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The Subcommittee on Ministerial Training is glad to announce the summer 2012 MTIOPC course offerings. The courses are OPC History, taught by OPC Historian Mr. John Muether, The Book of Discipline taught by Rev. Stuart Jones, and Covenant Nurture taught by Rev. Thomas Tyson.
The registration deadline is Friday, May 11 for Covenant Nurture and Friday, May 18 for OPC History and Book of Discipline. Covenant Nurture will begin on Monday, May 21. OPC History and The Book of Discipline will begin Friday, June 1. Intensive training sessions, which are mandatory, will be held at Emmanuel OPC, Wilmington, Delaware August 14-16.
There is no charge for tuition for OPC pastors, licentiates, or men under care. Ruling elders will be charged $50 per course. For all students, there is a $50 per course registration fee that is fully refundable upon completion of the course. Travel scholarships are available. Please visit the MTIOPC page for enrollment information or email Pat Clawson at ccesec@opc.org.
The course examines the history, character, and distinguishing commitments of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. The first part of the course will explore the historical setting of the church through a survey of American Presbyterianism from colonial times to 1936 and the events surrounding the formation of the OPC. The class will then study the emerging ethos of the OPC as it has been shaped by the struggles it has experienced. Attention will also be given to the church's relationship with American evangelicalism and those churches with which the OPC stands in ecclesiastical fellowship. Through the process of reviewing different interpretations of OPC history, students will be expected to articulate and defend their understanding of the identity of the OPC.
This course gives special attention to the theory and practice of Presbyterianism as it finds expression in the Form of Government and Book of Discipline of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. Jurisdiction, charges, process, review, and censure are covered in detail. Some applied exercises in the area of church discipline are used to help students think through the challenges faced in this difficult area of ministry.
This course will deal with the why, what, and how of "teaching them to observe whatsoever [Christ has] commanded." Catechetical instruction will be featured, but Christian education broadly considered, both in the home and in the church, will be in view. Included will be the history of catechesis and the place of Reformed creeds in such, the questions of paedocommunion and communicant membership, and various types of covenant nurture. Priority of responsibility (home or church?), pedagogical/classroom modeling and discipline, and Christian schooling (institutional and home) will not be omitted. Other topics treated will include Sunday school, VBS, youth work, seminars, Bible studies, retreats, and the church library.
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