Poll: How Were You Ordained?

That's exactly how my ordination council was. Once my church voted for the call, my personal and professional life were examined.
The next week, invitations went out to all area Baptist churches for an ordination council.
I was examined for over 3 hours in all areas of Theology, Christology, Pneumatology, Ecclesiology,...well you know the rest. Afterwards, the ministers who made up my ordination council voted Yay or Nay. This was followed by the Laying on of Hands ceremony at the next church service.
Wait a minute....I got no fried chicken dinner....does that mean my ordination is not valid ????

Bill

 

Mine was the same, again without the fried chicken. I have also presided over 1 ordination that was handled in the same fashion.

 

I was only 1 at that point in time.

Joseph Botwinick

 

Mine was very similar to your, Doc; but fortunately, my ordination council was a fraction as long as yours! (I don't know if I just had complete answers or what, since that's the shortest on people at my church can remember.)

I was ordained Februrary of 2004. Good times.

 

I was ordained by the church I was serving as youth pastor. The council consisted of the pastor and the deacons. Looking back at it now I would say it was probably made too easy for me. The questions were basically softball type questions that could have been answered by any Bible college sophmore.

 

Bill,
My ordination was similar to yours, started at 2pm, ended around 6 pm, then cake and coffee and presentation of ordination bible.
WallyGator

 

You got cake and coffee ? Hmmmm....my ordination is looking less and less valid.....

 

My pastor approached me recommending I be ordained. I sat before the ordination council, but the pastor had already had lengthly discussions with me about the same topics mentioned. Looking back, I didn't have all the answers, and I don't have all the answers now. My ordination service was a double ordination. Both of us being ordained were very good friends and still are very close today.

We each preached a portion of a message on Jonah. After we finished preaching, the charge to us was given followed by the charge to the church.

The ordained men came first to lay hands on me, then those that felt led were allowed to lay hands on us as well.

That was followed by a lovely reception (my friend and I split expenses). His wife did catering on the side and my wife makes wedding cakes on the side. I've got pictures.

It was a very moving, meaningful ordination.

 

Dr. B, my ordination followed the scenario you mentioned. In fact, I believe you were at mine and I was at yours. I can't recall the chicken dinner, but then after so many chicken dinners, maybe it did happen.

The funniest thing I remember about the actual ordination service was the interaction between two of my speakers. Dr. B. Myron Cedarholm, president of Maranatha BB College give the charge to the church and he came dressed in white....white shirt, suit, tie, shoes. Then my pastor Dr. Arno Q. Weniger, Jr. got up to give the ordination message and the first thing he said was, "Nobody told me I was going to be on the program with Col Sanders" (for you younger members he was the founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken and always wore a white suit). It brought down the house.

 

So now in addition to all of the other requirements for ordination are we to add chicken dinners and coffee and cake or what?

 

It depends on where you are at. If you are in the South then fried chicken is a must. If you are in Texas, then a BBQ brisket is in order as part of the receiption. California, I would imagine fish tacos. North East, Clam Chowder?

 

Actually, it depends on where you are in Texas. Down south along the border, it would be tamales. D.F. style preferred. (D.F. means Mexico City, more or less).

 

A year after college, I was ordained by Bob Kelley, who didn't believe much in ceremony or in long ordination councils. He didn't even take the doctrinal statement I had slaved over, saying, "Johnny, we saw you grow up, we know you're straight." Then he gave everyone just one question until someone objected and he said, "Okay, you can have two if you want them."

John R. Rice only had one question, the same one he had at every ordination: "Do you believe in the verbal-plenary inspiration of Scripture, and the deity, virgin birth, blood atonement, bodily resurrection and second coming of Jesus Christ?" When I said "Yes, sir," Old Dr. Rice glanced around at the other preachers over the top of his glasses as he used to, and said, "He believes the same as I do. I say we ordain him!"