Clergy of the United Church of Canada

The clergy of the United Church of Canada are called "ministers". There are two "streams", ordered ministry and lay ministry. Ordered ministry includes ordained ministers and diaconal ministers. Lay ministry refers to licensed lay ministers, designated lay ministers (DLM) and congregational designated ministers (CDM). There are no restrictions on gender, sexual orientation, age, or marital status for any branches of ministry.

Discernment is the first step in becoming a minister. Via a series of interviews, discernment examines why a candidate wants to become a minister; if the person is suited to ministry; and which ministry stream would be best for the person in light of their gifts and talents. The discernment process begins first with a sponsoring congregation, then with the presbytery, and then with a conference interview board.

An ordained minister leads the congregation in worship, preaches, administers the sacraments, provides leadership to the congregation and spiritual support to those who are ill or in need, as well as acting as the face of the congregation to the wider community. An ordained minister is ex officio approved to administer the sacraments of Baptism and Communion and may use the honorific style "The Reverend".

A diaconal minister — "diaconal" comes from the Greek word diakonia, which means "service among others" — focusses on education and enabling the congregation to work together toward a vision of justice and wholeness in the world. This new stream of ministry was approved at the 29th General Council in 1980. Generally a diaconal minister is part of a ministry team at a pastoral charge, where the ordained minister leads worship and the diaconal minister concentrates on education. However, due to a shortage of clergy in certain parts of Canada, there are pastoral charges where a diaconal minister is the only minister. Upon commissioning, a diaconal minister is not automatically able to administer the sacraments of Baptism and Communion, but can apply to the local presbytery for permission to do so if part of their work will be in leading worship. Although technically there is no gender restriction, the majority of diaconal ministers commissioned to date have been women.

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