When? A deacon's examen

Last week I took four seminarians from our diocese to Tegucigalpa. It’s a long trip – at least six hours.

A seminarian from our parish had asked me and noted that the director of this first year seminarian program would give me the opportunity to talk to the seminarians about the permanent diaconate.

The four seminarians in the first year.

I started out early, after the Sunday morning 7 am Mass in Concepción, Copán. The trip went well, faster than I thought it would, partly because we took the back road from Intibucá, through Marcala. (It is actually a better road than the other route.)

We stopped for coffee near Yaramanguila and the owner of the café treated us to coffee. I had stopped here several times before and she was grateful. She also promised to get me asparagus for my return trip on Tuesday.

We arrived. I rested a little and then went to dinner.

The director, Father Freddy, asked me to speak after dinner and, though unprepared, I spoke for a few minutes. But we arranged for me to speak for a time on Monday night.

Monday morning I went with Father Julio Cesar, a priest of the Santa Rosa Diocese who is teaching at the seminary, for Mass with the seminarians from our diocese. I ended up preaching to them.

That night I preached at another Mass, this time to all the first year seminarians.

After dinner I met with them and made a few more remarks about the permanent diaconate. But mostly I left time for questions, which were quite good. Does a permanent deacon have a spiritual director? (I may have surprised them when I mentioned that it was a lay woman.) They were interested in what I do and I was happy to share.

After I mentioned that I am a rarity, a celibate permanent deacon, they asked me about celibacy. 

But sometime during the two talks I mentioned what I think should be part of the weekly examen of life of a permanent deacon: “When was the last time I was in the home of a poor person?” And, if I had not been for some time, I needed to make an effort to visit a poor person. 

I am convinced that this is an essential question for a permanent deacon, especially in mission territory.. If we are not in personal contact with the poor on their home turf are we failing to live out our vocation? 

Pope Francis is adamant on the necessity for all disciples of Christ to serve in the peripheries, in the margins, and to be in personal contact with the poor. As he wrote in his 2021 message for the World Day of the Poor,

“We are called to discover Christ in them, to lend them our voice in their causes, but also to be their friends, to listen to them, to understand them and to welcome the mysterious wisdom that God wants to communicate to us through them.”

We can and should listen to them when they come to us – whether they come asking for material help or come to participate in the church. 

But should we get to know them in their homes, where we are the guests? And should we be in their homes just to listen and be the recipients of their hospitality? 

We come into their homes not as authorities with gifts but as brothers and sisters with the need to be welcomed. 

I would challenge all of us followers of Christ to be so vulnerable as to enter a humble home as a guest – especially those of us who are deacons.

Corn and beans drying in a house in the village where I went on Good Friday.

It isn’t easy – especially for us who want to fix things, to make things right, to be in control. 

We come not to bring something – even just to bring the Eucharist. 

We must let ourselves be welcomed. 

When we do this we might learn something just sitting there, drinking a cup of sugary coffee with them. 

We might learn what love is.

A new directory for US deacons; some initial reactions

As the only permanent deacon in my diocese and one of only four ordained in Honduras, I am always looking for inspiration and guidance in my diaconal ministry.

There is a fair amount of material written in English, mostly in the United States, that I find helpful, especially the writings of Deacons William Ditewig, Greg Kendra, Tim O’Donnell, and James Keating, as well as those of Bishop W. Shawn McKnight. The translations of articles and compilations of the Italian deacon Enzo Petrolino are very helpful.

There is some limited material available in Spanish. I am in the middle reading a magisterial work of a Dominican priest, José Gabriel Mesa Angulo, O.P., who has also led several on-line educational sessions, mostly through the Red Iberoamericana de Diáconos Permanentes, which has a Facebook page and a WhatsApp chat group. In addition, there is Servir en las periferias which has a webpage and a monthly digital publication.

So, when I heard that the US bishops had published a new edition of The National Directory for the Formation, Ministry and Life of Permanent Deacons in the United States, I was anxious to read it.

I wasn’t disappointed. 

Below I will share some initial reactions to the document. 

Though most of the book deals with the processes of formation of the permanent deacon in a US perspective, the first two chapters provide short discussions of the “Doctrinal Understanding of the Diaconate” and “The Ministry and Life of Deacons.”

The directory weeks to provides a doctrinal and pastoral understanding of the deacon and his three-fold ministry of word, liturgy, and charity. Much of this is a review of what has been taught about the permanent diaconate during its more than fifty years of existence. But there are seven aspects of the directory which provide the basis for further discussion and study – as well as implementation. 

1) The baptismal roots of the diaconate

The diaconal vocation is rooted in the Sacraments of Christian Initiation. The sacrament is described in relation to the baptismal call to holiness.

In Baptism, each disciple received the universal call to holiness. In the reception of the Sacrament of Holy Orders, the deacon received a “new consecration” to God through which he is configured to Christ the Servant and sent opt serve God’s People. (258)

In particular, the deacon “should feel encouraged to foster closeness between the ordained ministry and lay activities, in common service to the Kingdom of God.” (31)

2) The deacon and the laity

The ministry of the deacon is intimately connected with the apostolate of all the people of God. In particular, citing Pope Saint John Paul II, the deacon’s tasks include that of ‘promoting and sustaining the apostolic activities of the laity’.” (31)

Deacons are “at the service of the People of God” (29), called to lead “the community to reflect on its communion and mission in Jesus Christ, especially impelling the community of believers to lead lives of service.” (34)

3) The importance of service, especially of the poor and suffering

Though the directory insists on the three-fold ministry of the deacon (word, liturgy, charity), there is an emphasis on the ministry to the poor. “The deacon is to cultivate an imagination that takes him to the heart of human need.” (90) And so the deacon has a special role:

In a world hungry and thirsty for convincing signs of the compassion and liberating love of God, the deacon sacramentalizes the mission of the Church in his words and deeds, responding to the Master’s command of service and providing real-life examples of how to carry it out. (40)

I was also very pleased to see the emphasis on study of Catholic social teaching and putting it into practice, not just seeing the deacon as one who does charitable works.

4) The deacon: bringing the needs of the suffering to the table of the Lord

Tim O’Donnell’s recent book, The Deacon: Icon of Christ the Servant, Minister of the Threshold, notes the connection between the church and the world and the deacon’s role. The directory, though using different language, points to the need to connect the sanctuary and the everyday world, especially the needs of the poor.

For the Church gathered at worship, moreover, the ministry of the deacon is a visible, grace-filled sign of the integral connection between sharing at the Lord’s eucharistic table and serving the many hungers felt so keenly by all God’s children.(35)

5) The deacon and the everyday world

Citing,Pope Saint John Paul II, the directory notes that

A deeply felt need in the decision to reestablish the permanent diaconate was and is that of a greater and more direct presence of Church ministers in the various spheres of the family work, school, etc. (31)

Thus, the directory continues:

The deacon, because of his familiarity with the day-to-day realities and rhythms of the family, neighborhood, and workplace, can relate the rich tradition of Catholic teaching to the practical problems experienced by people. (31)

In particular, the directory notes how this can witness to “the gospel value of sacrificial love” and make evident ‘the dignity of human work.” This offers “an opportunity and obligation for deacons in their secular professions to boldly proclaim and witness to the Gospel of life.” (31)

Therefore, “A good knowledge of [the social doctrine of the Church] will permit many deacons to mediate it in their different professions, at work, and in their families.” (260)

In a pointed remark, the directory notes that 

“The deacon is ordained precisely for service in both the sanctuary and the marketplace.” (64) 

6) Cultural sensitivity

The directory calls for formation of the deacons that opens them to cultural sensitivity, even suggesting that deacons might learn a second language to serve different communities in the diocese. 

7) Married and celibate deacons

Some celibate deacons have felt left out in some discussions of the diaconate. These include those who are ordained as celibates and those who are widowed.

On a personal note, I am a celibate deacon and have been trying to develop a spirituality of the celibate deacon. I am glad that our presence is being addressed (though I have never felt left out).

The directory acknowledges the presence of celibate and widowed deacons and offers a few suggestions in the formation and ongoing life of these men – including some initial remarks on the celibate deacon (75-77) and the widowed deacon (79-81).

These and other parts of the document can help us deepen an understanding of the different ways in which the diaconate is lived. 

Though the modern permanent diaconate is over fifty years old, I think we are still in our childhood or adolescence in developing our theology and spirituality. This document can help us in this endeavor to be servants of God and the People of God.

A lacuna in the theology of the permanent deacon

I just finished Tim O’Donnell’s The Deacon Icon of Christ the Servant, Minister of the Threshold, a scholarly and practical theological and pastoral reflection on the diaconate today. I am working on a review of this book which I think is a landmark in theological reflection on the diaconate, In the process of seeking some citations for the review, I came across an article that I had started in June but had not finished in response to an article in Commonweal. I decided to publish this, with a few changes, even though it is incomplete and needs more thought as well as some serious editing. But I have not changed the title, though I think O'Donnell is helping us begin to fill the lacuna.

My path to the diaconate is probably much different from that of most permanent deacons in the world.

First of all, I never thought of the diaconate until the bishop asked me to consider it over dinner one night in October 2014. Secondly, there is no formal plan for study and formation in our diocese, since I am the first permanent deacon, and so I am mostly self-taught (and the bishop had no problem with this), except for two on-line courses. 

I should also note that I was the third person ordained a permanent deacon here in Honduras. Yet, having worked in pastoral and campus ministry in the US for almost 24 years before coming to Honduras and having worked in the diocese here since 2007, I had been teaching and studying the Catholic faith for over three decades, including teaching courses on "Introduction to Catholicism" and "Catholic Social Thought" at Iowa State University.

During my discernment I devoured numerous books and documents on the diaconate.

I have been serving as a deacon in a rural parish since my ordination in July 2016; it’s a large parish with more than forty rural communities, where I was serving as a lay missionary for many years.

One further difference from most permanent deacons is that I am celibate.

Over the course of these past years, since the bishop’s invitation, I have been trying to formulate my theology and spirituality of the permanent diaconate. I am trying to write a book about my call to the diaconate and also about the role of the celibate deacon. But I thought it might be useful to share some thoughts I have been pondering a bit more widely, via my blog

I found much of the writing available very helpful, including the work of William Ditewig, Greg Kendra, James Keating, Bishop Shawn McKnight, and Michael J. Tkacik. But still something seems to be missing, especially as I look at discussions on Facebook pages, some blogs, and even articles by theologians.

My vision of the diaconate and my diaconal vocation is largely shaped by paragraph 16 of the Vatican II document on mission, Ad Gentes. As I was discerning whether God was calling me, I was taken aback when I read paragraph 16:

Where Episcopal Conferences deem it opportune, the order of the diaconate should be restored as a permanent state of life, according to the norms of the Constitution on the Church. For there are men who are actually carrying out the functions of the deacon’s office, either by preaching the Word of God as catechists, or by presiding over scattered Christian communities in the name of the pastor and the bishop, or by practicing charity in social or relief work. It will be helpful to strengthen them by that imposition of hands which has come down from the apostles, and to bind them more closely to the altar. Thus they can carry out their ministry more effectively because of the sacramental grace of the diaconate.

I was already doing not one, but all three of the ministries mentioned. I felt that what God was perhaps offering me was the grace of orders to live out this mission more fully and more ordered to the good of the People of God, in a permanent commitment. 

But a question remained: How does one “bind more closely to the altar”? 

 In our diocese in Honduras, we organize our pastoral work around what we call the Triple Ministry – prophet, priest, and king - with three ministries: prophetic, liturgical, and social.

As I see it, the deacon is ordained to live this baptismal call in a special way, with an emphasis on being the servant. For me the diaconate is trying to live as evangelizer, servant of the poor, and minister at the altar.

I am concerned about a diaconate that is seen only as another step up in ministry in the church, for married males, that is meant above all to be seen at the altar. I think this is behind some of Pope Francis’ rather sharp words to deacons.

In the June 2020 issue of Commonweal, Christopher Ruddy asked “What are deacons for?” In his article he seems to pit his understanding of the view of Pope Francis on the diaconate with a different understanding rooted in the work of John Collins. 

According to Ruddy: “Francis’s words represent a widely held view that the diaconate is about service, especially the humble service exemplified in foot-washing…” 

 He contrasts this to Collins’s analysis of the use of the word “diaconos”. In Ruddy’s words, the deacon is seen as “an ambassador or an intermediary who is commissioned by a superior authority to proclaim a message or perform a deed. The deacon’s service is thus directed primarily toward his bishop, not to the needy.”

To a degree, I agree with Ruddy’s critique of a one-dimensional view of the deacon: “This interpretation [of the deacon conceived in terms of humble, loving service] contributes to a deformation of diaconal identity and a breakdown of the necessary interdependence of his ministries of liturgy, Word, and charity-service. The deacon’s rightful and necessary place is at the altar, in the pulpit, and in the street.” 

But I think Ruddy overstates this: “It is important, then, that we recover a sense of the deacon as a herald—which is why he is the ordinary minister of the Gospel at Mass—who serves the bishop and is sent by him to proclaim the Word in various ways and places.” 

I especially find Ruddy leaning to a one-dimensional view of the diaconate, over-emphasizing the liturgical: “And although both the ‘humble service’ proponents and Collins himself tend to underemphasize or overlook it, the diaconate is also fundamentally a liturgical ministry.” 

He is much clearer when he writes: “The diaconate, in its fullness, reveals that the church’s outreach to the poor and marginalized is rooted and catalyzed most deeply in the liturgy, where the Word is proclaimed and the Sacrifice offered.” 

But what does this mean? 

In July 2020, the Vatican’s Congregation on the Clergy released an Instruction on The Pastoral Conversion of the Parish Community in the Service of the Evangelizing Mission of the Church. Significantly there is a large section on deacons. There, the deacon is seen mostly in terms of evangelization and charity. The liturgical dimension is extremely important but the key words seem to be “evangelization” and “charity.”

 

Paragraph 82 reads, in part:

the history of the diaconate recalls that it was established within the framework of a ministerial vision of the Church, as an ordained ministry at the service of the Word and of charity; this latter context includes the administration of goods. The twofold mission of the deacon is expressed in the liturgical sphere, where he is called to proclaim the Gospel and to serve at the Eucharistic table. (Italics mine.)

My question is how are we called to live, in an integrated way, these three aspects of our diaconal ministry, evangelization, worship, and service – the deacon’s ways of living out our baptismal call of all the faithful to be icons of Christ, who is prophet, priest, and servant king. How are the aspects of our ministry related? What makes it distinctly diaconal? 

I would suggest that we look at how the three ministries are related – in theology and in practice. Here is a preliminary outline of a longer discussion which obviously needs to be fleshed out, but I offer there unsystematic remarks for further discussion.

1. Service and liturgy: 

All are called to serve. 

But what is the deacon’s role? Pope Saint Paul VI, spoke of the deacon as the “animator of diakonia.”  

Since the early days of the church the deacons had a special role in caring for the poor. Note the poor as the "treasure" in the story of the deacon-martyr Lawrence. 

We also find the role of the deacon described as the eyes and ears of the bishop, especially in terms of the needs of God’s people. 

I believe that the work of Collins and others can lead to a false dichotomy – between the deacon as an intermediary or ambassador and the deacon as one who represents Christ the Servant, not just at the altar but also in humble service to the marginalized.

An ambassador is an intermediary – not just a messenger from one party to another. It’s not a one-way street. 

The deacon, from the time pf Pseudo-Clement was spoken of as “the eyes and ears of the bishop.” 

Cardinal Walter Kasper has noted that “The deacons can act as the eyes and ears of the bishop in identifying areas of need and can help him in his task of being father to the poor.” 

And Greg Kandra, in “The Catholic Deacon Today,“ noted that “He can serve as the eyes and ears for the bishop or pastor—and as a voice for the people.” 

 2. Evangelization and liturgy: 

Evangelization is what all the baptized are called to do. The bishop has a special role in the church as the teacher of the diocese. The priest, in his care of souls, is called to spread the good news to all the world. 

But the deacon?

I’d suggest that a distinctive element of the evangelization by the deacon is not reading the Gospel and preaching, but connecting the Good News of the Gospel with the lives of ordinary people. 

It is not without interest that a major breakthrough toward the reinstitution of the diaconate as a permanent way of life began at Dachau where the concern about the church’s awareness of the evil of Nazism was a real concern. 

3. Liturgy 

But what is the liturgical ministry of the deacon? 

I would suggest that it is closely connected with his connection with the poor as well as with the mission of the people of God. 

Tres munera

This idea of the integrity of the tripartite dimension of diaconal ministry seems to be missing from much of the discussion. 

What we need is a theology that really integrates the three dimensions. 

One brings the needs of the people of God, especially the poor, to the table of the Lord, and one goes out with the good news our redemption to the highways and by-ways. Because of the celebration of the death and resurrection of the Lord, the sufferings of the people of God are transformed into signs of hope, which we share with all the world.

Have we taken seriously enough these three munera [the diakonia of the Word, the diakonia of the Sacrament, and the diakonia of Charity] are inseparable [not just interdependent as Ruddy says]– not because a pope or a Vatican congregation says so. They are inseparable dimensions of who we are as baptized in Christ. 

The English version of the prayer of anointing after Baptism reads: “As Christ was anointed priest, prophet, and king, so may you live always as members of his body, sharing everlasting life.” 

 The Spanish version, which I use, prays, “Les unja con el crisma de la salvación, para que se incorporen a su pueblo y sean para siempre miembros de Cristo, Sacerdote, Profeta y Rey.” 

I even checked the Latin: “ipse te linit chrísmate salutis, ut, eius aggregátus pópulo, Christi sacerdótis, prophétae et regis membrum permáneas in vitam ætérnam.” “May he anoint you with the chrism of salvation, so that, gathered together in his people, you may remain forever (to eternal life) as a member of Christ, priest, prophet, and king. of the priest, a member of the king, and stand not in the life of the prophets.” 

My translation would be, taking the Latin and the Spanish into account:

“May he anoint you with the Chrism of salvation, so that, gathered together into His people you man remain forever a member of Christ, Priest, Prophet, and King.”

Christ is prophet, priest, and servant-king; the Church is called to live this; every Christian disciple is, by baptism, a member of Christ, prophet, priest and king. 

The July 2020 Instruction noted above, can help us see this aspect of our diaconal mission. In paragraph 80 (italics added)

"The deacon is, so to say, the custodian of service in the Church. Every word must be carefully measured. You are the guardians of service in the Church: service to the Word, service to the Altar, service to the poor."

Paragraph 81 adds:

“In an audience with participants at the International Congress on the Diaconate, Paul VI reaffirmed that the deacon serves Christian communities “’n proclaiming the Word of God, in sacramental ministry and in the exercise of charity.’”

Paragraph 82 is an initial effort to relate these three dimensions.

“the history of the diaconate recalls that it was established within the framework of a ministerial vision of the Church, as an ordained ministry at the service of the Word and of charity; this latter context includes the administration of goods. The twofold mission of the deacon is expressed in the liturgical sphere, where he is called to proclaim the Gospel and to serve at the Eucharistic table. These references can help identify the specific tasks of a deacon, adding value to that which is proper to the diaconate, with a view to promoting the diaconal ministry.”

This concludes the draft I was working on last year.

Afterthought: 

 O’Donnell’s book takes the lacuna I perceived very seriously. As he notes on page 134. 

“On the functional side, the model [of Christ the Servant] reflects how Christ serves the this-worldly needs of those who suffer within a broader ministry incorporating proclamation and prayer. The model thus undergirds the foundational understanding of the diaconal tasks as integrating word, liturgy, and charity, with a center of gravity in charity."

CELIBACY AND THE DEACON VI

6. The celibate deacon as older brother 

 Recently I watched a You Tube video in which a celibate permanent deacon in Spain spoke about his vocation. He carefully distinguished the vocation of a permanent deacon from the vocation to the priesthood. 

In the course of the video he spoke about the spiritual fatherhood of the deacon. I have problems with this. 

The permanent deacon who is a father of a family can show the church how to be a father, bringing his fatherhood to his ministry, inspiring other fathers to see their vocation in the raising of their children, with their wives. He can show a way of being father that is not dominating, that derives its authority from his paternal love and not from the title of father. He, together with his wife, can guide their children in the ways of faith, showing them how to integrate the life of faith in the family.

But the celibate deacon, who enters the diaconate as a single person, does not manifest this charism. He does not have paternal authority over children, youth, or adults. He is not there every day to guide others in their daily lives.

I think a better image for the celibate permanent deacon is that of the older brother.

I write this reluctantly since I am an only child and so have not experienced having an older brother or being an older brother, but, observing other families, I dare to make a few observations. If my remarks are too idealistic, please help me to make them more realistic. 

As I see it, a true older brother looks out after his younger siblings, sometime protecting them, sometimes giving them advice, sometimes warning them. He looks after their well-being, not as one who can command them (if he is not domineering or a bully), but as one who has had some experience of life and wants to share it with a sister or brother. 

 

A true older brother encourages his siblings, urging them on when they are faced with difficulties, encouraging them as they succeed, opening up their eyes to possibilities that they may have never dreamed of, pointing out pitfalls as they grow up.

A true older brother should be an example, an icon of what it means to be a child in a family and a child of God, how to live as brothers and sisters, children of the heavenly Father.

As a celibate deacon I can encourage my siblings, other members of the People of God, to live lives worthy of their calling (Ephesians 4:1) as I try to live my life.

Those who are not clergy are called to live their lives in the world, sanctifying the world in their lives and in their jobs. 

Most permanent deacons have jobs outside the Church, which I think is critical. They, like the laity, are called to sanctify the world in their jobs. 

Yet, as deacons, they come to the altar as persons who mostly live and work outside the walls of the church. They bring the world of work to the world of prayer, making visible the connection between the altar and the world of work. 

They can then speak to their co-workers as “siblings,” showing them a way to sanctify the world in their work. 

They do not come to the altar or the pulpit to order someone to live their faith in a particular way. They come to show in their lives how to live as a child of God in the world. They come to offer the advice of an older brother, intent on the good of the family (the People of God) and the fullness of life of their sisters and brothers.

As I think about this, I recall the words of Pope Saint Paul VI and Pope Saint John Paul II, describing the deacon as “the animator,” “a driving force” of diaconia in the church.

Can we celibate permanent deacons be the animators, the older brothers who accompany our sisters and brothers in our vocation as Church to serve God and to serve the world?

There are my initial thoughts. Obviously, I need to reflect more on this and to look at Vatican II’s “Decree on the Laity” as well as Pope St. John Paul II’s apostolic exhortation Christifideles laici. But these words might spur us to develop a deeper spirituality of the celibate permanent deacon.

Reconfiguring the image of the permanent deacon

Much has been written recently about the need for a more profound theology and spirituality of the permanent diaconate. I would like to propose several dimensions of the permanent diaconate that we might want to consider. I offer these thoughts not as the final word, but as starting points for reflection. These thoughts come from my formation, my reading, and from my experience as a celibate permanent deacon in a rural parish in southwestern Honduras.

I invite others to a discussion to help clarify our calling.

Serving as deacon on the day after my ordination in the village of Debajiados.

BAPTISM

First of all, ordination to the permanent diaconate is a deepening of the vocational call of all the baptized to be members of Christ, prophet, priest, and servant/king. 

The call to holy orders – as deacon, priest, or bishop – should not be considered separate from our call to be members of the Body of Christ that we received at Baptism. Separating the theology of holy orders from the theology of baptism could lead to a failure to consider he saving power of God in the sacrament of Baptism and the call to follow Christ of every baptized person. 

In our diocese here in Honduras, ministry is organized in terms of the prophetic, the liturgical, and the social – because these are what we are baptized into, as member of the Body of Chrsit. 

In the prayer before anointing the newly baptized child with Holy Chrism, we pray: 

“Les unja con el crisma de la salvación, para que se incorporen a su pueblo y sean para siempre miembros de Cristo, Sacerdote, Profeta y Rey.” 

“May He anoint you with the Chrism of Salvation, that you may be incorporated into His people and be forever members of Christ, Priest, Prophet, and King.”

(My translation from the Spanish.)

As I see it, the deacon is ordained to live this baptismal call in a special way, with an emphasis on being the servant. For me the diaconate is trying to live as evangelizer, servant of the poor, and minister at the altar.

ORDERING THE PEOPLE OF GOD FOR DIAKONIA

Secondly, the deacon is ordained to the ordering of the community and to be a driving force for the diakonia of the whole church. 

I recently finished reading a work from the early 1960s by Yves Congar, OP, Power and Poverty in the Church. I heartily recommend this small book. At several points he puts the sacrament of orders in perspective:

“St. Paul expressly says that ordained ministers organize the ministry of the saints, that is, of Christians, (Eph 4:23). They organize it, but they also invigorate and animate it and drive it forward. They are the drivers and the governors of the Body in that condition of responsibility and universal service that is the Christian condition itself.”  

Yves Congar, OP, Power and Poverty in the Church, p. 45.

One is ordained for the ordering of the People of God in its evangelization, its charity, and its prayer in common (the liturgy, the work [ergon] of the people [laos]).

Thus, the sacrament of orders is for ordering the community and assuring that the Church reflects who it is. It is not insignificant that the diaconate is called to be the animator, the driving force for diakonia, as both Pope Paul VI and Pope John Paul II affirmed.

THE EYES AND EARS OF THE BISHOP

Thirdly, the deacon has a special relation to the bishop and in the early church was spoken of as “the eyes and ears of the bishop”. I think this has dimension has not been developed sufficiently. 

Take note of this passage from Pseudo-Clement, from his letter to James, chapter 12

“Moreover, let the deacons of the Church, going about with intelligence, be as eyes to the bishop, carefully inquiring into the doings of each member of the Church, ascertaining who is about to sin, in order that, being arrested with admonition by the president, he may happily not accomplish the sin. Let them check the disorderly, that they may not desist from assembling to hear the discourses, so that they may be able to counteract by the word of truth those anxieties that fall upon the heart from every side, by means of worldly casualties and evil communications; for if they long remain fallow, they become fuel for the fire. And let them learn those who are suffering under bodily disease, and let them bring them to the notice of the multitude who do not know of them, that they may visit them and supply their wants according to the judgment of the president. Yea, though they do this without his knowledge, they do nothing amiss. These things, then, and things like to this, let the deacons attend to.”

(Found in the Compendium of the Diaconate: Kindle Location 1849 ff.)

I would like to suggest that the recovery of the diaconate as a permanent state offers a new way of doing this.

It is notable that the Vatican II restoration of the diaconate owes much to the discussions in the priest block at the Dachau concentration camp. Many of the priests there lamented the failure of the church to recognize the evil of Nazism. As Deacon William Ditewig wrote: 

“Following the war, these survivors wrote of how the Church would have to adapt itself to better meet the needs of the contemporary world if the horrors of the first half of the 20th Century were to be avoided in the future. Deacons were seen as a critical component of that strategy of ecclesial renewal. Why? Because deacons were understood as being grounded in their communities in practical and substantial ways, while priests and bishops had gradually become perceived as being too distant and remote from the people they were there to serve.”

https://billditewig.wordpress.com/2016/07/17/terrorism-dachau-and-diaconate-perspectives-and-pbs/

Having people as clergy who worked in the world, outside the institutions of the church, might be a way to keep the church more aware of the challenges of the modern world and the temptations of modern people and nations. A permanent deacon who worked “in the world” might be able, in the words of pseudo-Clement, to “carefully inquire into the doings of each member of the Church, ascertain who is about to sin, in order that, being arrested with admonition by the president, that person [or that nation] may happily not accomplish the sin.”

In addition, the permanent deacon might be able to see more clearly the strain and the pains suffered by the people of God, especially the poor.

As Bishop (now Cardinal Walter Kasper) said at an IDC conference in 1997, 

“The deacons can act as the eyes and ears of the bishop in identifying areas of need and can help him in his task of being father to the poor.”

He can bring the needs of the community to the bishop and, in his pastoral ministry, as Cardinal Kasper also wrote, he can “make the parish aware of urgent situations of need, motivating them to share with one another and to give practical help.”

The deacon’s connection to the bishop is not only in being a herald of the Gospel, but in being the one who assures that the church is aware of the sins of the world and the needs of the poor. He can thus help make real the first paragraph of Gaudium et Spes, the Vatican II Pastoral Constitution of the Church in the Modern World.

“The joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the men of this age, especially those who are poor or in any way afflicted, these are the joys and hopes, the griefs and anxieties of the followers of Christ. Indeed, nothing genuinely human fails to raise an echo in their hearts. For theirs is a community composed of men. United in Christ, they are led by the Holy Spirit in their journey to the Kingdom of their Father and they have welcomed the news of salvation which is meant for every man. That is why this community realizes that it is truly linked with mankind and its history by the deepest of bonds.”

I think Deacon James Keating puts it well:

“The deacon is sent by the Holy Spirit to the forsaken. This is why it is crucial for the diaconate to remain a liminal vocation. The deacon lives at the doorstep between the culture and the liturgical mysteries so that he can see and hear the cry of the poor and lay these needs at the foot of the altar and the pastor. The deacon is also an ecclesial porter, open the gates of mystery to those who desire to have their spiritual needs satisfied by God, and unbolting the doors of society to other clerics who may want to more deeply understand lay life.”

(Deacon James Keating, “The Moral Life of the Deacon,” in The Deacon Reader, p. 132.)

ICON OF CHRIST THE SERVANT

Fourthly, the deacon is to be the icon of Christ the servant, taking into account the kenosis of Jesus.

When Pope John Paul II spoke to US deacons in 1987, he noted:

“By your ordination you are configured to Christ in his servant role. You are also meant to be living signs of the servanthood of his Church.”

The deacon at the altar is a sign of Christ the Servant, who came “not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a rescue for many.”

But I would also suggest that the deacon is a sign of the servants who are members of the Body of Christ and see their service sacramentalized, present at the Table of the Lord.

The deacon might thus be a double icon – an icon of Christ the Servant and an icon of the Servant Body of Christ, the Servant People of God.

Can the people of God see in the deacon their living out of their baptismal call to be servants? Does the deacon call them to recognize that calling and put it into practice?

SERVING IN THE MARGINS

Fifthly, the deacon is called to the margins, to the periphery, to those neglected. It is worthwhile noting that the call of the seven (who are sometimes called the first deacons) came in response to those who felt marginalized, the widows and orphans of the Hellenists. 

Some have argued that this is a limited understanding of the deacon arguing mostly from the work of John Collins. But from the beginning, the deacon has been called to serve the poor, to look after their needs, and distribute the resources of the community to those in need. Note the example of Saint Lawrence. 

I would suggest that a major part of the call of the seven was to attend to those who were marginalized, first of all the widows and orphans of the Hellenists in the community. We might also note that one of the seven, Philip, is seen as evangelizing those outside the community, most notably the Ethiopian eunuch and a Samaritan village. 

I believe that a major part of the deacon’s identity must be his attention to those on the margins, those left out of the church and of the wider society. He is to bring their presence to the Church and to bring the presence of the Church to them, where they are. 

EVANGELIZATION, CHARITY AND THE ALTAR

Fundamentally, the deacon is for evangelization and charity, to show the connection of these with the altar. The crossroads of evangelization and charity is found at the altar. 

In July 2020, the Vatican’s Congregation on the Clergy released an Instruction on The Pastoral Conversion of the Parish Community in the Service of the Evangelizing Mission of the Church. Significantly there is a large section on deacons. There, the deacon is seen mostly in terms of evangelization and charity. The liturgical dimension is extremely important, but the key aspects of the diaconate seem to be “evangelization” and “charity.” 

Paragraph 82 reads, in part:

“the history of the diaconate recalls that it was established within the framework of a ministerial vision of the Church, as an ordained ministry at the service of the Word and of charity; this latter context includes the administration of goods. The twofold mission of the deacon is expressed in the liturgical sphere, where he is called to proclaim the Gospel and to serve at the Eucharistic table.”

These two aspects are not unrelated, nor are they separated from liturgy. Indded, the intersection of evangelization and charity is found at the Table of the Lord, in the Eucharist.

The deacon should come with the concerns of the people of God, especially the poor, as the minister who would normally offer the Prayers of the Faithful. 

The deacon also is the one who sends out the people to evangelize the world. As Pope Paul VI said at the end of the Second Vatican Council:

“We stress that the teaching of the Council is channeled in one direction, the service of humankind, of every condition, in every weakness and need. DEA Church has declared herself a servant of humanity…”

The connection of evangelization and charity with the Table of the Lord is perhaps the area where we most need to reflect to develop a theology and spirituality of the diaconate. 

FINAL THOUGHT

What images could we use to describe the permanent deacon? 

Some have called his ministry as a bridge between the church and the world. This has its limitations because it seems to posit and breach between the two.

Others have spoken of the permanent deacon being in a liminal space, the place where the world and the church meet. 

I wonder if we might think of the deacon as being at the crossroads. 

At first, I thought of describing the permanent deacon as being at the intersection of evangelization and charity at the altar. But, driving to a distant community in our parish, I thought it might be better to speak of the crossroads of these two dimensions in the Eucharist. One of the words for an intersection in Spanish is cruce, which reminded me of cruz, the cross.

The cross reminds us of the integrity of our ministry – Word and Charity united at the Altar. It also reminds us of our identity in Christ, who humbled himself even to the Cross (Philippians 2: 5-11). Finally, it reminds us of our commitment of witness, martirio, even to martyrdom, servants of the Blood of Christ, willing to pour out our blood for the Reign of God.

Deacon reflection 7

I never thought I’d be doing this

I have been a deacon for a little more than four years. There have been a few highlights during those times, but I’d like to write about what have been two areas of my diaconal ministry that have moved me. They are also areas where I am surprised by my way of connecting with people.

Funerals

With only one priest in the parish, who tries to visit all the more than forty-five villages in the parish every two months, there are times when he cannot be present for funeral Mass. In many villages, a Delegate of the Word presides at a Celebration of the Word, There are not many who seek a Mass or a Celebration with Communion, outside of the main towns in the parish.

I have made myself available for funerals and, at times, the pastor or a delegate of the Word calls me to come. There is not much time for preparation, since people are usually buried within twenty-hours of their death. Often I don’t know the person who died, though there have been times when I had visited the deceased, bringing them communion.

Being present in times of loss is important. I try to say a few words of comfort and of hope. But there is a line in the prayer in the funeral rite that touches me almost every time I preside.

As the family gathers around the casket to pray the final commendation, the church prays:

“May the Lord be merciful with our brother/sister, so that, free from death, absolved by his/her sins, reconciled with the Father and carried on the shoulders of the Good Shepherd, he/she may merit to enjoy the eternal joy of the saints in the entourage of the eternal King.” (My translation).

Often I ask the family to visualize their loved one on the shoulders of Christ the Good Shepherd or held like a child in Christ’s loving arms.

Many times I have been asked to pray in the homes where they have been waking the body of the person who died. I usually do a short Celebration of the Word  with one reading and the rites of commendation of the body. 

Often there are many people - in the room where the coffin is and outside - to accompany the family. These times of prayer can be extremely moving and it is important to be there. Earlier this year I prayed beside the small coffin of a still born infant. 

Marriage preparation

Though I have been helping in the Dulce Nombre parish for years, I didn’t notice many sacramental marriages until last year.

I’m not sure why there are so few couples married in the church. Some possible reasons might include one or more of these:  fear of the commitment of a sacramental marriage; the cost of a civil marriage (since a sacramental marriage cannot take place without the civil marriage usually witnessed by a mayor); the expectations of a costly celebration; the lack of invitation by local church leaders – some of who only castigate people for “living in fornication”; not a strong sense of dating; the lack of a culture of marriage; many years without the presence of priests in rural villages except for a few times a year; and more.

Yet I often encourage couples to get married in the church. I have often seen young men around the church door while their wives are inside with one or two kids. I jokingly ask them if they are married and when they say know I gently urge them to consider this.

The process might be a bit daunting. The couple meets with the pastor, then they have about three months of weekly meetings with a couple in their village. Then there is the interview of the couple as well as two witnesses, who know the couple. They also have to be married civilly before their church marriage.

Since my ordination, I have been doing the final interview. This interview, with two witnesses, is to see if they are ready for the sacrament and also to see if there are any obstacles to marriage. At times this has been perfunctory. But recently, I have been finding it inspiring.

In one distant village – one hour by car from my house – six couples began meeting at least a year ago, reflecting on their faith and talking about getting married in the church. At first, they got some flak from the church leaders in their village who didn’t like the idea of people in fornication meeting together without a designated church leader. I, on the other hand, was delighted that some people were taking the initiative. Finally, the local leaders did not resist the formation of these couples in preparation for the sacrament of matrimony. But then the pandemic and the lock downs came.

As I got permission to go out on ministry Mondays through Fridays, I told the communities that I would come out and do the interviews in their villages. So far I have done eight interviews. In a few cases, one of the spouses is not baptized. I’ve met with the unbaptized to follow up on preparation in their villages. I’ve baptized one young man a few weeks ago a few days before his wedding. I’ll be baptizing two women in the next few weeks, the day before five couples are married in their village.

It has been so good to talk with these and try to help them see the presence of God in their relationships and, in many cases, their children.

Though I don’t preside at the celebrations of many marriages, these encounters are a real part of my diaconal ministry.

OTHER MINISTRIES

These two areas of diaconal ministry are really important. People need to feel the presence of the church in their lives – accompanying them in times of loss and in times of joy.

They are not alone. The Church is with them – and values them. The Church wants to share their sorrows and their joys.

Deacon reflection 6

 What’s different, being a deacon?

A few months after I had been ordained, my pastor asked me what was different.

 

Not much, I told him.

 

I was continuing my work in visiting communities on Sundays for Celebrations of the Word with Communion as I had been doing for years. I was continuing to visit the sick and bringing them communion. I continued working with catechists and helping to organize the social ministry in the various communities.

 

There were some differences in the way I presided at Celebrations of the Word with Communion and in how I visited the sick. The most obvious difference was that I was giving a blessing to those I encountered.

 

There were a few new things. I baptized a few times and presided at funerals.

 

I was a member of the clergy.

 

As such, I had a position within the church. I was ordained for the order of the community, in my case to image Christ the Servant.

 

But a real difference for me was that I was no longer a “free agent.”

 

I had come to Honduras as a volunteer and offered myself to the bishop to serve as he saw fit. But I was a volunteer. I had no contract. I had no official commitment. I could leave when I wanted.

 

But ordination meant that I was no longer a volunteer. I had a role in the church as a deacon. I couldn’t, without permission, just get up and leave. I had been called and ordained for a specific service in this local church, the diocese of Santa Rosa de Copán, Honduras.

 

Now, I’m here as one with a particular ministry in the diocese. I’m no longer here on my own.

 

This isn’t a privilege, nor an honor. It’s a calling to live out.

 

Before my ordination, I had been serving in the church and the world. But now I’m expected to do this because of being called in a different way.

 

This doesn’t mean that all the baptized are not called to serve. That’s part of who we are as persons baptized into Christ who is prophet, priest, and king (servant), as the rite of anointing with chrism after Baptism notes.

 

This is who I am now, not above anyone, but commissioned, ordained, to serve the People of God in a special and visible way.

 

All of us who are baptized are also called to live as Christ, as member of His Body. Before we were baptized, if we were baptized as adults, we may have been living as Christians. But, by baptism, we are doing this publicly, commissioned to do this – not because we want to, but because of who we are.

 

And so, I am now called to serve, not because I want to, as a free agent, but as I am – called to be an Icon of Christ the Servant in the world, at the service of the People of God, especially the poor.

Deacon reflection 5

 Dachau and the prophetic role of deacons

The first thing I read after Bishop Darwin Andino asked me to consider the diaconate was an article by Deacon William Ditewig in US Catholic. (Source noted below.)

 

In that article, which is well worth reading, he noted the recent origins of the permanent diaconate in the priests’ barracks at the Dachau concentration camp. More than 2,500 priests, as well as Orthodox priests and a bishop and Protestant clergy were held there. I wrote about this shortly before I was ordained in this blog post.

 

In Dachau, several priests began discussions about the church, concerned that, in the face of World War I and the rise of Nazism, the Church had not been as aware and forthright as it might have been. Having deacons, who were involved in their “mundane” occupations, might be a way for the institutional church to be more aware of what was happening – not just in the political sphere but also in the daily lives of the faithful.

 

I see this as one of the most important aspects of the restored diaconate, one that I fear is not always practiced.

 

The permanent deacon has, most often, a family and a job “in the world”. I am an exception, being single and working in the church.

 

The married deacon can bring to his ministry the joys and the struggles of family life, including raising children with values that are very much different than those of the dominant culture of competition, individualism, and domination. These can influence his preaching, his ways of connecting with people, and even his role in the sacraments of baptism and matrimony. They also can open his heart to the needs of poor and broken families.

 

The deacon with a “secular” job can not only bring the Gospel to impact on the workplace, but he has the opportunity to show in his work the dignity and holiness of work that serves the common good and keeps the poor at the center of our concern.

 

But there is another dimension that I have not seen all too often. The deacon can bring to the Church, both the local congregation and the bishops and priests, the injustices and the temptations to worship the gods of power, wealth, and sex that he encounters in the world.

 

I wish that we deacons were more visible in this prophetic aspect of our ministry – following the example of Christ who is prophet, priest, and servant-king.

Where am I in the face of the injustices around us?

 

I do mention the problems of corruption in some of my homilies, but is there more that I can do? A few times I have shared my concerns with the bishop, usually in a letter or e-mail. I accompanied the bishop and some priests when he went to the town of Azacualpa where a mining company is moving a cemetery to extract the gold found under it. I also try to share my concerns in my blog and on my Facebook page.

 

This can be done and we deacons should do it more.

 

Our prophetic word, our analysis of reality, our denunciations of injustice must be done – but with a spirit of love and based in the message of the Gospels.

 

So much of the discussion about issues is partisan and vituperative.

 

How can we be prophetic – in truth and in love?

 

 ------------------------------------------------

 

"A call of their own: The role of deacons in the church", US Catholic, June 2014.

http://www.uscatholic.org/articles/201406/call-their-own-role-deacons-church-28973