The identity of the Permanent Deacon as distinct from that of the Priest is an area that needs to be clearly defined and understood if our order and ministry is to do justice to Apostolic Tradition and the vision of Vatican II that restored this order. There remains a great deal of misunderstanding (clergy & laiety alike) accompanied by incorrect assumptions that need to be clarified and clearly articulated. For example, parishoners calling the Deacon 'father' or a Priest who does not comprehend the difference between a transitory and permanent Deacon. Other questions that arise concern the faculties of the Permanent Deacon and also his limitations; how do Deacons understand their order in relationship to the Episcopate and to the Presbyterate? are Bishops in union in their understanding of the order of Permanent Deacon? Can we as Permanent Deacons take the initiative and lead the way in answering these and many more questions? Are we confident enough to competently make things clear without error?
For a start, the following points are the basic norms of understanding concerning the Permanent Diaconate:
1. At ordination the Permanent Deacon receives the Sacrament of Holy Orders and therefore holds the clerical state of the ministerial diaconate.
2. In receiving the Sacrament the Deacon is given the duties and responsibilities accorded to this order by the Episcopate i.e. the faculties of the Deacon.
3. The Deacon is an Ordinary Minister of the following Sacraments: Communion, Baptism and Marriage.
4. The Deacon is not permitted to administer the following Sacraments: Confirmation, Anointing of the Sick, Confession, Holy Orders.
5. The Deacon is not permitted to consecrate the bread & wine in the Mass*, but is permitted to lead a Eucharist Service in the absence of a Priest.
6. The Deacon can bless persons and/or objects.
7. The Deacon can expose the Blessed Sacrament and preside at Benediction.
8. The Deacon can lead prayer services for various occassions.
9. The Deacon can bury the dead.
10. The Deacon is ordained to be of service to the Word (preaching), to the Liturgy (assisting) & in Charity (serving).
*Pope John Paul II issued the encyclical Inaestimabile Donum which gives the instruction to the effect that only the Priest and Bishop are permitted to say the eucharistic prayer.
In the Pastoral sense the Deacon is ordained to be where the Bishop and the Priest cannot be; in the secular world, at the coal face. The Deacon becomes a bridge between the Church and the World, he lives in the reality in which the lay faithful find themselves, sharing in the experience of living in the secular world with all that this entails. The Deacon brings the ministerial Church into the home, the work place, the boardroom, the lecture halls and more.
I have often heard Priests comment that a Deacon is ordained for a Parish and there develops the view that the Deacon becomes the Priests personal assistant (PA) or an extention of the Parish Priest (mini-priest) or, dare I say it, the Priests lackie (spanner boy). These perceptions persist if the Deacon himself has no clear understanding of his ministerial identity. Based on the authoritative instructions from the Congregation of the Clergy (Directory for the Ministry & Life of Permanent Deacons) the correct understanding is that a Deacon is ordained by the Bishop for his diocese and is assigned by the Bishop. This assignment may involve a specialised ministry e.g. chaplaincy to an insitution and/or an assignment to a parish of the Bishop's choice in consultation with the Deacon and the Parish Priest. Therefore, the assignment to a parish does not imply a sub-servient relationship but a co-working, co-responsible relationship. Both Priest and Deacon receive their respective ministry from the Bishop and make their vow of obedience at ordination to the Bishop. Within the Bishop resides the fulness of Apostolic leadership, Presbyterate and Diaconate. The Bishop, as an exception to the rule, may even assign a Deacon as administrator of a parish in the absence of a Parish Priest. The Deacon however is not a replacement or substitute for the Parish Priest or Priests in general, but has his own ministerial role to play in the overall plan of evangelisation and salvation.
The area where the Deacon most embodies the Servant King; Jesus Christ, is in works of Charity. When the Apostles selected seven men (proto-deacons) to assist them in their work, it was the area of Charity (service) to the Greek speaking Jews, who were being overlooked in the ministerial work of the Apostles, that needed their attention. The idea of Deacons waiting on tables is a common misconception. Rather, they shared the miniterial work of the Apostles, albeit, to a certain section of the community; teaching, preaching, distributing resources, baptising much as the Apostles were doing with the exception of celebrating Mass. The very first Christian martyr was the Deacon Stephen as recorded in the book of Acts.
We are called to make Jesus present in a very real way to the less fortunate, the widows, the orphans, the persecuted, the oppressed, the abused, the exploited, the incarcerated. Diaconia (service) is the hallmark of the Deacon always and everywhere. It is the hallmark of Jesus in his earthly mission.
Please feel free to dialogue on this topic.
Dcn. Greg
For a start, the following points are the basic norms of understanding concerning the Permanent Diaconate:
1. At ordination the Permanent Deacon receives the Sacrament of Holy Orders and therefore holds the clerical state of the ministerial diaconate.
2. In receiving the Sacrament the Deacon is given the duties and responsibilities accorded to this order by the Episcopate i.e. the faculties of the Deacon.
3. The Deacon is an Ordinary Minister of the following Sacraments: Communion, Baptism and Marriage.
4. The Deacon is not permitted to administer the following Sacraments: Confirmation, Anointing of the Sick, Confession, Holy Orders.
5. The Deacon is not permitted to consecrate the bread & wine in the Mass*, but is permitted to lead a Eucharist Service in the absence of a Priest.
6. The Deacon can bless persons and/or objects.
7. The Deacon can expose the Blessed Sacrament and preside at Benediction.
8. The Deacon can lead prayer services for various occassions.
9. The Deacon can bury the dead.
10. The Deacon is ordained to be of service to the Word (preaching), to the Liturgy (assisting) & in Charity (serving).
*Pope John Paul II issued the encyclical Inaestimabile Donum which gives the instruction to the effect that only the Priest and Bishop are permitted to say the eucharistic prayer.
In the Pastoral sense the Deacon is ordained to be where the Bishop and the Priest cannot be; in the secular world, at the coal face. The Deacon becomes a bridge between the Church and the World, he lives in the reality in which the lay faithful find themselves, sharing in the experience of living in the secular world with all that this entails. The Deacon brings the ministerial Church into the home, the work place, the boardroom, the lecture halls and more.
I have often heard Priests comment that a Deacon is ordained for a Parish and there develops the view that the Deacon becomes the Priests personal assistant (PA) or an extention of the Parish Priest (mini-priest) or, dare I say it, the Priests lackie (spanner boy). These perceptions persist if the Deacon himself has no clear understanding of his ministerial identity. Based on the authoritative instructions from the Congregation of the Clergy (Directory for the Ministry & Life of Permanent Deacons) the correct understanding is that a Deacon is ordained by the Bishop for his diocese and is assigned by the Bishop. This assignment may involve a specialised ministry e.g. chaplaincy to an insitution and/or an assignment to a parish of the Bishop's choice in consultation with the Deacon and the Parish Priest. Therefore, the assignment to a parish does not imply a sub-servient relationship but a co-working, co-responsible relationship. Both Priest and Deacon receive their respective ministry from the Bishop and make their vow of obedience at ordination to the Bishop. Within the Bishop resides the fulness of Apostolic leadership, Presbyterate and Diaconate. The Bishop, as an exception to the rule, may even assign a Deacon as administrator of a parish in the absence of a Parish Priest. The Deacon however is not a replacement or substitute for the Parish Priest or Priests in general, but has his own ministerial role to play in the overall plan of evangelisation and salvation.
The area where the Deacon most embodies the Servant King; Jesus Christ, is in works of Charity. When the Apostles selected seven men (proto-deacons) to assist them in their work, it was the area of Charity (service) to the Greek speaking Jews, who were being overlooked in the ministerial work of the Apostles, that needed their attention. The idea of Deacons waiting on tables is a common misconception. Rather, they shared the miniterial work of the Apostles, albeit, to a certain section of the community; teaching, preaching, distributing resources, baptising much as the Apostles were doing with the exception of celebrating Mass. The very first Christian martyr was the Deacon Stephen as recorded in the book of Acts.
We are called to make Jesus present in a very real way to the less fortunate, the widows, the orphans, the persecuted, the oppressed, the abused, the exploited, the incarcerated. Diaconia (service) is the hallmark of the Deacon always and everywhere. It is the hallmark of Jesus in his earthly mission.
Please feel free to dialogue on this topic.
Dcn. Greg
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