Over 70 ministerial directors gathered from around the North American Division in Monterey, California for its annual meeting held in conjunction with the bi-annual NAD ministries convention from January 12-15, 2014.
Creating an architecture for pastoral ministry was thematic throughout the meetings which focused attention on:
A. A recommended pastor & church assessment tool called "The Feedback Loop" was shared as a template for conferences to use.
B. Core competencies and effective pastoral ministry through was introduced through a "Pathways Document," which shares challenges and recommendations moving forward with a systematic approach to pastoral development.
C. Developing a continuing education system for pastors across the NAD was discussed with a committee being formed to make recommendations for its formation.
D. The 2015 Ministerial Convention planning was discussed and information was shared regarding the ministerial teams participation.
Items below were voted during these meetings.
VOTED: We affirm that the primary degree for the pastoral education is the M.Div. degree.
VOTED: our support for the MAPMIN program sponsored by North American Division through SDATS. We further agreed that age should not be a requirement for matriculating into the MAPMin program. We further support the current guidelines that expect an applicant to have some pastoral or church leadership experience.
VOTED: that applicants who are recommended by the conference administration and meet the MAPMIN academic guidelines be accepted into the program even when their experience does not quite meet the expectations of the degree program.
VOTED: that student sponsorship by the North American Division and its Unions and Conferences to SDATS will no longer require age as a measure of who can matriculate for their degree programs.
VOTED: To set up a continuing education committee of seven for the purpose of reviewing and making recommendations for the new program for pastors across the NAD.
NAD Pastoral Advisory
On January 9 & 10, 2014 the pastor advisory met in Monterey, California for its annual meeting. Sharing, focusing, and making recommendations on pastoral issues in the division is the advisory's primary focus. This year's agenda focused on the 2015 NAD ministerial convention, webinars, transformational evangelism, continuing education, and spouses ministry.
The advisory recommended many things, but voted on two items.
VOTED: To set up a sub-committee to come up with criteria for emphasizing and distributing evangelism funds at the NAD Ministerial Convention. Eddie Polite, Chris Oberg, Gerald Haeger, Jimmy Munoz, and Roger Walter were asked to serve.
VOTED: To recommend that the North American Division administrative team seriously study our current structure and distribution model of ministry and support, to see if it is maximizing or using the best approach organizationally in fulfilling the mission in our division.
