Clergy Ethics Course to be Offered
In the opening page of his book, On the Anvil, Max Lucado begins by painting the following image....
The Blacksmith’s Shop
In the shop of a blacksmith, there are three types of tools.
There are tools on the junkpile:
outdated,
broken,
dull,
rusty.
They sit in the cobwebbed corner, useless to their master, oblivious to their calling.
There are tools on the anvil:
melted down,
molten hot,
moldable,
changeable.
They lie on the anvil, being shaped by their master, accepting their calling.
There are tools of usefulness:
sharpened,
primed,
defined,
mobile.
They lie ready in the blacksmith’s tool chest, available to their
master, fulfilling their calling.
Some people lie useless:
lives broken,
talents wasting,
fires quenched,
dreams dashed.
They are tossed in with the scrap iron, in desperate need of repair,
with no notion of purpose.
Others lie on the anvil:
hearts open,
hungry to change,
wounds healing,
visions clearing.
They welcome the painful pounding of the blacksmith’s hammer,
longing to be rebuilt, begging to be called.
Others lie in their Master’s hands:
well tuned, uncompromising, published, productive. They respond to their Master’s forearm, demanding nothing, surrendering all. Lucado, Max: On the Anvil. Wheaton, Ill. : Tyndale House, 1985, xv
God, the Master Blacksmith has a plan for all of us in ministry to His Kingdom--laity and clergy alike. He longs to make us effective 'tools', designed for good use in the Kingdom. Sadly, for some called to pastoral ministry, shortcomings and failures in the area of clergy ethics and integrity wounds and scars their work for the Kingdom, causing untold injury to the Body of Christ where they serve, as well as negatively impacting the perception of the 'Church' and it's leaders by a lost world.
In an effort to lay a solid foundation of ethical training and insight for the clergy in ABCOPAD, a course on Clergy Ethics has been developed. Designed to place the topic of 'ethics' at the heart of the relationship of Pastora and Congregation, the course encourages the development of a Clergy Ethics Team, made up of the pastor and members of the congregation, to disucss a number of ethical topics related to ministry in the church. During the day and a half training, the pastor will work with fellow clergy in a case study setting to consider a wide cross-section of ethical issues, all designed to culminiate in the writing of a personal ethics statement, to be shared with the congregation where they serve.
This course is a part of the requirements for recognition of Ordination and Permanent Certification in ABCOPAD, and all pastors are encouraged to take part in one of the sessions, as a way of sharpening their skills for ministry both in the context where they are presently serving, as well as in any future field where the LORD may call them.
The next Clergy Ethics Course is scheduled for June 1-2, 2012 at the Greater Zion Missionary Baptist Church, located outside of Harrisburg, PA.
If you would be interested in participating in the course, and would like more information about the cost and requirements, please contact
CLI of Harrisburg-East, Pennsylvania,
Tracey Brown, Administrator
P.O. Box 61472
Harrisburg, PA 17106-1472
Phone: 717-576-2727
email: brownee314@verizon.net