Agenda Volume 3 - Methodist Conference

57. The Fruitful Field Project
the current provision does not make
efficient use of resources and is not
sustainable. We agree that radical
change is needed.” A researcher
and lecturer’s submission noted that
“it has always been clear, from the
early conversations [in 2005] that
change was needed. The replication
and multiplication of resources for
theological training provided a rich
field of opportunities for training.
However, the greenhouse growth of
those resources has been shown
to reflect some poor stewardship
of our resources. The vine was not
pruned as it grew and now the fruit is
shown to be wanting.” The Committee
concurred with this widely shared
judgement that sponsorship of a
range of institutions, colleges and
centres was leading to replication,
fragmented provision, missed
opportunities for cross-fertilisation
across and between activities, and an
inefficient use of resources.
203 The Committee’s deliberations about
other aspects of the Discipleship
and Ministries Learning Network also
argue for a limited number of centres.
A focus on equipping and supporting
regional teams dictates a necessarily
limited focus on centres. Given a
limited focus, and a consequently
limited pool of resources, there is a
significant risk that the dispersal of
already limited resources across a
number of centres would restrict their
effectiveness and diminish their longterm
sustainability.
204 Furthermore, the Committee’s
description of the marks of centres
(see paragraph 200 above) clearly
indicated to the Committee that
centres structured along these lines
were complex institutions. A focused
commitment to the responsible use
of energy and resources is required
to establish sustainable centres
which can deliver this broad range of
activities to the highest standards.
Coordination of these activities
across a number of centres would be
extremely complex, and it would be
extremely likely that provision would
again become fragmented.
Reducing the number of centres
205 The recommendation to establish a
Discipleship and Ministries Learning
Network, containing within it a strictly
limited number of centres configured
to make contributions along the lines
outlined in paragraph 200 above,
allowed the Committee to make, in
turn, some initial recommendations
about the Conference’s sponsorship
of a number of institutions, colleges
and centres.
ERMC, SEITE, STETS and SWMTC
206 The Committee recommends that
the Methodist Church should, in an
organised and structured manner,
withdraw its sponsorship from the
Eastern Region Ministry Course
(ERMC), the South-East Institute
for Theological Education (SEITE),
the Southern Theological Education
and Training Scheme (STETS) and
the South-West Ministry Training
Conference Agenda 2012 727