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Christ Reformed Church is pretty much in line with what the OP has posted. We locally intern elder candidates (we hold to a strict two office view BTW). However, their training (and part of their qualifications) requires they are disciplined enough to study a lot on their own. We do provide informal instruction (conversation over coffee for example) as they are studying a particular subject and may conduct special studies on various subjects from time to time.
By the time a man is ready for his elder examination, he will have already amassed as sizable library that will also continue to grow and profit him as he serves in the ministry.
For many who intend the ministry, this time of preparation could take many years. For myself, I essentially 'interned' for 10 years before being ordained as an elder on the Session and it was another 5 years before I became the senior pastor.
We don't have a problem with colleges and seminaries, we just don't find them necessary for everyone in a day when books and the Internet make solid study so much more attainable (I think I would think differently about this if I lived 150+ years ago when the availability and cost of books was much different). We are taking a hard look at using some of the distance learning courses offered by RTS as supplementation.
I am increasingly disturbed by what I see coming out of our Reformed seminaries (even our good ones). I'm running into men with MDivs who would never come close to passing the oral exam that our church would require for ordination (which is discouraging because our exam is designed to allow the candidate to demonstrate he has at least the equivalent of an MDiv in his understanding--I'm starting to have to qualify that statement to say we are looking for 'what we think should be the equivalent of an 'MDiv'). I've talked to recent RTS grads who could barely, if at all, articulate key points of Reformed theology and I wonder, 'how did these men graduate?'.
I am of the persuasion that just about anything in our day can be learned through much personal study and internship relationships. In my former occupation as the business owner of an Internet application development company (Before that I was Director of Software & Internet Development for Larry Burkett), I would argue that what I did was every bit as technical (or more so) as most jobs requiring formal training. In my case, I was self-taught and frequently consulted with others in my industry when difficult questions arose. Because of the track record I developed over time, not one client ever asked me where I went to school. They could care less. They were looking at my former achievements.
In like manner, in the ministry I have had people (some seminary grads and others who hold PhDs) seem amazed that I had never went to school. I say this not to brag but to say that anyone with an average (or perhaps less than average) mind can achieve much in regards to education if they will just apply themselves to the opportunities that are readily available in our age.
P.S. We are having an elder exam (the oral one) on April 19th here in Atlanta. It is open to the public for any who would like to visit and see what our examinations are like. The exam will last about 4 hours. For any who would like to attend, please PM me and I'll give you more information.
Last edited by Robert Truelove; 03-31-2008 at 08:44 AM.
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