Pentecost, the Church, and Our New Deacons

BISHOP
KEVIN J.
SWEENEY

Each year the Church gives us the beautiful “Easter Season” — the 50 days (seven weeks) when we celebrate the Joy of the Resurrection. During the Easter Season, both on Sundays and weekdays, we hear the Gospel accounts of Jesus appearing to his apostles and others after he had risen from the dead. In the First Reading at Mass during the Easter Season, we hear the story of the early Church from the Acts of the Apostles.

Something that has struck me since my time in the seminary, throughout my years as a priest, and now, in an ever deeper way, in my time as bishop is the “closeness” that we share with the Church in her earliest days. So much has changed in 2,000 years of human history, and yet, we not only believe but experience that the Church that was “born” when the Holy Spirit came upon the Apostles at Pentecost (Acts 2:1–4) is the same Church that is the “One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic” Church today. The Spirit-filled speech of Peter on the day of Pentecost retains its vitality as the inspired word of God, “God raised this Jesus; of this we are all witnesses. Exalted at the right hand of God, he poured forth the promise of the Holy Spirit that he received from the Father, as you both see and hear” (Acts 2:32–33). We still celebrate the faith of Peter in communion with his successor, the Holy Father, Francis, and live animated by the gifts of the same Holy Spirit.

One of the ways, as bishop, that I have experienced this reality and mystery of the Church is through the celebration of the Sacrament of Confirmation. I have found it especially powerful to celebrate Confirmation in the Easter Season. While we celebrate Confirmations throughout the year, the largest number of Confirmations are celebrated in April, May, and June. Each time we celebrate Confirmation or participate in a Mass when Confirmation is celebrated, it is an opportunity to reflect on the way in which the gift of the Holy Spirit continues to be given and received from Pentecost up to the present moment.

On this past Sunday, as we celebrated the Solemnity of the Ascension, we heard the “Commissioning of the Disciples” from Matthew’s Gospel (28:18–20). In these final verses of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus gives His apostles His “final instructions” (commission) just before His ascension, as he tells them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always until the end of the age.”

Baptism, the Eucharist, Confirmation, each of the Sacraments, catechesis, evangelization, communal (parish) life, care for the poor and suffering, the works of charity — all of these and so much more have been there from the beginning of the Church, continue today, and we trust will remain “until the end of time.” We can surely “take this for granted” (because it is so familiar to us), or we can pause, at least from time to time, and prayerfully reflect on and appreciate what it means to be “baptized into the one Body of Christ,” as St. Paul teaches us. Our Baptism calls us to a life of holiness as part of the mystical Body of Christ, the Church.

On each of the past two weekends, I had experiences that helped and challenged me to appreciate our “closeness” to the early Church, to the Church of the Acts of the Apostles. By chance — or providence — on each of the past two Saturdays, I had the opportunity to be with our “new deacons.” This past Saturday, I was blessed to be able to ordain two men as “transitional deacons” for our Diocese, as you may have read in last week’s Beacon.  Deacon Joseph DeMarzo and Deacon Sebastián Munoz have both been in seminary formation for many years, studying and preparing for priesthood. They have each completed the third of four years of Theological Studies and, God willing, will be ordained priests in the coming year. Before a man is ordained to the priesthood, he is first ordained and spends some time serving as a Deacon.

In the sixth chapter (v. 1–7) of the Acts of the Apostles, we hear of the “institution” of the “Diaconate.” The Church was growing, and a few complaints arose — reminding us that, from the beginning, the Church has had her “challenges.” The apostles called the community together and asked the community for help, “… Brothers, select from among you seven reputable men, filled with the Holy Spirit and with wisdom, whom we shall appoint to this task …” (Acts 6:3). We then hear that “… the proposal was acceptable to the whole community …” and the names of the seven men are listed. In verse 6, we are told: “They presented these men to the apostles who prayed and laid hands on them.”

If you have attended an Ordination, you may be familiar with the importance of the symbol of the “laying on of hands.” Whether a deacon, priest, or bishop is being ordained, the “main or central” part of the Rite of Ordination is a Prayer (calling down the Holy Spirit) and the “Laying on of Hands.” Anyone who has been ordained a priest or deacon is very familiar with the significance of these moments. The great privilege of ordaining men as priests and deacons is another experience during my time as Bishop that has led me to a deeper appreciation of the way in which the Sacraments have been “passed down” to us — from the Church — since the time of Pentecost.

The other recent encounter I had was on the previous Saturday, May 13, when I met with 10 men who, in a few weeks, will also be “new deacons.” These men are completing a five-year program of prayer, study, and formation by which they are ready to be ordained “permanent deacons.” God willing, I will be privileged to ordain them in two weeks, on Saturday, June 10. The “permanent diaconate” has been “revived” by the Church since the time of the Second Vatican Council (1962–’65), but its origins go back to that same moment described in Acts 6:1–7. I would think that most readers are familiar with having a permanent deacon in your parish or from other experiences in the Church. Here in our Diocese, we are blessed with 90 active and 60 retired deacons, and another 48 have moved to other parts of the state or country where they continue to serve. Most permanent deacons are married — 9 of the 10 men who will be ordained on June 10 are married. The wives of our permanent deacons give a great gift to the Church as they support their husbands, first in discerning and responding to the call to serve, then during their years in formation, as the wives participate in many of the classes and other parts of the formation program and, upon ordination, the wife of a deacon is a vital support and partner in her husband’s diaconal ministry.

There are courses offered in seminaries, universities, and theological schools that trace the development of the (seven) sacraments and courses that focus just on the development of each of the seven sacraments. In the great blessing for our diocese of having two new transitional deacons and, in two weeks, 10 new permanent deacons, we can all be reminded of the gift of the Sacraments and the gift and mystery of our “One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic” Church. In a 1995 Address to permanent deacons, Pope St. John Paul II identified the hallmark of diaconal ordination, “By the imposition of the bishop’s hands and the specific prayer of consecration, the deacon receives a particular configuration to Christ, the Head and Shepherd of the Church, who for love of the Father made himself the least and the servant of all.” Our new deacons remind us that every vocation is rooted in the Holy Spirit and gives glory to God through our own sharing of the humble service of the Lord Jesus. As we celebrate Pentecost, let us pray that we will never “take for granted” the gifts of our Faith given to us by and through the Church.