Ontario

Ryan James Lawrence Dr. D.Min.

In this portfolio the writer explored his ministry journey and identity through the lens of time, looking at his past, future, and present, in order to plot a course forward. In considering his past he examined how his theology of preaching had arisen out of his experiences and the relationship between biography and theology. In considering his future, he explored how the imagination could be used to help lead people and institutions to new horizons. In considering his present he researched how the COVID-19 pandemic had impacted preachers in his denomination, The Canadian Baptists of Ontario and Quebec (CBOQ), and how group story sharing could be used to aid in their healing and recovery. The research portion of this portfolio used a narrative study, the heart of which was a focus group meeting of five pastors, followed up by interviews in which participants contributed to the evaluation of the project. The key finding was that participants endured many common struggles and hardships, including the experience of “preaching into a void,” which described the hardship of speaking without a connection to one’s audience. Sharing their stories helped participants to understand and normalize these experiences, aiding in their healing.

Samuel J Barry D.Min.

This portfolio explores the impact and influence of Southland Church’s Church Renewal program on pastors in the Evangelical Missionary Church of Canada (EMCC). As a pastor in the EMCC, I was given permission to explore pastors’ experiences of mentorship and how their mentorship experiences through Southland had positively or negatively influenced their development. This exploration was accomplished through a series of interviews with those who had completed a portion of Southland Church’s mentorship model. Throughout this portfolio I shared my own leadership experience and journey, incorporating my philosophy of ministry in regards to mentorship. The experiences of these pastors were collected through interviews, in order to assess the outcomes of this mentorship model. Interview data was coded and analyzed for similarities between pastors. A set of recommendations and best practices for the EMCC was developed from the research, and shared with an expert panel that included denominational leaders. The interactions of the expert panel identified outcomes and conclusions for this portfolio. The recommendations focused on accountability in mentorship, cohort-based learning, and clear parameters for the mentoring relationship. The discussion of these outcomes led to the creation of a model of local church leader mentoring that was based on the identified values of mentorship by the expert panel, and will become the framework for my role in developing leaders at my local church.

Rosetta O'Neal

The purpose of this project was to discover the attitudes of AfriCanadian Christians toward women in pastoral leadership in the Amherstburg Regular Missionary Baptist Association (ARMBA), in Ontario, Canada. Nine ARMBA received a five point Likert scale survey for their adult parishioners to complete. The survey included three sections: demographics, discovery, and an evaluation of the study. Thirty-three individuals completed the survey. The overall results were favorable. Seventy-five to 85% agreed to strongly agreed, that women should hold positions in pastoral leadership, and 78% to 94% disagreed or strongly disagreed that women should be excluded from pastoral leadership.

H Kevin Rutledge

Most churches in North America have plateaued or are in decline in attendance. Few churches are seeing new converts. This stands in stark contrast to the explosive growth of the early New Testament church in the book of Acts. This paper seeks to understand what the factors were that resulted in such growth through evangelism and to discern what transferable principles may be applied in the contemporary church to promote effectiveness in evangelism. This research includes the survey of local church congregants and pastors of churches that have been effective in evangelism in south western Ontario.