Answer the call.
A meaningful, affirming and rigorous path to formal recognition of your Call to ministry.
A recognition of who you already are.
FCM believes The Spirit calls every person in a unique way and equips each of us with the gifts needed to fulfill that Call.
Ministry isn’t confined to a pulpit or a building. It is a lived experience that moves through every dimension of a person’s life: their relationships, their vocation, their community, their very presence in the world.
Commissioned Ministers are authorized to serve on behalf of FCM and the Church Universal. They are called to embody the love of God in the world, and to pay particular attention to those who have been alienated, rejected, or pushed to the margins.
- Authorized to
Officiate weddings, holy unions and commitment ceremonies
- Authorized to
Lead funerals, memorial services and graveside rites
- Authorized to
Perform baptisms and other sacramental rites
- Authorized to
Provide pastoral care and spiritual direction
Relational, not bureaucratic.
A process of discernment with your Regional Vice President, your ministerial colleague and your own deepening sense of Call.
Step 1: Join and meet your RVP
Become an FCM member, then talk with your Regional Vice President about your Call: what it is, where it’s come from, and where you sense it leading.
Find your regionStep 2: Build your portfolio
Compile your application and submit it for one of the Circle’s reviews.
Review the detailsStep 3: Circle review and service
Design a Commissioning service with your RVP and celebrate with the people who formed you.
Your application portfolio.
Secure a ministerial colleague
One of FCM’s most distinctive commitments is that ministers don’t journey alone. You’ll identify a ministerial colleague, who must be an FCM member in good standing, to serve as a mentor, peer, and mutual support throughout your ministry: someone who ministers to you as you minister to others. Your RVP can help you make this connection if you don’t yet know an FCM member.
Gather three letters of recommendation
From people who can speak meaningfully to your Call, your character, and your ministry. At least one letter must come from a current FCM member. Your RVP will help if needed.
Complete a background check
All applicants complete a criminal background check through a third-party vendor, covering each state in which you have lived.
Write your Statement of Ministerial Understanding
The heart of your application: a one-page written reflection that tells your story. Describe your spiritual journey and how it has brought you to this moment, why you are seeking Commissioning with FCM specifically, and how you intend to remain connected to and contribute to the FCM community. Beyond the one-page length, the format is yours. This is your voice, your Call.
Write your Statement of Professional Experience & Education
A brief overview of your professional background, academic formation, and any ministry training you’ve received or plan to pursue. Formal education is not required for Commissioning. If your RVP and the Circle determine that additional training would benefit your ministry, they will work with you to develop a plan. Any planned educational path should be discussed with and approved by your RVP, and communicated to the Circle.
Submit your résumé
An up-to-date résumé covering both religious and secular experience as relevant to your ministry.
Pay the application fee
The non-refundable application fee includes the cost of the third-party background check. See current fees.
Plan your Commissioning service.
This may be the most meaningful part of all. Together with your RVP, you’ll design a Commissioning service: a visible, communal expression of your ordination. It can take place wherever is most meaningful to you: in your home faith community, at a regional gathering, at the FCM National Assembly, or in any space that feels sacred and right.
Many members surround themselves with friends, chosen family, mentors and colleagues. It is a celebration of who you are and the ministry ahead.
The full requirements are in the Commissioning Polity Manual.
What the Circle’s decision can mean.
Your complete application is reviewed by the Circle of Directors at one of four annual meetings. Your Regional Vice President presents it and serves as your advocate.
Approved
Full, unhesitant affirmation. Your Commissioning is effective as of the decision date. Congratulations, Minister.
Conditional approval
The Circle has provisionally approved your Commissioning, with specific additional steps or documentation required. It becomes effective once those conditions are met.
No, but…
The process ends for now, but the Circle affirms your potential and offers specific recommendations for growth, with the door open to reapplying.
No
The process concludes. This does not diminish your Call or your worth. FCM affirms that all people are called into ministry, even when Commissioning with FCM is not the right path at this time.