Ordination
There are different kinds of leadership in the church. Not everyone is ordained the same way. Not everyone carries the same weight. The pattern of the suffering servant applies to all, but the path to authority differs.
Two Tracks of Leadership
Pastoral Ministry
The local shepherd. The one who visits the sick, counsels the broken, opens their home for gathering, and knows everyone by name. Pastoral ministry is faithful presence over time — in living rooms, not boardrooms.
Preparation: Catechism class, pastoral care training, preaching practicum.
Authority: Over a local congregation or house church.
Removable: Yes, by the congregation or oversight.
Pastors are not lesser leaders. They are local leaders. The church doesn't survive without them. But their authority is bounded by geography and community.
Episcopal / Apostolic
The bishop. The apostle. The one who plants churches, appoints pastors, guards doctrine, and bears responsibility for souls across regions. This is the weightiest office in the church.
Preparation: The full six-stage ordination process (see below).
Authority: Over multiple congregations, regions, or movements.
Removable: Only by apostolic council — never by popular vote.
Financial Model: Works with his own hands. Takes no salary. Provides for his own household so as not to be a burden. (2 Thessalonians 3:7-10; Acts 20:33-35)
This is the office the New Testament calls "overseer" (episkopos), "elder" (presbyteros), and "apostle" (apostolos) — the suffering servant who lays foundations, not just maintains them. The apostle who takes a wage has a weaker testimony than the apostle who works with his hands.
The Pattern We Look For (Episcopal / Apostolic)
The church does not ordain bishops based on gifts alone. Gifts are easy to spot — charisma, intelligence, communication skill, organizational ability. But gifts without character are dangerous. Gifts without suffering make for evil leaders. We look for the pattern.
What We Watch For
- Have they been betrayed by people they trusted? How did they respond?
- Have they been in a position where they could have retaliated but chose mercy?
- Have they experienced failure, loss, or public humiliation? What grew from it?
- Do they lead by serving, or do they expect to be served?
- Do they handle conflict by deflection, or by honest confrontation and reconciliation?
The Pattern We Recognize
- Joseph: Betrayed, enslaved, imprisoned — then used to save nations
- Moses: Murderer, exile for 40 years — then led a nation
- David: Hunted like a partridge — then crowned king
- Paul: Beaten, shipwrecked, imprisoned — planted churches across the empire
- Jesus: Despised, rejected, crucified — raised as Lord of all
"For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake." — Philippians 1:29
The Episcopal Ordination Process
Ordination to the episcopate is not an event. It is the culmination of a processthe church has been watching for years. No one is ordained quickly. No one is ordained privately. The church must see the pattern over time, in community, under real pressure.
1. Catechumenate
Before leadership comes formation. The person walks through the same catechumenate as every other believer — Inquiry, Catechumen, Baptism, Mystagogy, Membership. No shortcuts. Leaders are formed, not fast-tracked.
2. Servanthood
The candidate serves in hidden ways first — setting up chairs, cleaning, visiting the sick, serving food. If they cannot be trusted with small things, they will not be trusted with large things. This stage reveals whether they serve to be seen or serve to love.
3. Apprenticeship
The candidate works alongside an ordained bishop for at least two years. Watching. Learning. Making mistakes. Receiving correction. The mentor must be able to say, 'I have seen this person's character under pressure, and it holds.'
4. Trial Ministry
The candidate is given limited authority — planting a church, leading a region, handling pastoral care under supervision. The apostolic team observes: Are they faithful? Are they humble? Do they bear criticism well? Do they grow from failure?
5. Examination
The apostolic council examines the candidate's life, doctrine, and calling. Not an exam they can study for — a conversation about their failures, their wounds, their doubts, their hopes. The question is not 'Are you capable?' but 'Has God called you, and can we see it?'
6. Laying On of Hands
The whole church gathers. The apostolic council lays hands on the candidate. The congregation witnesses. It is a public recognition of a private reality that has been forming for years. Authority is given by the community, not assumed by the individual.
The Pastoral Track
Pastoral ministry does not require the full episcopal ordination process. The pastor is a local shepherd, not a regional overseer. Their authority is bounded by the community they serve.
Preparation is simpler but not shallow:
- Catechism class — Know the faith you are passing on.
- Pastoral care training — Learn to visit the sick, counsel the grieving, and pray with power.
- Preaching practicum — Preach under supervision. Receive feedback. Grow.
- Character reference — The bishop or overseer must vouch for your life.
The point: Pastors are not "lesser" bishops. They are different. A good pastor is worth more than a bad bishop. The church needs both. But we must not confuse the local shepherd with the apostolic foundation-layer.
Non-Essential: Forms of Ordination
The early church had no standardized ordination procedure. In some communities, bishops ordained. In others, the whole congregation laid hands. Some traditions require seminary. Others ordain based solely on life and calling. The form is not the point.
We will not divide over:
- Seminary education vs. apprenticeship
- Bishop-led vs. congregational ordination
- Ordination as sacrament vs. ordination as recognition
- Re-ordination when changing traditions
- Age requirements for ordination
- Women in pastoral leadership
These are conversations, not tests of fellowship. The essential question is always: Does this person bear the marks of the suffering servant? If yes, the form can adapt to the context. If no, no form will make them qualified.
The essential: Character formed through suffering, gifts exercised in humility, authority that serves rather than dominates.
After Ordination: Accountability
Ordination is not a lifetime license. It is a continuing trust. The church has the right and responsibility to remove ordination if the pattern breaks — if the leader abuses power, preaches falsehood, lives in unrepentant sin, or ceases to bear the marks of the servant.
This is not cruelty. It is love — for the leader, who needs to be stopped before destroying more lives, and for the church, which needs to be protected from wolves.
Servant
Authority exists to serve, not to rule
Accountable
Subject to the community, not above it
Removable
Ordination can be revoked, because trust can be lost
Do You Bear the Marks?
If you feel called to leadership, the question is not "Am I capable?" or "Do I have the gifts?" The question is: Has the suffering servant pattern been formed in me? Have I been wounded? Have I been faithful? Do I lead by serving?
If the answer is "not yet," that is not failure. That is honesty. The pattern takes time. Joseph spent years in prison before the throne. Moses spent decades in exile before the burning bush. Wait. Serve. Suffer. The calling will come — or it won't, and either way, your life is not wasted.