How to Become a Deacon

How to become a Deacon

The Permanent Diaconate came into being after Vatican II. It was restored after centuries of not having it. As far as the difference between the transitional deacon and the permanent deacon, both are the same in the scope of what they can do. The transitional deacon is “on-the-way” to being ordained a priest. The Permanent Deacon is ordained after much training and remains in his work until mandatory retirement age of 75.

It is the pastor who gets the ball rolling. It is he with whom you should meet to discuss the move. He needs to have seen you work in ministry, heard you speak to and with groups you belong to in the parish, and discern if he feels you have a vocation to the Permanent Diaconate. Then he must write a letter to the Office of the Permanent Diaconate recommending you and your wife for the move to formation. Formation is as follows:

Orientation and Interviews with a six-person panel for entrance to Pre-Aspirancy (October – January)
Pre-Aspirancy is an 8-month process, which includes a Kerygma Retreat in February, sessions on prayer and discernment, and the practice of praying with the Scriptures, journal writing on your prayer times, and the daily examen prayer. Pre-Aspirancy ends at the end of August.
Aspirancy begins in September. It involves making the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola with a spiritual director assigned by us to accompany you on this life-changing journey. It takes 10 months of meeting once a week with your spiritual director to sort out your future in the program and beyond. There are other things that will involve paperwork, but that is the predominant item during Aspirancy. Towards the end of this step, you will have a psychological exam and you will be interviewed by the Vicar for Clergy for entrance into Candidacy.
Candidacy begins at a Mass on the 2nd Saturday of September. You will begin four years of study in the Diocesan Institute, and you will have supervised ministry in four areas of life: the abject poor, hospitals, prisons, and hospice. You will do one ministry a year for the entire year. You will also be given Homiletics Workshops at the end of Aspirancy, the end of year 2 of Candidacy and the end of year 3 of candidacy.
Ordination comes on the heels of the end of your fourth year of Candidacy and an interview with the Vicar for Clergy and the Cardinal, for permission to be ordained to the Permanent Diaconate. Ordination occurs on a Saturday in June at 10 a.m. in a local parish.

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About the Coat of Arms

Bishop Pulido’s coat of arms is divided into four quarters with wavy horizontal lines from top to bottom. The blue and white lines represent the Blessed Virgin Mary. They also suggest water, which alludes to Jesus washing the feet of His disciples and to the waters of baptism. The red and gold lines represent the Holy Spirit and fire. The colors also can be seen as referring to the Blood that (along with water) poured from Jesus’ side at His crucifixion, as well as to the bread (gold) and wine (red) transformed into the Eucharist. At the center is a roundel featuring a symbolic representation of the “mandatum” (washing of the feet), which he believes exemplifies service to all humanity. The roundel’s outer edge is a line composed of small humps; it is borrowed from the coat of arms of the Diocese of Yakima, where Bishop Pulido served as a priest before being named a bishop.

About the Coat of Arms

Bishop Pham’s coat of arms depicts a red boat on a blue ocean, which is crisscrossed by diagonal lines suggesting a fisherman’s net. This symbolizes his ministry as a “fisher of men,” as well as how his own father had been a fisherman. The boat is also a symbol of the Church, which is often referred to as the “barque of Peter.” At the center of the sail is a red beehive (a symbol of the bishop’s baptismal patron saint, St. John Chrysostom, who was known as a “honey-tongued” preacher). The beehive is surrounded by two green palm branches (an ancient symbol of martyrdom; the bishop’s ancestors were among Vietnam’s first martyrs). The eight red tongues of fire around the boat are a symbol of the Holy Spirit and a representation of the diversity of ethnic and cultural communities. The red of the boat, the beehive and the tongues of fire allude to the blood of the martyrs.

About the Coat of Arms

The coat of arms combines symbols that reflect Bishop Bejarano’s spiritual life and priestly ministry. The main part of the shield shows four wavy vertical lines on a gold background. These represent flowing waters. This alludes to his chosen motto and also symbolizes the graces that come from the Divine life to quench our thirst for God. The upper third of the shield is red because it is borrowed from the coat of arms of the Order of Mercy, of which the Bishop’s patron saint, Raymond Nonnatus, was a member. The central symbol resembles a monstrance because St. Raymond is often depicted holding one. The Eucharist is Bishop Bejarano’s inspiration for his vocation. It was through the Eucharist that he received his call to the priesthood at age seven and which keeps his faith and his ministry going. It represents the call to offer oneself as a living sacrifice. The monstrance is flanked on either side by an image of the Sacred Heart, alluding to the mercy of God and echoing the idea of a sacrificial offering of oneself united to the sacrifice of Christ, and of a rose for Our Lady. It is an allusion to Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas, and highlights the bishop’s Hispanic heritage.

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How to Become a Deacon