The following item appeared in my parish bulletin last weekend. It got a lot of reaction, so I thought I’d post it here. Enjoy. <\/i><\/p>\n
This weekend marks my five-month anniversary as an ordained member of the Catholic clergy. <\/p>\n
Time flies when you\u2019re having fun, doesn\u2019t it? <\/p>\n
As the parish\u2019s only deacon, and something of a novelty here, I tend to get asked the same questions a lot. So, I thought I\u2019d take a moment and just give you the answers right here. <\/p>\n
1. Yes, as a matter of fact, I\u2019m married.<\/i> This leaves some people feeling like Inspector Raynaud in \u201cCasablanca\u201d: shocked, simply shocked. The fact is, deacons are permitted to be married. We have jobs, houses, mortgages, children, and dogs. But I\u2019m not a priest. Which brings me to answer the second most popular question\u2026 <\/p>\n
2. No, I don\u2019t live in the rectory.<\/i> It only seems that way. One parishioner said that she sees me and my wife around the church so much, she thought we\u2019d moved in. (I think she was concerned that my wife was having to cook and clean for the priests\u2026) We have an apartment a few blocks from the church. That\u2019s why you sometimes see me walking to church on weekends \u2013 or, more likely, sprinting, because I\u2019m late. Once in a while, a parishioner has stopped me on the way to church to ask me the third most popular question, and I always say\u2026 <\/p>\n
3. No, I don\u2019t do confession.<\/i> I\u2019m happy to hear it, but you might as well tell your sins to your doorman. I can\u2019t give absolution. I can perform baptisms, weddings and offer blessings for everything from rosaries to Rolls Royces. I also preside at wakes and at Benediction, and I preach homilies. But that\u2019s about it. Frankly, with my schedule, that\u2019s enough. <\/p>\n
4. I appreciate your concern, but the priests really don\u2019t seem to mind sharing the pulpit.<\/i> I\u2019ve gotten the impression from some parishioners that they think I\u2019m a homily hog. That is: I get up to read the gospel, and then refuse to leave. It doesn\u2019t quite work that way. Like the priests, I\u2019m scheduled for masses, and scheduled to preach homilies at certain times. Depending on the circumstances, I\u2019ll sometimes be asked to do more than one mass on a weekend. But the guy who does the scheduling \u2013 Fr. Passenant \u2013 usually rotates me around with different priests and different masses. So, just like the priests, when you see me and hear me will vary from week to week. <\/p>\n
5. That\u2019s very nice of you, but I\u2019m not \u201cFather.\u201d<\/i> I\u2019ll answer to anything. Just ask my wife. But \u201cDeacon Greg\u201d seems to have a nice ring to it. Just plain \u201cDeacon\u201d will do, or \u201cHey, Greg, watch out for that falling piano!\u201d Like I said, I\u2019ll answer to anything. But deacons aren\u2019t called \u201cFather.\u201d <\/p>\n
6. Nothing.<\/i> That would be the answer to the inevitable question about my salary. Deacons aren\u2019t paid, unless they have full time jobs working for the diocese. <\/p>\n
7. Five years.<\/i> This actually answers two questions: 1) how long did you have to take classes before you were ordained?, and 2) how long are you going to be here at Our Lady Queen of Martyrs? My class of deacons is the first to be assigned, like the priests, to serve at particular parishes. Most of us are serving at our home parish (provided it doesn\u2019t already have a deacon). But as more deacons are ordained \u2013 a class of about 30 will be joining us in 2009 \u2013 we\u2019re going to be spread around, to serve where the bishop needs us. My initial assignment is for five years, but could be lengthened, or shortened, depending on the needs of the diocese and how long it takes before I start to get on the pastor\u2019s nerves. <\/p>\n
8. 48.<\/i> My age. In other words, I\u2019m an old dog, and this is all a very new trick. So far, I haven\u2019t set my vestments on fire during Benediction, or drowned a baby during baptism. With a little luck, and a little grace, I just might get the hang of this deacon thing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The following item appeared in my parish bulletin last weekend. It got a lot of reaction, so I thought I’d post it here. Enjoy. This weekend marks my five-month anniversary as an ordained member of the Catholic clergy. Time flies when you\u2019re having fun, doesn\u2019t it? As the parish\u2019s only deacon, and something of a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":204,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3392","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-deacons","category-my-world","category-vocations"],"yoast_head":"\n