PC(USA) Next Steps
On Tuesday (in Presbyterian Church (USA)) lingo, I was finally assessed by the Presbytery of Florida Committee on the Preparation of Ministry (CPM) and certified able to circulate my Personal Information Form (PIF)–”ready to receive a call.” Basically that mouthful just means I’m officially able to begin looking for my first call.
After leading worship and preaching a sermon, I was examined for a little over an hour. It was great. After talking a bit about Scotland and my sense of call, the committee asked practical, worthwhile, and challenging questions in each of the ordination exam categories (Bible, Worship and Sacraments, Polity, Theology). The questions were sometimes tough, but not out to get me.
I’d always wondered what types of questions a CPM might ask, so here’s a few I got, and a few I anticipated.
Questions from CPM/COM:
- After explaining the “priority of Mark” to a Bible study class, how do you respond to a class member who asks, “But is the Bible true?”
- What does it mean to you to affirm the authority of scripture?
- I preached a recent sermon on Jacob, and a member of the congregation came up to me afterwards and related it to predestination. What does predestination have to do with the Old Testament?
- I’ve noticed a recent trent in Old Testament scholarship to discuss Jesus more often, how do you read the OT messiah prophesies in the light of Jesus?
- Why does the PC(USA) recognize only two sacraments?
- Does the Holy Spirit work outside the church? If so, how do we know?
- A small group comes to you and wants to start a new worship service. How do you proceed?
I stumbled a bit when pressed how predestination relates specifically to Christology (I said some stuff on point, but should have brought in Barth). I also made several judgement calls to shut-up rather than pressing unnecessary points. (Probably should have done that more, but oh well.)
My mantra was a both/and. When answering, I wanted to communicate that I knew the history and theology of the Reformed tradition and that the tradition lives on in exciting and challenging ways today. I felt like I was able to accomplish both–affirming my roots in the reformed tradition and claiming my particular understanding of Christ’s call in ways critical and contemporary.
My next step in the ordination process is to find some lovely folks silly and desperate enough to call me, and then be examined by the calling committee’s Committee on Ministry and then on the floor of the Presbytery.
I plan to keep pretty quiet on the blog about such things, as it’s important to see the process through and who knows who else is applying for calls, or how many I’m speaking to at the same time, etc. I think personal communications in such matters is safer and smarter. That said, I’d love to hear any comments from folks who know the process, or any other tips for CPM or COM examinations.
What are other questions to watch for? What was your approach? If you were on the committee and could ask a candidate any question, what would you ask?
[image by saavem]
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Congrats my friend! My how time flies!
Many years ago a friend of mine faced the issue of what to say in her statement of belief as part of her examination for a call to a PC(USA) church. Would she witness to what God had given her to understand as the gospel and her belief and engage the Committee on Ministry in a theological dialogue? Would she use all the accepted words in a statement of beleif and not go through the anticipated stress and distress that she assumed would occur with some pastors of the presbytery who held different beliefs strongly?
For her this was a matter of whether she trusted the church as represented by the Committee to hear her as a sister in Christ. Or did she trust that some would feel called to defend God and the church against beliefs that differred from what they believed to be the more orthodox ones?
She decided to say what she believed and to let the Spirit guide the conversation. She was asked many questions of clarification about her statement both in her interview with the Committee and on the floor of Presbytery. In the end, she was accepted by the presbytery and installed as a pastor of the church that had called her. In the end the church decided that holding different understanding from the Westminster Confession was acceptable within the Reformed Tradition.
After all we Reformed members of God’s church do affirm that we are reformed and always being reformed.
I know that not all presbyteries are as open. But I also know that God calls us to witness to our understanding of the gospel and for our brothers and sisters to listen and offer their witness in return.
This is one story of grace. Unfortunately, there are also stories of judgmentalness.
May the Spirit guide your way to a place in which you can share your witness and hear the witness of others in the on going conversations about this mystery we call faith in the God revealed in Jesus and the prophets.
why does the pc(usa) recognize only 2 sacraments??? i’ve had some children ask if we couldn’t add just one more . . .
congrats!
Thanks for your comments and story about your friend, rpage. Yeah, statements of faith are a tricky matter b/c in a combative church, they can quickly become less of a testament to one’s faith, but a litmus test for speaking familiar WASPy language. I don’t think I can use it till I’m ordained, but I know several people who’ve used the Nicene Creed as their statement of faith. Makes perfect sense to me.
Yeah, Rebekah:) If we add more, I’d say only if they include bubbles and kid-friendly stories and games
[That's in inside joke, folks, don't freak out.]
Congratulations!
I have the privilage to serve on our Presbyteries’s Meetings and Worship Committee and have had ample opportunity to wittness what can happen during an examination. There have been some rather heated moments in the past. Our current Moderator has sought to keep examinations on message and to stop the “preaching” from the questioners. She is doing a very good job. I have often wondered what kind of faith a person has when it can only be expressed in very narrow terms. Is the belief only in the “wonderful words, beautiful words” ?
You really had to lead a service and preach? I do not know what our CPM does up here, but that seems rough! (I am in the “north” and we are a big presbytery)
Hope and pray that the search is an interesting, remember God is rarely early, but never late…
Pennsylvania is a nice place…well, the part closer to NJ…
Right on, rpage! How true.
Thanks, Bob. Interesting about the comment regarding differences in CPMs. I can say that my friends have had hugely varied experiences regarding what different presbyteries require. Even when the Book of Order is clear and explicit, it’s the exception rather than the rule that it’s carefully followed. Which all strikes me as rather strange…
PA is on our list.
Thanks for the report. I have this conversation coming up in the Spring. Good to know that greater men (and women) have gone before I.
Adam, you are more brave than I to post about the Presbyterian process on a public blog like this. Perhaps someday God will give me more courage.
As one who sat on the other side of the table, as a member of the committee, I affirm that you did well. Short answers are always better than long ones. If the committee wants clarification we will ask for more.