An Overview
If you would like to take the first step of Inquiry please click this link and fill out the pre-application form and mail your completed form to Director of Deacon Formation, Sr. Wanda Billion, MSC. The Director of Formation will contact you directly.
An Overview of the Permanent Diaconate
- A distinct permanent Order with a distinct academic/formation path
- A lifetime commitment to serving God’s People
- A mission of service to the Word, Liturgy, Charity and Justice
A Deacon is a man who is called to a ministry of service. With priests and the Bishop, he receives the sacrament of Holy Orders. He is an ordained clergyman living in the lifestyle of the laity. Pope John Paul II said that. “the deacon is the Church’s service sacramentalized. He is the visible sign of service to which all the baptized are called.”
“While deacons are not called to priesthood, they are ordained to a ministry of service that enriches the Church and enhances the ministry in service of God’s People.”
The deacon’s service is threefold:
Ministry of Word
Ministry of Liturgy
Ministry of Charity and Justice
The deacon is called to participate in the Church’s ministry of the Word as Evangelizer and Teacher. He takes the message of Jesus to the market-place, especially to the poor.
In the deacon’s liturgical ministry, the Church sees a reflection of its own mission to serve as Jesus did.
The ministry of justice and charity is integral to the deacon’s service in the Church’s ministry of Word and Liturgy. Pope John Paul II said: “This is at the very heart of the Diaconate wo which you have been called: to be servant of the mysteries of Christ and, at the same time, to be servant of your brothers and sisters…”
The call to the Diaconate is a call from God. To find out more about responding to this possible call, please contact your pastor or the Director of Deacon Formation.