Once again, there are plenty of potential deacons and priests exploring a call on their lives in the Diocese of Central Florida. And that’s pleasing news to leaders.
The Rev. Canon Dr. Justin Holcomb, Canon for Vocations, announced that approximately 35 people attended the 2018 Conference on Ministry (COM) recently at Church of the Messiah in Winter Garden. The turnout, which included aspirants, a few spouses, and several clergy who came with their aspirants, was similar to the participation of past conferences.
“The purpose of the Conference on Ministry is to provide information about ministry opportunities and the discernment process,” Holcomb said.
Hosted by the Commission on Ministry, the Conference on Ministry allowed potential diaconal and priesthood candidates to gain information from a number of spiritual leaders. COM Chairman Orman Kimbrough emceed the all-day event, which featured morning and afternoon sessions, and a panel for a Q&A session.
Holcomb said the morning session (10 a.m. to noon) included talks on specific points of interest. Bishop Greg Brewer presented four key characteristics for ministry leadership. Archdeacon Kristi Alday, who is Dean of the Institute of Christian Studies (ICS), did a presentation on licensed lay ministry.
Deacon Kay Mueller, who serves at Church of Our Saviour, Okeechobee, spoke about her call and the characteristics of being a deacon. Father Cameron MacMillan, who recently celebrated his installation of ministry at Church of the Good Shepherd in Maitland, did a presentation on the aspects of priesthood. The pre-lunch session concluded with the Q&A panel that included Brewer, Alday, Holcomb, Mueller and MacMillan.
Participants broke for lunch from noon to 1 p.m. and had the opportunity to meet one another including members of the Conference on Ministry who were in attendance. Following lunch, those interested in the diaconate met with Alday, while those aspiring for the priesthood met with Holcomb in separate sessions.
The Conference on Ministry in late August is considered the entryway for the discernment process. The conference followed BACAM (Bishop’s Advisory Committee for Aspirants to Ministry), a conference in which COM members interview, interact with, and follow up with the people in the process, helping them with further discernment about their calling. “It (Conference on Ministry) is less about assessment and mostly focused on providing information to those considering or interested in the ordination process,” Holcomb said.
The Rev. Canon Tim Nunez, Canon to the Ordinary, said previously that rectors and parishioners from around the diocese encourage individuals who are seeking information about more intentional ministry to attend the conference. Participants who discern that they are being called to pursue ordained or licensed ministries return to their parishes/missions to work with their rectors and vestries on completing and submitting an application to become licensed lay ministers or to enter the discernment process toward possible ordination.