(Crossposted at Deacons hold the bowl)
“So, now that you’re ordained, are you going to go serve a church full time?”
It has been very interesting over the years to be growing into my
identity and vocation as a deacon in the United Methodist Church who is
primarily called to service beyond the local church. Oftentimes, when we
think about ministry, we imagine people standing in a pulpit, preaching
and leading worship. We imagine pastors serving within a local church.
Or if that imaginary person in ministry is beyond the local church, they
are in an easily recognizable role – serving as a chaplain in a
hospital, perhaps, or working alongside children at Vacation Bible
School.
Deacons in the United Methodist Church
can serve within or beyond the local church. It’s interesting because
you can clearly see deacons at work within the church or out in the
world. Over the past few years, as I moved towards ordination, I was
growing into my identity as a person called to ordination AND called to
serve beyond the local church in the role of deacon. I am the Director
of Admissions at Methodist Theological School in Ohio,
one of the thirteen United Methodist seminaries. I’ve been serving at
MTSO for over five years, and I was ordained in 2011. As I approached
ordination last year, it was very interesting to note how many people
asked me if I planned on leaving the school immediately and serving a
church full-time.
Some of those questions may have come from the fact that people don’t
often think of deacons when they think of ordination – they think of
elders. The Order of Deacon was created in 1996. In 2012, we had 56 deacons ordained in annual conferences and 41 commissioned. As of today, we have a total of 1935 ordained deacons and 256 commissioned deacons within the United Methodist Church.*
I don’t mind confusion, especially since the Order is somewhat new,
and I love having conversations with people and sharing that there are
two orders within our denomination. Some of the questions come from the
assumption that local church ministry is the pinnacle of all ministry
paths – or that all persons are striving towards local church ministry
as a primary appointment.
Now, that, my friends? That is very, very interesting. While elders
can and do serve in extension ministries outside of the local church
walls, deacons are sent
to be the bridge between the church and the world. I value the role of
deacon precisely because it empowers persons called to ordination to
serve as bridges and to apply their specialized knowledge and ministry
to a particular ministry field where there is need for leadership,
service and expertise. I think that the recent change at General
Conference 2012 to the roles in which deacons are ordained to sums it up
well. Deacons were previously ordained to Word and Service; now we are
ordained to Word, Service, Compassion and Justice. (Source: General Conference 2012 legislation)
I admit that there exists (for me) a level of anxiety around not
serving in a local church as my primary appointment. While I do not feel
called to that as a primary ministry, it is tempting on more difficult
days – for those in pastoral roles, the roles are more clearly defined,
there are more colleagues in similar situations, and, well, when you
explain what you do, people *get it.* And I deeply love the local church
– I care for the local church so much that I want to
entrust the care of congregations to persons who were built for that
ministry and who can and will give it their full professional and
ministerial attention.
But. The anxiety about not having as clearly defined of a role is
superseded by an amazing sense of freedom. I don’t know what jobs I will
hold over my lifetime, and I don’t necessarily know what my ministry
path (paths?) will look like. But in the call to serve as a bridge
between the church and the world, there is the freedom (dare I say mandate?)
to be rashly prophetic when needed, to speak truth to injustice, to
push gatherings, communities, organizations to accountability – even as I
serve alongside my sisters and brothers called to the same service in a
variety of ministries across the connection. Deacons are called to a
unique and empowering ministry. We hold an array of jobs, and our
identities, vocations and work are all intertwined in such a way that we
all support to ministry of Word, Service, Compassion and Justice in our
distinct contexts.
Right now, I am deeply thankful to be a part of an academic
institution that is constantly pushing itself to reach out to the world
while providing its students the best education they can receive. It is a
privilege to be ordained to a ministry that allows me to be a part of
ministry candidates’ lives while being entrusted with their stories of
vocational discernment, and I am thankful that the Order of Deacon
affirms my ministry.
*Conversation with Rev. Anita Wood, June 2012
Twitter: @aprilcasperson
