Types of Clergy in the United Methodist Church |
Elder
Elders are ordained to a lifetime ministry of service, word, sacrament and order. They are authorized to preach and teach God’s word, to administer the sacraments of baptism and Holy Communion, and to order the life of the church for mission and ministry. As members of the Order of Elder, they make themselves available for appointment by the bishop and serve both within the local church and in settings that extend the ministry of the church. They are full members of the annual conference.
The education requirements for Elders includes an undergraduate degree and a master’s degree. They must complete a minimum of 24 semester hours of graduate level theological studies. Course requirements include Evangelism, New Testament, Old Testament, church history, theology, worship and liturgy, and United Methodist doctrine, polity, and history.
Deacon
The 1996 General Conference created a new Order of Deacon. Deacons are ordained to lifetime ministry of Word and Service to community and congregation. In the world, they express a ministry of compassion and justice, assisting laypersons as they claim their own ministry. In the congregation, they work with the pastor to teach and form disciples and to lead worship. Like non-clergy, they must work under the supervision of an Elder to administer the sacraments of baptism and Holy Communion. Many Deacons direct program and age-level ministries like children’s, youth, adult, missions/outreach and music ministries. Many deacons have leadership roles in worship. Some deacons preach regularly.
They are full clergy members of the annual conference, called to a specialized non-itinerant ministry. The term itinerant refers to the system in which the bishop decides what church a clergy person will serve. The term “non-itinerant” indicates that the bishop does not select the church that a deacon will serve. Deacons are free to seek employment at the church of their choice and churches are free to ask deacons to serve their church.
The education requirements for Deacons include a master’s degree in the area of specialized ministry in which the person will serve. They must complete a minimum of 24 semester hours of graduate level theological studies. Course requirements include Evangelism, New Testament, Old Testament, church history, theology, worship and liturgy, and United Methodist doctrine, polity, and history.
Local Pastor
Local pastors are licensed by the bishop to perform all pastoral duties including the sacraments of baptism and Holy Communion while appointed to a particular church. (They cannot perform the sacraments outside of the activities of their appointed church.) They are clergy members of the annual conference with limited voting rights while under appointment as full-time or part-time local pastors. Licensing is for one year at a time. They must complete a specialized education set by the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry or one-third of the coursework for a Master of Divinity degree. (Many local pastors serve smaller churches that would not otherwise have a pastor due to a shortage of clergy. Many local pastors work part-time serving a church and are also employed outside the church.)
Associate Member
This category is for clergy who were ordained in another Christian denomination.
Those entering associate membership under the 2004 Book of Discipline
- have a permanent license for pastoral ministry
- are in the itinerant ministry of the Church
- are available on a continuing basis for appointment by the bishop
- offer themselves without reserve to be appointed
- are amenable to the annual conference in the performance of their ministry,
- are granted the same security of appointment as members in full connection, and are licensed for pastoral ministry, and not ordained as deacons.
Associate members have a right to vote in the annual conference on all matters except the following:
- constitutional amendments
- election of delegates to the General and Jurisdictional or Central Conferences
- all matters of ordination, character, and conference relations of clergy
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