Tag Archives: diaconate

What’s Required for a Valid Ordination?

Q1.  Can a deacon be ordained to the priesthood, less than six months after his ordination to the diaconate?  For example, a congregation or diocese is urgently in need of priests, can their ordinary actually anticipate it and release an … Continue reading

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Can the Bishop Refuse to Ordain Me Because I’m Too Old?

Q: I’m interested in becoming a permanent deacon, but the director of the program in my diocese says the upper age limit, which I have passed, is set by canon law.  He wrote to me, “The upper age limit for … Continue reading

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What Do You Do With the Deacon Who Refuses to be Ordained a Priest?

Q1: We have a seminarian in our diocese, who spent a summer in my parish.  He was expecting to become a priest several years ago, but the bishop declined to ordain him.  Nobody knows why.  Today he’s just a deacon … Continue reading

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What Can (and Can’t) a Deacon Do?

Q:  We have a permanent deacon at our parish.  Some of us are wondering if the pastor sometimes allows him to do things that he’s not supposed to do… for example, occasionally the deacon preaches a homily at Sunday Mass … Continue reading

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