Ordained Local Ministry Scheme

The OLM Scheme exists to provide training for those being called into the ordained ministry from rooted parochial (or other, eg. chaplaincy) settings. Typically an OLM candidate is someone whose evident suitability for priesthood is recognised and affirmed by their friends and colleagues (or even strangers!) within their worshipping community, place of work or neighbourhood. This means that in considering someone for this ‘pathway’ into the ordained ministry, length of residence or association is important. The ‘local’ community needs to affirm that this person’s future ministry is consonant with what is envisaged in the development of the church in that place. There are, of course other routes which people take as they explore God’s call in their lives [link to vocations pages] The OLM scheme is a part of a ‘family’ of pathways to ordination.

Rationale of Scheme and Outcomes

Ordained Local Ministry has its origins in an awareness of the importance of sustaining local church life in the face of all sorts of pressures to consolidate and contract. At the heart of the Christian life is a community which meets for worship and for which duly formed and authorised ministers of Word and Sacrament are needed. OLM is a response to that – often instinctive – sense that a priestly presence is an important element in the health and well being, not just of the Christian community but of the wider context in which the Church is set. But Ordained Local Ministry is not to be thought of in individualistic terms. For alongside issues of representation we are discovering the importance of the ministries of the whole People of God, of which the priestly is one. The model in 1 Corinthians 12 of the Body of Christ is particularly fruitful in this respect: we all have need of each other. So, as part of the review of ministry which took place in the diocese ten years ago, strong emphasis was placed on ‘working together, collaboration. Diocesan Synod agreed, in 1997, that

Ministry belongs to the whole people of God by virtue of their baptism, being both a response to and expression of God’s healing and saving love for the world. Ministry focuses on worship of God and service to the world rather than on the institution of the church itself.

and,

Because ministry has its origin in the creative and saving love of the Trinity, who is a community of equal persons, all ministry is by nature collaborative. No-one should minister independently in isolation. Christian ministry must be rooted in a community which is marked by mutuality and equality. . . . . The basic recommendation of the report was, therefore, that ‘Teams should be established at all levels of the life of the Diocese, to model, focus, and enable the ministry of the whole people of God. The purpose of these teams is not to undertake all ministry themselves, but to enable, encourage and lead the whole People of God in ministry. (Scheme submission 2001 p 9)

Our expectation is that during training candidates will become increasingly confident in exercising the particular gifts which belong to the ordained ministry and that they will be developing those habits of life which are particularly conducive to the office to which they are being called. In particular we expect that they will be able to affirm the characteristic of local ordained ministry as collaborative and missional.

Outline of Scheme

The Scheme is non residential and part-time. A central feature is that learning is founded in the setting from which candidates come. It is helpful to think of the Scheme as the opportunity to stand back from this setting in order to

• reflect on it in the light of Christian resources of Scripture and Tradition
• broaden knowledge of these resources and develop the capacity to assess them critically
• learn skills for use in future ministry

The Scheme assists candidates to achieve these aims by offering

• tutorial support and mentoring
• modules of study over three years. In years 1 and 2 they will work alongside those training to be licensed as Readers in the diocese. In year 3 they spend time with the West Midlands Ministerial Training Course at the Queen’s Foundation in Birmingham.

Worship

Training is rooted in a developing relationship with the God whose call candidates are seeking to honour, Worship, both private and public, nourishes all other learning. The primary focus of worship is the local Christian community to which the candidate belongs. Members of the Scheme also worship together in the Tutorial Group and as members of the courses. They are encouraged to explore the worship of other communities that are accessible to them. In addition, with the support of their own spiritual adviser, they will be developing personal patterns of prayer and spiritual refreshment.

Course Outline

Year One

The Course starts with an Induction Programme over 5 sessions. They cover, at breakneck speed, Study Skills, Group Processes, Theological Reflection, Child and Vulnerable Adult Protection Issues and finish with overviews of the Bible (in 50 minutes) and of the Church (also 50 minutes)!
The World of the Bible follows – 23 sessions between the end of September and the middle of March, including 4 Saturdays (10.00 – 4.00). The course looks at Bible skills, and then does some Old Testament History before looking at themes in the Old and New Testaments
Next, a course on Mission, which is structured around the ‘5 Marks of Mission’ – 6 sessions before and after Easter.
The Practice of Preaching a course of 8 sessions begins with a Saturday in February and continues in June and July ending with another Saturday.
There is a Saturday on Spirituality in May and two sessions on Worship within the Anglican Tradition in March and June. In addition candidates have a unit (probably residential) in which they explore an aspect of Spirituality of their choice.
In the summer of Year 1 they prepare for a Mission Project which takes place in the autumn (beginning of Year 2)

Year Two

begins with a course on Belief, ‘We Believe’ – the Creeds as a way into the Christian tradition – 12 sessions – and is followed by Ethics – making theology practical – 5 sessions. During the rest of the period before Easter there is an 8 week placement which provides an opportunity to test learning in a different context and draw some theological conclusions. The Kingdom of God (5 sessions) builds on what has gone before by applying an ancient  biblical metaphor to current practice in order to demonstrate the critical relationship between our Christian roots and ministry in the 21st century. As in year one, there is a Saturday on Spirituality  in June, and two sessions on Worship in December. During the summer candidates are asked to work on material which will help them to acclimatise to the work in the following year at Queen’s.

Year Three

is modelled around the twin themes of Salvation and Spirit, Church and Ministry. The residential weekends are linked under the heading of Mission and Ministry Details are available on the Queen’s website, www.queens.ac.uk

Assignments

Each of the modules brings with it assessed work. This takes different forms

• presentations to peers in seminar groups, in the Tutorial Group and to those with whom ministry is shared locally
• written papers

As an alternative to written material, other forms of presentation, for example based on video, or a piece of art can be considered.

How do I find out more?

Please contact The Revd Oliver Simon, OLM Officer and Director of Studies on email. oliversimon@dunelm.org.uk.