The Deacon

Deacon Leon Suprenant and Deacon Curtis Keddy

Most people who are involved in diaconal formation have the intuitive conviction that fostering the deep interior life of the men in their charge has to be the highest priority. As Our Lord reminds us, “Without me, you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)

The goal of all Christian formation is conformity to Jesus Christ, the perfect human, the image of the invisible God. (cf. Colossians 1:15-20) Diaconal formation takes the additional step of preparing men to be sacramentally configured into Christ the Servant. Therefore, diaconal formation cannot be reduced to merely imitating Christ or learning about Christ. Rather, it’s all about becoming “other Christ the Servants” who incarnate Christ’s servant mysteries.

The primary obstacle to overcome in all formation is original sin and its devastating effects. One such effect was the destruction of the original harmony enjoyed by Adam and Eve. Original sin has wounded all human relationships – within ourselves, with others, with creation, and ultimately with God himself. (cf. CCC 400) We all carry these wounds, and they must be healed. For that reason, conformity to the image of Christ the Servant could be characterized as a kind of healing of these wounds and their effects in our lives. From this perspective, diaconal formation is a process of healing. Our culture can accentuate our brokenness, encouraging us to isolate, self-medicate, and use others. Yet there are some tendencies even within our formation programs that can unwittingly exacerbate rather than heal our interior brokenness.

Some examples might be:

• the tendency to compartmentalize the four dimensions, rather than integrate them into formation – a tendency that carries over into diaconal ministry
• the intellectualization of the dimensions, as for example we might teach “about” prayer or “about” pastoral ministry, rather than foster interiority and love for the poor
• the excessive and utilitarian concern with efficiency, with less opportunity for retreats, recollection, reflection, and friendship
• an impoverished view of how the diaconate builds on the other sacraments

As a deacon community, we are improving in all of these areas, but more can be done. We believe that the four dimensions of diaconal formation laid out to us by the Church must be seen in the context of healing our primordial wounds. Christ is not divided. (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:13) Rather, He is the integrating principle for allowing the dimensions to work together in achieving their purpose.

Human Dimension

The human dimension of diaconal formation heals the relationship within one’s self. We all can feel a certain conflict or division within ourselves. (cf. Romans 7:13-25) Our disordered desires can pull us in many directions that are often harmful to us. Rather than live integrated lives, we live dis-integrated or dissipated lives. The good news, as proclaimed by Vatican II and St. John Paul II, is that “Christ, the final Adam, by the revelation of the mystery of the Father and his love, fully reveals man to man himself and makes his supreme calling clear.” (Lumen Gentium 22; Redeemer of Man 8)

We intuitively grasp that addressing our own interior wounds must begin early in the formation process (cf. National Directory for the Formation, Ministry, and Life of Permanent Deacons “ND” 97) and that human foundation lays the foundation upon which the other dimensions can be received and lived. (cf. Program of Priestly Formation, 6th ed. “PPF” 116)

Yet the four dimensions must not be approached in a linear, strictly chronological manner. The dimensions are not compartmentalized but held in concert. Even human formation depends upon God’s initiation and self-revelation. Separated from spiritual formation, human formation devolves into mere self-help and self-improvement. We are then conformed into the guy on the commercial, not into Christ!

Human formation rightly focuses on things such as “psychophysical equilibrium,” growth in the human virtues and affective maturity, and conscience formation. (cf. ND 115-16) The idea is to ensure that the deacon, as a social intermediary, can serve as a bridge and not as an obstacle for others in encountering Jesus Christ (ND 117). His own interior woundedness – like the thorns in the parable of the sower and the seed (cf. Luke 8:14) – must not impede the gift of diaconal ordination from bearing the desired fruit.

Human formation is a life-long task, so one disadvantage faced by deacon formators is that only so much change can reasonably be expected in this area from a man who is well into his 50s. Virtues, as well as vices, are well entrenched by this time of life.

However, there is also the advantage that the graces of the sacraments of initiation and, in most cases, the sacrament of Matrimony are already operative. This applies to all of the dimensions, but especially the human.

How has life in Christ as a Catholic husband and father molded the character of this man and healed his interior wounds? How is he already being conformed to Christ?

Spiritual Dimension

The spiritual dimension heals and builds our relationship with God. Our baptism restored us to right relation with Him, but the wounds of concupiscence, coupled with our own sins, continue to challenge us. At our worst, we tend to run from God, to hide from God, or even become practical atheists – professing faith in God but essentially relying on our own strength.

The good news is that through Christ, the “human face of God,” we have access to the Father in the Holy Spirit. Lord Jesus, you are Word made flesh and splendor of the Father.

Entering more deeply into this Trinitarian life is everything, and getting “there” is multi-faceted. The Program for Priestly Formation, which is largely translatable to diaconal formation, identifies 19 practices to foster spiritual growth in view of potential ordination. The list includes many recognizable items, such as Eucharistic devotion and the Liturgy of the Hours, all of which in a diaconal context must be ordered to conformity to Christ the Servant.

Spiritual formation must inform every aspect of diaconal formation. It cannot simply be another “class,” or our formation risks becoming overly intellectualized or compartmentalized. Or, we might say, dis-integrated. In this regard, we want to point out two ingredients of spiritual formation that are essential for an integrated diaconal formation.

One ingredient is silence: both exterior and interior silence. The reason is that the depth of prayer required for diaconal ministry, the “contemplative attitude” that allows the deacon to find God in everyday life, happens in the context of silence and solitude in which the men learn to be attuned to God’s movement in their lives. (cf. PPF 229g)

The call goes out to everyone – but especially to those of us who may be called to diaconal service – to find the Lord in the silence. Yet we push back, don’t we? In fact, we might run the other way, toward noise and distraction. That tendency to run from silence, from contemplation, only leads to anxiety and unhappiness. Formation has to address this tendency. The Lord wants to send us on mission, but first, He wants us to be with Him. (cf. Mark 3:13) We need to make time to find a “deserted place” to pray. (cf. Mark 6:31)

When the Lord calls us to this deserted place, sometimes it’s to a physical place like a chapel or retreat center. However, sometimes our “deserted place” entails staying put, turning stuff off, and redirecting our focus to the still, small voice of God. (cf. 1 Kings 19:11-12)

The Lord is inviting us to lean into the silence. There we will find rest (cf. Matthew 11:28), not to mention a reservoir of grace and spiritual strength to draw from as deacons.

Does our formation program make room for silence? How comfortable are we with silence?

The other ingredient of spiritual formation is meditation on Scripture. It’s often called lectio divina (“sacred reading”) or even “mental prayer.” But whatever it’s called, it is essential that the men are not only taught about it, but that it becomes an indispensable part of their interior life. It is really not possible for clergy to deepen their friendship with Christ without spending this time with Him. (cf. PPF 249; ND 226b; Congregation for the Clergy, The National Directory for the Formation, Ministry, and Life of Permanent Deacons 52).

Does our program regularly train and encourage our men to persevere in the practice of Lectio Divina? What priority do we give to it?

Intellectual Dimension

The intellectual dimension heals our relationship to the truth and toward all reality. We know that our intellects were darkened as a result of the fall. (cf. Ephesians 4:18; CCC 405) Further, as creation became subject to futility (cf. Romans 8:29-33), our stewardship of our common home too often gives way to exploitation and neglect. (cf. Francis, Laudato Si 2)

The good news is that Christ is the Truth, the eternal Logos. (John 1:1; 14:6) Lord Jesus, you have given us the consolation of the truth. As faith and reason are mutually enriching, so too are spiritual and intellectual formation. Intellectual formation is faith seeking understanding. (cf. ND 132) Everything is ordered to Christ.

Truth, goodness, and beauty are all ways of approaching God and feeding the relationship to Father, thereby enriching spiritual formation.

The intellectual dimension, then, is clearly a “precious instrument” (ND 127) in diaconal formation. The challenge is to provide a serious and complete intellectual formation without turning diaconal formation into just another graduate program. It must be integrated into the other three dimensions.

While virtual or online learning offers much promise, it requires even greater intentionality when it comes to providing an integral formation. Otherwise, intellectual formation can become more about grades, transcripts, and completed assignments than about conformity to Christ the Servant, the source of all truth, goodness, and beauty.

How well do we integrate intellectual formation with the other dimensions?

Pastoral Dimension

Finally, the pastoral dimension heals our relationship with others. As our experience sadly demonstrates, original sin has damaged our “communion” with others. We tend to use other people, while putting ourselves and our own desires first.

The good news is that Christ shows us that we find life and true happiness by laying down our lives for others – through a sincere gift of self. (cf. John 12:24-26; Gaudium et Spes 24) Lord Jesus, you came to reconcile us to one another and to the Father.

The pastoral dimension is really the fruit of the other dimensions and encapsulates the goal of all the sacraments: holiness and mission. Conformity to Christ. The sacraments of initiation are ordered to martyrdom, to a depth of holiness and missionary zeal that’s capable of laying down one’s life for the salvation of others. (cf. Romans 5:8; Revelation 12:11)

The sacraments of Matrimony and Holy Orders make us “community organizers.” They are called sacraments at the service of communion (cf. CCC 1533-35) as they are conferred primarily for the salvation of others.

The sacrament of Matrimony gives us the grace to lay down our lives for our spouse and family. The sacrament of Holy Orders builds upon and broadens the mission given to us in the other sacraments, leading us to seek out the lost and to come to the aid of the materially and spiritually poor.

So if exercised faithfully, the diaconate makes us better Catholics, and better husbands and fathers. Whenever we lay down our lives for others in any context – and not just at the parish – we are being diaconal.

The challenge when it comes to pastoral formation is to ensure that it’s mission driven, even if what we are doing is simply meeting a material or bodily need. Otherwise we are merely social workers – not a bad thing, but not true envoys of the bishop.

How well do we integrate the pastoral dimension? Does our formation have a “fundamentally pastoral character?” (ND 135)

As we consider diaconal formation in the context of healing our wounded nature, we must continually fall back on the primacy of the spiritual dimension and the integration of all four dimensions, with conformity to Christ as both the goal and the unifying principle.

Only He can heal us and make us whole. TD

DEACON LEON SUPRENANT is the Director of the Office of the Permanent Diaconate in the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas. DEACON CURTIS KEDDY is the Director of Formation for Office of the Permanent Diaconate in the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas.

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