ELCA Council Adopts Revised Process To Authorize New Ministers

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Church Council of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) adopted the 2004 edition of the
"Candidacy Manual of the ELCA," which guides the church's
candidacy process, including ways it screens potential pastors
and professional lay ministers. The board of the ELCA Division
for Ministry revised the manual and supporting forms and
documents in October.
The Church Council is the ELCA's board of directors and
serves as the legislative authority of the church between
churchwide assemblies. The council met here Nov. 11-15.
Assemblies are held every other year; the next is Aug. 8-14,
2005, in Orlando, Fla.
The candidacy manual is a set of documents that provides
guidelines and procedures for candidates to become ELCA
associates in ministry, deaconesses, diaconal ministers or
pastors. The candidacy process involves the candidates,
congregations, the ELCA Division for Ministry, the church's eight
seminaries, its 65 synods, synod bishops and candidacy
committees.
The Rev. Stanley N. Olson, executive director, ELCA Division
for Ministry, presented the council with an executive summary of
the manual.
Olson gave several reasons for the manual to be revised in
2004. He said it had been five years since the manual was
revised. Carol W. Schickel, an ELCA associate in ministry, left
the division's position of director for candidacy recently, and
she was able to incorporate into the manual what she had learned
from that work. Schickel is a coordinator of the division's
Transition into Ministry project.
Olson said a clergy sexual misconduct case in Texas also led
the church to "take a fresh look" at the candidacy process. He
said the review indicated that the church's policies were fine,
but several "ways to tighten them up" surfaced.
The revised manual emphasizes principles of hospitality,
accountability and communication in the candidacy process, Olson
said. It also gave added importance to the health and wellness
of church leaders, he said.
Background checks into criminal records, motor vehicle
records and credit information were new to the process, Olson
said. While the information from a background check would not
automatically disqualify someone from candidacy, he said, it may
provide candidacy committees topics to pursue with candidates.
The revisions clarify the responsibilities of the various
parties involved in the candidacy process to support a system
that is consistent and flexible, Olson said. The manual provides
churchwide standards for the process, he said.
Seminary presidents met in October and passed a resolution
"to express appreciation to the Division for Ministry for
receiving our feedback and responses regarding proposed revisions
in the ELCA candidacy manual, to encourage further careful
attention to creating a climate of hospitality and nurturing
vocation for candidates, (and) to affirm the plan for criminal
background checks for ELCA candidates."
The council's action acknowledged that the 2004 edition of
the manual received "an affirmative review" by the ELCA
Conference of Bishops. The conference is an advisory body of the
church, consisting of the church's 65 synod bishops, presiding
bishop and secretary.
The revised manual will be available in print and on the
Internet, Olson said.
All procedures revised in the new manual are to go into
effect Feb. 1, 2005.
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Information about the ELCA's candidacy process is at
http://www.elca.org/dm/candidacy/ on the Division for Ministry's
Web site.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news