EDNIN School for Faith and Ministry
The Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana (EDNIN) School for Faith and Ministry (ESFM) provides local formation opportunities for:
those discerning and pursuing a call to ordained ministry (either the diaconate or the priesthood),
clergy seeking to continue their education,
lay persons either preparing for licensed ministry or simply seeking a deeper knowledge of God and the church.
Over ten weekends a year (October-July), the ESFM offers courses on a variety of subjects relevant to lay and ordained ministry in The Episcopal Church. Postulants for ordination gather on Friday evenings for a shared meal, worship, and instruction in matters of spirituality and practical ministry. On Saturday morning, the doors are opened to the wider church, so that anyone can engage in coursework on Biblical interpretation, church history, Anglican studies, and other topics. The later afternoon on Saturday is devoted to the types of training required for licensed ministries, Safe Church certification, and other practical matters.
Contact
The Rev. Canon Terri Bays, Ph.D.
Missioner for Transitions and Formation
Email
December sunset over Lake Wawasee, site of local formation gatherings. Photo by permission of Melissa Renner.
The Apostle Paul urges us each to lead the life that the Lord has assigned, to which God has called us (I Cor. 7:17). The process we call discernment is our prayer attempt—alone and in community—to figure out what (the next step in) those assignments might be. Discerning our calling (also called our vocation) is one of the ways we keep our baptismal promise to follow and obey Jesus as our Lord. Though there are seasons of life (e.g. young adulthood or retirement) when we are more conscious of the need to discern God’s purpose, ongoing Discernment characterizes the life of faith.
Twice a year, the EDNIN School for Faith and Ministry offers workshops to support persons undergoing an intentional process of discernment. In the spring, The Vocational Life explores the nature of calling in all walks of life. No matter what we undertake as our life’s work, treating that work, that life, as a vocation means responding to God’s call with all that we are and all that we have. In the fall, The Ordination Process invites participants into the prayer and meditation that characterizes individual discernment of a specific calling to ordained ministry. This workshop also orients participants to the steps required for communal discernment of that calling within The Episcopal Church.