“Every priest continues to be a deacon…for the Lord Himself became our minister, our deacon”

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 4:26 pm by Deacon Greg Kandra

“Every priest continues to be a deacon…for the Lord Himself became our minister, our deacon” 2015-03-13T16:26:00-04:00 Deacon Greg Kandra

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

A reader sent along this homily that was delivered today by Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend for the ordination of deacons who will one day be priests for the Congregation of Holy Cross. It ties in beautifully with the feast we celebrate this day—and it offers some thoughtful insight into diakonia and Holy Orders. It’s really superb.

An excerpt:

It is a privilege to ordain you permanent deacons. No, I didn’t make a mistake. Don’t worry: you are scheduled to be ordained priests next year by Bishop Jenky! But what happens today in the sacrament of Orders is not something transitional; it is permanent. All the priests gathered here are still deacons, because the character and grace of the diaconate is something permanent. Deacons are icons or images of Christ the Servant. The configuration to Christ the Servant through diaconal ordination is permanent. Priests are servants. Bishops are servants. That’s why the Church requires us to be ordained deacons first. We don’t leave one Order behind when we assume a different one. The sacramental effects of the three grades of Orders are cumulative, not exclusive. You won’t be icons of Christ the Servant for just 7 months, but for the rest of your lives. No one is admitted to the higher degrees of Holy Orders without first being configured to Christ with the indelible character of the diaconate. When you are priests, the diaconal dimension of your ministry must also be visible. What is this dimension? It is the dimension of service, diakonia. I remember Pope Benedict once saying to a group of priests that “every priest also continues to be a deacon and must always be aware of this dimension, for the Lord Himself became our minister, our deacon. Recall the act of the washing of the feet, where it is explicitly shown that…the Lord acts as a deacon and wants those who follow Him to be deacons and carry out this ministry for humanity, washing the feet of those entrusted to our care.” So what happens to these six men today is important for the rest of their lives.

I invite our six candidates to think about the threefold ministry that is entrusted to them today. First, the diakonia of the liturgy. By ordination today, you will be made ministers of the altar. You will prepare the altar for the Eucharistic Sacrifice and you will give the Body and Blood of the Lord to His people. This is a beautiful service of the Church that contributes to the building up of the Body of Christ. It is truly an honor and a joy to be servants of the great mystery of faith, the Holy Eucharist. The Church asks you to always treat the holy mysteries with humility and devotion, with an interior adoration of mind and affection. And be especially eager to bring Holy Communion to the sick, the suffering, and the homebound. Go out and find those who are hungry for the Bread of Life, those who may be forgotten in nursing homes or other institutions. Be zealous to bring the Holy Eucharist to those who are alone and in need of company, your company as ministers of the Church, and especially the company of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.

You are also ordained today to exercise the diakonia of the word. This is the first duty of all the ordained, the first duty of priests and bishops as well. We share a common responsibility to proclaim and explain the Gospel. On this great Feast of the Holy Cross, we are reminded, as Saint Paul said, that we are not to proclaim ourselves. We are to proclaim Christ crucified. As members of the Congregation with the name “Holy Cross,” you know this well. You are to proclaim and preach the greatest word that God has ever spoken to humanity through His only-begotten Son. What is that word? It is the word of the Cross! It is the word that your holy founder, Blessed Basil Moreau, proclaimed and lived. It is the word that all the ordained are to preach, the word that demonstrates how much God has loved the world. From the human point of view, Christ’s offering of Himself on the Cross was diaconate_ordination_iia sign of contradiction. The crucifixion was, in fact, the most profound humiliation possible. Saint Paul said that it was a stumbling block for Jews and foolishness in the eyes of the Gentiles, but for those who have eyes to see, it is the wisdom of God. It is the logic of God, the logic of love. That’s the Gospel, my brothers, that you are called to preach, not your own wisdom, but the wisdom of God, the wisdom of the cross. We need apostolic stamina, Pope Francis says, “to endure all the difficulties inflicted by those whom (Saint) Paul describes as enemies of the Cross of Christ – those people who like to be flattered and who like to be told what they like to hear; those people who want to be told what they want the Gospel to say and not what the Gospel says.” We pray that you will have that apostolic stamina to preach the wisdom of the Cross and to teach the truth in charity. Through your preaching and teaching, you are called to lead people to grace, to an encounter with Christ. To do this task well, you must be men who contemplate the Gospel with love. You can’t give what you don’t have. I urge you as preachers to first linger over the pages of the Gospel and read them with your hearts as well as your minds. Prayer, spiritual reading, and meditation must be part of our daily routine as servants of the word of God.

You are also ordained today for the diakonia of charity. The practice of charity has been part of the diaconal ministry from the beginning. The first deacons in the Acts of the Apostles were ordained to serve at table, to feed the poor widows. That ministry of charity, of course, expanded. We can think of the great charitable ministry of holy deacons like Saint Lawrence. This exercise of charity is an essential part of the mission of the Church. So, I encourage you to have a special love for the poor, the sick, and the suffering. Go out, as Pope Francis tells us, to the edges and peripheries, to the vulnerable and forgotten. Go out, like Jesus, who was always close to the poor and outcast. God’s heart has a special place for the poor and so must our hearts. And think about these words of our Holy Father: “the worst discrimination which the poor suffer is the lack of spiritual care. The great majority of the poor have a special openness to the faith; they need God and we must not fail to offer them his friendship, his blessing, his word, the celebration of the sacraments and a journey of growth and maturity in the faith” (EG 200). May you have a particular love and concern for the most vulnerable in our midst: unborn children, the disabled, and the elderly. And remember also that besides material poverty, there is much spiritual and cultural poverty. The Lord calls us to continue His mission of bringing the good news to the poor, all the poor.

Read the rest.

Deacons

Homilies

Previous Post

September 14, 2014

They do: Pope marries 20 couples in St. Peter's

Next Post

September 15, 2014 Archbishop Listecki's vision

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category "Mad Men" 9/11 advent All Things New Amazing video amazing videos amazon america Anglicans Anti-Catholicism art ascension thursday ash wednesday Atheists baltimore Bible Bishops Blogging bonnie engstrom Books bridgeport Brooklyn Chaplains children christian art christmas Church Churches CNEWA Converts criticism Deacons Death Penalty easter eastern christian Eastern Christians Ecumenism Education education Eucharist Europe euthanasia Evangelization Exorcism Family Feasts Gay rights Good Friday Great links Great Moments in Journalism Hanging with the saints heather renshaw Hispanic Catholics Hispanics History homelies Homilies Humor Hymn of the Week Immigration indianapolis Inspiration Interfaith news ireland Jesus Jews Journalism Judaism lent Liturgy logos Marriage Mary Media Medical news Mental health Middle East Monks Movies Music Muslims My world and welcome to it New Evangelization new york News Nuns Parenting Parish life peoria Persecution politics Politics Pope pope francis pope john paul Prayer Preaching Priests Pro-life Quote of the day radio rebecca frech ripp Ripped from the headlines rippred from the headlines Sacraments saints Scripture sex abuse Sex abuse crisis SEX ABUSE CRISIS TAGGED WITH: SEX ABUSE CRISIS The people in the pews the visitation project theatre This & that Thomas Merton Trappists TV uncategorized Uncategorized VATICAN Vatican vocation Vocations Voices & Views Women Worth a thousand words Writing Year of Faith year of mercy young people

Select a Month December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What animal did Daniel survive with?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Lions Wolves Bears Leopards

Books by This Author Books by Deacon Greg Kandra

See All Titles »