Index: local church board

503.3

The local church board may issue to each lay minister candidate a certificate signed by the pastor and the secretary of the church board.

503.4

The certificate of the lay minister may be renewed annually by the church board upon the recommendation of the pastor, if the lay minister has completed at least two subjects in the lay ministry educational program as outlined by the Continuing Lay Training. The lay minister shall report annually to the church board.

511

A member of the Church of the Nazarene who feels called to the ministry of music may be commissioned as a minister of music for one year by the district assembly, provided such person:

  1. has been recommended for such work by the church board of the local church in which membership is held;
  2. gives evidence of grace, gifts, and usefulness;
  3. has had at least one year of experience in music ministry;
  4. has had not less than one year of vocal study under an accredited teacher and is pursuing a validated course of study or its equivalent prescribed for ministers of music or has completed the same;
  5. is regularly engaged as a minister of music; and
  6. has been carefully examined, under the direction of the district assembly of the assembly district within the bounds of which the person holds his or her church membership, regarding his or her intellectual and spiritual qualifications, and general fitness for such work. (203.10)

515.15

The pastor shall be, ex-officio, president of the local church, chairperson of the church board, and a member of all elected and standing boards and committees of the church he or she serves. The pastor shall have access to all records of the local church. (127, 145, 150, 152, 153.1)

529

A local minister is a lay member of the Church of the Nazarene whom the local church board has licensed for ministry, under the pastor’s direction, and as opportunity affords, thus providing for the demonstration, employment, and development of ministerial gifts and usefulness. He or she is entering into a process of lifelong learning.

529.1

Any member of the Church of the Nazarene who feels called of God to preach or to pursue lifetime ministry through the church may be licensed as a local minister for one year by the church board of a local church having an ordained minister as pastor, upon the pastor’s recommendation; or by the church board of a local church not having an ordained minister as pastor, if the granting of license is recommended by the pastor and approved by the district superintendent. The candidate must first be examined as to his or her personal experience of salvation, knowledge of the doctrines of the Bible, and the order of the church; he or she must also demonstrate that the call is evidenced by grace, gifts, and usefulness. A local minister shall make a report to the local church at its annual church meetings. (113.9, 129.12, 208.12)

529.2

The church board shall issue to each local minister a license signed by the pastor and the secretary of the church board. Where a church is supplied by a person who does not have a district license, that person may be issued a local minister’s license, or the renewal of license, by the District Advisory Board upon the recommendation of the district superintendent. (208.12, 222.11)

529.3

The license of a local minister may be renewed by a local church board having an elder as pastor, upon the recommendation of the pastor; or renewed by a local church board not having an elder as pastor, provided that the renewal of license is recommended by the pastor and approved by the district superintendent. (129.12, 208.12)

530.1

When members of the Church of the Nazarene acknowledge a call to a lifetime of ministry, they may be licensed as ministers by the district assembly provided they:

  1. have held a local minister’s license for one full year;
  2. have completed one-fourth of a validated course of study for ministers, or have passed the Nazarene history and polity courses and five additional courses in a validated course of study for ministers;
  3. have been recommended for such work by the church board of the local church of which they are members, to which recommendation shall be attached the Application for Minister’s License carefully filled in;
  4. have given evidence of grace, gifts, and usefulness;
  5. have been carefully examined, under the direction of the district assembly of the district within the bounds of which they hold their church membership, regarding their spiritual, intellectual, and other fitness for such work, including appropriate background checks as determined by the District Advisory Board;
  6. have promised to pursue immediately a validated course of study prescribed for licensed ministers and candidates for ordination;
  7. have had any disqualification, which may have been imposed by a district assembly, removed by an explanation in writing by the district superintendent and the District Advisory Board of the district where the disqualification was imposed; and provided further that their marriage relationship does not render them ineligible for a district license; and
  8. in case of a previous divorce, the recommendation of the District Ministerial Credentials Board along with supporting documents will be given to the Board of General Superintendents, which may remove this as a barrier to pursuing a license. (30.1–30.3, 129.14, 205.6, 529.5)

If enrolled in a Nazarene college/university or seminary, the minister must have completed one-fourth of a validated college/university or college/university-seminary course of study for ministry, or have completed one-fourth of a validated district or regional training center curriculum. Exceptions to this requirement may be made by the District Ministerial Credentials Board provided the candidate is pastoring an organized church and is registered in a system of approved studies, and provided the candidate annually fulfills the minimum amount of studies required by the Manual for the renewal of a license, and provided the district superintendent approves the exception.

In the case where a background check reveals criminal misconduct prior to one’s salvation, this fact should not be interpreted by the District Ministerial Credentials Board as automatically excluding the applicant from credentialed ministry, except under the provisions of paragraph 538.9.

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:

  1. has fulfilled all the requirements of the church for the same,
  2. has successfully completed a validated course of study prescribed for licensed ministers and candidates for ordination as deacon, and
  3. 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)