All candidates for licensed ministry, lay or ordained, attend a Diocesan Discernment Day at which a Panel of Vocation Advisers, supported by the Adviser for Licensed Ministry, review various pieces of evidence against the Diocesan Criteria for Selection. Before attending the Discernment Day candidates will be asked to complete an application form and provide 4 references, one of which must be the candidate’s incumbent or equivalent. They will also require a PCC resolution approving their application and a parish profile and job description agreed between the candidate and the Incumbent and PCC.
Discernment Days are held twice a year in March and October. Candidates will need to apply for the Discernment Day at least 8 weeks before it takes place in order to give time for paperwork to be completed. The Discernment Day consists of:
- a group exercise in which candidates present for 5 minutes on a topic of their choice and then facilitate a discussion;
- a written exercise which tests the candidate’s pastoral gifts; and
- two interviews with Diocesan Advisers.
Following the Discernment Day, candidates will receive a report which contains the considered and prayerful advice of the panel of Vocation Advisers. The advice may be a recommendation for licensing once training is complete, a recommendation to pursue some other calling (eg ordained ministry, lay or ordained chaplaincy, pastoral care etc) or advice on further areas for development in ministry.
No discernment process is infallible. Candidates who wish to appeal the recommendation of the Panel may do so by writing to the Warden of Readers, with a supporting letter from their incumbent. The Warden will review the Panel’s report and may ask for additional evidence to support the appeal. The final decision on licensing is taken by the Sponsoring Bishop (currently Bishop Lee) after taking the advice of the Panel and the Warden of Readers.