Homily - Permanent Diaconate Ordination
September 6, 2025
Forgiveness, Service, Communion
The ordination of six men, my brothers, Dony, Fred, José, Timothy, Mario and Oscar, for service in the Order of Deacon today is a great joy for the Diocese of Palm Beach. At the very beginning, I wish to thank them for being open to the call of the Lord, which has brought them to this day. I also thank Deacon Pedro Del Valle, our director of the Deacon Formation Program, as well as all of those who assist him, and all of those at the Seminary of St. Vincent de Paul for the excellent formation they have received. We thank your wives and families for the support they have given you in your formation as well as the continued support they will continue to provide as you carry out your ministries. They are essential to you in a very particular manner.
You are being ordained as deacons during the Jubilee Year of Hope. This is indeed a special occasion, and you six men exemplify hope in a concrete manner. The theme for this year is “Hope Does Not Disappoint” (Rom 5:5), and certainly we are very confident that you will not disappoint as you undertake your ministries among us. Pope Francis spoke frequently about hope as a virtue, which is not a Pollyanna one but one that faces the difficulties and challenges of life in a concrete manner. It is precisely hope which enables us to face these difficulties, especially in a world that faces so much challenge, hatred, violence and misdirection in terms of faith and values.
In February, on the occasion of this Year of Hope, a special jubilee of deacons took place in Rome from Feb. 21 to Feb. 23. On Feb. 23, a Mass was celebrated at St. Peter’s Basilica for deacons, at which ordinations of deacons took place. Unfortunately, because of his illness, Pope Francis was not able to celebrate this Mass, but Archbishop Rino Fischella, the organizer of the Holy Year, delivered the homily prepared by Pope Francis. In that homily, Pope Francis stressed that the ministry of the deacon in particular embraces three specific aspects of the Christian life. They are forgiveness, service and communion. As you are ordained today, my brothers, you take up these Christian qualities in a particular way, which will be hallmarks of your lives.
Indeed, forgiveness is an absolute quality of Christian living. Christ humbled Himself and became one of us in order to forgive our sins. As we look around the world today, we see so much that needs to be faced and needs to be forgiven. The proclaimer of forgiveness takes on a most challenging role, which is not a particularly politically correct one. While there is much that needs to be faced in terms of our world and the evil that is before us, forgiveness includes the obligation of justice, but also justice linked to compassion and understanding. The first reading today, from the prophet Jeremiah, certainly is a good example of the need for forgiveness. Jeremiah condemns himself for not having the qualities that he should have in order to proclaim the Word of God. However, God is most understanding and merciful to him in this matter, as God reminds him that it is He who will offer the strength and support that Jeremiah needs. Certainly, the Lord does the same for you men who are to be ordained deacons and may have a great deal of apprehension in this regard.
Secondly, service is the absolute foundation of what the deacon is all about. In the second reading from the Acts of the Apostles, we see how seven men are set apart by the apostles in order that they might offer service to the apostles to help them carry out their ministry. Service goes hand in hand with humility as expressed in the Gospel of St. Matthew today. The Lord reminds us that we do not hold onto authority as does the world, but we empty ourselves, as did Jesus, in order to give ourselves in service to others. This service and humility are most freeing to us as made in the image and likeness of God.
The final quality which Pope Francis emphasized for deacons is that of communion. How important that communion is in terms of your relationships with one another, with your families and with the Church, especially the parishes in which you will serve. One of the things that Pope Leo XIV has stressed so consistently in his papacy to date is the Augustinian virtue of communion in terms of the unity, which must be present in the Church. Indeed, as ministers of the Gospel, we do not act on our own but act in communion with each other and with the Church here in the Diocese of Palm Beach.
I would like to reflect upon these three qualities in terms of the liturgical roles that you will carry out as deacons at the altar. At the very beginning of the Eucharist, as we call to mind our unworthiness to celebrate the Mass, it is generally the deacon who invokes God’s forgiveness, helping us to understand our own limitations and the need that we share for forgiveness.
Secondly, as the deacon prepares the gifts at the altar to assist the priest in his ministry, he reminds us of service as he places a drop of water in the chalice with the words, “By the mystery of this water and wine, may we come to share in the divinity of Christ who humbled himself to share in our humanity.” This is a very significant action, no matter how small it may seem, in terms of the quality of humble service. This service is joined to forgiveness as the Lord became one of us, taking our human nature and sinfulness to Himself, in order that He might forgive us.
Finally, the deacon’s role at the altar demonstrates communion. This happens in a very concrete manner as he invites the people to extend the sign of peace to each other before Communion. It also happens at the very conclusion of Mass as he sends the people forward with the words, “The Mass is ended, go in peace!” The deacon is a minister of communion in a very concrete way, not only in terms of being an ordinary minister of the Body and Blood of Christ, but in the sign of unity which the Eucharist brings about.
During the days set aside for the deacons in Rome back in February, Cardinal Robert Prevost, who was later elected as Pope Leo XIV, spoke to the deacons personally. While there is no text of his words, many of the deacons who listened to him expressed how affirming, positive and supportive he was of the role of deacons within the Church. There is no question, especially in terms of his Augustinian background, that he understands the qualities of forgiveness, service and communion in the lives of the deacon.
Before the ordinations of the deacons in February, Pope Francis stressed, “Let us all reflect on what we are about to do, even as we trust ourselves to the Virgin Mary, the Handmaid of the Lord, and to St. Lawrence, your patron. May they help us to experience every expression of our ministry with a humble and loving heart, and to be, in ‘gratuity,’ apostles of forgiveness, selfless servants of our brothers and sisters, and builders of community.” My brothers, we all are most confident that you will not disappoint in this regard.
Most Reverend Gerald M. Barbarito
