The Diocese of Ely has a partnership with the Eastern Region Ministry Course to provide training for our candidates for Licensed Lay Ministry.
This has been made possible by the suite of Common Awards that is providing the training pathways for most Church of England ordinands and for an increasing number of candidates for Licensed Lay Ministry. All those who follow a Common Awards pathway will complete a certain number of learning modules, all of which will be credited and will lead to a certificate, diploma or degree validated by the University of Durham.
Licensed Lay Ministry candidates in this Diocese will normally engage in a 2 year course of study, yielding 120 credits, that will give them a Certificate in Higher Education in Theology, Mission and Ministry.
Cambridge centre
At our centre in Cambridge, evening classes will be teaching modules on New Testament, Church History, Doctrine, Old Testament, Pastoral Care, Ethics, and Spirituality and Discipleship.
In year groups of 7-12 people, candidates for Licensed Lay Ministry will be learning alongside ordinands; the evenings begin with supper at 6pm and include worship and two hours of learning (for which a minimum of four hours’ preparation is required).
The pattern of eating-praying-studying together is intentionally in the Benedictine tradition of nurturing Christian community. Each module will have one or two assignments (depending on the length of the module: some are ten weeks, some five).
Flexibility
There may well be candidates for Licensed Lay Ministry for whom this pattern of study is either too distant or not appropriate for other reasons. We will do all we can to produce a training pathway suitable for all candidates who may have a calling to this ministry.
For some this form of training may seem dauntingly academic. We want to assure you that this is not the intention: this is a theological formation for ministry and mission not an academic hothouse! We will assess people’s academic ability and potential and it would be perfectly possible, for instance, for candidates to be tutored locally and/or the number and nature of assignments to be reduced by following a non-accredited pathway.
We are joining with three dioceses whose training has been with ERMC for a number of years and a rich range of candidates has thrived. For those with prior theological learning, this can either be taken into account (accredited prior learning) or we can provide a course tailored for your needs.
After their training (which will give them 120 credits) students would be free, of course, to continue studying towards a diploma or degree (but please note that the diocese is not able to fund this).