Quote:
Originally Posted by py3ak  Is "licensing" similar to being ordained except that you are not installed in a given charge? I would be interested to know more about the process as well, if you can PM the link. I don't know that I'll have any useful feedback, but I'd like to learn more about it. |
I'm not sure there is a link concerning licensure in Southern Baptist churches. I'll poke around and see if I can find something. I think generally that being licensed these days is a step toward being ordained. One is ordained when one gets a church, but that isn't always true in the SBC. Some churches ordained individuals who are entering a variety of ministries, other than the pastorate.
I was licensed to preach when I became to preach in various church in the area where I lived. I preached on a fairly regular basis where I was a member, once a month at a local nursing home and at a great number of churches, some as far as fifty miles away from where I lived. I think I preached at over thirty churches in southwestern Illinois, many of them far multiple times.
It is interesting to note that John Bunyan and Charles Spurgeon were never licensed or ordained, but as a brother on the PB told me once, "these are exceptions that prove the rule".
BTW, JD, I read the work you have done thus far. You have a wise pastor. You'll be prepare for ordination much less licensure! My pastor didn't have me write things now, but we spent many hours in conversation. I believe that is the best environment to prepare for the pastoral ministry.