LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1998, Page 87

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SYNODICAL REPORTS 87

gregational leadership around planning for continuing education,
must be completed. Approved funds cannot exceed 75 percent of
the cost of the continuing education experience, or $600, whichever
is less.

The District Program Support initiative makes funding avail-
able for Districts for the offering of events which strengthen min-
isterial effectiveness, theological growth, and personal wellness/
wholeness of the professional church worker in the local church
setting. Subsidies are available to Districts in amounts up to
$11,340 per year depending upon the total number of active or-
dained and commissioned ministers rostered in the District.

The Synodical College/Seminary Program Support initiative
makes funding available for our educational institutions that foster
outcomes identical to those of the District Program Support. Each
educational institution can apply for amounts up to $4,000 per year.

The Centerpiece: Joint Planning

Crucial to the development of the values of continuous learn-
ing and growth is the opportunity for people to talk together con-
ceming continuing education needs, aspirations, and goals. In order
to help that happen, PATHS TO GROWTH, a video and work-
book, has been published in its second edition. This gives congre-
gational leadership and professional church workers an opportu-
nity to discuss continuing education issues.

The development of an Annual Growth Plan aids in the process.

New Initiatives
Post-Seminary Applied Learning and Support
What is the PALS program?

PALS is an acronym for Post-Seminary Applied Learning and
Support, a new program of our Synod designed to bring together
regularly five to eight pastors who are recent graduates of our sem-
inaries. In these meetings, they will worship, study, and discuss
new ministry experiences in the company of an experienced pas-
tor, called a “Facilitator.”

Why should we have a PALS program?

Our Synod is blessed with excellent seminaries. There the foun-
dation is laid for the pastoral ministry, but learning and growth can-
not stop there. In the tradition of Luther we recognize that learn-
ing, for a pastor no less than others, is a lifelong process. There are
some lessons that are easier to learn and understand for the pastor
once he is engaged in the parish ministry.

The PALS program has been designed because the Synod rec-
ognizes the need to support new pastors and their wives in making
the transition from the seminary to parish ministry.

By participating in the PALS program the pastor and his family,
the congregation he serves, and the District and Synod have the po-
tential to reap benefits far in excess of the time and expense in-
volved. Time spent in reflection and leaming can make a pastor
more productive and joyful in his ministry.

In helping the pastor develop his skills the PALS program seeks
to provide greater opportunity for the pastor and his congregation
to effectively carry out the mission of proclaiming the Gospel.

What are the goals of the PALS program?

The goals of the PALS program are to have
* pastors and parishes who value continuous learning;
pastors and their wives who make a successful transition from
the seminary to parish ministry;
pastors and their wives who do not experience the sense of isola-
tion that often accompanies the transition away from the semi-
nary;
pastors who continue to develop the skills to give positive and
healthy leadership to the congregation and whose spiritual, per-
sonal, and professional formation is enhanced;
congregations who more readily accept and value their new pas-
tors;
congregations and pastors who find the ministry more joyful and
successful;

* more positive congregation-pastor relationships resulting in
longer first call ministries.

How will the PALS facilitators be selected?

The facilitators are chosen by the CMGS from a list of experi-
enced pastors recommended by the District Presidents. All the fa-
cilitators will be from the region in which the group is organized.

How will the PALS groups be organized?

In the spring after the candidates have received their calls, a rep-
resentative of the CMGS will meet with all newly assigned candi-
dates at each seminary. He wil! outline the PALS program and in-
troduce a congregational history research instrument designed to
help the new pastor become familiar with his new parish.

PALS groups will be convened by their assigned Facilitator.
During the fall each facilitator will contact the pastors and wives in
his region to introduce himself and make the arrangements for the
first group meeting. He will also be available to provide assistance
in completing the congregational histories.

Group meetings will generally begin in January of the following
year. The groups will meet six days per year. In many cases, these
meetings will be noon to noon with overnight lodging.

When the program is fully implemented there will ordinarily be
five to eight pastors in each group. Pastors stay in the group for
three years. Each year the new first-year pastors are either added
to an existing group and those in the program for three years are
cycled out. or a new group is started that essentially has the same
membership for all three years.

How will the pastors’ wives be involved?

The PALS program recognizes the support of the pastor’s wife
as vitally important for both the family and the congregation.
Wives will be involved in some shared activities with their hus-
bands and at times as a wives’ group. -

What will happen at the PALS group meetings?

There are three foci of the meetings, all of which are directed to-
wards the spiritual, personal, and professional development and en-
couragement of the new pastors.

First, the group will gather around the Word in worship, prayer,
and study, recognizing that pastors need to be nourished by the
Word even as they use it to nourish others.

Second, there will be a time for each to reflect on the ministry in
his parish in a totally confidential group setting. It will be an op-
portunity to support and encourage each other and to offer help as
is appropriate. In leading the discussion the facilitator can direct
members to resources and support of which they may not be aware.
It is a time for the pastor to minister to fellow pastors as well as to
receive ministry from them.

Third, there is a time for growth through study of a topic. The
topics are brief ministry-based areas around materials developed
by the CMGS.

Will there be any recognition for participation in the program?

At the end of each year a certification of completion is awarded
along with six CEUs (Continuing Education Unit). These will be
recorded by the District President on the Pastor’s Information
Forms.

Mid-Ministry Workshop and Repositioning Workshop

These two workshops are currently under development. They
will focus on two lifespan markers, being in the middle time of
one’s professional career and preparing for retirement. Pilots of
these two workshops have been held during this triennium, and the
completed versions will be available during the upcoming trien-
nium.

New Technologies

Investigating the use of CD-Rom, distance learning, and com-
puter technologies, the CMGS hopes to develop opportunities for
user-friendly continuous learning via new technologies.