Day 215: Deacons and the Diaconate

Deacons share in Christ's mission and grace in a special way. The sacrament of Holy Orders marks them with an imprint (“character") which cannot be removed and which configures them to Christ, who made himself the "deacon" or servant of all. Among other tasks, it is the task of deacons to assist the bishop and priests in the celebration of the divine mysteries, above all the Eucharist, in the distribution of Holy Communion, in assisting at and blessing marriages, in the proclamation of the Gospel and preaching, in presiding over funerals, and in dedicating themselves to the various ministries of charity. CCC 1570

In today's reading, the Catechism discusses deacons and the diaconate. This is the last of the degrees of Holy Orders, which is becoming increasingly common in the Roman Rite. I personally would like to see even more deacons than we have now, and even a return of Subdeacons. The role of deacons in the Church stretch back to the days of the Apostles, with the first martyr for Christ being St. Stephen the Protomartyr (Acts 7:54-60). As quoted above, deacons provide a valuable service in many things and "assist the bishop and priests in the celebration of the divine mysteries, above all the Eucharist" and "in the distribution of Holy Communion". If we had more deacons perhaps we wouldn't see so much abuse in the use of extraordinary eucharistic ministers. That's a subject for another time though. 

The Catechism Compendium gives a summary of the effect of ordination to the diaconate:

The deacon, configured to Christ the servant of all, is ordained for service to the Church. He carries out this service under the authority of his proper bishop by the ministry of the Word, of divine worship, of pastoral care, and of charity. (#330)

The Catechism Companion, Vol II makes this note on the final part from today's reading: 

There are two elements to "the essential rite of the sacrament of Holy Orders": the laying on of hands by the bishop on the person being ordained and "the bishop's specific consecratory prayer asking God" to give the man the graces he needs to carry out his calling (CCC 1573). (p. 194) 

Finally, Dr. Brant Pitre has a good video on the diaconate: