The Deacon

I recently read Holly Ordway’s 2014 book “Not God’s Type” (Ignatius, $16.95) about her conversion to the Catholic faith from virulent atheism. She wrote that, while an atheist, she believed herself to be a certain kind of person: smart, rational and informed. She was and is all of those things, but she presumed that these were enough to make her patient and kind, a moral person who, stripped of religious superstition, maintained control over her life. However, she found that she would lose her temper with students, realize her reaction was out of proportion, feel horrible about it and double her efforts for control, only to fail again later. It was only when she had experienced an utter failure that she began to be open to the possibility that there was another way.

Through being open to Christianity, she became open to discovering who she really was. She was on her way to the Father and to the Catholic faith. She wrote that she discovered her true identity as a child of God, and this identity was most fully realized when she received the Eucharist.

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Meet Deacon Omar F. Gutiérrez

Deacon Gutiérrez is nationally recognized as an expert in Catholic social teaching. He has appeared on panels with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and has written for several Catholic print and online publications. Read more, including his published articles, at omargutierrez.com. He is one of the presenters at the National Eucharistic Congress’ Deacon Experience in Indianapolis on July 17-21.

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Ordway’s story came to mind as I was giving a talk in a Midwestern diocese and an older priest asked, “So, are you — can I say this bluntly — more than just a glorified altar boy?” It’s a view I’ve heard several times before and since my ordination. It pains me every time I hear it, but this pastor was asking from a place of concern not criticism. His was a lament.

As we spoke, he went on to explain that he believes the diaconate is valuable and a source of hope for the future of the Church. The question we asked each other, then, is: How can the Church help deacons become who we are? For, if we are so distanced from our true identities, as Ordway was, how can we be of authentic service to the Church we love? What fantasies, I thought, have deacons created that get in the way of our authentic selves and, therefore, authentic service?

A Spirituality for the Diaconate

The upcoming Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis, July 17-21, 2024, is providing an important opportunity for deacons to wrestle with just this question. Through a deacon track, we are invited to be in solidarity with the Church gathered from around the nation, meet with other deacons, listen, share and discover together what it is to be a deacon for today.

The deacon track, for which I am one of the presenters, will start with presentations on fostering interiority through our intimate connection with Christ Jesus in the Eucharist, through a life of prayer and through spiritual direction. Then we will arrive at how deacons serve as deacons, allowing our identities in Christ to drive our work. This will not be about unpacking theological arguments. Rather, it will be about encouraging a spirituality for the diaconate that can give power to our service. It is about discovering ourselves as deacons so that we can be better servants.

Ordway wrote, “This is not, at the heart of it, a story of what I was clever enough to do, but rather of what I was weak enough to have done to me and for me.” She calls this her “glorious defeat.”

I encourage all deacons to consider making the sacrifice to come to the National Eucharistic Congress and join the deacon experience in order to be with other deacons and to receive our true identities so that we can then serve in truth.

DEACON OMAR F.A. GUTIÉRREZ is the president and executive director of the Evangelium Institute, and is a deacon of the Archdiocese of Omaha.

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REGISTER FOR THE DEACON EXPERIENCE

The Deacon Experience is free to those who sign up. Register at www.eucharisticcongress.org/register. Use the code OSVNEC for a discount when registering for the National Eucharistic Congress. We hope to see you there!

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