Deacons: ministers of charity
by Father Jan Larson (From the November 20, 2014 edition of the Inland Register)
Occasionally a bishop will ordain men to the order of deacon,
one of the ministries included in the sacrament of Holy Orders. Many of these
deacons are called “permanent” because they normally are not going on to be
ordained priests. Permanent deacons may also be married. The ministry of
permanent deacons was restored to the Church in 1967, by mandate of the Second
Vatican Council.
The liturgy of ordination refers to the deacon as “a minister of the word, of
the altar, and of charity.” Although he may be a minister of the word by
preaching and religious instruction, may preside at baptisms and marriages, and
though he may be involved in numerous charitable activities, it will be the
experience of most of us to see the deacon in his liturgical role at Sunday
Mass. Here we see him bringing the Book of Gospels into the assembly,
proclaiming the Gospel, and perhaps announcing the General Intercessions. He may
preach the homily on occasion, and is also the minister of the cup.
It is important that we see the deacon at the liturgy as much more than a
functionary who performs what at first glance may appear to be relatively
unimportant or unrelated actions. Rather, his purpose at the liturgy is to
ritually represent none other than Christ himself in his ministry to the poor
and oppressed. Thus, if the deacon by ordination represents Christ the
compassionate one, then who better to carry the Book of Gospels in which are
recorded the deeds of Jesus, who reached out to the poor and marginalized? Who
better to proclaim the Gospel in the assembly, the Gospel that reveals to us
Christ proclaiming good news to the poor? (A priest or bishop proclaims the
Gospel reading only when no deacon is present.) If the deacon is ordained to be
a “minister of charity,” who would know better the needs of the parish or local
community, and therefore who would be more appropriate to announce those needs
in the General Intercessions? He might even, quite appropriately, compose those
intercessions each week.
Even his ministry of the Communion cup during the liturgy symbolizes the care
of Christ for those who need to be nourished.
The secret to understanding the meaning of the various roles we see people
exercising in the liturgy lies in understanding symbolism. Symbolic actions
point to some invisible reality that lies beyond, and symbols have many layers
of meaning and therefore are open to more than one interpretation. The symbol of
the deacon as Christ is ancient. In fact, St. Ignatius of Antioch seemed to
prefer the deacon over the priest as the representative of Christ. In the early
second century he writes, “the bishop is to preside in the place of God, while
the presbyters (priests) are to function as the Council of the Apostles, and the
deacons, who are most dear to me, are entrusted with the ministry of Jesus
Christ....” In the same spirit he writes in another letter, “Let all respect the
deacon as representing Jesus Christ, the bishop as a type of the Father, and the
presbyters as God’s high council and as the Apostolic college.”
(Father Larson is a priest of and liturgical consultant for the
Archdiocese of Seattle.) }}First seen at Deacon's Bench
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