A priest in Louisiana writes: Knowing how you like to publicize permanent deacons’ ordinations around the country, know that eight were ordained in the Catholic Diocese of Baton Rouge at their St. Joseph Cathedral this past Saturday, June 8. Good men, all of them. And I’m not saying that just because two of ’em are from my Cathedral Parish! According to the caption on Facebook: The new permanent deacons of the Diocese of Baton Rouge just after their ordination (L-R,... Read more
A priest in Louisiana writes: Knowing how you like to publicize permanent deacons’ ordinations around the country, know that eight were ordained in the Catholic Diocese of Baton Rouge at their St. Joseph Cathedral this past Saturday, June 8. Good men, all of them. And I’m not saying that just because two of ‘em are from my Cathedral Parish! According to the caption on Facebook: The new permanent deacons of the Diocese of Baton Rouge just after their ordination (L-R,... Read more
From the paper in his hometown, Lynchburg, Virginia: Hundreds of people, including dozens of clergy members, gathered at Holy Cross Catholic Church in Lynchburg on Monday to remember the life of one of their deacons. Joseph Marotta, 39, drowned June 5 while on vacation at the Outer Banks with his family. He was ordained a permanent deacon at the church last fall and also was employed at Randolph College as a controller. Several deacons who spoke at Marotta’s funeral Mass... Read more
One of the newly ordained, Deacon Jason Schalow, dropped me a note to alert me to the ordination by Archbishop Jose Gomez last weekend—and point me to this storyfrom The Tidings, which has profiles of the “deacon couples.” As the story notes: Those to be ordained and their wives have undergone a five-year period of formation in preparation for ministry in their parishes. The formation process integrates academic, pastoral and spiritual dimensions towards forming deacons and their wives in ministries... Read more
My friend and blog neighbor Fr. Michael Duffy marks a milestone: One year ago today I was ordained to the priesthood of Jesus Christ by Bishop William Murphy for the Diocese of Rockville Centre. I celebrated the 11am Mass this morning here in my parish with the parishioners and many friends and family present. I’ve told people that this year has been the best of my life. It has been the most challenging as well, but the best. Everything I... Read more
Details: An overflow crowd packed St. Ann Church in Neponset this morning for a celebration of the life of Martin Richard, a Dorchester boy who would have turned 9 this weekend if he had not been killed on April 15 by one of two bombs that exploded at the Boston Marathon. Seated in the front pew were his family: Parents Bill and Denise Richard, their elder son Henry— who read the second reading at the Liturgy— and Martin’s little sister,... Read more
Anyone who’s seen the newest incarnation of “The Great Gatsby” starring Leonardo DiCaprio, or read F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic book, remembers that ominous “valley of ashes,” a desolate corner of Queens that Gatsby and his entourage pass through on the way to Manhattan—and the setting for a critical twist in the plot. A few years ago blogger Levi Asher retraced the route that Gatsby and company must have taken from Long Island to the Plaza Hotel. He then approximated the... Read more
Today marks his feast, and deacons (among others) should take note: Born around 306, Saint Ephrem lived through some of the most tumultuous times in the early Church. Heresies, especially Arianism, were rampant; the Church faced persecution; and without Christ’s promise that the gates of Hell would not prevail against it, the Church might not have survived. As a deacon, Saint Ephrem distributed food and other necessary goods to the poor, but just as deacons do today, he also assisted priests... Read more
In some rural areas, they comprise a significant part of the clergy population. From the Intermountain Catholic newspaper in Salt Lake City: Deacon Rick Klein’s move from Moab to Fort Collins, Colo. “creates a tremendous ministry hole,” said Father William Wheaton, pastor of the parishes Saint Pius X in Moab and Saint Joseph in Monticello and Sacred Heart Mission in La Sal; he also covers Saint Michael the Archangel Mission in Green River. “Rick has been just a gift here,... Read more
[Click here for readings] A few years ago I got an unexpected e-mail from a guy in Virginia who was studying to become a deacon in the Diocese of Richmond. His name was Joe Marotta. Joe had discovered my blog and wanted to ask me some advice about his formation. One e-mail led to another, and in time we ended up forming a long distance e-mail friendship. Over the years, I learned about his family – his wife Katie and... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In