Answering the Call, edited by Deacon Michael J. McGrath

Thursday, March 25, 2010
Feature
Southern Cross, Page 5
Answering the Call, edited by Deacon Michael J.
McGrath, introduces readers to 19 local deacons
B
Church, and three Electives, topped off by a
Answering the Call, How God Transformed
Homiletics and Canon Law practicum in the fifth
the Lives of Nineteen Catholic Deacons, reafyear.
firms Ruehling’s statement as it includes personal
In his introduction to Answering the Call,
accounts written by 19 Savannah diocesan deaDeacon McGrath writes that this book is about
cons and photos of them with their wives. Edited
the journey of the 19 men ordained to the diaconby Michael J. McGrath, a deacon who contributed
ate in 2008 toward a self-discovery that showed
an essay to the book, Answering the Call, goes
them “the awesome power of God and the holito the heart of the question: why do men—busy
ness of everyday life.” Starting with their first forhusbands and fathers —take on the added responmation class, it was obvious that these candidates
sibility of the Permanent Diaconate?
were very different. What they had in common,
Before seeking the answer to this question, the
McGrath says, was “the beautiful way in which
reader may want to know how the Permanent
God was present in each of them.”
Diaconate itself initially answered its “call” to
The book’s targeted readership varies and may
the diocese. Already implemented in 91 of
include those undergoing a crisis of faith or
164 U.S. Catholic dioceses, the program
wanting to deepen their relationship with
was voted on by priests of the Savannah
God, as well as those aspiring to the reliDiocese and ratified by Bishop
gious life, and to the diaconate. Professor
Raymond W. Lessard in 1976.
of sixteenth and seventeenth-century
Candidates for the diaconate were
Spanish literature and culture at Georgia
required to be married or single men who
Southern University, Michael McGrath miniswould make a promise of celibacy, and
ters to Spanish-speaking and English-speaking
no younger than 32 years old. Monsignor
Ernest Fiedler of the National Bishops’ Rita H. DeLorme communities at Statesboro’s Saint
Matthew Catholic Church. He and his
Office for the Permanent Diaconate,
wife, Leticia, are parents of two sons, Matthew
stressed at the April 14, 1976, meeting of the
and Luke.
Savannah Priests’ Senate that Vatican II did not
Following the introduction to Answering the
reestablish the diaconate because of a shortage of
Call are essays by Deacons J. Brian Bergeron,
priests. (At the time of Vatican II there was no
John Blaha, Tirso Castillo, Jerry Clark ,
shortage.) It was to be a distinctly new ministry
Don Coates, Kerry Diver, Tom Eden, Peter
embodying the call to serve. The priests’ senate
Falkenhausen, Richard Halbur, Dave Hayden,
advocated familiarizing clergy and people with
Bob Kepshire, Ken Maleck, Michael J. McGrath,
the new ministry, devising a two-year training
Patrick Mongan, Reinaldo Morales, Bienvenido
program, and designating appropriate ways of
Perez, Jr., James Roberge, Joseph Soparas and
recruiting and selecting candidates.
Al Sullivan. Father Michael Cooper, sj, professor
The Permanent Diaconate has come a long
at Saint Leo’s, provided the book’s preface and
way since 1976. Candidates in the Diocese of
Deacon George Foster, director of the Permanent
Savannah now undergo a five-year formation
Diaconate program, contributed its epilogue.
program conducted in conjunction with Saint Leo
The deacons’ essays reflect Answering the
University, in Florida, and are awarded a masCall’s title. In his essay, Deacon Bergeron writes:
ter’s degree in Pastoral Studies (MAPA), a bach“Answering God’s call in my life, the dream
elor’s degree or a certificate, depending on their
He has for me, has always been an obsession of
qualifications. Ongoing courses are conducted
mine,” Deacon Blaha says: “My only desire was
in Dublin one weekend per month during the
to serve and help others with their own spiritual
year. Candidates study Theology, Ecclesiology,
journeys.” After completing his five- year formaSacramental Theology. Hebrew Scripture, New
tion program, Deacon Castillo felt transformed
Testament, Moral Theology, History of the
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Photo courtesy of the Diocesan Archives.
ack in 1978, Faye Ruehling—wife of George F. Ruehling, a candidate for the Permanent
Diaconate who now serves at Saint William Church, Saint Simons Island—observed in the January
12 issue of the Southern Cross: “I’m only writing from a wife’s standpoint, but I feel it’s important to
acknowledge that unless husband and wife operate as a unit, in oneness in their commitment to this
program, a vital element is missing.”
Statesboro Deacon Michael McGrath’s new book
contains reflections from the 2008 class
of permanent deacons.
from “a servant capable only of slavishly adhering to a code of rules into a loving servant that
can think independently in matters of faith and
ministry.” Deacon Clark’s faith and understanding deepened as he came to know his strengths
and weaknesses through the program.
Particularly touching is Deacon Sullivan’s
account of his call to the diaconate. A convert
whose wife, Debby, figures strongly in his story,
Sullivan says bonding with his deacon brothers
and their wives—deacon couples—sustained him
during the five-year formation period and that the
thread that unified them all was their love of God.
For information about purchasing Answering
the Call, contact Resource Publications at
www.wipfandstock.com.
Columnist Rita H. DeLorme
is a volunteer in the Diocesan
Archives. She can be reached
at [email protected].