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General Conference 2004 |
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General Conference 2004 |
| Rule change speeds process for reaching full clergy status By Melissa Lauber* PITTSBURGH (UMNS) --United Methodists wishing to become clergy can receive probationary status before they graduate from seminary as the result of decisions by the 2004 General Conference. The May 7 decision changes a policy that requires a person to wait until graduation from seminary before becoming eligible for election to probationary membership and commissioning in the annual (regional) conference. Becoming a commissioned minister is a step toward full ordination; it follows graduation from theological school. The denomination's 2000 Book of Discipline requires a candidate for elder's orders to provide a notarized statement detailing any written accusations or convictions for felony, misdemeanor, or incident of sexual misconduct. A General Conference addition to legislation requires candidates to "release required psychological reports, criminal background, credit checks and reports of child abuse." In another piece of legislation, the delegates voted to change Paragraph 317 in the Book of Discipline on probationary service. The vote changes the required "minimum three years of service as a probationary member of the annual conference" to a "minimum of three years following the completion of education requirements for full connection." Delegates defeated a motion to reduce the number of years - from three to two - a person is put on probationary membership of an annual conference. Some delegates argued that the length of time required for a person to become a United Methodist pastor is "off-putting" and discourages people from even beginning the process. Others, like John Edgar of the West Ohio Annual Conference, applauded the church's requirement. "We need three years to know if the people we approve are the ones we want to guarantee for appointment for the rest of their lives," he said. *Lauber is a correspondent for United Methodist News Service. |
