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March 8, 2008 .................... LCMSNews -- N=
o.
18
Committee publishes docum=
ents
for new pastor category
The Specific Ministry Pastor (SMP) Program Commi=
ttee
has published foundational documents for the program, paving the way =
for
SMP students to begin their studies as early as this fall.
The committee has been meeting to design the det=
ails
of the new pastoral-education program in response to Resolution 5-01B,
"To Establish Specific Ministry Pastor Program," adopted by
LCMS convention delegates last summer.
Available SMP documents are:
- admissions
criteria;
- admission
sequence;
- pastor
supervisor responsibilities;
- covenant
agreement; and
- frequently
asked questions.
An application for admission will be available
online in mid-March.
The documents may be viewed and downloaded on the
Web sites of the Synod's Board for Pastoral Education (www.lcms.org/pastorale=
ducation);
Concordia Seminary, St. Louis (www.csl.edu); and Concordia Theologic=
al
Seminary, Fort Wayne
(www.ctsfw.edu). Or, click
here.
Rev. Glen Thomas, executive director of the Board
for Pastoral Education and chair of the SMP Committee, said the new
program is different from anything the Synod and its seminaries have =
done
in the past.
"The church in convention not only establis=
hed
a new category of clergy, the 'specific ministry pastor,' but also
approved a very innovative way of forming this pastor for service whi=
le
he remains in his ministry context," he said.
A prospective SMP student does not initiate the
application process himself, Thomas noted, but leaders at a site that=
has
a pastoral ministry need -- together with the LCMS district in which =
that
need exists -- nominate the candidate for admission. The candid=
ate
is expected to serve at that site throughout the duration of his SMP
formation program and beyond its completion.
"It is important to remember that this prog=
ram
is mission-driven and mission-focused," said Dr. Andrew Bartelt,
professor and executive vice president of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, a=
nd a
member of the SMP Committee. "Instead of receiving a candi=
date
from the seminary, the seminary receives a student from the field and=
in
the field, raised up from within the ministry setting. He is
already in place to serve while he connects to the pastoral formation
provided by the church."=
SMP students serve as vicars during the first two
years of the program, which includes eight seminary courses. The
courses are completed via distance education under the supervision of=
a
pastor who meets with the student at least three to five hours each w=
eek.
Since each student will serve as a vicar upon
entering the program, "he is required to demonstrate entry-level
competence in seven critical areas before he enrolls in courses or be=
gins
vicarage responsibilities," according to Dr. Lawrence Rast,
professor and academic dean of Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort
Wayne, and an SMP Committee member. "We believe this
requirement is appropriate and that it will not be an obstacle for th=
ose
who desire to serve as specific ministry pastors," Rast said.
After completing the two-year vicarage and eight
courses, the student is eligible to receive a call to serve as a spec=
ific
ministry pastor at his vicarage site.
Once ordained, he completes eight additional
seminary courses over the next two years and remains under pastoral
supervision before he completes the program. The district presi=
dent
then assigns a pastor to provide ongoing oversight of the SMP
graduate. The district president also is responsible for the ro=
ster
status and mobility of the specific ministry pastor.
"I am very encouraged by the design of the =
SMP
program and by the reaction the program received from the LCMS Counci=
l of
Presidents," commented Dr. Warren Schumacher, president of the
Synod's Northwest District and a member of the SMP Committee.
"There has been a wonderful spirit of cooperation between our
seminaries and districts in its development, and we look forward to
continued partnership in the raising-up and equipping of specific
ministry pastors."=
For more information about the SMP program, cont=
act
your district office. To see contact information for LCMS
districts, go to www.lcmsdis=
tricts.org.
****************************************
If you have questions or comments about this
LCMSNews release, contact Joe Isenhower Jr. at joe.isenhower@lcms.org or =
(314)
996-1231, or Paula Schlueter Ross at paula.ross@lcms.org
or (314) 996-1230.
****************************************<=
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