By God’s grace, I have been accepted into the Candidacy program for Diaconate Formation. This means that, God-willing, I will be ordained a deacon in three years. At our Candidacy Mass, our bishop called us into formation and told us to pray that God gives us a serving heart.
Service is at the heart of the diaconate. It comes from the root word diakonia, which is often translated as “servant.” The deacons were called to meet the needs of the poor while the Apostles dedicated themselves to preaching. However, some like Deacon Dominic Cerrato in his book Discovering Christ the Servant, have argued that the translation may be something closer to “envoy, emissary, or messenger… an envoy of the Father.” (Dominic Cerrato, Discovering Christ the Servant: A Spirituality of Service, 42) I have always thought of the diaconate primarily in terms of the service that would be given to Christ’s body. And while this is important, it is meant to be an expression of Christ in the deacon. By recognizing the presence of the Lord in the deacon through the service, people will be drawn to the love of God in him. In this view, being a deacon is not so much defined by the activity, but by the person. Deacon Cerrato wrote that the “diaconal ministry… is not so much something we do, but rather someone we give, our very selves.” ( Dominic Cerrato, Discovering Christ the Servant: A Spirituality of Service, 48)
I have been focusing so much in these past few years about learning the activity of the deacon. At my last scrutiny, I even made mention of my trepidation that I lacked the training and experience to help those who suffered horrible tragedy. But the deacon in charge of formation said something that was reinforced by this book: don’t worry about the right thing to say. Simply being there is the most important thing you can do. The most important gift I can give is the gift of my self to God’s people. And this offering must be the sacrifice united in Christ. As Deacon Cerrato writes, “without some level of sacrifice, there is no authentic service, there is no authentic gift-of-self, there is no authentic love.” (Dominic Cerrato, Discovering Christ the Servant: A Spirituality of Service, 60) This will require me to be present to the people of the Church and present to Christ Himself so that I may be that envoy to and for all.
The diaconal ministry requires a very real and vibrant spiritual life. Reducing the diaconate to only activities of service would be “lacking in both justice and charity to the one being serviced, rendering the act void of its natural end.” (Dominic Cerrato, Discovering Christ the Servant: A Spirituality of Service, 50) This requires the “cyclical relationship of relationship, identity, and mission…” (Dominic Cerrato, Discovering Christ the Servant: A Spirituality of Service, 64). We cannot give people what we do not have. In order for me to give Christ to others, then I must have Christ in me. The only way I can do this is by being drawn deeper and deeper into prayer so that I can be in relationship with the Lord. This leads to a new identity that is given to us in Christ. And this transformation is part of the Church’s mission. Recently, my spiritual director told me that part of my ministry will be to witness how I am the one who has been transformed by God.
As mentioned above, I have been focusing a great deal of my formation on the activity of the deacon. I am beginning to understand more deeply that the fundamental element of this vocation is to be transformed by Christ. I am someone who has a conscientious personality, with a heavy focus on “doing the right things.” But I am reminded of something I once read by CS Lewis: “We might think that God wanted simply obedience to a set of rules: whereas He really wants people of a particular sort.” (CS Lewis, Mere Christianity, 80) I need to make sure I do not fall into the trap of going through the motions. Deacon Cerrato makes clear that the gift of self must be one of intentionality; otherwise, it loses its meaning. “An approach that consists only of ‘going through the motions’ empties the act of its authentic meaning because… lack of intentionality results in only part of what is required.” ( Dominic Cerrato, Discovering Christ the Servant: A Spirituality of Service, 49-50) I need to, by God’s grace, focus on my ministry primarily as a donation of self, giving myself, and giving God-in-me to others. Instead of looking at my time at the parish assignment as doing “work,” I need to focus on being present to the people of the parish and be conscious of giving myself away. This will involve being more proactive in forming relationships with people, asking about their lives, and offering a listening ear and a helping hand when needed.
I must be transformed into a person of deeper faith so that the reality of God may be more manifest. I must be transformed into a person of deeper hope, so that those who are suffering and grieving can come into contact with the God who will lift them from despair. And I must be transformed into a person of deeper love, modeling myself more and more out of the self-donating love of Christ, especially as witnessed in the Washing of the Feet. All of this is only possible if I surrender my life completely to Him. “The divine help requires one thing and one thing only: that we surrender to Christ the Servant.” (Dominic Cerrato, Discovering Christ the Servant: A Spirituality of Service, 97)
Copyright 2025, WL Grayson
W.L. Grayson
I am a devoutly Catholic theology teacher who loves a popular culture that often, quite frankly, hates me. I grew up absorbing every movie, TV show, comic book, science fiction novel, etc. I could find. As of today I’ve watched over 2100 movies and tv shows. They take up a huge part of my life. I don’t know that this is a good thing, but it has given me a common vocabulary to draw from in order to illustrate whatever theological point I make in class. I’ve used American Pie the song to explain the Book of Revelation (I’ll post on this some time later) and American Pie the movie to help explain Eucharist (don’t ask). The point is that the popular culture is popular for a reason. It is woven into the fabric of our lives and imaginations, for good or ill. In this blog I will attempt to bring together the things of heaven with the things of earth. Of course this goal may be too lofty for someone like me.
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