The deacon does not witness to a specific call to preach. The church recognizes, on the basis of Scripture and experience, that God calls individuals to lifetime ministry who do not witness to such a specific call, and believes that individuals so called to such ministries should be recognized and confirmed by the church and should meet requirements, and be granted responsibilities, established by the church. This is a permanent order of ministry.
Index: licensed minister
531.2
The deacon must meet the requirements of the order for education, exhibit the appropriate gifts and graces, and be recognized and confirmed by the church. The deacon shall be vested with the authority to administer the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, and to officiate at marriages where the laws of the state do not prohibit, and on occasion to conduct worship and to preach. It is understood that the Lord and the church may use this person’s gifts and graces in various associate ministries. As a symbol of the servant ministry of the Body of Christ, the deacon may also use his or her gifts in roles outside the institutional church. (30.2, 514.9–514.10)
531.3
A deacon candidate professes a call of God to this ministry. The candidate currently holds a district license, and has at one time held a license for not less than three consecutive years. In addition, the candidate has been recommended for renewal of district license by the church board of the local church in which he or she holds membership or by the District Advisory Board. Further the candidate:
- has fulfilled all the requirements of the church for the same,
- has successfully completed a validated course of study prescribed for licensed ministers and candidates for ordination as deacon, and
- has been carefully considered and favorably reported by the Ministerial Credentials Board to the district assembly.
The candidate may be elected to the order of deacon by two-thirds vote of the district assembly; provided he or she has been an assigned minister not less than three consecutive years; and provided further that the candidate must currently be serving in an assigned ministry. In the case of part-time assignment, it should be understood that there should be an extension of the consecutive years of in-service time, depending on their level of involvement in local church ministry, and that their testimony and service demonstrate that their call to ministry is primary to all other pursuits. Further, any disqualification that may have been imposed by a district assembly has been removed in writing by the district superintendent and District Advisory Board of said district; and provided further that his or her marriage relationship does not render him or her ineligible for ordination. (30.1–30.3, 203.6, 320, 527)
531.4
If in the pursuance of his or her ministry, the ordained deacon feels called to the preaching ministry, he or she may be ordained elder upon completion of the requirements for that credential and the return of the deacon credential.
532.1
We recognize but one order of preaching ministry—that of elder. This is a permanent order in the church. The elder is to rule well in the church, to preach the Word, to administer the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, and to solemnize matrimony, all in the name of, and in subjection to, Jesus Christ, the great Head of the Church. (30–30.4, 32, 513–514.3, 514.9–514.10, 536.12)
532.2
The church expects that one called to this official ministry should be a steward of the Word and give full energy through a lifetime to its proclamation.
532.3
An elder candidate professes a call of God to this ministry. The candidate currently holds a district license, and has at one time held a license for not less than three consecutive years. In addition, the candidate has been recommended for renewal of district license by the church board of the local church in which he or she holds membership or by the District Advisory Board. Further the candidate:
- has fulfilled all the requirements of the church for the same,
- has successfully completed a validated course of study prescribed for licensed ministers and candidates for ordination as elder, and
- has been carefully considered and favorably reported by the Ministerial Credentials Board of the district assembly.
The candidate may be elected to the order of elder by two-thirds vote of the district assembly. To be eligible for election, the candidate must have been an assigned minister for not less than three consecutive years, and the candidate must currently be serving in an assigned ministry. In the case of part-time assignment, it should be understood that there should be an extension of the consecutive years of in-service time, depending on their level of involvement in local church ministry, and that their testimony and service demonstrate that their call to ministry is primary to all other pursuits. Further, any disqualification that may have been imposed by a district assembly must be removed in writing by the district superintendent and the District Advisory Board of the district where the disqualification was imposed before the minister is eligible for election to elder’s orders. In addition, the candidate’s marriage relationship must be such as not to render him or her ineligible for ordination. (30–30.4, 203.6, 320, 527)
535
When a member of the clergy desires to transfer to another district, transfer of ministerial membership may be issued by vote of the district assembly, or by the District Advisory Board in the interim of assemblies, in which his or her ministerial membership is held. Such transfer may be received by the District Advisory Board in the interim before the district assembly meets, granting to said minister full rights and privileges of membership on the district on which it is received, subject to final approval of the Ministerial Credentials Board and the district assembly. (203.8–203.9, 223, 228.9–228.10)
535.1
The transfer of a licensed minister shall be valid only when a detailed record of the licensee’s grades in a validated course of study for licensed ministers, properly certified by the secretary of the District Ministerial Studies Board of the issuing district assembly, has been sent to the secretary of the District Ministerial Studies Board of the receiving district. The secretary of the District Ministerial Studies Board of the receiving district shall notify his or her district secretary that the licensee’s record of grades has been received. The minister being transferred shall actively pursue the matter of the reporting of his or her grades in a validated course of study to the receiving district. (230.1–230.2)
535.2
The district assembly receiving a transfer shall notify the district assembly issuing said transfer of the reception of the transferred person’s membership. Until the transfer is received by vote of the district assembly to which addressed, the person thus transferred shall be a member of the issuing district assembly. Such transfer is valid only until the close of the next session following the date of issue of the district assembly to which addressed. (203.8, 223, 228.10)