Informational session on permanent deacons held this week
There are men and women who want to respond to the Lord’s call by serving their brothers, some in a special way, like permanent deacons.
Those men who daily and forever said yes to a dedication to their community.
There are currently two groups of men halfway through the process of formation for the diaconate in the Archdiocese of Newark — one in English and one in Spanish.
The Archdiocese wants to start a new class of permanent deacons beginning in September. On Monday, May 15, Father Joseph Chapel, director of the Diaconate Program of our Archdiocese, held an information session organized at the Archdiocesan Center where a good number of men attended.
At some point in their lives, they may have asked themselves if being a deacon was for them. Or perhaps they had been invited to consider the idea by their own parish priests, who are well acquainted with the work these men are already doing in their parishes.
They arrived, almost all accompanied by their wives and some by their parish priests.
The session was bilingual. The attendees were in two different rooms during the main explanation in English or Spanish, coming together for prayer and questions. This is how the classes will be when they start the preparation program at Seton Hall University, with the same academic content for everyone, but in two groups according to language.
The purpose of the session on Monday was to present the mission of the deacon, the different ministries that they carry out in their parishes and in other environments, and to explain the steps to follow in their preparation for ordination. Some of these steps will not be easy, especially the academic ones, for some of these men left books and study behind them long ago.
Father Chapel; Deacon Asterio Velasco, Hispanic Apostolate Coordinator at Archdiocese of Newark; and Deacons Robert Liwanag and Andrew Saunders, who directs the program at Seton Hall University, spoke to the group. In addition, some veteran deacons offered testimony from their own experience.
This same information session will be repeated on Monday, May 22, at 7 p.m. at the Archdiocesan Center (171 Clifton Ave., Newark). For those wishing to attend these information sessions or would like to know more about the diaconate program, please contact Father Chapel (diaconate@standrewcc.com).
