Bishop Hughes has established a School for Ministry for the Diocese of Newark, to better support and help form members of the diocese for their particular ministries. The School for Ministry has been charged by the bishop to develop two primary modes of training: first, to train those preparing for ordination to the Diaconate and, second, to train lay ministers for licensed lay ministries, such as Worship Leader, Preacher, and Pastoral Leader.
Bishop Hughes appointed Dr. Laura E. Moore in August 2023 as the Director of the School for Ministry. Dr. Moore earned a Th.D. in Liturgical Studies from the General Theological Seminary in 2011 and is the author of From Easter to Holy Week: The Paschal Mystery and Liturgical Renewal in the Twentieth Century. She has served as an adjunct instructor at the General Theological Seminary and Drew University and is a member of the North American Academy of Liturgy. She also serves as the Parish Administrator for All Saints Episcopal Parish in Hoboken.
At present, those currently in the diaconal formation process have already undertaken much of their formation. The program for training deacons will initiate once the next cohort of those discerning a call to that order are ready for formation. The School for Ministry will take the place of previous local training for deacons in this diocese. The School for Ministry is not currently providing formation for those who are seeking ordination to the priesthood (and who would be ordained as deacons transitionally along the way). Those in the priesthood ordination process generally attend one of the seminaries in the Episcopal Church, whether in person or hybrid.
For many years, Worship Leader training has been very ably led by the Rev. Audrey Hasselbrook of St. James, Upper Montclair, and Gail Barkley of Trinity and St. Philip’s Cathedral. Our diocesan community owes them a debt of gratitude for their dedication to this work over these years, especially for the support they provided for Worship Leaders during the COVID-19 pandemic. We have not had diocesan training for lay Preachers in recent years and have not provided Pastoral Leader training at all. The School for Ministry will provide opportunities to support each of these ministries.
Dr. Moore has been working on the structure and program for the School and is finalizing an initial curriculum for this year, relying on resources available from the Iona Collaborative of the Seminary of the Southwest, the Episcopal Preaching Foundation, and resources within our diocese. Training for Worship Leader, Preacher, and Pastoral Leader is ready to begin and is available for registration for those who are nominated by their clergyperson or, in the absence of clergy, by their warden.
Please visit the School for Ministry page to learn more about these opportunities and specific information about registration, dates of training, and costs for training.
