FEATURE

The Driftwood Inn on Bailey Island, Maine, will be the site of the Orthodox Presbyterian Summer Institute, on June 11-13, 2009. Similar to the successful Timothy Conference (though with an older age-group in view), the Summer Institute offers a taste of ministry in the OPC through an intensive time of reflection and conversation. The Summer Institute is part of a broader strategy to reconnect the church with the ministerial training of its ministers. The Subcommittee on Christian Education of the Committee on Christian Education seeks to inculcate ministerial candidates with the culture of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church through a variety of initiatives, such as the Ministerial Training Institute of the OPC and denominationally-subsidized internships.

This June six ministerial candidates will gather on a site on the coast of Maine that is conducive to thoughtful discussion. A list of reading will be distributed in order to assist participants in preparation for the seminar. Lectures and informal conversation will give time for presentation and reflection on the material presented. The institute will discuss such topics as:

• The OPC: continuity with Reformed tradition and distinguishing characteristics.
  
• The centrality, nature, and benefits of being a confessional church.
  
• The importance of the means of grace in the church's mission.
  
• The meaning of a culturally-aware pilgrim church.
  
• The work of a minister of the Word in an organized church and a mission work.

The instructors for the program include Dr. Darryl Hart and Mr. John Muether, ruling elders in the OPC, and the Rev. Gregory Reynolds, editor of Ordained Servant, minister of Amoskeag OPC in Manchester, New Hampshire, and Director of the Institute.

Room and board expenses will be provided for students attending, as well as a stipend to subsidize travel expenses. Young men in their senior year of college or in the first two years of seminary are eligible to attend. Applications (including an essay explaining one's ministerial aspirations) must be submitted by February 28, 2009.

Click the following links to download the application:
OPC Summer Institute Application (MS Word Document)
OPC Summer Institute Application (Adobe PDF Document)

Photos of the Driftwood Inn:

Archived Feature Articles