Welcome to the Certified Lay Minister (CLM) Candidate Training Program!
Excerpted from the Module 1 Workbook, p. iv-v…
The Certified Lay Minister (CLM) Candidate Program is a vehicle for engaging dedicated laity and church leaders in valuable service to congregations and communities. The fields of involvement are varied and almost limitless: pastoral guidance for congregations, youth leadership, visitation, evangelism, worship and liturgical leadership, mission field-related programs, covenant discipleship, and study group leadership, to name just a few. The arena of mission and ministry is as diverse as the needs in your specific geographic location. The world is truly in need of discovering God’s plan (missio Dei) of loving mercy toward it. We need to discover new ways to present it. You are now an important part of a wonderful opportunity!
The Certified Lay Minister Program will help you, the candidate, understand God’s plan by offering explicit training in biblical concepts accepted by The United Methodist Church and expressed in The Book of Discipline. It will explain our common Wesleyan heritage and our response to the world conveyed by The Social Principles. You will receive guidance and instruction concerning worship practice, preaching skills, faith formation, congregational care, and our connectional structure.
The plan for study has been prepared to cover most aspects of ministry to be encountered by a candidate. You, along with the local church mutual ministry team, will consult and covenant with your district superintendent and/or appointed CLM mentor to engage directly in the ministry of a local church family. Under the direction of the District Committee on Ordained Ministry, you will be supported and encouraged in ways that will enhance your ministry effort and experience. A CLM mentor will be appointed to assist you in this endeavor.
Welcome to this journey! We are excited to journey with you.
Purpose of Module 1 (listed in the Workbook on p.1):
- To provide a basic overview of the call to ministry, theology, and ordering of ministry in The United Methodist Church;
- To explain the role of certified lay minister;
- To support the formation of a mutual ministry team for learning and leading in the congregation;
- To develop a ministry covenant to guide mission.