The announcement of the class of 19 men being ordained Permanent Deacons for the Archdiocese of New Orleans

Nineteen to be ordained permanent deacons June 27

 Published on Tuesday, 16 June 2015 09:52 | Written by Peter Finney |

  | Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond will ordain 19 men to the permanent diaconate for the Archdiocese of New Orleans at a Mass of Ordination June 27 at 10 a.m. at St. Louis Cathedral. The diaconate class of 2015 includes men from virtually every corner of the archdiocese, which currently enjoys the services of 224 permanent deacons. “They have undertaken the rigors of formation and embraced a sense of servant leadership,” said Deacon Ray Duplechain, director of the Office of the Permanent Diaconate, about the Class of 2015. “It has been challenging along the way, but they are ready to say ‘yes’ to God.” Another 26 men are in the 2018 formation class, with 21 men being trained for the Archdiocese of New Orleans and five for the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux. The archdiocese will host the 2018 National Congress of Catholic Deacons, which will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the restoration of the diaconate in the United States. The theme of that congress will be “Christ the Servant: Yesterday, Today and Forever.” The deacon candidates spend many years in formation and training. After a one-year period of inquiry and discernment, the men undergo one year as “aspirants,” deepening their human, spiritual, intellectual and pastoral formation for ministry, followed by three years of candidacy, which is designed to confirm the presence of a vocation. That process leads to a petition to the archbishop to be ordained to the order of deacons of the Catholic Church. The permanent diaconate as an ordained ministry was restored by the Second Vatican Council with the 1964 promulgation of “Lumen Gentium,” the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church. In 1967, Pope Paul VI implemented the council’s intention by promulgating the apostolic letter “Sacrum Diaconatus Ordinem,” and the U.S. bishops petitioned the Vatican in 1968 to restore the diaconate in this country. In 1972, Archbishop Philip M. Hannan authorized a formation program for permanent deacons in the archdiocese, and the first class was ordained in 1974. Formation for diaconal ministry requires a lifelong commitment to deepening one’s relationships and acceptance of God’s will for a life of ministry. Permanent deacons, most of them married, offer service in parishes, hospitals, prisons, social service programs and many other Catholic institutions in the Archdiocese of New Orleans. Their sacramental ministry includes proclaiming the Gospel, preaching, presiding at Communion services, witnessing marriages, presiding at funerals and conferring baptism. - See more at:

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