Episcopal Diocese of the Central Gulf Coast
May 19, 2021
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Together, we are the body of Christ ~ transforming people from members into disciples, moving more deeply into God's call to life and ministry, and extending our mission beyond the status quo. |
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In this Special Edition Coastline, we are thrilled to share with you how the School for Ministry has expanded to include a lay ministry certification program that encompasses several tracks to meet a variety of missional needs. You'll find an update on the School for Ministry, an introduction to the new lay programs and soon-to-be graduates, an update on the diaconal track of the School, and an announcement on the new Lay Evangelism Licensure Program.
Last week, the Episcopal Diocese of the Central Gulf Coast announced its acceptance into a pilot program focused on Lay Preaching Excellence with the Episcopal Preaching Foundation in this article.
All of these things embody our diocesan vision statement: To transform people from members into disciples, move more deeply into God's call to life and ministry, and extend our mission beyond the status quo!
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School for Ministry Update |
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The 2020-2021 school year has brought many changes and additions to our School for Ministry program offerings. After successfully graduating eight students after three years of study, we expanded our program to include lay ministry certification in three areas: Worship Leader, Lay Preacher, and Pastoral Care. The lay certification program is a ten-month program. We also began a three-year program with two candidates seeking ordained ministry, one diaconal candidate and one who is still in discernment. |
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Due to the expansion of offerings, we moved our base from St. Agatha’s in DeFuniak Springs to St. Cyprian’s Church in Pensacola. We have 23 lay students who will be graduated for canonical certification in their designated ministries on June 12, 2021. We hope to offer this graduation ceremony via live stream since our space will be limited. |
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The motivation for our expansion comes from our own diocesan vision and the reality of the many gifts of the baptized for leadership and care. As some congregations go through transition periods that can last longer than they once did, we hope that our lay ministers will be able to lead during such times and provide much-needed inspiration and care or that they can meld with existing ministries in their churches to assist clergy and other leaders.
This year our lay students have received instruction in Scripture, the Book of Common Prayer, Anglican Identity, Sacraments, Pastoral Care, Voice/Proclamation, Hermeneutics, Homiletics, and a Preaching Consortium. Our three-year candidates seeking ordained ministry have focused on Christian History, Spirituality, and respective Clinical Pastoral Education needs. We are encouraged to find that many of our lay students will come back and study for a different certification next year as their longing for study and preparation has grown. We look forward to their return along with some other possibilities we are considering: cohort groups for more specialized learning topics; offering a certification track for Lay Evangelist; using the knowledge gained from our participation in the Episcopal Preaching Foundation homiletics program to further expand our own lay preaching offerings.
We are excited for our first 23 graduates for lay ministry certification - more on that topic below - and encourage anyone who might be interested in joining us next year to speak to your rector or priest-in-charge. We can then help you with the discernment work needed to get a start in the Fall. If you have any questions, please contact the School dean, Joy Blaylock at joyblaylock@diocgc.org. |
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Have some questions about the lay ministry certifications? Click below to see our most frequently asked questions!
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The Ministries of the Baptized |
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We’ve long since heard these words, affirmed them, but perhaps not really implemented the broad spectrum of what they might mean for our church as a whole. This year in the School for Ministry we set out to change this reality, not because of the pandemic, but because it has been a part of our vision since the inception of our local School for Ministry. I am reminded of a quote from Lesslie Newbigin:
Once again it has to be said that there can be no going back to the ‘Constantinian’ era. It will only be by movements that begin with the local congregation in which the reality of the new creation is present, known and experienced, and from which men and women will go into every sector of public life to claim it for Christ, to unmask the illusions which have remained hidden and to expose all areas of public life to the illumination of the gospel. But that will only happen as and when local congregations renounce introverted concern for their own life, and recognize they exist for the sake of those who are not members, as sign, instrument, and foretaste of God’s redeeming grace for the whole life of society.
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With 23 students who went through discernment and acceptance in the summer of 2020, we have journeyed with these students in “expanding and adding to” the tools with which they already are or will be merging into ministry leadership positions in their local contexts. These students embody what Newbigin prescribes: a people that seek to be a sign, instrument, and foretaste of God’s redeeming grace for the whole life of society.
Given such a prescription, you might wonder, who are these people? Here is a list of our soon-to-be graduates and their parishes:
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*Key to designations:
W=Worship Leader
P=Preacher
D=Dual Worship Leader and Preacher tracks
PC=Pastoral Care
TROY AREA
(P) Joel Williams, St. Mark’s, Troy
(W) Jeffrey Babine, St. Michael’s, Ozark
DAPHNE/MOBILE AREA
(D) Debbie Waldrop, St. Peter’s, Bon Secour
(W) Phyllis Findley, St. Andrew’s, Mobile
(PC) Sue Rollins, Redeemer, Mobile
(D) Ryan Gillikin, Immanuel, Bay Minette
CHIPLEY AREA
(W) Mike Harding, St. James, Port St. Joe
(PC) Mimi Smith, St. Matthew’s, Chipley PC
(W) Van Smith, St. Matthew’s, Chipley
(PC) Nicole Vaughan, TBD
(P) Kay Dennis, St. Luke’s, Marianna
(W) Vicky Patterson, St. Matthew’s, Chipley
(D) Chris Patterson, St. Matthew’s Chipley
PENSACOLA/FWB AREA
(PC) Anita Ford, St. Christopher’s, Pensacola
(PC) Ed Austin, Holy Trinity, Pensacola
(P) Ted Kirchharr, Holy Trinity, Pensacola
(W) Sally Crenshaw, Holy Trinity, Pensacola
(W) Cris Turnage, St. Cyprian’s, Pensacola
(D) Leanne Whalen, Holy Trinity, Pensacola
(PC) Samantha West, St. Simon’s, Fort Walton Beach
MONROEVILLE/BREWTON AREA
(W) Stuart Richeson, St. John’s, Monroeville
(P) Haden Tirey, St. John’s, Monroeville
(D) Salem Saloom, St. Stephen’s, Brewton
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As the above article noted, these students have taken a variety of courses to help further equip them to do specialized ministries in our diocese. Our goal was to help them to develop a deeper and broader appreciation of the riches of our tradition along with newer ideas and support for the challenges facing churches right now.
A particular challenge facing the church is the rise of pastoral care needs. As we have experienced first-hand or read about, many have endured great loss and strain during the pandemic. The church as a whole has tried in varying ways to adapt to these increasing challenges and losses. As a result, we have realized that pastoral care is not just something that clergy do but something to which we are all called.
Given that, we had six students undertake a specialized curriculum that would help them navigate the particular needs of their contexts in becoming Pastoral Care Leaders. Their course of study, led by the Rev. Deacon Clelia Garrity, included:
- The Theology of Pastoral Care
- Pastoral Identity/Pastoral Presence
- Embodied Listening
- Theological themes and reflexivity
- Narrative themes of grief and loss
- Pastoral Care in the times of COVID and Social Unrest
I am grateful for the way the School of Ministry is expanding. It is my deepest desire that we honor the biblical injunction to “go forth and bear fruit." I am excited to see how God will use these gifted persons in their contexts and how these students will become teachers to others who are equally interested in deepening their faith and participation in God’s dream for our world.
Dean Joy Blaylock
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Journey to the Diaconate - Year 1 of a 3 Year Cycle |
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The diocesan school is in the process of educating two students in their journey to the diaconate, Deborah Knight-Epps and Bradford Clark (candidacy undecided). Both of these postulants have demonstrated a deep commitment to their call and an ever-growing eagerness to learn more about the Episcopal Church and the role of the deacon/priest in the church and in the world.
In this first year, we have covered History of the Church from the Year 1000 BC to the Present and Spiritual Development. In our spiritual development class, Brad and Deborah have utilized the Benedictine method of daily reflection as part of centering their prayer life around their calls. A Spiritual Gifts assessment and a deep look at some of the saints and mystics have offered many opportunities to reflect on the gifts of the Spirit and how those gifts have come into the world through the lives of the saints.
In the coming year, we have scheduled the students to take Scripture, The Diakonia, Advanced Pastoral Theology, Homiletics, and Anglican Identity. Brad will take one unit of CPE this fall. Deborah has completed four units of CPE.
The Rev. Deacon Clelia Garrity
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The Rev. Deacon Clelia Garrity |
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Lay Evangelism Licensure Program |
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Through the School for Ministry, the office of Development is offering a Lay Evangelism Licensure Program designed for those who seek to inspire, encourage, and lead the community toward a bolder proclamation of God’s Good News. Students will be equipped to develop and lead evangelism ministries with their congregation or diocese. We will explore evangelism leadership as a spiritual practice, its theological grounding and story-sharing form through an Episcopal framework. We will spend time reflecting on our own stories, how we recognize and respond to God’s action and invitation in the world and live in ways that share Good News. We will experiment with a variety of techniques for sharing and receiving stories, including social media and community service. For our final project, students will design an evangelism opportunity for their context.
What do you mean by evangelism?
Through our Baptismal Covenant, every Episcopalian has vowed to proclaim with our words and our lives the loving, liberating, and life-giving good news of Jesus Christ. Through the spiritual practice of evangelism, we seek, name and celebrate Jesus’ loving presence in the stories of all people – then invite everyone to more. We recognize that God is already actively loving and present in all the world. The world doesn’t need us to bring God to them, but rather to open up the door to more openly share about the work God is already doing and invite people to go deeper in that work. Episcopal Evangelism is less about conversion and more about conversation and invitation.
So, then what is a “Lay Evangelist”?
A better question might be “Who is a Lay Evangelist?” We are all called to the ministry of evangelism but, a lay evangelist is someone who desires to deepen that spiritual practice of evangelism as invitation and outpouring of love, draws others into that practice and then shares it with the community. Our canons describe a lay evangelist as someone who “assists with the community’s ministry of evangelism in partnership with the Presbyter or other leader exercising oversight of the congregation, or as directed by the Bishop.” In other words, a lay evangelist is someone within the community of faith who works with church leadership to mobilize the community in evangelism efforts. A lay evangelist is a catalyst for the faith community, sparking us to reach out, listen and celebrate what God is up to in the broader community, and invites us all to more.
Why would I want or need a license?
You may have noticed you are already gifted in or drawn to the spiritual practice of sharing your faith with others, but you would like more training in theology, community organizing, cross-cultural or digital ministry. You may have the desire to share the Good News with others and listen to their stories but would like to be better equipped in the practice of evangelism. Your church may be interested in incorporating more evangelism in existing or future programs. If this sounds familiar to you, then you should inquire about this program!
Contact the Rev. Lydia Knizley Johnson, Missioner for Development, at lydia@diocgc.org. |
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Coastline is a publication of the Episcopal Diocese of the Central Gulf Coast, published on the 2nd and 3rd Wednesday of each month.
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