Ministry
Theology and Ministry
Deacon Dominic Cerrato Comments Off on Theology and Ministry
Some time ago I was chatting with a brother deacon involved in hospital ministry. As he explained the ins and outs of chaplaincy, he made a rather broad statement that struck me as quite odd. He said, “The Church’s teachings don’t always work pastorally in a clinical setting.” When I pressed him to explain, he Read More
The Need for Empathy
Deacon Dominic Cerrato Comments Off on The Need for Empathy
Perhaps one of the most essential qualities of diaconal ministry is the gift of empathy. In its most basic sense, empathy concerns the ability to recognize and enter into the experience of another. The term is grounded in the Greek prefix “em” meaning “in” and the word “pathos” meaning “suffering.” This implies a deep personal Read More
Context is Everything: The Deacon and the Distribution of the Host
Deacon Dominic Cerrato 2
A Canadian minister once said that “a text without context is pretext.” This is to say that a quote, removed from its wider setting, can distort the original intent of the author. Presumed here is that the context in which the quote occurs always contributes to its meaning. This is true of most things. Thus, Read More
The Deacon’s Role in Accompanying Those with Same-Sex Attraction
Father Philip G. Bochanski Comments Off on The Deacon’s Role in Accompanying Those with Same-Sex Attraction
Courage International was founded in the Archdiocese of New York in 1980, when Cardinal Terence Cooke asked Father John F. Harvey, OSFS, to create a pastoral outreach for Catholics who experience same-sex attractions (SSA) who wanted to live chastely. Building on his expertise as a moral theologian and his 36 years of priestly ministry, Father Read More
How Intellectual Formation Influences Everything
Deacon David A. Lopez 1
The goal of the Christian life is nothing other than union with God. As is so often asserted, God became man so that man might become God. Our lord Jesus Christ made this union possible by his incarnation, life, death and resurrection. The primary means of receiving such a gift are the sacraments, and therefore Read More