A newly commissioned ministerial ethics workbook is being featured during the current renewal cycle. Every five years ordained and commissioned ministers in the Church of the Brethren are required to take ministerial ethics advanced level training in order to renew their credentialing. Licensed ministers and those new to the denomination are required to take the basic level of training as part of the credentialing process. The ministerial ethics training is the responsibility of the Office of Ministry, working with district leadership and ministry commissions.
At the invitation of the Office of Ministry, retired pastor Jim Benedict has written the new workbook titled “Ethics for the Set-Apart Minister,” with versions for both basic and advanced levels of training. He brings expertise in the field of medical ethics and decades serving in pastoral ministry.
An orientation session for trainers using the new materials took place recently at the Church of the Brethren General Offices in Elgin, Ill., in preparation for the credentialing renewal process currently underway in the districts. Nine leaders from six districts have received orientation to serve as facilitators and will lead training sessions during the process that is to be completed by the end of 2020.
In addition to English, the workbook is available in Spanish, with sessions led by Ramón Torres of Reading, Pa.; and in Haitian Kreyol, with sessions led by Ilexene Alphonse of Miami, Fla. Other trained facilitators include Joe Detrick, Lois Grove, Dave Kerkove, Janet Ober Lambert, Dan Poole, and Jim Eikenberry.
Also trained as a facilitator, Nancy Sollenberger Heishman, director of the Office of Ministry, expressed her appreciation for the participation of this team of trainers and the partnership with the districts.