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Looking
for a group? For information on current groups and
vacancies go to Seminar Groups
and contact the class coordinator. You may also contact
the Diocese EFM
coordinator.
Registration
is now open for EfM mentor classes . For information
click here. For
registation forms click
here.
Registration
is now available for on-line
EfM groups.
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Education
for Ministry, affectionately known as EFM, is a program
of theological education-at-a-distance of the School of
Theology of the University of the South. Students sign up
one year at a time for this four-year program.
It covers
the basics of a theological education in the Old and New
Testaments, church history, liturgy, and theology.
The seminar
group is the nucleus of the Education for Ministry program.
A group consists of six to twelve participants and a trained
mentor meeting weekly over the course of a nine-month academic
year. These meetings are usually two and half to three hours
in length.
Through study,
prayer, and reflection, EFM groups move toward a new understanding
of the fullness of God's kingdom.
The program
grants a certificate at the completion of the four years
and 18 Continuing Education Units for each year's work.
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for Ministry is administered through the School of Theology
at The University of the South at Sewanee, Tennessee.
Every
baptized person is called to ministry. During the Service
of Confirmation we ask God to "Renew in these your
servants the covenant you made with them at Baptism."
Send them forth in the power of the Spirit to perform the
service you set before them." The Education for Ministry
Program provides people with an opportunity to discover
how to respond to the call to Christian Service and carry
out their ministries.
Lay
persons face the difficult and often subtle task of interpreting
the richness of the church's faith in a complex and confusing
world. They need a theological education which supports
their faith and also trains them to express that faith in
day-to-day events. As the emphasis on lay ministry has grown,
EFM has become an important part of that growth by providing
a program that develops an informed and knowledgeable laity.
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Study - Participants are given weekly assignments
to study with the help of resource guides. They are responsible
for setting their own learning goals. In the seminars members
have an opportunity to share their insights and discoveries
as well as to discuss questions which the study materials
raise for them.
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Reflection - Theological Reflection is the hallmark
of EFM. The goal is to learn to think theologically. By
examining their own beliefs and their relationship to our
culture and the tradition and the tradition of our Christian
faith, participants can lean what it means to be effective
ministers in the world. In coming to terms with the notion
that everything we do has potential for manifesting the
love of Christ, we discover that our ministry is at hand
wherever we turn.
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Worship - The seminar is supported by a life of prayer
and regular worship. EFM groups are encouraged to develop
a pattern of worship appropriate to their situations.
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The Mentor - Seminar groups work under the leadership
of mentors who contract to serve as guides and administrators.
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Enrollment and Tuition - Enrollment is done directly
through the mentor. See the list of Seminar
Groups to find a mentor in your area. The fee for one
academic cycle is $340 in the Diocese of Washington. Reduced
tuition is available if the seminar group has enough students
to support it.
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