{"id":79749,"date":"2013-08-06T06:04:17","date_gmt":"2013-08-06T11:04:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/aleteia.org\/?post_type=post&p=79749"},"modified":"2013-08-06T06:04:17","modified_gmt":"2013-08-06T11:04:17","slug":"a-deacon-in-the-hood-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/deaconsbench\/2013\/08\/a-deacon-in-the-hood-2\/","title":{"rendered":"A deacon in the \u2018hood"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

From the USCCB blog<\/a><\/strong>,\u00a0Deacon Arnaldo Antonio Santos from the Diocese of Camden reflects on his unique ministry in the inner city:<\/p>\n

As a new deacon, I received a diocesan assignment to work in youth ministry. I expected it since I felt called to youth work even before becoming a deacon. As a former civil servant and newly retired police detective, I had always felt the call to help lost souls who long for someone to understand them.<\/p>\n

Pope John Paul II\u2019s 1990 encyclical Redemptoris Missio<\/em> called for a new evangelization, a new mission work to those who know about God and His mercy, even if they are not fully engaged in their faith. As a deacon, I learned different ways to evangelize through retreats, to reach out to separated brothers and sisters, to help and guide youth, and to reach out to gang members. Yes, I said gang members.<\/p>\n

I find it\u2019s easier to reach individuals involved in gangs as a deacon than it was when I was a cop. Why? When a grave sinner feels rejected, judged and condemned by us, then the sinner is less likely to repent and return to God.<\/p>\n

I have seen individuals lost to the gang world return to the church, repent, receive the sacraments and be freed from the bondage of the gang world. It happened when I was able to guide them with prayer, patience, moderation and brotherly love. As a police detective I was respected, but the advice that I gave troubled youth was not as easily accepted. As an officer, I was judged by the persons feeling condemned. They felt I couldn\u2019t possibly understand or sympathize with them.<\/p>\n

Ordination changed my life.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Read it all.<\/a><\/strong> \u00a0Ad multos annos,<\/em> brother!<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From the USCCB blog,\u00a0Deacon Arnaldo Antonio Santos from the Diocese of Camden reflects on his unique ministry in the inner city: As a new deacon, I received a diocesan assignment to work in youth ministry. I expected it since I felt called to youth work even before becoming a deacon. As a former civil servant […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-79749","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-deacons"],"yoast_head":"\nA deacon in the \u2018hood<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"From the USCCB blog,\u00a0Deacon Arnaldo Antonio Santos from the Diocese of Camden reflects on his unique ministry in the inner city: As a new deacon, I\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/deaconsbench\/2013\/08\/a-deacon-in-the-hood-2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A deacon in the 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