Deacons
It is understandable that there is some confusion among Catholics about the role and purpose of the Deacon. Deacons are members of the Catholic clergy, but most of them are married. There is no such thing as a part-time deacon -- a deacon is a deacon 24 hours a day. But most deacons have part-time diaconal assignments, while working full-time at a secular job. On Sunday mornings a deacon looks like a member of the clergy (which he is). But on Monday morning, he's at work at Kodak or Xerox or Kelly's Pool Hall. These paradoxes and apparent contradictions certainly contribute to the confusion about deacons. It is the intent of this little article to reduce the level of confusion. In a quick and haphazard way, I'll try to shed some light on the questions: "Who is a deacon and where do they come from?" and "What do they do?"
Deacons were around from practically the very beginning. Read the 6th chapter of the book of Acts if you want to know the history. The original idea was that the deacon should be a servant. In fact, the word deacon derives from the Greek word for servant. Over the course of the centuries, this fundamental aspect of the diaconate was forgotten, and the diaconate became for all practical purposes just a transitional phase which the would-be priest would have to undergo before his priestly ordination. The deacon was a tadpole - on his way to being a frog. The fathers of Vatican II looked at this and said: "This is dumb. The diaconate was not meant to be merely a transitional (tadpole) state, but an order in its own right." Thus, the so-called "permanent diaconate" was formed - or rather restored. The deacon's role as servant was re-emphasized in these words: "The sacrament of Holy Orders marks them with an imprint which can not be removed and configures them to Christ, who made Himself the "deacon" or servant of all."
In this restoration, it was decreed that marriage would not be an impediment to ordination to the diaconate unless the deacon has intentions of becoming a priest. Thus we have what some still consider an anomaly - a married man who is a member of the Catholic clergy. (It is noted in passing that an unmarried deacon may not get married.)
This restoration was hatched in the mid-1960s. In our diocese, the first batch of permanent deacons was ordained in 1982. At this moment, there are about 100 deacons actively in service in the diocese - some in parish situations, some in places like hospitals and jails. Each of these deacons went through a four-year formation period the main purpose of which is for the candidate to keep asking himself: "Do I really want to do this?" They are also treated to a little theological study - not nearly what a priest gets, but something anyway. Deacons, by the way, are never paid for their work as deacons. That's part of the deal. (A deacon might have a paying job with a church or institution, but he is never paid for his diaconal work as such.)
What do deacons do? Servant stuff. They also do marriages, baptisms, benediction services, etc. If the Bishop grants them the faculties, they may give homilies. But the greatest thing any deacon does - his greatest privilege-- is to give out Communion as a Eucharistic Minister.
Deacon Greg Sampson Diocese of Rochester
