The Deacon

“Formation should not end with ordination.” Those words echoed in my heart leading up to my ordination in August 2022. Our formation program was four and a half years long, and as I approached ordination, people would ask me about the important things I had learned. I always answered, “Many things, but the number one thing I learned was that I did not know what I did not know.”

I was raised in a strong Catholic family and attended Catholic school. I thought I was well-formed in my faith. My diaconal formation revealed to me the depths of our Catholic faith — how much lay below the waterline waiting for me to explore.

I was blessed to be formed and ordained in the Diocese of Joliet and to have two great mentors in Deacon Dominic Cerrato and Deacon Vic Puscas, who have leadership roles in our diaconate office. Each had doctorate degrees and were highly educated, yet each retained the heart of Christ the Servant. They inspired me to pursue an advanced degree in order to effectively serve others. There were many programs to choose from, but my heart led me to pursue a master’s degree in theology at the University of Notre Dame.

In formation we talked often about the RIM Model of Discipleship, with its focus on relationship, identity and mission. At the center of the RIM Model is, always, Jesus Christ. Our relationship with Christ nourishes our identity in and through Christ, which then fuels our mission as disciples of Christ and members of his Body.

Not sure at first, I began to take RIM to prayer. In that prayer, I discovered our call as deacons is an organic, living, breathing call. And that call is not fulfilled at ordination, but grows, matures and stretches its roots deeper into the life-giving soil of our triune God.

I found myself falling more deeply in love with Our Lord. If my relationship with Christ was to grow, then it needed to be nurtured. I needed to know more about this man named Jesus of Nazareth, whom I had come to love, and the Church he founded on St. Peter.

While I was well-formed prior to ordination, the graduate degree in theology gave me a more mature understanding of my identity in and through Christ. I learned so much about our God, our Catholic faith and the Church’s history, tradition and teachings. Much to my surprise, I discovered my own unique identity as a child of God and a baptized member of the Church. With humility, I came to better understand my own unique gifts, talents and charisms.

Armed with a more intimate relationship with Jesus and a more mature understanding of my unique identity, I was better equipped to discern the mission. Yes, the mission we all have as disciples, baptized members and ordained servants in the Catholic Church, but, on a more granular level, the mission I am called to as Deacon Matt.

“Formation should not end with ordination.” Those words continue to echo in my heart — and I pray they will echo in yours.

Several schools have outstanding online or hybrid programs for advanced degrees, including Franciscan University of Steubenville, the Catholic Theological Union and the University of Notre Dame. Not called to pursue an advanced degree? Consider taking online courses, seminars or webinars. I have found excellent ones through the McGrath Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame, at the Pontifical John Paul II Theological Institute for Marriage and Family Sciences in Washington, D.C., and within my own Diocese of Joliet, to name a few. Remember, formation should not end with ordination.

DEACON MATT NAPOLI was ordained a permanent deacon in August 2022. He serves at St. Elizabeth Seton in Naperville, Illinois. He earned his MA in theology at the University of Notre Dame in 2024.