The Rock
August 2015
1540 Camp Road
Charleston, SC 29412
www.epworth.net
[email protected]
Church Office:
(843) 795-3722
Pastor Ben Burt:
(843) 532- 0146
Editor:
Thelma Ford
Designer:
Karey Gogolin
EPCOMING E VENTS
September 8
Charlotte Herbert 10:30 AM
September 14
Worship Meeting 6:30 PM
September 15
Admin Council Meeting
7:30 PM
September 19
Crafters Meeting 10:00 AM
Boys Scouts Honor Court
1:00 PM
September 21
Carrie Bull Circle 7:30 PM
7:30 PM
Bagels with Ben
Every Tuesday at
7:15 AM
And we know that in all
things God works for the
good of those who love
him, who have been called
according to his purpose.
Romans 8:18
Volume 1, Issue 36
hat in the ham sandwich is the difference between an elder and a
W
licensed local pastor? Aren’t all pastors the same?
These are the questions I have heard since I came to
Epworth. Rich Robinson, my predecessor, was a licensed
local pastor and I am an elder. This article should
unpack the differences in the two orders.
P a st or Ben ’s
C orner
Before I go any further though, I want to stress that both orders are equally
important. Think of an operating room. It is staffed with people of different
credentialing and training. To be clear, their differences are not a matter of
importance or how effective they are at doing their job. Each person in an
operating room needs to execute his or her job well or else everything falls
apart. You can have the best surgeon in the world, but if the cleaning staff did
not properly disinfect the operating room you might get sick. Everyone is
equally important. Elders and licensed local pastors are equally important to
the life of our annual conference.
The most noticeable difference between the two orders is the stoles full elders
wear. After a provisional period of at least two years and passing the Board of
Ordained Ministry a second time, elders are ordained. Stoles are a symbol of
ordination. Licensed local pastors, and provisional elders are not allowed to
wear stoles. Just as a reminder, I did not get markedly better as your pastor
once I was ordained and I could wear a stole. The stole is a symbol of the
credentialing I have received from the Church; it is not a symbol of job
effectiveness.
The next difference is the educational requirements. In order to be a
provisional elder, a prerequisite for full elder, candidates must attain a
Masters of Divinity degree (M. Div) from a United Methodist recognized
seminary. In other words, elders have fulfilled the basic educational
requirement prior to receiving their appointment. In order to be a licensed
local pastor, candidates must have enrolled in either course of study or
seminary. Licensed local pastors may have already completed their educational requirements, but completion is not a prerequisite for credentialing. A
person can receive a license as soon as he or she enroll. Many licensed local
pastors have to leave their appointments during the spring and fall to attend
course of study.
Course of study is a unique educational track created by our denomination. It
allows licensed local pastors to fulfill their educational requirements while still
working full time. The basic course of study takes at least four years to
complete and it is the equivalent to the first year and a half of an M. Div. After
completing the basic course of study, licensed local pastors can go on to the
extended course of study, which rounds out the equivalent of a M. Div., but it
is not required. Some people have wrongly speculated that course of study is
easier than going to seminary. Course of study classes are equally demanding
to a traditional seminary class.
Elders are in a covenant relationship with the annual conference to itinerate
wherever the Bishop appoints them. If the Bishop wants me to go to 4 Mud
Swamp, then I am in a covenant that says I will go. If I do not go, then I have
broken the covenant. Licensed local pastors are not required to submit to the
Continued on Page 4
Why Is It So Hard to Love?
1
Corinthians Chapter 13 is
all about the excellence of
love. Love is patient, love is
kind, not jealous. Love does
not brag and is arrogant.
Patience—Plant the seeds but wait
on the Lord. Teach a child and
when he is old he will not depart.
Kindness gives birth to kindness.
Not jealous. Not covet.
Does not brag but keeps the faith.
Not arrogant but speaks kindly.
Our faith is what connects our
weakness to God’s power. Never
be ashamed of your faith.
Do not worry about proving
God’s existing because no one can
disprove it.
Pr a ye r is like ha ving a
conversation with God. Prayer is
the world’s greatest wireless
connection.
T
hree things will last forever-faith, hope, and love--and the
greatest of these is love.
1 Corinthians 13:13
Thanks to . . .
 Hal Hanvey for helping get the
garden started
 Our choir and all of the musicians
that participate in the ways we worship God
 Judy Chapman who works with our
meager finance
 Ed Smith our Lay Leader
 Our many counters
 Ralph Laney our Head Usher
 Sunday School teachers
 Our readers
 Marilyn Baker and her craft team
 Our nursery workers
 Our Circle chairpersons
 Don Cook and the Men’s breakfast
with Jerry Pullen
 Michelle Cook and Julie Gosnell for
her work with the youth
 Our Visitation Team
 Our Chairperson of Trustees Luke
Hunt and his committee
 Allen Barnett for renewing the signs
 All who worked on the pantry in
Pearcy Hall
 Last but not least—Reverend Ben
Burt for his call to spread Christianity
and lead our church. He cares for the
sick and makes numerous hospital
visits. He brings the messages to
inspire us. He is a good husband and
a good father.
eep the church alive with your
K
tithes. Going to church to receive
spiritual enrichment is the most im-
portant thing you do. It helps you get
through the week. It is one’s most important mission for oneself. Please get
a copy of The United Methodist
Church Pathways to Mission and
read it thoroughly; it offers a wealth of
information regarding missions.
There are many things we can do to
donate. I suppose they were all started
by Christians with a desire to serve.
I had a friend who had never dealt
with the family’s finances. Her
husband died, and being alone with no
children except one stepdaughter who
lived in another state, started her
plight and donated to all who asked
her. She thought it was the right thing
to so. Luckily for her, she a very close
friend who discovered was she was
doing and helped her to understand
that she would run out of the money
that her husband had saved for her to
be cared for when he was gone. She
did spend her last years in a nursing
home.
Listed in THE ROCK this month are the
many request you may receive. How do
you respond?
1.Habitant for Humanity
2.Red Cross
3.St. Jude’s Hospital
4.Shriners Hospital
5.UNICEF
6.United Way UMCOR
7.HALOS
8.Samaritans Purse
9.Shoe box gifts
10.Disabled American Veterans
11. Red Bird Mission
12.Clinton’s Foundation
13. Wounded Warriors
14. Salvation Army
15. Toys for Tots
16. Ronald McDonald House
17. Boys Town of America
18. March of Dimes
19. Epworth Children’s Home
20. Missionaries
21. NRA
22. Political Party
23. Black colleges
24. Heart research
25. Goodwill
26. Cancer research
27. Smile Train
28. Guidepost Partners
29. Water Missions International
30. James Island Outreach
31. Together We’re Feeding America
32. Special Olympics
Epworth’s mission is the James Island
Outreach. We are the “Peanut Butter
Church.” The pantry that distributes is
moving from Bethany UM Church to
Epworth in the near future. Epworth has
contribute from the garden also. Have you
really seen the garden? We are actually
growing rice!
Do
you know that Family
Ministries led by Judy
Cook meets on Friday for
a covered dish at 6:00 PM and
games at 7:00 PM? What a
wonderful fellowship!
Are you missing this? One lady
said she goes to be entertained by
Bubba and Adeline because she
can just sit and watch them. It is
a pleasure to see how they grow.
Bring your family and enjoy with
us.
Continued from Page 1 THE PASTOR’S CORNER
itinerant ministry. They can dictate what districts they are
willing to serve. To that end through, if there is not an
appointment in those districts that fit the licensed local pastor
then that licensed local pastor does not receive an appointment.
Elders have guaranteed appointments. This means all elders
who are under the retirement age and in good standing with
the annual conference are guaranteed to have a job at the
minimum salary every year. Once again, Elders cannot control
where they will be appointed, but they are guaranteed a job.
Licensed local pastors are credentialed one year at a time and
are not guaranteed to have an appointment. The trade off for
having more say in where they will serve is they might not get
an appointment the following year.
Elders can go on leave or retire with their credentials. In other
words an elder is credentialed and entrusted with sacramental
authority for life. Licensed local pastors who are not appointed
must surrender their credentials to their District office until
the licensed local pastor is reappointed. A licensed local pastor
who is not appointed is officially laity and not clergy.
Similarly, full elders are authorized to perform their jobs in
any appropriate place and with any appropriate parishioners.
As a full elder I can preform a wedding in Wisconsin for people
who are not member of Epworth. Appointed licensed local
pastors and provisional elders are limited to performing their
jobs at and for the congregation to which they are appointed. A
licensed local pastor can only marry people of or at the
congregation he or she is serving.
Due to the financial obligation of having a full elder, some
congregations have opted to ask for licensed local pastors who
do not have the same cost. Our annual conference would fall
apart with out the talented licensed local pastors we have
serving in many of our congregations. We do not have enough
elders to fill every pulpit and we have a lot of congregations
that cannot afford elders.
I know of one licensed local pastor in our annual conference
who graduated from Duke with an M. Div. He would have
easily passed the Board of Ordained Ministry and been
ordained as a full elder. However, he opted to become a
licensed local pastor. He owns a farm and he does not want to
be appointed away from his farm. In other words, he does not
want to itinerate, which is a requirement of all elders. Just
because someone is a licensed local pastor does not mean he
or she could not be an elder.
So I say all that to say this, both elders and licensed local
pastors are equally important. The differences between elders
and licensed local pastors are a matter of credentialing. The
differences between the two do not directly indicate gifts,
talents, or job performance. Here at Epworth, some people
may have preferred Rich Robinson a licensed local pastor
while some people may have preferred David Smith an elder.
Both orders are filled with very gifted individuals who are
called to serve the Kingdom of God through leading local congregations. Being an elder does not make me better or more
important than a licensed local pastor. Being an elder means I
have followed a specific path to credentialing, while a licensed
local pastors has followed another.
SEPTEMBER
BIRTHDAYS
3 Helen McGill
3 Mark Tillman
5 Bertis Velin
7 Bobby Gogolin
7 Arthur Jenkins
7 Catherine Klauber
12 Isabella Gurrieri
13 Joseph McMichael
16 Robert Drew
16 Rhett Butler
16 Brogan Cunningham
20 Milton Tillman
21 Audrey Geiger
22 Annie T. Lee
23 Jackye Cuzzell
28 Chrisey Holloway
30 Michelle McKeown
Birthdays are a new start,
a fresh beginning,
and a time to pursue new
endeavors with new goals.
Move forward with
confidence and courage.
You’re a very special person.
May today and all of your
days be amazing!
Happy Birthday!
September 2015
SUN
MON
TUES
WED
THU
FRI
SAT
1
2Prayer Meeting
3
4
5
Contemporary
Band
6:30 PM
Family and Friends
Game Night
6:00 PM
9Prayer Meeting
10:00 AM
Youth Meeting
6:00 PM
Choir Practice
7:30 PM
NA Meeting
7:30 PM
10
11
12
Contemporary
Band
6:30 PM
Family and Friends
Game Night
6:00 PM
Private
Event
16
Prayer Meeting
10:00 AM
Youth Meeting
6:00 PM
Choir Practice
7:30 PM
NA Meeting
7:30 PM
17
Contemporary
Band
6:30 PM
18
19
Family and Friends
Game Night
6:00 PM
Crafters
Meeting
10:00 AM
23
24
Volunteers at JIO
9:30 AM
Contemporary
Band
6:30 PM
Visitation Team
10:00 AM
Boy Scouts
Meeting 7:00 PM
6
Contemporary Worship
8:44 AM
Sunday School 10:00 AM
Traditional Worship 11:15 AM
Disciple Bible Study 2:00 PM
7
13
14
Serenity AA
Meeting
8:00 PM
8
Visitation Team
10:00 AM
Charlotte Herbert
Circle 10:30 AM
Boy Scouts
Meeting 7:00 PM
15
Visitation Team
Contemporary Worship
Worship
10:00 AM
8:44 AM
Committee
Charlotte Herbert
Sunday School 10:00 AM
Circle 10:30 AM
Traditional Worship 11:15 AM Meeting
Boy Scouts
Disciple Bible Study 2:00 PM 6:30 PM
Meeting 7:00 PM
Serenity AA
Admin Council
Meeting
Meeting
8:00 PM
7:30 PM
20
21
22
Carrie Bull
Family Day
Visitation Team
Circle 7:30 PM 10:00 AM
Men’s Breakfast 7:30 AM
Contemporary Worship
Serenity AA
8:44 AM
Boy Scouts
Meeting
Sunday School 10:00 AM
Meeting
Traditional Worship 11:15 AM 8:00 PM
7:00 PM
Disciple Bible Study 2:00 PM
27
Contemporary Worship
8:44 AM
Sunday School 10:00 AM
Traditional Worship 11:15 AM
Disciple Bible Study 2:00 PM
29
Visitation Team
10:00 AM
Boy Scouts
Meeting
7:00 PM
Prayer Meeting
10:00 AM
Youth Meeting
6:00 PM
Choir Practice
7:30 PM
NA Meeting
7:30 PM
Boys Scout
Honor Court
1:00 PM
25
26
Family and Friends
Game Night
6:00 PM
30
1
2
3
Prayer Meeting
Serenity AA
10:00 AM
Meeting
Youth Meeting
8:00 PM
6:00 PM
Choir Practice
7:30 PM
NA Meeting
7:30 PM
od relies on us to touch the lives of others and be a blessing to them. When we are sensitive
to the promptings of the Holy Spirit that dwells in us and are willing to be used by God, we
can respond positively and with love to those around us. Our help need not be a big gesture
or gift of something material. A warm smile, a comforting touch, a hug, or an encouraging word
can meet a person’s immediate need by strengthening his or her will to persevere.
G
28
10:00 AM
Youth Meeting
6:00 PM
Choir Practice
7:30 PM
NA Meeting
7:30 PM