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By Peter Finney Jr., Clarion Herald
In ordaining eight men to the transitional diaconate May 19 at St. Louis Cathedral, the final step before ordination to the priesthood, Archbishop Gregory Aymond said the new deacons should be the voice of the church in caring for those on the margins of society.
“The word deacon comes from the Greek, and it means serving God by caring for others,” Archbishop Aymond at the Mass of Ordination.
Saying the rite of ordination is virtually unchanged from the days of the early church 2,000 years ago – when the apostles called forth men of strong faith and reputation and prayed over them and laid hands on them to invoke the power of the Holy Spirit – Archbishop Aymond said that unbroken tradition is vital to carry out the church’s mission.
“Interestingly, almost 2,000 years later, we look for the same exact qualities in men whom we will ordain to the diaconate,” the archbishop said. “We want men who are of faith. We want men who know the Lord Jesus. We want men who are respected by the community, and we desire for men who are humble enough to serve at the table or wherever else they’re called.”
The archbishop ordained seven men for the Archdiocese of New Orleans – Deacons Douglas M. Busch, Daniel S. Darmanin, Andrew O. Gutierrez, Daniel C. Okafor, Leon K. Poche Jr., Andrew C. Rudmann and Damian P. Zablocki. Brother Ton Huu Dang was ordained as a transitional deacon for the Missionaries of Faith.
Human face of Christ
The archbishop said the ministry of deacon has three major components: deacons must be “the human face of Christ as the minister of charity”; they must be “the voice of Christ by teaching and preaching”; and they are given “the responsibility and the privilege of leading others in prayer.”
“It is our hope, my brothers, when others see you they will see a Jesus whose heart is filled with charity,” Archbishop Aymond said. “You will be sent by Christ to be his arms and his heart and his hands for many, but especially for those who are in need. Yes, all of us as baptized Christians are called to a life of charity. But the deacon in the church is the one who leads us in charity, who leads us in caring for others. In many ways, they do this in a radical way.”
Because breaking open the Word of God is so important in offering spiritual food to people, Archbishop Aymond stressed to the new deacons that they carefully prepare their homilies and pray for inspiration.
“Please never preach without prayer and without preparation,” he said. “When we do so, we sort of test God by saying, ‘Oh, I’ll just wing it. So, God you have to do all the work.’ Enter into prayer and preparation so that you can feed people from your heart and your hands. … We have to make sure that we don’t get in the way of God’s word. And it’s truly his word.”
The men also made three promises: they will be men of prayer, be obedient to the bishop and live a life of celibacy.
“We value marriage; it is a sacrament of the church and a very important part of our church, family life and marriage,” the archbishop said. “But you, my brothers, are willing to remain single to give your entire life to the ministry of Christ, and you have no other responsibilities – no others except to live out the ministry of Jesus Christ as a servant. You’re not a bachelor. You’re committed – and deeply, deeply committed – to Christ and to his church.”
After the 100-minute liturgy, each of the new deacons said they were thankful in different ways for what they had just experienced.
Peter Finney Jr. can be reached at pfinney@clarionherald.org.