In service, they will go; Cardinal Tobin ordains transitional deacons (Video)
The ministry of the deacon begins with service, Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., Archbishop of Newark told the congregation at the Ordination of Deacons Mass on Sunday, May 21, in Newark’s Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart.
“They have the last word of the Mass. ‘The Mass has ended. Go in peace.’ It is the connection to what happens out there,” Cardinal Tobin said, gesturing to the doors leading out of the Cathedral Basilica where Matteo Matarazzo and Andrew Rubinich sat waiting to be ordained transitional deacons.
The seminarians will spend the next year serving an archdiocesan parish — Rubnich at St. Paul the Apostle in Jersey City and Matarazzo at Holy Family in Nutley — by performing charitable works, proclaiming God’s Word, and assisting in the liturgical and sacramental life of the Church. This will culminate in their ordinations to the priesthood one year from now.
Following the gospel, Matarazzo and Rubinich’s ordination began with the presentation of the candidates. Matarazzo and Rubinich were called forth, to which they answered, “Present.”
Cardinal Tobin then asked if the candidates are worthy of ordination. After hearing the response, “After inquiry among the people of Christ and upon recommendation of those concerned with his formation, I testify that they have been found worthy,” Cardinal Tobin said, “We choose these men for the order of the diaconate,” which was met with a huge round of applause.
The men were ordained on the Sunday the Archdiocese celebrates the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord — a significant event in Christianity that honors Jesus’ bodily ascent into Heaven. It marks the moment when He was elevated to the position of Lord and Christ and seated at the right hand of God. It falls the Sunday before Pentecost, which celebrates the inception of the Church and the bestowal of the Holy Spirit’s gifts upon the apostles, Mary, the first believers in Jesus, and the Church.
Speaking to the two men and those in attendance, the cardinal referred to the readings in Acts when Jesus told his disciples, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses,” and in Matthew when Jesus told the apostles to “Go, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”
Cardinal Tobin said after the resurrection, Jesus exhibited a great trust in the apostles and handed the gospel over to them.
“Go and make disciples of all nations, baptize and teach them,” Cardinal Tobin said, recalling the gospel.
“The disciples still don’t get it. Still not fully understanding the mission trusted to them — the mission of Jesus,” Cardinal Tobin said. “Only the promise of the Holy Spirit keeps alive the hope they will come to understand Jesus’ mission and theirs. Jesus must disappear from their lives in order to open their hearts to a deeper, truer understanding of them.”
The diaconal candidates then made their three promises: celibacy, prayer, and obedience. Each candidate knelt before Cardinal Tobin, placing his joined hands between the hands of the cardinal, making the promise of obedience.
Cardinal Tobin then prayed, “Let us pray to dearly Beloved that God the Almighty Father, in His infinite mercy, will pour out His blessings on these, His servants, whom He is pleased to receive into the sacred order of the diaconate.”
In one of the more dramatic moments in the liturgy, the diaconal candidates laid prostrate on the floor while the litany of the saints was sung and the faithful sang “Pray for us,” asking for their interventions.
“Sanctify with your blessing those whom in our judgment we believe are worthy to be offered for the exercise of sacred ministries through Christ our Lord,” Cardinal Tobin said.
The cardinal then extended his hands over the candidates, saying the prayer of consecration and ordaining them. Assisting priests helped the new deacons put on first a deacon’s stole and then a vestment called the dalmatic. The deacons then knelt before Cardinal Tobin and received the gospel of Christ. The cardinal and the priests gave the kiss of peace to each new deacon.
Deacons Matarazzo and Rubinich assisted Cardinal Tobin in the Liturgy of Eucharist. At the end of Mass, the newly ordained deacons were presented to the congregation.
Deacon Rubinich told Jersey Catholic he was inspired to discern the priesthood by the witness of several good and holy priests, the example of faith-filled parish ministry leaders, and the joy that comes with knowing Jesus in the family of faith.
“In growing in my relationship with Jesus Christ through prayer, coming to know his tender love and care, falling in love with his Church and the Sacraments, and committing to live as a member of His body, I heard the still, small voice of Jesus calling me to be a man who lives for others in service of the Church of Newark,” Deacon Rubinich said.
Deacon Matarazzo said he was inspired to join the priesthood after two events.
“The first was a confession I made after three years of having left the Church in which the priest, instead of telling me that I was living a very disordinate life, he told me that God loved me and that He was not scandalized by me,” Matarazzo said. “On the contrary, God was loving me even more and was waiting for me at the door like the prodigal son’s father.” The second event was a meeting in Naples in 2012 organized by the initiator of the Neocatechumenal Way. During that meeting, it struck him that “God is asking you today the same thing that He asked the Virgin: ‘Are you willing to receive in you the Holy Spirit and to do My will?’ … It became clear that God was calling me to become a priest.”
Any man interested in exploring a life in the priesthood is encouraged to contact the Archdiocese of Newark’s Office of Priestly Vocations, which fosters a culture of vocations through prayer, recruitment, and accompaniment. To learn more, visit www.newarkpriest.com.
–Photos and video by Julio Eduardo Herrara
