Committees
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Committee on Preparation for Ministry
“It is important that those who are to be ordained as teaching elders receive full preparation for their task under the direction of the presbytery. For this purpose, a presbytery shall enter into covenant relationship with those preparing to become teaching elders and with their sessions and congregations.”
(Book of Order G-2.0601)
There are many forms and abundant resources to help inquirers and candidates in their process towards ordination.
Every person pursuing ministry in the Presbytery of New York City should download and study this NYC CPM Handbook. This will also be helpful for Sessions of congregations who will be taking inquirers under care.
In addition, the denomination has helpful resources to help with discernment. Check out their homepage. In particular, you might be looking for the forms necessary for the preparation for ministry process.
If you are planning on taking ordination exams, we refer you to the denominational site with dates, registration forms, and official guidelines.
To prepare for the theology portion of the exams, we recommend the following books:
Shirley Guthrie, Christian Doctrine (revised edition) – a basic overview of issues and topics in theology from a Reformed perspective, written for use in adult education classes. If you only have time to read one book, read this one.
Daniel Migliore, Faith Seeking Understanding – a similar basic overview of issues and topics, written from a slightly more academic perspective
Jack Rogers, Presbyterian Creeds – an overview of the documents that make up the Book of Confessions, summarizing their history and discussing their content
Finally, to apply for a $500 scholarship, please fill in this form and send it back to us at cpm@presbynyc.org.