{"id":115646,"date":"2016-08-11T08:58:48","date_gmt":"2016-08-11T12:58:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/aleteia.org\/?post_type=post&p=115646"},"modified":"2016-08-11T08:58:48","modified_gmt":"2016-08-11T12:58:48","slug":"when-the-dad-walking-the-bride-down-the-aisle-is-also-a-deacon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/deaconsbench\/2016\/08\/when-the-dad-walking-the-bride-down-the-aisle-is-also-a-deacon\/","title":{"rendered":"When the dad walking the bride down the aisle is also a deacon"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

I know a few deacons who have had this experience. <\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

But here\u2019s a story from Ireland, where deacons are still something of a novelty:<\/p>\n

John Taaffe walked his only daughter Amy down the aisle of St Mary\u2019s Church in Drogheda, then nipped into the vestry, donned his clerical garb, and re-emerged to conduct the ceremony as Amy married long-time sweetheart David Cunningham.<\/p>\n

A deacon in Louth town\u2019s St Peter\u2019s parish, John said: \u201cIt was emotional when I walked Amy down the aisle. I was, like any father would be, in a bit of a state \u2014 my emotions were all over the place.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I went in to change into my robes it actually took me a while to settle down and get my thoughts together. That was only natural, I suppose. It\u2019s not something you\u2019d do every day.\u201d<\/p>\n

And not something he\u2019s likely to do again either: \u201cThat\u2019s true. Amy is my only daughter, I have two sons, I\u2019m actually a granddad as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

He was one of Ireland\u2019s first permanent deacons after being ordained at St Patrick\u2019s Cathedral in Armagh in 2013. He can perform weddings and take charge of funerals but cannot celebrate a full Mass, although he can assist a priest.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople get confused when they hear the title deacon. They assume I am going on to be a priest, and there are those type of deacons as well, but I am a permanent one, I am still happily married to Joan,\u201d said John.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was a little surprised when Amy asked me to officiate. My decision to become a deacon was something she struggled with as a teenager but, since I was ordained, she and the rest of the family have been hugely supportive.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Read it all.\u00a0<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Photo: Martyn Smyth<\/small><\/em><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I know a few deacons who have had this experience. But here\u2019s a story from Ireland, where deacons are still something of a novelty: John Taaffe walked his only daughter Amy down the aisle of St Mary\u2019s Church in Drogheda, then nipped into the vestry, donned his clerical garb, and re-emerged to conduct the ceremony […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":115647,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-115646","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nWhen the dad walking the bride down the aisle is also a deacon<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"I know a few deacons who have had this experience. 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