Initial meeting
- Just tell me about you
- Is there anything I should know?
- What is the one thing about yourself you think I ought to know, but really don’t want to tell me?
28. Personal history including occupational pattern
- How would you describe your childhood? (Secure? Demonstrative?)
- What was your relationship to your mother and father?
- Relationship to brothers/sisters, if appropriate?
- What expectations did you have to live up to?
- How did you experience school? (Bullying? Successes?)
- What have been the significant & formative events and their effect?
- What have been the significant career shifts?
29. Criteria to be explored by the Vocation Adviser
Development of a sense of vocation
Vocational journey
- When did you first feel you had a sense of call?
- How did the call start and what has brought it to fruition?
- Why now?
Internal sense of call
- How would you describe it to others?
- Why you think it is a genuine call from God?
- How sure are you about your call?
- How has it changed you? Affected your life/work?
- What do you feel you are called to be or do?
- What needs would be met for you in becoming ordained? Would it fulfil you?
How far call recognised and affirmed by others
- In what ways have others confirmed it?
- Has anyone failed to confirm your call?
- What feedback have you had from others on how it has changed you?
How informed?
- How much do you know about what would be required of you in ordained ministry?
- What do you know about the work?
- By reading? Experience?
- What is distinctive about priesthood?
- How does it relate to the priesthood of all God’s people?
- What happens at ordination?
How realistic?
- What have you done to learn about what is involved?
- What would you find irksome in being a Vicar? Are there areas of work you find particularly difficult?
How obedient?
- What sacrifices are involved in vocation?
- How far would you protect your family?
- What challenges have you faced in coming to terms with the call?
Ministry in the Church of England
Experience of church life
Which church attended now?
- Why joined?
- What do you value?
- What things would you want to change?
- How far does it engage with people of differing backgrounds/local community?
- What can (your) church offer non-churchgoers in the community?
What kinds of churches have you experienced? (Denominations, style & tradition)
- How often have you explored different forms of worship?
- How does the C of E differ from other churches?
- What awareness do you have of the variety of traditions and practice within the C of E?
- What are the distinctive features of Anglicanism?
- What do you value about being Anglican?
- What have you brought forward from past church experience? What left behind?
- How does the nature of today’s society affect the ministry and role of the C of E?
Current involvement in the church’s life
Reflect on different models of mission and ministry they have experienced
- What other ways of being church are you aware of?
(Different times, places, activities)
How sensitive to social, cultural and racial difference?
Spirituality
Who and what have been formative and influential in your spiritual development?
How do you experience the presence of God?
- What do you gain from public worship?
- How do public worship and private devotions relate?
- What does the Eucharist mean to you?
Spiritual discipline and its effects on their life
- Do you have a Rule of life?
- What is your pattern of personal prayer and bible study?
- Frequency?
- Have you tried using a Daily Office?
- What styles/traditions of spirituality have you found helpful?
- Have you been on a retreat?
- When have you found it hard to pray? Stopped?
- How does worship and spirituality affect your daily life?
Do they reflect on their spiritual life with a mentor, soul friend or SD?
- Where and how are you hoping to develop your inner life?
30. Criteria to be explored by the Pastoral Adviser
Personality & character
- How do you think other people describe you?
Strengths and weaknesses?
- What energises you most: people or ideas?
- What kinds of people / attitudes of people drain you?
- Are you a tractor or a trailer?
- Are you more fulfilled when working with individuals one to one, or with groups of people or people at large?
- Are you a big picture person or a details person?
- Start from the one vision and set light to detail or build up from detail?
- Do you like to plan ahead and be organised or last minute and improvisatory?
How self aware, stable and mature?
- Do you have a strong or weak self-esteem?
- How important to you is the approval of others?
- When do you find it difficult to say ‘no’?
- How much do you reflect on yourself and how others see you?
- How do you handle criticism?
- How hard do you find it to challenge others or to handle conflict?
- What situations help you thrive?
- What makes you uneasy / angry?
Evidence to cope with demands and pressures of ministry?
- How often do you feel under pressure? Any depression, burnout?
- What coping strategies do you have?
- What change experienced?
- What has been the biggest change in the last five years?
- How do you respond to change?
Relationships
Relationships which are important to candidate
- How easily do you make friends?
- How many relationships have you retained since childhood?
- What kind of people do you relate to easily?
If single, what relationships will sustain them in ministry?
If married, how supportive are spouse & family?
Are you content to live within guidelines: Issues in Human Sexuality?
Leadership & collaboration
Evidence of experience or potential in leadership
- What experiences of leadership have you had?
(church, work, organisations etc) - What evidence is there that others recognise you’re leadership qualities?
- When you inspired and motivated others
- What is your preferred leadership style?
- On a continuum between control and abdication, where would you place yourself?
- Have you completed any leadership tests?
- What example can you give of your leadership?
- Reflect on it: what went well, not so well?
Collaboration?
- What would other people say about your working style?
- What do you understand by collaboration?
- What do you think you would do to guide church?
- What opportunities have you taken to identify and encourage gifts of another person in your church?
- What do you understand by servant ministry?
31. Criteria to be explored by the Educational Adviser
Faith
a. When & how faith became important to them?
- How and when did you discover faith?
(Where parents are Christians, Christian home?) - What things have nurtured you in faith?
(books, church, friends, nature, music etc.) - What does ‘conversion’ mean to you?
- What practical ways has your life been shaped by your faith?
(personal, community, global)
b. Understanding of faith
- Is faith about ideas (beliefs) or experience?
- What is the relationship between them?
- What images, if any, do you have of God, Christ?
- How would you describe your relationship to Christ?
- How has your understanding of God changed?
- When has faith been under pressure?
- When have you been angry with God or lost faith altogether?
- How have you responded?
- What have you learned?
- What other challenges have you faced since that time?
- How have you responded?
c. Able to communicate faith attractively
- What is your core belief - the good news?
- What opportunities have you had to lead people to faith?
Mission & evangelism
Capacity for mission & evangelism in terms of commitment & communication skills
- What is mission?
- What are the marks of mission?
- What is the difference between mission and evangelism?
- What do you know of ‘mission-shaped church?
Candidate’s experience of mission and evangelism and ability to reflect on it
- What experience of evangelism/mission – and how they reflect on it?
- How would you develop the church you attend to become more mission shaped?
- What initiatives have you taken in leadership for mission?
- Where are you most comfortable, inside the church or on the edge of the church?
Does the call to mission permeate thinking, prayer, action?
- What initiatives do you take over environmental, justice issues?
- Are you socially/politically active?
- What areas of social policy particularly interest you?
- How would you define our culture?
(Post-modern, post-Christian, spiritual etc.) - How far does our culture work for/against the gospel?
- Interact with the gospel?
- Describe a film/book/soap that can illuminate the gospel?
- What do you feel about preaching the gospel?
- What opportunities have you had to communicate the gospel/lead someone to faith in Christ?
Quality of mind
Intellectual ability?
Quick and lively mind
Make interesting connections, including between faith and life
Reflect theologically
- Give an example of where we might look in the Christian tradition for help in addressing……contemporary issue?
- What are theological issues involved in…?
- How would you reflect theologically on…?
Open mind?
- What theological questions do you want to explore?
- What is you thinking on - e.g. Christian attitudes on single sex partnerships?
Academic achievement?
Theological reading
- What books been influential?
- What have you read recently?
- Explain the doctrine of…
Ability to cope & benefit from theological training?
- What would you hope to gain from theological training?