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Future status for Recognised and Regarded ministers after the first appointment

INTRODUCTION

‘Recognised and Regarded’ (R&R) ministers are stationed for up to 5 years. Their R&R status is only given while they are in their appointment. Therefore they need to update their status before they can enter into any other appointment or to start a period of extension to the appointment. This applies even if their appointment is curtailed before the end of 5 years. This also applies for any subsequent change of appointment.

Please note that this process is only for those who were interviewed through the full discernment process when they first applied. Any who did not do that are required to do so at the point of applying to change their status.

TIMING

R&R ministers need to decide at the end of the 3rd year of their appointment whether they intend to remain in the MCB beyond the end of the 5 year appointment. R&R ministers are advised to discuss this carefully with their Superintendent Minister, Supervisor and Chair of District. The process of updating their status should happen during their 4th year so that their status is clear by the time they need either to start a re-invitation process or to enter stationing in their 5th year, ready to start a new appointment or an extension from the start of their 6th year.

OPTIONS

R&R ministers have two choices if they wish to apply to update their status:

  1. Apply to extend their R&R status. They should choose this if they regard their time in the MCB as temporary and they intend, at some point, to return to ministry in their home church.
  2. Apply to be received into Full Connexion. They should choose this if they discern that they wish to carry out the whole of their future ministry in the British Methodist Church. This would mark a permanent transfer from their home church to the British Methodist Church. Once they are received into Full Connexion, their home church no longer has any oversight of their ministry.

PROCESS

  1. APPLICATION. From 1 May to 31 July in any year, ministers can download an application pack available here.    Please ensure you download the correct application pack either to extend R&R or to transfer into Full Connexion.

The pack contains three documents which should be completed in full and returned before 31 July:

  1. Application form.
  2. Applicants will be asked to indicate their wish to extend their position as ‘Recognised and Regarded’ or be received into Full Connexion, their willingness to be itinerant, and their fidelity to the doctrine and practice of the British Methodist Church.
  3. Their personal statement. They are asked to reflect on their ministry in accordance with the areas outlined in the ‘Competencies for Ministry’ document. This is to help them and others to discern whether this step is a response to the call of God.
  1. HOME CHURCH’S CONSENT.

As part of the application process, the Connexional Team will write to the officer in the applicant’s Church or denomination responsible for oversight of relationships between Churches or Conferences and seek their permission to continue with the application. This permission is required before the application can proceed. They will be asked to confirm that the applicant has held a conversation with this person before they have made the application. There are some particular statements that need to be included in this letter which will be outlined when the request is made.

 

  1. REPORTS. The following people will be approached for a report (please note applicants are not required to request these reports themselves). Neither of the people providing these reports may be related to the applicant. There are two separate reports.
    1. A report from the Superintendent Minister of the Circuit in which the applicant is stationed. They will be asked to reflect on the applicant’s ministry in accordance with the expected competencies.
    2. A report from the Chair of the District in which the applicant is stationed. They will also be asked to reflect on the applicant’s ministry in accordance with the expected competencies.

 

  1. CHANGING STATUS PANEL.
    1. The application and accompanying documents will be considered by a panel of five members of the Discerning Ordained Vocation Committee acting as a transfer panel. Applicants will be invited to meet them usually in person for an interview of up to an hour. This will usually take place in October or November. This will cover issues from the paperwork. It is hoped that this will be a mutually discerning conversation. The panel will ensure that they have discovered evidence for all of the competency areas from paperwork or from the conversation.
    2. The panel will vote and may make a recommendation to the next meeting of the full Committee.
    3. The panel may refer the applicant to a Panel of Reference. This is comprised of three other members of the Committee. They will meet the applicant over zoom to consider one or two focused issues which have been identified by the panel.
    4. The Panel of Reference report back to the panel who then meet again to make their final recommendation to the full committee.

5. RECOMMENDATION

  1. The panel reports the recommendation to the next meeting of the Committee (usually in November) who take a vote. This vote becomes the recommendation to the Conference.
  2. The Conference held in June/July each year makes the final decision on these recommendations.
  3. Applicants whose change of status is accepted are then able to enter a reinvitation process or stationing in the following Connexional year. It is though important to note (for those applying to extend their R&R status) that R&R status is related to the appointment in which the minister is stationed. So if for any reason they are not stationed, then they would not be ‘Recognised and Regarded’.

6. POINTS TO NOTE

  1. This is a discernment process and that means that not all applications may be successful.
  2. Should the committee feel that it cannot recommend that the applicant’s status as ‘Recognised and Regarded’ should be extended, their position with the British Methodist Church would be ended at the conclusion of their current appointment.
  3. Those who have applied to be received into Full Connexion who are not recommended, have the right to appeal this decision. Please see Standing Order 730 (10) for details.
  4. Disclosure Barring Service (DBS/Criminal Record Check). If an R&R minister does not already have one, they will be asked for a criminal record check (DBS).