CONGRATULATIONS

31 August – 1 September 2019
CONGRATULATIONS
JITHIN ANTO, CONFIDENCE MASVOSVA and PAUL ZAHAR
ORDAINED DEACONS
31 AUGUST 2019
ST MARY’S CATHEDRAL – SALE
Deacons enjoy a special relationship with the Bishop. They serve as he directs. This may be in a parish, or anywhere the Bishop discerns a need. Deacons are called to carry Christ and the Gospel to their workplaces, places of relaxation and to the heart of their family life.
The work of the Deacon has been described as being commissioned by the bishop to discern the needs of the people, and bringing back word of needs to the diocesan and/or parish community. Deacons were in early times referred to as “the eyes and ears” of the bishop.
A deacon’s principal ministry is to promote the interests of his sisters and brothers in faith, so that all who belong to the people of God may, through their well ordered efforts toward a common goal, attain salvation (Basic norms for Diaconate).
They work together with the Bishop and co-operate with the priests in the apostolic ministry to foster full participation of all the baptised in the life of the Church and to assist the laity to live their principal mission in the world in which they live.
A deacon has three aspects to his ministry. He has a ministry of the Word, a ministry of liturgy and a pastoral ministry. The Deacons during their ordination received these words from Bishop Pat
‘do the will of God from the heart: serve the people in love and joy as you would the Lord – never allow yourself to be turned away from the hope offered in the Gospel. Now you are not only a hearer of the Gospel but also its minister. Hold the mystery of faith with a clear conscience. Express by your actions the word of the Gospel which your lips proclaim, so that the Christian people, brought to life by the Spirit, may be a pure offering accepted by God.’
Ministry of the word includes proclaiming the Gospel in the liturgy, preaching and teaching. Some of this teaching might take the form of sacramental preparation or RCIA programs.
Jithin, Confidence and Paul during their final steps towards Ordination to the Priesthood will be assigned to one of the parishes where they will grow through special ministries, they will gain experience through doing baptisms, marriages, funerals and proclaiming of the Gospel through the delivery of Sermons and through visiting the sick.
We pray for them in the steps ahead and ask the Lord who started this good work in him to see it to fulfilment.
With every best wish
Dean Peter