Congratulations on embarking upon the initial steps in discerning a call to ministry within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). This is a pivotal and meaningful time, as you reflect on where God may be leading you in your vocation as part of the body of Christ.

As a starting point for your journey, we encourage you to take the time to read the ELCA’s discernment resource, Called to Lead.

From there, you’ll want to schedule some time to meet with Rev. Dara Clifford, Associate to the Bishop, by calling (920) 734-5381 or by emailing ecsw@ecsw.org. During this meeting you can expect to share your call story with Pastor Dara so she can get to know a little bit about you. 

DISCERNMENT 

Candidacy in the East Central Synod of Wisconsin begins with discernment. During this time, we encourage candidates to lean into listening deeply to the Holy Spirit's nudges through a 3-phase process.

After your initial meeting, Pastor Dara will pair you with a discernment coach. Discernment coaches are ELCA coaches who are trained according to standards of the International Coaching Federation, and who will meet with you for 5-8 sessions (paid by the ECSW) to explore different aspects of ministry.
We are a church who values the many gifts of God’s people and the variety of ways they can be used to serve. This initial discernment period is designed to help candidates dig deeply into their sense of call and to develop language to articulate that call. We trust the the Holy Spirit will work through candidates, coaches, and congregations to lift up faithful leaders for the church. 

CANDIDACY Process

The ELCA candidacy process is meant to be a welcoming and joyful opportunity for people to discern how to serve in and through the church. It is a formalized, yet personally and relationally focused, journey that assists people in discernment for church leadership. Discernment is a life-long process which continually assesses how God may be calling a person into ministry. It is a means for determining who might serve as a rostered leader, as well as who might serve in a variety of lay leadership roles in the church or in the world. The candidacy process is successful when a person graciously discovers, through the nurturance of mentors, congregations, and others how and where to serve according to the Spirit’s leading. (ELCA Summary of Candidacy) an overview of the ELCA Candidacy process can be found here. Our candidacy committee looks forward to the opportunity to talk with you about the process and discuss seminary options more in depth during phase 3 of the discernment process!