The fact that we have six permanent deacons assigned to our cluster is a great asset! They provide valuable assistance to the team of priests and service to the parishes. Our deacons are: Deacon Tim Murphy (St. Lawrence), Deacon Dave Prenger and Deacon Ed Miller (Holy Spirit), Deacon Greg Sampson (Arcadia, Breda & Mt. Carmel), Deacon Louis Meiners and Deacon Gary Schon (Glidden, Dedham & Coon Rapids). The following is an article written by Deacon Greg Sampson that describes the role of the permanent deacon.
Fr. Kevin Richter
In recent years, Deacons have become more and more visible in the life of the Church, especially at the parish level. Yet a lot of folks have never been told what deacons are all about. The purpose of this little article is to impart some information about the office of deacon, called the diaconate.
Deacons have been around from the very beginning of the Church. St. Stephen, the first martyr, was also among the first deacons. In biblical times and for many centuries afterwards, deacons functioned in an important role in the life of the Church. But as the centuries rolled on, the role of the deacon diminished. By the time the Second Vatican Council convened (1961), the diaconate consisted mostly as a “transitional office”. Ordination to the diaconate was looked upon chiefly as the last stepping stone to ordination to the priesthood.
The Council Fathers recognized that this was not the best use of the diaconate, so they proposed a restoration of the office. Instead of looking upon the diaconate only as a temporary and transitional thing, ordination to the diaconate would allow for the office to be held on a permanent basis – a return to the ancient practice of the Church. At present, there are about 40,000 so-called “Permanent Deacons” in the world, 15,000 in the United States, and about 50 in the Diocese of Sioux City.
Deacons are clergy. You may remember from your catechism that there are three levels of ordained ministry: Bishops, Priests, and Deacons -- in that order! A deacon, when ordained, swears loyalty to his Bishop and his successors. Most, but not all, deacons are assigned to a parish. But even in these cases, although he serves under the guidance of the pastor and takes directions from him, the deacon is always the “Bishop’s man”, and “serves at the pleasure of the Bishop”.
A deacon serves “gratuitously”. That is fancy talk for the fact that no deacon is paid for being a deacon. I know of no exceptions. There are deacons who are paid for having specific jobs in the church – teaching school, for example. But they are not paid for being deacons.
What does a deacon do? At Mass, the deacon is
always the one who proclaims the Gospel. He may preach on occasion. He is authorized to witness weddings, perform Baptisms, do Benedictions, preside at wakes, bless people and objects, etc. A deacon is often asked to take a role in adult faith formation, home and hospital visitation, and promotion of service to the poorest of the poor.
In this diocese, there is a five-year formation process to prepare a man for the diaconate. Part of it is academic training. This training has neither the rigor nor the depth of training as that for the priesthood, but it is serious graduate-level work; typically a Master’s degree is awarded at the end of the studies. In addition, the typical formation program is also full of spirituality orientation, “summer practicums”, and theological reflection of the path that the candidate is taking.
A married man can be ordained as a deacon, provided he is not headed for priesthood. But a deacon cannot
getmarried. By the way, I believe that the wife of a deacon always gets a free pass into heaven. That may not be good theology, but every deacon knows it is true.