Lay persons face the difficult and often subtle task of interpreting the richness of the church's faith in a complex and confusing world. They need a theological education, which supports their faith and also teaches them to express that faith in day-to-day events. AS the emphasis on lay ministry has grown, EFM has come to play an important role by providing a program that develops an informed and knowledgeable laity.

The EFM program does not evaluate or recommend individuals for ordination. Many people think that one must be ordained in order to be "a minister". The fact is that all baptized Christians are called to be active participants in the church's total ministry. This Total Ministry is nothing less than the exercise of the church's vocation to continue the ministry of Jesus. He reconciled the world to God. We are called to incarnate that reconciliation in our own time and in our own place through worship, service to others, and by proclamation of God's Word to all people.

The seminar group is the nucleus of the EFM program. A group consists of six to twelve participants and a trained mentor who meet weekly over the course of a nine-month academic year. These meetings are usually from two and a half to three hours in length. Through study, prayer, and reflection, EFM groups move toward a new understanding of the fullness of God's kingdom. Participants are given weekly assignments to study with the help of resource guides. Students are responsible for setting their own learning goals. They spend between two and four hours in study and preparation each week. In the seminars members have an opportunity to share their insights and discoveries as well as to discuss questions, which the study materials raise for them. Though discussion and guided reflection, the seminars furnish an opportunity to deepen understanding of the reading materials.

More important is the development of skills in theological reflection. The goal is to learn to think theologically. By examining their own beliefs and their relationship to our culture and the tradition of our Christian faith, participants can learn what it means to be effective ministers in the world. In coming to terms with the notion that everything we do has potential for manifesting the love of Christ, we discover that our ministry is at hand wherever we turn.

The seminar if supported by a life of prayer and regular worship. EFM groups are encouraged to develop a pattern of worship appropriate to their situations. Liturgical materials are furnished with the course materials. Seminar groups work under the leadership of mentors who contract to serve as guides and administrators.

The EFM program is a four-year curriculum. Each "year" is a nine-month cycle of study. Students enroll for one cycle at a time. Groups may enroll in any month from September through May. Each groups must be financial viable; therefore, groups must have a minimum of six students. To maintain an effective learning environment and to provide participation for everyone, EFM groups may not have more than twelve participants.

Participants pay a fee of $340 for the 2005/2006 academic cycle. Participants also need a Bible and may wish to obtain additional materials suggested in the bibliographies. There is the possibility of some fee reductions for those in need.

Participants in the EFM program study the entire sweep of the Christian tradition from the earliest period to the present. Participants learn the disciplines of biblical exegesis and interpretation, systematic theology, church history, ethics, liturgics, and ascetical theology.

The traditional content is not studied in a vacuum. Students belong to a small "communities of learning" in which the events of each person's life may be examined in the light of the materials being studied. While the course materials provide substantial academic content, the focus of the program is on life as ministry and understanding that ministry. EFM provides Christians with that basic skill which is the foundation of all Christian ministries-theological reflection. In doing this, participants sharpen their skills of personal and cultural assessment and enhance abilities to be effective in a variety of ministries.

The Diocesan contact person is The Rev. Deacon Peg Buchanan at peg-jack@msn.com or (o) 213-1261 or (h)669-6191.