _________________________________________________ Best Contact Address: ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ Preferred Phone Number: _____________________________________________ Preferred Email Address: ______________________________________________ Seminary you are attending: _____________________________________________ Are you receiving MEF service loans? ___ Yes ___No Are you a student pastor? ___ Yes ____ No If YES: Name of the Charge: _____________________________________ District:__________________

Annual Conference: ______________________________________ Approximate distance of the Seminary from the Charge:_____________________ Do you reside near the seminary? ___ Yes ___ No

Do you reside in the charge parsonage? ___Yes ___No

Do you reside near the seminary during the week and the parsonage on the weekend? ___ Yes ___ No

———————————————————— Please answer the questions on the following page. You do not need to write a thesis. We are looking for clear and concise answers to the questions. Please type your answers on a separate sheet and include the question prior to your answer.

Please return this sheet and the completed questions to your DCOM by December 31st.

Year C: Seminarian Reflection Questions The following questions are to be answered by all persons: 1.) Describe your personal experience of God and the understanding of God you derive from biblical, theological, and historical sources.

2.) How do you interpret the statement that Jesus Christ is Lord?

3.) Explain your understanding of the distinctive vocations of the Order of Elders and the Order of Deacons. How do you perceive yourself, your gifts, your motives, your role, and your commitment as a provisional deacon or provisional elder in The United Methodist Church?

4.) You have agreed as a candidate for the sake of the mission of Jesus Christ in the world and the most effective witness of the gospel, and in consideration of their influence as ministers, to make a complete dedication of yourself to the highest ideals of the Christian life, and to this end agree to exercise responsible self control by personal habits conducive to bodily health, mental and emotional maturity, integrity in all personal relationships, fidelity in marriage and celibacy in singleness, social responsibility, and growth in grace and the knowledge and love of God. What is your understanding of this agreement?

5.) What have you found to be the most difficult aspect of seminary?

6.) What have you found as your favorite aspect of seminary?

7.) What new thing (idea, concept, practice) have you learned at seminary?

8.) In what way is your seminary experience stretching you to grow in your faith?

9.) Briefly describe your spiritual disciplines?

10.) Is there anything other thing you would like to share with the DCOM or that you would like to ask the DCOM?

If you are a student pastor, please answer the following questions.

11.) What are some of the strains that you find as you seek to be in ministry with your congregants while at the same time being a seminary student?

12.) Is there any type of assistance that you feel you need to better equip you for your dual role as pastor/student?

13.) What is the most difficult aspect of being a student pastor?

Year D: Seminarian Interview Packet At this point, you are most likely finishing your third semester in seminary. Finals are looming on the horizon. In January you will meet with your DCOM. At that meeting you will be discussing whether or not you will seek Provisional Membership in the annual conference. Prior to that meeting, the DCOM needs you to respond to the questions in this packet.

There are no right or wrong answers. However, the DCOM may push you for clarity and ask you to expound on your answers. The goal is not to write a thesis, but more than a simple sentence or two will be needed for each of these answers. We are asking you to prayerfully consider your responses and offer your best work in the way that you answer these questions.

In June or July of next year, you will meet with your DCOM to seek their recommendation for Provisional Membership. The manner in which you answer these questions and the questions that come from that second meeting will help the DCOM to determine if you meet the readiness standard that is expected of all persons that seek Provisional Membership in the annual conference.

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BASIC INFORMATION: Name: _________________________________________________ Best Contact Address: ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ Preferred Phone Number: _____________________________________________

Preferred Email Address: ______________________________________________ Seminary you are attending: _____________________________________________ Are you receiving MEF service loans? ___ Yes ___No Are you a student pastor? ___ Yes ____ No

If YES: Name of the Charge: _____________________________________ District:__________________ Annual Conference: ______________________________________ Approximate distance of the Seminary from the Charge:_____________________

Do you reside near the seminary? ___ Yes ___ No

Do you reside in the charge parsonage? ___Yes ___No

Do you reside near the seminary during the week and the parsonage on the weekend? ___ Yes ___ No

Year D: Seminarian Reflection Questions Please type your answers to these questions (be sure to type the question before your answer.) Submit you answered questions along with this sheet to the DCOM by December 31st.

1. ) What is your understanding of evil as it exists in the world?

2.) What is your understanding of humanity, and the human need for divine grace?

3.) What is your conception of the activity of the Holy Spirit in personal faith, in the community of believers, and in responsible living in the world?

4.) What is your understanding of the kingdom of God; the Resurrection; eternal life?

5.) Describe the nature and mission of the Church. What are its primary tasks today?

6.) Describe your understanding of diakonia, the servant ministry of the church, and the servant ministry of the provisional member.

7.) What is your understanding of grace from a Wesleyan perspective?

8.) What is your understanding of baptism from a Wesleyan perspective and how does that differ from other perspectives?

9.) How has your reading (understanding) of the scriptures changed because of your studies?

10.) What areas of study have you found most challenging? Most helpful? Why? 11.) What have you learned about yourself (through your studies and/or in your ministry setting) that will be important in your ministry in the UMC?

———————————————— Please note that the DCOM interview team will review these questions and your answers. You will be questioned about your responses. The DCOM, after their discussion with you, may ask that you re-write some of your responses in light of the discussion at the meeting. You need to think of this as a very simplified trial run. Should the DCOM recommend you for Provisional membership later this year, then by the end of the year you will have had to respond to the required Disciplinary questions, developed a Bible Study series, recorded and submitted a sermon in preparation for your interview with the BOM in Year E. If you struggle with the DCOM process, you will struggle with the BOM process. This DCOM process is designed to help prepare you for what will come at the BOM interview stage.

Year D: Provisional Membership Recommendation Interview You are coming to the end of your second year in seminary and it is now time for you to seek a recommendation from your DCOM for Provisional Membership. If you receive that recommendation, you will be entering into and intense process that will involve you responding in writing that typically produces a document between 125-200+ pages. At the same time you will be completing your fifth semester of seminary.

At this interview, the DCOM needs to determine whether or not they feel you have met the Readiness standard. This will have been your third meeting with them since you began your seminary experience. Just two or three months ago, you met with them and submitted a series of answers to some very important questions. Your answers gave them insight into your level of readiness. It is the same with the questions that are a part of this packet.

The DCOM needs your thoughtful response to each of the questions on the next page. Be thorough. If you quote or use a an external source in your answer, then make sure that you properly attribute that source.

Pay attention to grammar. Run a spell checker and grammar check on your submissions. Give them your best work not some half hearted last minute answer. Just so you know, half-hearted last minute answers will not be tolerated if you interview with the BOM next February. They DCOM deserves your best answers as well.

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BASIC INFORMATION: Name: _________________________________________________ Best Contact Address: ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ Preferred Phone Number: _____________________________________________ Preferred Email Address: ______________________________________________ Seminary you are attending: _____________________________________________ Are you receiving MEF service loans? ___ Yes ___No Are you a student pastor? ___ Yes ____ No If YES: Name of the Charge: _____________________________________ District:__________________

Annual Conference: ______________________________________ Approximate distance of the Seminary from the Charge:_____________________ Do you reside near the seminary? ___ Yes ___ No

Do you reside in the charge parsonage? ___Yes ___No

Do you reside near the seminary during the week and the parsonage on the weekend? ___ Yes ___ No

Year D: Provisional Recommendation Interview Questions Please type you response to these questions in a separate document. Please be sure to type each question prior to your answer.

Include this document along with the answers and return to the DCOM by May 31st.

Did you have any rewrites from the previous meeting with the DCOM? Did you submit those rewrites? Have you received feedback from the DCOM on the re-writes? Do you have any questions about that feedback?

1.) Explain the role and significance of the sacraments in the ministry to which you have been called.

2.) Discuss your understanding of the primary characteristics of United Methodist polity.

3.) How do you intend to affirm, teach, and apply Part III of the Discipline (Doctrinal Standards and Our Theological Task) in your work in the ministry to which you have been called?

4.) The United Methodist Church holds that the living core of the Christian faith was revealed in Scripture, illumined by tradition, vivified in personal experience, and confirmed by reason. What is your understanding of this theological position of the Church?

5.) What is the meaning of ordination in the context of the general ministry of the Church?

6.) Describe your understanding of an inclusive church and ministry.

6.) In what ways have you grown in your understanding of the person and work of Jesus Christ?

7.) How will you respond to a parishioner that insisted on the literal accuracy of the Bible?

8.) If you were to establish a new congregation, how would you describe its mission and purpose?

9.) Has your understanding of itinerancy changed or deepened because of your studies? Are you ready to make yourself available to the itinerate ministry?

10.) How do you stay in love with God? 11.) What boundaries are important in working with parishioners and others whom you will serve?

12.) How would you describe the ideal church to which you could be appointed as a provisional member? What is it about such a setting that appeals to you?

13.) How would you describe the church setting, to which you could be appointed, that creates the most anxiety/fear/ trepidation in you? Why does such a setting make you anxious/fearful/trepidatious?

—————— Helpful Hints: The DCOM is looking for thoughtful answers. Don’t be surprised if you end up with ten or more pages. However, thirty or more pages might be overkill to this set of questions. You need to learn a balance in your written responses. Make sure to thoroughly answer the question but don’t go overboard. Learn to find the balance. Such a practice will benefit you in your ministry as well. For instance, you will learn that a sermon has a sweet spot of being too short and being too long. Also, don’t be afraid to quote an external source, but give proper attribution to all those sources. However, don’t make your answers long quotes from someone else. The DCOM wants to know what you are thinking and how you respond.

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SECTION 4: DCOM INTERVIEW GUIDES In this section are three interview guides that correspond to the three interview packets. These guides are similar to the guides that are found in the 2019 Guidelines that the DCOM uses for yearly interviews with persons for which they are responsible. These guidelines are designed specifically for use with persons in seminary.

Here are some suppositions: •

The process assumes that seminarians follow a traditional 3 year seminary schedule. For those seminarians that choose a longer seminary route, DCOM’s may have to adjust the timeline by putting an extra year between YEAR C and YEAR D. If that is the case, the DCOM could use questions in the Fitness, Readiness, and Effectiveness guidelines as found in the 2021 Supplemental Update and create their own set of questions.

•

It is important that the DCOM have the seminarian respond in a written format prior to each yearly interview. The goal is to help the DCOM learn where the seminarian is in his/her thought process and belief system.

•

It assumes that the DCOM is familiar with the Fitness, Readiness and Effectiveness guidelines (found in 2021 Supplemental Update)

•

Though there may be turn over in DCOM membership, it is important that each year, there be at least one person present on the interview team that was on the previous year’s team. The sight of a familiar face goes a long way toward easing the stress of those being interviewed.

A new element added to this process will be the DCOM Provisional Mentor. At the time that the DCOM recommends a seminarian for Provisional Membership, the DCOM will assign a DCOM Provisional Mentor. (see job description near end of this document). The DCOM Provisional Mentor will work closely with the seminarian as he/she prepares their paperwork for submission. Generally, this will be about a 6-7 month period depending upon when the seminarian is recommended by the DCOM. It is hoped that this mentor and the seminarian will interact on at least a monthly basis. The mentor should be confident enough to read the seminarian materials and offer suggestions. The seminarian needs to be prepared enough to not wait until the last minute to begin writing. Working together on the process will, hopefully, produce a seminarian better prepared to meet the readiness standards.

If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions please direct them to the Office of Clergy Services.

YEAR C: Seminary Student DCOM Interview Guide General Information: •

This is the first opportunity that the DCOM will have to interview the seminarian following the seminarians certification as a candidate and the seminarian beginning to take classes.

•

The focus of this meeting is for the DCOM to talk with the seminarian about his/her experience in seminary and to offer support for the seminarian as he/she continues to complete their classes.

Possible Motion: •

There are no motions to be made at this meeting.

Interview Requirements: Pre-assignment-managed by DS and BOM registrar •

By November 1st—Seminarian will be given the YEAR C: Seminarian Interview Packet

•

By November 30th—the seminarian will be informed of the date and time of the DCOM meeting at which the seminarian is to meet with a DCOM interview team. Please bear in mind starting dates for spring semester as well as possible classes in the J-term when setting this date.

•

By December 31st — the seminarian will have submitted the completed YEAR C: Seminarian Interview packet to the DCOM registrar. Please note, the packets simply state that it is to be submitted to the DCOM. This was left as generic as possible. Each DCOM should include separate instructions as to whom the packet should be submitted.

•

Upon receipt of the packet from the seminarian, the DCOM registrar will send copies to the members of the DCOM team that will interview the seminarian.

•

Prior to the interview, DCOM team members will read the submitted documents and be prepared to ask questions about the seminarian’s responses.

DCOM Interview (Minimum time: 45minutes) After an introduction of team members and an opening prayer, the team will talk with the seminarian about the written responses to the questions that were submitted.

•

The interview team should look for “red flags” that might be raised by responses to the questions.

•

These are more generic questions that don’t focus explicitly on doctrine and theology, but more on how the seminarian is experiencing seminary and growing. Use this as a time to help the seminarian find his/her growing edges and as a time to offer encouragement to the seminarian.

•

The Interview team should help the seminarian understand the process from this point forward

as laid out in the Guidelines. The section of the guidelines that outline the various steps in each of the YEARS A through E should have been shared with the seminarian when he or she was certified as a candidate.

•

Before leaving the interview, the interview team should remind the seminarian: •

Please submit a copy of your transcript to the Office of Clergy Services. The Office will begin a report that is attached to your People Portal on Brick River, the conference database system. The Office will give you instructions on how to find that report. The report will indicate which of the required classes that you need to take to satisfy GBHEM requirements as well as Holston requirements for Deacon and Elder.

•

Remind the seminarian that is their responsibility to ensure that they take all of the required classes and that the seminary does not know of the Holston requirements.

•

Remind the seminarian that their next meeting with the DCOM will be in a year.

•

Remind the seminarian that a copy of their transcript from the Spring semester should be sent to the Office of Clergy Concerns in June.

•

Remind the seminarian that if they seek to utilize MEF service loans, they will need to reply in June/July for the coming year.

•

The interview team should see if the seminarian has any questions and answer them or get answers and report them back to the seminarian.

•

A member of the interview team should close the session in prayer.

YEAR D: Seminary Student DCOM Interview Guide General Information: •

This is the second of three opportunities that the DCOM will have to interview the seminarian before the DCOM must make a recommendation for Provisional Membership.

•

The focus of this meeting is for the DCOM to talk with the seminarian about his/her responses to questions that begin to become more difficult. Specific questions about the Wesleyan view of grace and baptism are asked. Special attention should be paid to these responses.

•

While focusing on grace and baptism, do not neglect the other questions cover other topics that will help the DCOM determine readiness.

Possible Motion: •

There are no motions to be made at this meeting.

Interview Requirements: Pre-assignment-managed by DS and BOM registrar •

By November 1st—Seminarian will be given the YEAR D: Seminarian Interview Packet

•

By November 30th—the seminarian will be informed of the date and time of the DCOM meeting at which the seminarian is to meet with a DCOM interview team. Please bear in mind starting dates for spring semester as well as possible classes in the J-term when setting this date.

•

By December 31st — the seminarian will have submitted the completed YEAR C: Seminarian Inteview packet to the DCOM registrar. Please note, the packets simply state that it is to be submitted to the DCOM. This was left as generic as possible. Each DCOM should include separate instructions as to whom the packet should be submitted.

•

Upon receipt of the packet from the seminarian, the DCOM registrar will send copies to the members of the DCOM team that will interview the seminarian.

•

Prior to the interview, DCOM team members will read the submitted documents and be prepared to ask questions about the seminarian’s responses.

DCOM Interview (Minimum time: 60-75minutes) After an introduction of team members and an opening prayer, the team will talk with the seminarian about the written responses to the questions that were submitted. Please note that a longer time has been assigned to this meeting than to the first meeting. It is expected that some serious discussion of the seminarians answers will ensue •

The interview team should look for “red flags” that might be raised by responses to the questions.

•

Some of these questions deal with specific doctrinal and theological issues. If there is evidence that the seminarian is lacking in his/her understanding of the subject, the DCOM should offer instruction on the matter.

•

The interview team should work through all the questions.

•

The seminarian has been informed that should the interview team deem it appropriate, the seminarian may have to rewrite some of the response to one or more questions and resubmit them to the interview team at a mutually agreed upon date (preferably no more than 4 weeks).

•

If re-writes are required the interview team which requested the re-writes will read the new responses. Feedback will be offered at the beginning of the next meeting of the DCOM unless there are still serious misunderstandings of the topic. If this is so, then specific written guidance as to the error shall be conveyed to the seminarian and the correction should be made as part of the next meeting’s written submission.

•

Before leaving the interview, the interview team should remind the seminarian: •

Please submit a copy of your transcript to the Office of Clergy Services and be sure to check your report on your people portal to ensure that you are on track in completing the required GBHEM and Holston Deacon/Elder requirements.

•

Remind the seminarian that is their responsibility to ensure that they take all of the required classes and that the seminary does not know of the Holston requirements.

•

Remind the seminarian that their next meeting with the DCOM will be in late June/early July and at that meeting, the DCOM will determine whether it will be recommending the seminarian for provisional membership.

•

Remind the seminarian that a copy of their transcript from the Spring semester should be sent to the Office of Clergy Concerns in June.

•

Remind the seminarian that if they seek to utilize MEF service loans, they will need to reply in June/July for the coming year.

•

The interview team should see if the seminarian has any questions.

•

A member of the interview team will close the meeting in prayer.

YEAR D: Recommendation of Seminary Student for Provisional Membership DCOM Interview Guide

General Information: •

This is the final opportunity for the DCOM to interview the seminarian before the DCOM must make a recommendation for Provisional Membership.

•

The focus of this meeting is for the DCOM to talk with the seminarian about his/her responses to questions that begin to become more difficult. The questions continue to stretch the seminarian to think about what he or she has learned and to begin to integrate that learning with real life experience.

Possible Motions: •

I move that (Seminarian Name) be recommended for Provisional Membership in the Holston Annual Conference. (3/4 majority vote of the DCOM is needed.)

•

I move that (Seminarian Name) not be recommended at this time for Provisional Membership in the Holston Annual Conference. (majority vote of the DCOM is needed.)

Specific reasons for not recommending should be stated and included in the seminarian’s DCOM file. A copy of those reasons is to be supplied to the seminarian.

•

I move that (Seminarian Name) be discontinued from the candidacy process (and as a local pastor). (majority vote of the DCOM is required.)

This is a measure of last resort that should only be taken when there is clear and convincing evidence that this person is not qualified to be a minister in the United Methodist Church. If discontinued, the seminarian may seek to come back before the same DCOM at a later date for readmission to candidacy or as a local pastor if the person had been licensed. Taking this action prevents the person from becoming an elder/deacon. It would also prevent the person from serving in the role of a Local Pastor.

Interview Requirements: Pre-assignment-managed by DS and BOM registrar •

By April 1st—Seminarian will be given the YEAR D: Provisional Member Recommendation Interview Packet

•

By May 1st—the seminarian will be informed of the date and time of the DCOM meeting at which the seminarian is to meet with a DCOM interview team.

•

By May 31st — the seminarian will have submitted the completed YEAR D: Provisional Member Recommendation Interview packet to the DCOM registrar. Please note, the packets simply state that it is to be submitted to the DCOM. This was left as generic as possible. Each DCOM should include separate instructions as to whom the packet should be submitted.

•

Upon receipt of the packet from the seminarian, the DCOM registrar will send copies to the members of the DCOM team that will interview the seminarian.

•

Prior to the interview, DCOM team members will read the submitted documents and be prepared to ask questions about the seminarian’s responses.

DCOM Interview (Minimum time: 75-90 minutes) After an introduction of team members and an opening prayer, the team will talk with the seminarian about the written responses to the questions that were submitted. Please note that a longer time has been assigned to this meeting than to the previous meeting. It is expected that some serious discussion of the seminarians answers will ensue.

•

The interview team should look for “red flags” that might be raised by responses to the questions.

•

The interview team shall examine DCOM files and determine if any rewrites were required and if the re-writes were appropriately completed. If there are still issues with the topic of the re-write these should be cleared up before moving on to the remaining questions. Please bear in mind, that this session should not be devoted entirely to the re-writes. If that becomes the case, then serious consideration as to the readiness of the seminarian for provisional membership needs to be discussed.

•

It may be important for the interview team to pay special attention to the last two written questions the seminarian was asked to answer. These questions ask the seminarian to describe the ideal and the not so ideal church setting to which the seminarian might be appointed. Try to look for red flags in these two questions. Does the seminarian have a too idealized view of what a church setting might be? Does the seminarian have too narrow a view of what an acceptable church setting might be? Does the seminarian have unrealistic views of what a church setting, to which the seminarian might be appointed, will be?

•

Inform the seminarian that the DS or member of the DCOM will be in touch within the next 5 days to inform them of the decision of the DCOM regarding recommendation for Provisional Membership.

•

Inform the seminarian that, if recommended, a DCOM Provisional Candidate Mentor will be assigned and that the seminarian and mentor will need to work closely as the seminarian prepares the paperwork for the provisional interviews.

•

Remind the seminarian to continue submitting transcripts to the Office of Clergy Services and to continue checking their required class progress report on their People Portal at Brick River.

•

Close the meeting in prayer.

DCOM Provisional Candidate Mentor Job Description Summary: The DCOM Provisional Candidate Mentor is assigned by the DCOM to work with a seminarian between the time the seminarian is recommended for Provisional Membership and the deadline for submission of materials for the interviews.

Qualifications and Task Descriptions: •

The Mentor should be an Elder or Deacon in Full Connection with the Annual Conference.

•

The Mentor should be someone that is well versed in Wesleyan theology and polity and that has had several years of experience in the parish.

•

The Mentor must be able to commit to at least an hourly meeting each month as the provisional candidate prepares his/her material.

•

The Mentor must be able to read material submitted by the provisional candidate and offer appropriate feedback to help the provisional candidate perfect his/her material prior to submission.

•

The Mentor arranges the time of the initial meeting (within a month of the recommendation). All subsequent meetings will be mutually agreed upon by the Mentor and the provisional candidate.

•

The Mentor is not to be the driving force in this relationship. The Provisional candidate must be the one who sees the need and takes advantage of the opportunity availed through the assignment of the Mentor.

•

The Mentor must be able to encourage the provisional candidate to not wait until the last moment to prepare the materials for submission.

•

The Mentor, after proper encouragement, should not let the last minute preparation of a provisional candidate make undue demands upon the Mentor’s time. The candidate knows the deadline, and should not expect the Mentor to drop everything at the last moment and offer feedback.

•

The Mentor, should be willing to ask the DCOM to find a replacement should it become apparent, to the Mentor, that the provisional candidate is not willing to utilize the Mentor in an appropriate manner to assist the provisional candidate in perfecting his/her material.

•

The Mentor should be willing to lift up the provisional candidate (and if applicable candidate’s family) regularly in prayer.

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