Preaching too Much?
Teaching is unclear on how often a deacon should preach
Deacon Greg Kandra 4
Not long ago, a priest decided to stir the pot on social media by reminding his readers that deacons may preach, but they don’t have a right to preach. Say what?
Canon law explains: “Bishops have the right to preach the word of God everywhere … unless the local bishop has expressly forbidden it in particular cases. … Presbyters and deacons possess the faculty of preaching everywhere; this faculty is to be exercised with at least the presumed consent of the rector of the church” (Canons 763-64).
And the priest trotted out the appropriate citation from the General Instruction of the Roman Missal to underscore his point: “The homily should ordinarily be given by the priest celebrant himself or be entrusted by him to a concelebrating priest, or from time to time and, if appropriate, to the deacon” (No. 66).
As you can imagine, this drew some lively discussion, with most people heartily supporting the priest and thanking him for putting deacons in their place. Some added fuel to the fire, noting that, in their view, deacons preach too much, or too poorly, or just don’t add anything to the liturgy, so why do we even have them in the first place? Well. Let’s all take a deep breath.
While the Roman Missal does seem to prefer less diaconal preaching, canon law is a bit more elastic — basically stating that just one level of holy orders, bishop, has the right to preach. For everyone else, it is a faculty. But the Roman Missal does raise an interesting challenge: Just what is “from time to time,” and how do you define “appropriate”? Can a deacon preach too much? (Or, as I might put it, can you have too much of a good thing?)
When students have asked me about this, my standard response has been one word: depends. A lot depends on the skills of the deacon and the magnanimity of the pastor. As I often tell my homily students: Just because someone has the faculty to preach doesn’t mean that he should. (That goes for everyone — deacons, priests and bishops — by the way. Receiving the Sacrament of Holy Orders doesn’t automatically make you St. John Chrysostom.) Some do it better than others; some, worse.
It also depends on local needs. Sometimes a priest may have difficulty with the language; both he and the parish might appreciate someone else stepping in. And sometimes there might be medical issues where a priest might need a regular fill-in.
In my experience, healthy dialogue and collaboration are vitally important in the pastor-deacon relationship — and that includes the subject of preaching. If a pastor is dissatisfied with a deacon’s homilies, he needs to tell him. And the deacon needs to be willing to listen. And learn. And get a little help if necessary.
But if a deacon wants to preach and can do it effectively, but feels he isn’t being given opportunities, he should make it clear to his pastor that he has something worthwhile to say. And very often what he has to say will extend beyond the walls of the church — touching on aspects of family life, marriage, work and the larger world. Often, too, it will resonate powerfully with the people in the pews. At its best, diaconal preaching offers the faithful another viewpoint, another take on how to live the Gospel today.
Truth be told, the most powerful homily a deacon will ever give may not be delivered from the ambo. It will be delivered with his life. It will be articulated with the eloquence of a man in love with the People of God. Parishioners will observe how he serves, how he witnesses the Gospel, how he makes himself available to others, how he ministers to the poor or the neglected, how he washes the feet of his brothers and sisters in need.
That will be the deacon’s greatest homily.
And when he does step into the ambo, the homilies he delivers will be richer and more inspiring — not so much because of the words he chooses, but because of the life he lives.
DEACON GREG KANDRA is the creator of the popular blog The Deacon’s Bench at Patheos.com. A veteran journalist, he works as multimedia editor for Catholic Near East Welfare Association. He serves as a deacon in the Diocese of Brooklyn, New York.
4 comments
Deacon Matthew Newsome May 01, 2019 at 6:04 am
Deacon Kandra correctly points out that Canon Law grants deacons the faculty to preach (Can. 764), while the General Instruction of the Roman Missal says the homily should “ordinarily be given by the priest celebrant” (GIRM 66). He writes that while “the Roman Missal does seem to prefer less diaconal preaching,” that “canon law is a bit more elastic.” He fails to point out, however, that the General Instruction of the Roman Missal applies only to the Mass, while Canon Law applies more generally.
Ordinarily, at any liturgical celebration, the role of preaching belongs to the presider. The deacon may serve as presider at any number of celebrations (weddings, funerals, baptisms, and public celebrations of the Liturgy of the Hours, etc.), and at these celebrations the role of preaching naturally falls to him. The deacon, however, is never presider at the Mass, and therefore has no “right” to preach at a Mass. That right falls to the priest celebrant, as GIRM 66 points out. That priest may, according to the GIRM, entrust the homily to another priest or a deacon — in other words, another minister with faculties to preach. But whether and when to do this would be at the discretion of the celebrant.
I agree wholeheartedly with Deacon Kandra that how often a deacon should be permitted to preach at Mass depends entirely upon the local needs and the particular gifts and talents of the ministers in question. And I agree that the most powerful testimony a deacon can give is not in his homilies but in a life lived in the service of God. I would only add that when considering opportunities to preach, the deacon should not limit the scope of his homiletics to the Mass only, but remember the other liturgical rites where he is called to serve as presider.
ReplyDeacon Brian Shea May 02, 2019 at 2:42 pm
At ordinations for the Permanent Diaconate, Cardinal Sean O’Malley often will tell the story of how deacons were not often well accepted when we first re-entered the scene in the 1970s, and how a priest, when his new deacon asked for his blessing before proclaiming the Gospel, replaced the blessing with with the words used in the blessing of incense: “Ab illo, benedicaris, in cuius honore cremaberis.” (May you be blessed by Him in whose honor you shall be burned.)
I wonder about how these comments relate to the unpacking of the scriptures and to bringing to those starving for the Good News the faith, hope and love of the Gospel. Perhaps it was lost in all that incense.
ReplyDeacon John Berstecher May 30, 2019 at 4:04 pm
Wow. This debate never seems to get very far, even though some very good point is made.
I was very fortunate to preach frequently, every week. 1st out of necessity, then out of respect for good homilies. In the last parish, the Pastor welcomed it with open arms. He made sure it was rotated among the different Masses. And of course, rotated among the celebrants.
But Deacon Greg makes the best case: by how we live our lives. That usually will prompt a good pastor with the seed. For serious problems.,talk with the pastor, then the bishop.
It should not be a serious problem anywhere, but we have to show it 1st.
ReplyDeacon Don Burt May 30, 2019 at 10:05 pm
I think it is the decision of the pastor: if he trusts his deacons to preach well, then he should allow them to preach. We have a unique perspective that differs from priests and bishops – the perspective of having to work and raise a family. Our homilies should reflect that perspective. Even before I was in formation, I enjoyed our deacon preaching. Ultimately, I always go back to what we were told in formation: It is a deacon’s right to proclaim the Gospel, but his privilege to preach.
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