Frequently Asked Questions

Getting Started

I’m new; where do I begin?
First of all, talk to your Call Process Administrator (CPA). Your CPA is there to help coach you through the call process, and he/she knows how to make the Mobility Database System (MDS) work for you. Then scan this Web site and read “Using this Site” which is a kind of user’s manual and the foundational piece, “A Theology of Call."

What if I don’t want to participate in the Mobility Database System?
If you don’t want to participate, you will miss out on all the benefits of the system (speed, ability to update forms easily, visibility, reliability, efficiency, access to the synod’s call process network, and the Web resources). If this level of computer work is unfamiliar or challenging to you, ask your Call Process Administrator (CPA) for help. But if you feel you must use the paper format, please check with your CPA for their help and guidance.

How does the Mobility Database System work?
The Mobility Database System is an Web-based system that connects the forms that you fill out at home with an ELCA Churchwide database that can store and read the information you provide. There are six primary forms (three for ministry sites and three for rostered leaders) that are downloaded from the ELCA web site, saved to your own computer, filled out, and then submitted via the Internet to the database. Once in the database, information is collected from the forms and used to compile summary “snapshots” of information that can be sorted and read. Information from the Ministry Site Profile feeds to a searchable database called “Ministry Opportunities.” Information from the Rostered Leader Profile feeds to a searchable database which bishops alone can access. All this gives us a quick and effective way to share information with one another and improve our common work in the call process.

Continue to Using the Forms