United Methodist/Pan-Wesleyan Studies is a companion course to the paraprofessional certification courses offered by BeADisciple, and follows completion of any series. It’s designed for:
- United Methodists planning to apply to your annual conference for recognition of your certification, because a requirement for this official recognition is “knowledge of the United Methodist Church’s structure, polity, resources, program and mission.”
- Members of any pan-Wesleyan denomination (Global, AME, AMEZ, CME, Free, Wesleyan, Korean etc.) who have not had an opportunity to explore specifically Wesleyan theology, or how your specialized ministry relates to it. The course will also invite exploration of your denominational resources for your ministry.
- Members of any denomination beginning ministry within a United Methodist (or pan-Wesleyan) congregation. The material will help you get “up to speed” about theology, culture, practices – and jargon! – common in the Wesleyan world or specific to the United Methodist Church itself.
- Anyone who has completed a certification program and is wondering “What’s next?” The course will include work on developing and presenting your ministry or mission proposal, or a business plan for your ministry, within your context.
Each specialty program already includes an overview of related Bible studies and Christian theology as they relate to the ministry. This course goes more deeply into Wesleyan theology, mission, and modes of leadership in the specific context of your own call and ministry setting. Assignments around resources and program will be tailored to your specific certification interests, as well as your local congregation and annual conference.
In addition to daily Blackboard discussion topics, a weekly one-page “paper” assignment is designed to help you prepare to present yourself and your ministry to any congregational or conference body. Certificates will specify “United Methodist” or “Wesleyan” Studies. Optional “mock interviews” by Zoom may be arranged as requested.
Required text for everyone:
Grace to Lead: Practicing Leadership in the Wesleyan Tradition, by Kenneth L. Carder and Laceye C. Warner, GBHEM, 2016
Required for United Methodist course participants:
Quick and Easy Guide to United Methodist Polity, by Anne L. Burkholder and Thomas W. Elliott Jr., Foundery Books, 2018
Recommended for everyone:
Three Simple Rules, by Reuben P. Job, Abingdon, 2007 – Wesleyan practice for the 21st Century
The Way to Heaven: The Gospel According to John Wesley by Steve Harper, Zondervan, 2003 – a short description of Wesleyan theology (strongly recommended _if you have not_ completed Living Our United Methodist Beliefs, or Methodist Identity: Our Story, or a seminary class in Wesleyan theology, or an equivalent survey.)
This course is eligible for 3.0 CEU.
Quick Info:
Number of weeks: 6
Price: $125
CEUs: 3.0
Required books: Yes
Blackboard: Yes
Zoom: No
Certification or Series: Yes (IFD Certifications)
Read course description for details.
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About the Instructor
Rev. Beth Galbreath is a United Methodist deacon whose specialty is “digital culture ministry.” Part of her ministry is over a decade of teaching online at BeADisciple. She loves to bring a multimedia, multi-intelligence approach to all her courses.
Beth serves on the pastoral leadership team of Compassion UMC in Brookfield, IL, a new church plant. Her ministry includes consulting, teaching, and small group leadership; she’s passionate about worship, spirituality and deeper connections with God through the sacraments, Baptism and Holy Communion. She is also an activist for solar energy, interfaith understanding, and eco-sustainability. She shares her passion for all these topics through her classes at BeADisciple.
Digital culture ministry is also about ancient-future worship arts and education styles, especially an emphasis on story; she is an ambassador of the Network of Biblical Storytellers International and coordinates the NBSI-related Chicago-area biblical storytelling guild. She’s taught biblical storytelling in Cameroon, Bolivia, Haiti, the Philippines, and India as well as across the United States.
