What are the requirements to become clergy in different denominations

Factual Questions
1

My question is inspired by this thread discussing Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton, who apparently were ordained without completing formal theological training. In contrast to those gentlemen, I have a friend who is a Presbyterian minister, who had to go through a whole series of hoops to get ordained, including completing her M. Div. degree, obtaining a permanent job in ministry, and passing several interviews and committees.

What I would like to know is what are the formal and informal requirements to become a clergy member in different religons and denominations? What, if any, are the academic requirements? Who makes the decision to approve the ordination (or other investiture) of new clergy members? Is there some ceremony or sacramental rite for ordination or investiture? If there are multiple levels of clergy (deacon, bishop, etc.), how does this apply for the different levels?

Thanks.

2

I was raised Catholic, and my mother taught a few classes at the local seminary, so I can give you an outline of the procedure I’m familiar with for Roman Catholics (this was from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia; other dioceses and particularly other countries may have different rules.)

To be ordained a Catholic priest, you first need to be sponsored by a bishop - I presume, though I do not know, that this stage is where they get an initial feel for whether you’ve got a vocation, so it probably involves a few interviews and references from your parish. This approval by the bishop is not irrevocable; they keep an eye on you throughout the steps that follow, and they can decide that you’re not suited for the priesthood any time before you’re ordained.

Then you need a college degree - if you don’t have one already, you attend a diocesan University known as a seminary. You get a general liberal arts education with strong emphasis on theology, Latin, Greek and Hebrew.

Having completed a college degree, you’re sent out to a parish to live with the pastor and work in the parish for a year. This is another stage intended to confirm that you have a genuine vocation (not least, I’d imagine, to make sure that you’ve got a more mature grasp on the sacrifice that is priestly celibacy).

Then it’s back to the seminary for more study. Another 3ish years, I think; more biblical languages and theology, as well as doctrine, liturgy and more mundane skills such as public speaking. In your final year of seminary you’re ordained a deacon, and presumably again take on some role in a parish. Then you’re ordained ‘a priest forever, of the order of Melchizedek’. It used to be the case that you’d be sent off to work with an older, experienced priest for a few years to get your feet, then you’d get a parish of your own.

As for other orders: bishops are appointed by the Vatican, in consultation with the local bishop and metropolitan. No further study required, though many bishops do hold higher degrees (usually a Ph.D. in theology or canon law, but I think Philly’s Cardinal Bevilacqua had a JD).

Permanent deacons (as opposed to those ordained deacon en route to the priesthood) are usually middle aged->elderly men without young children. They spend a year or so studying at the seminary, but I don’t know what they cover.

3

For the Church of Love (in Japan, with branches in numerous cities), in which I am ordained as a Chapel Wedding Conductor, you merely need to have a brief interview with the head minister and do a satisfactory job of conducting a practice ceremony.

To be a minister, I would need some sort of divinity school degree and a missionary visa. That’s not a church rule, but a requirement of the Immigration Department. Until a couple of years ago, I was officially a wedding minister, but they changed the rules following pressure (and in my opinion, harassment) from Rev. Kenny Joseph and his sham certification group, JAPAM (Japan Association of Preachers and Ministers).

If you attend a wedding in Japan, how can you tell whether the gaijin in the black robe is a minister (bokushi) or a conductor/celebrant (shishikisha)? Ministers are allowed to raise their right hands during prayers; if a celebrant does it, it’s a visa violation (though he is allowed to raise his hands for the declaration and benediction). The Immigration Department insisted that there had to be some actual difference between the two, or else the legal distinction was pointless, and that’s what they came up with.

4

Sublight: I thought that Japan only did the civil marriage thing. Any church related stuff was up to the couple but done after the civil stuff. Is this a case of the Immigration folks stepping in where they’re not needed?

5

For my ordination to the office of Elder in the Melchizedek Priesthood, I was interviewed by my Ward’s Bishop and the Stake President. Then during Stake Conference, the members there were asked if they would support and sustain me in that office. I was ordained the following Sunday back in my Ward. The interview consisted of the Bishop and Stake President asking me questions about my faith and so on.

IIRC, for my ordination to the office of Priest in the Aaronic Priesthood, the only interview that was required was with the Bishop.

We LDS have what’s referred to as a lay ministry. Each step up the ladder, so to speak, usually requires a bit of practice serving in the previous step. Depending on the calling (Bishop, Military Chaplain, Temple President, to name a few) there may be additional requirements such as having a Temple Marriage, being Temple-worthy throughout the period of the calling, and a few others. The only calling I can think of at the moment that requires a specific formal educational background is Military Chaplain.

6

The Episcopal Church in the US has a similar procedure to the US Roman Catholic church, except that we don’t have have diocesan colleges. You are expected to have a college degree, and with the approval of the Bishop, the Diocesan Standing Committee and your own Parish, you go to one of 11 Episcopal Seminaries. After three years of study, you receive a Master of Divinity (you can also go on to receive a PhD). If you still feel called to the priesthood, you are ordained a Deacon, usually by your sponsoring Bishop. You serve in a church or directly under the Bishop for some period of time (it used to be 2 years, now it may be different), and then you are ordained a Priest. U.S. Episcopal Priests are allowed to be married, and many are women. There is also a permanent Deaconate that may or may not require an MDiv, but does require a least some form of advanced study, depending on the policy of the Bishop. Most churches also have a strong lay ministry, leaving the Priest free to tend to administrative and sacramental duties.

Vlad/Igor

7

This is probably at the low end of the scale but I’m an ordained minister in the Universal Life Church. All that I had to do was send in a postcard and wait for my certificate to arrive.

Simple and legal. I’ve officiated at two weddings here in California and am eagerly awaiting the day when I’m walking down the street and someone yells “We need a minister! Father Smith is stuck in traffic and we’ve got a wedding to perform!”

8

Here’s hoping the hamsters are full now.

Baptist churches are highly independent. Each individual church has full authority over who they “call” (hire) for any ministerial position. There are no age or educational requirements beyond those set by the individual church.

That said, to become a Baptist minister there are two basic routes:

  1. Become licensed then ordained
  2. Say you are a Baptist minister

Route #1 usually happens like this: When a man feels called to the ministry he usually talks to his local pastor. The pastor will then present the “called” (for lack of a better term) to the local congregation, usually during a Sunday morning service. The called will share his testimony and the direction of his calling, if known (pastoral ministry, youth ministry, music ministry, etc.). The congregation then votes to license the candidate. Licensing is more a show of support than a true election. Usually it is at this point, if not before, that the candidate begins seminary studies. After a (non-specific) time of studying and/or working in a ministry, if the licensed still feels called to the ministry he may ask to be ordained. An ordination council, usually consisting of ordained pastors and/or seminary professors known to the candidate, is put together. The candidate must face the council and answer questions pertaining to his faith and testimony. The council members are free to ask any questioins they desire. Upon a recommendation of approval from the council the candidate is again presented to the congregation for a vote to ordain. Again, this vote is most often a show of support as opposed to an election. It does not have to be the same church that licensed the candidate. Voila, you’re a Baptist minister! (For the position of deacon, just omit the licensing step, and most likely the pastor comes to you to ask if you will serve).

Now that you are a Baptist minister, where can you serve? Anywhere that will have you. Each local church sets its own HR policy, if you will. Some churches will only consider a candidate who is ordained and has completed at least one doctoratal degree. Others will consider a candidate who is ordained and has completed seminary but has no advanced degree. The candidate may be encouraged to obatain a doctorate. Other churches will consider a candidate who is licensed but not ordained. Still others will call a candidate who has never even seen a seminary.

This is why it is difficult to say “Baptists believe X” and have it stick. There is no heirarchy outside the local church except those the church may align with voluntarily (Southern Baptist Convention, State Baptist Convention, Local Convention, Cooperative Programs, etc.).

9

**QuizCustodet ** has outlined the path to the diocesan priesthood in the Catholic Church. The other route to the priesthood is through one of the religious orders (Franciscans, Marists, Dominicans, Jesuits etc). It’s a similar process, during which the man talks with his own priest and priests of the religious order, followed by “trial” periods with the order while he discerns whether he actually has a vocation for the order’s particular apostolate. This is followed by training at the order’s seminary/house of formation and pastoral placements. Each religious order has its own requirements for candidates and its own training/education schedule, with some religious orders placing more stress on tertiary education than others. The final decision about ordination is generally made by the senior men within the order (the head of the order, the order’s director of vocations etc). Once ordained, the priest is under obedience to the head of the religious order in the same way as a diocesan priest is to his bishop.

10

That’s a pretty tall order! Equal to the NYC phone book or an old Sears & Roebuck catalog.
How many denominations are there?
Then there about the same number of sets or requirements!
Anything from a internet issued ‘Appointment’ or ‘Annointing’ to a full blown set of hoops for the candidate to jump thru.
You too can be annointed for a small fee! :rolleyes:

11

IIRC, for candidates for the Episcopal Priesthood, they can attend the seminary without benefit of a prior college degree. Such individuals graduate from the seminary with a Licentiate’s degree.

12

Short version, its up to the denomination you are wishing to clergy for, there are no official requirements as far as our state and local governments are concerned.

13

Orthodox process:

Traditionally, there were no seminaries, and one learned theology and praxis face-to-face with another priest, or at a monastery. Nowadays, one usually goes to a seminary, spends several years there, and at the end of it comes out with a D.Div. degree. Admission to the seminary is dependent on one’s past academic performance, recommendation from one’s spiritual father, approval of the local hierarch, past experience serving the church, etc. Those wishing to be deacons have the option of attending seminary, or taking a correspondence course (at least in the US). There are five Orthodox seminaries in the US: Holy Trinity, in Jordanville, NY; St. Vladimir, in Crestwood, NY; St. Tikhon, in South Canaan, PA; Holy Cross, in Brookline, MA; and St. Herman, in Kodiak, AK.

At the seminary, one learns such things as ancient and modern liturgical languages, patristics, theology, the principles behind church music and art, and (hopefully) how to be a decent pastor. Seminaries are often attached to monasteries.

After this is done, one is examined by the hierarchy – taking into account the recommendation of one’s spiritual father, etc. The decision is up to the bishop. There are all sorts of disqualifying factors, from having shed blood through violence, to being too young, to not being whole in body (with exceptions), to having kept a concubine. Before the ordination, one will sit down with a priest and exhaustively review one’s life up to that point, to see if there’s anything in there that would disqualify one from becoming clergy. That priest will then give the bishop the thumbs up or not. If one wishes to marry and has not done so, this is the time to do it, as it’s not allowed once one reaches the level of the subdiaconate.

Once all that is done, a date for the ordination is set, and it takes place in the context of the Divine Liturgy.

Bishops are often, but not always, chosen from the ranks of the monks. All bishops must be celibate. Candidates for the episcopacy are chosen by the synod of a local (i.e. national) church.

14

Yes, although it can be done before the civil stuff as well. If you want, you could have eight different ceremonies in eight different religions and then decide you didn’t really want to be married, and all that would matter officially is what’s written in your family registry down at the city hall. Basically ceremonies are irrelevant as far as the government is concerned. Except for…

Absolutely. Actually, it’s more a case of the Immigration folks caving to a lobbying group acting out of self-interest, but the result is the same. I just wrote an deleted a very long non-GQ rant about Rev. Joseph, but basically he lobbied for, among other things, required accreditation for every wedding celebrant. Guess who happens to run his own (very expensive) accreditation program?

15

Ah, yes, I did recall correctly.

16

Ordained here by the mail-order World Christainship Ministries (which asked if I was at least 18, not in prison, and a confessing Christian). It now has a professional association one must renew membership in yearly in order for WCM to vouch for one if one’s credentials are challenged. I’ve not yet joined as no one has really challenged my credentials.

I think Jesse Jackson did indeed do some theological studies. IIRC, though, Al Sharpton was ordained by a Pentecostal church when he was a boy preacher.

17

According to the folks in the Orthodox forum over on Christian Forums, there is no absolute requirement that Orthodox bishops be celibate; it’s merely that they are traditionally chosen from the ranks of the monks, who are celibate by virtue of monastic vows. There would be no impediment to a married priest being named as a bishop (according to them); it’s merely “not done” by tradition that’s so longstanding as to almost become Tradition. They’re a rather broad batch of people, with OCA, ROCOR, Greco-Americans, Antiochenes, and apparently virtually everything else mixed in.

[“How many Orthodox does it take to change a lightbulb?”
“What do you mean, change?”]

18

It’s true there’s no canonical restriction on a married man becoming a bishop, but the tradition has been in place for over a thousand years. If it were to happen, there would be an incredible uproar, not only because it’s against long-standing tradition, but because married bishops were one of the reforms instituted by the Soviet puppet church “Living Church”. Even non-monastics who are chosen to be bishops are expected to keep celibacy and continence.

19

usually a priest who’s wife either died or divorced him goes into a monestary. at that point he could become a bishop at a later date. this tradition has been a bit weakened lately. as most will either go to a different parishes or stay where they are. some will give up the priesthood and get remarried.

a priest who is married with young children would have to be rather exceptional to become a bishop. the demands of being a bishop would be quite a bit worse than parrish life.

traditionally it goes to an older more mature man. who may or may not have been a married priest. the last one i can remember would be archbishop kiprian. he became a monk after his wife died, his kids were grown and lived on their own. it was a bit odd to see his grandkids running after him yelling “ded, ded.”

i do think there is a difference in the bishops who have been married, and those that have not.

good one there, polycarp. perhaps a nice accented “change, what means change?” would be a good alt. punch line.

20

The recently enthroned Abp. Nikon of New England (of the OCA) was a married priest, whose wife passed away a few years ago.