313. Change in Conference Relationship--Diaconal ministers seeking a change in conference relationship shall make written request to their conference board of diaconal ministry stating the reasons for the requested change in status. In addition, the board of diaconal ministry may request personal interviews with diaconal ministers requesting the change in status. The conference board of diaconal ministry will be in consultation with the cabinet.
1. Leaves of Absence--Each leave or return to active status granted by the annual conference shall be recorded in the conference journal. When a diaconal minister requests a leave or return to active status between sessions of the annual conference, the executive committee of the conference board of diaconal ministry, in consultation with the diaconal minister, the district superintendent, and the employing agency, may recommend the leave of absence or return to active status for approval by the bishop for the remainder of the conference year. Any such leave or return granted between sessions of the annual conference, with the effective date of such leave, shall be entered in the conference journal of the next regular session of the conference.
a) Disability Leave--When diaconal ministers are forced to give up their ministry because of their physical or emotional disability, upon recommendation of the conference board of diaconal ministry and by a majority vote of the members of the annual conference, they may be granted annual disability leave without losing their relationship to the annual conference. When diaconal ministers on disability leave recover sufficiently to resume their ministry, they may return to an active relationship to the annual conference through the process described for a service appointment (310).
b) Maternity/Paternity Leave--Maternity/paternity leave up to one-fourth of a year will be available to any diaconal minister who so requests it at the birth or arrival into the home for purposes of adoption of a child. During the leave, the diaconal minister's annual conference relations shall remain unchanged, and the insurance coverage will remain in force. It is recommended that compensation be maintained for no less than the first six weeks of the leave. Persons desiring maternity/paternity leave should file their request with the personnel committee of the employing agency and the conference board of diaconal ministry prior to its beginning.
c) Study/Sabbatical Leave--Diaconal ministers shall be encouraged to continue their education throughout their careers, including pursuit of carefully developed personal programs of study augmented periodically by involvement in organized educational activities. A study leave of up to one year negotiated by a diaconal minister, his/her employing agency, and the conference board of diaconal ministry shall not affect the relationship to the annual conference. The leave may be renewed annually up to five years if the diaconal minister is enrolled in a degree program. The diaconal minister's continuing education program should allow for leaves of absence for study at least one week each year and at least one month during one year of each quadrennium. Such leaves shall not be considered as part of the diaconal minister's vacation and should be planned in consultation with his/her employing agency. Diaconal ministers shall be asked by the district superintendent in the charge conference to outline their programs of continuing education for the year.
d) Personal Leave--When a diaconal minister is temporarily unable or unwilling to perform the work of his/her ministry, a personal leave of absence may be granted upon recommendation of the conference board of diaconal ministry. This relationship shall be approved annually and shall not exceed five consecutive years.
e) In exceptional circumstances, an extended leave, beyond that described in 313.1(d), may be granted upon the approval of the conference board of diaconal ministry. When a diaconal minister is on extended leave, he/she shall not have voice or vote in the annual conference. He/she may request reinstatement upon recommendation of the conference board of diaconal ministry and vote of the annual conference.
2. Retired Relationship--Retired diaconal ministers are those who at their own request or by action of the members of the annual conference, on recommendation of the conference board of diaconal ministry, have been placed in the retired relationship.
a) A diaconal minister may take retired relationship in the annual conference upon reaching age sixty-two by July 1 in the year of retirement or after twenty years of service.
b) By a two-thirds vote of those present and voting, the annual conference may place diaconal ministers in the retired relation with or without their consent and irrespective of their age if such relation is recommended by the conference board of diaconal ministry. The conference board of diaconal ministry shall provide guidance and counseling to the retiring member.
c) Every diaconal minister whose seventieth birthday is on or before July 1 shall automatically be retired from the active relationship at the conference session closest to that date.
d) Retired diaconal ministers shall be listed annually in the journal of the annual conference in which their retired relationship is held.
3. Termination of Conference Relationship--a) Voluntary Termination.--A diaconal minister who desires to withdraw from the annual conference may, after consultation with the conference board of diaconal ministry, deposit his/her credentials with the bishop between sessions of the annual conference. When this action is taken between sessions of the annual conference, it shall be reported by the conference board of diaconal ministry for confirmation by the annual conference at its next regular session.
b) Involuntary Termination--A diaconal minister's relationship to the annual conference may be terminated by a two-thirds vote of the members of the annual conference on recommendation of the conference board of diaconal ministry. Termination may be recommended, in consultation with the diaconal minister in question, on the basis of incompetence in professional function, indifference to the work of the ministry, or personal conduct which is deemed seriously to impair usefulness as a diaconal minister (Chapter Eight, Section II).
c) A diaconal minister's relationship to the annual conference may be reinstated if the following conditions are met: (1) Satisfactory report and recommendation by the charge conference and pastor of the local church in which his/her membership is held; (2) recommendation of the conference board of diaconal ministry following a review of his/her qualifications and circumstances related to his/her determination; (3) majority vote of the members of the annual conference.
General Conference Webmaster: Susan Brumbaugh
PETS Creator: John Brawn
1992 Book of Discipline: ¶ 313
1996 United Methodist General Conference