By Walt Schaefer Pope Paul VI took the first step in restoring the ancient order of permanent diaconate in the Catholic Church’s Latin Rite in 1967 as part of the Vatican II reforms. In the spring of 1968, the bishops of the United States petitioned the Holy Father to revive …

Who is a deacon? There are three groups, or “orders,” of ordained ministers in the Catholic church: bishops, priests, and deacons. Deacons are ordained as a sacramental sign to the church and to the world of Christ, who came “to serve and not to be served.”  What do deacons do? …

One of the first deacons of Rome, St. Lawrence was one of the victims of the persecution of Valerian in 258.  At the beginning of the month of August, 258, the emperor issued an edict, commanding that all bishops, priests, and deacons should immediately be put to death (“episcopi et …

An ancient calling meets modern marriages; taking Fridays off By Walt Schaefer Deacon Mike and Kathy Hinger The plan is for Deacon Mike Hinger to take Fridays off with his wife.      Hinger, a deacon at St. Maximilian Kolbe Parish in Liberty Township, finds his vocation to God and …

By Walt Schaefer The story of the permanent diaconate has been an evolving one over the past 50 years.   The archdiocese has seen the ministry of these men blossom into a respected and necessary ministry in almost all parishes in the archdiocese.      “Deacons are very important in …

Traditionally, the beginning of the order of deacons is traced back to the story in Acts of the Apostles, Acts 6: 1-6.      Whether this pertains to the history of the ordained order of deacons as they developed in the early centuries of the church is in dispute, but …