Mags GarganDear Editor, I find the opposition to deacons hard to understand. I live in the UK and we have had married deacons for the last 40 years. Ordained deacons are usually married men with a family, so there is no chance they will take over functions presently undertaken by lay people. Even if they wanted to, they simply have not the time to do so.
In my experience the only people that feel threatened are the older style priests. Younger priests are delighted to be able to delegate certain functions to a deacon. Deacons can preside at baptisms, marriages and funerals.
Funerals in particular are very time consuming and if most of the work can be carried out by the deacon, it leaves the priest free to concentrate on his other functions. The parish I live in has one priest serving three churches.
Seven Eucharistic ministers assist at each Sunday Mass. The deacon assists the priest and reads the Gospel. Lay people read the first two readings and the bidding prayer/prayers of the faithful.
As there is a shortage of priests we do not have Mass on Wednesdays and the Mass is replaced by a service of the word and communion taken by a layperson as the deacon is at work and not available.
We had a new deacon ordained a couple of weeks ago and he spoke to us last Sunday to tell us what his functions would be and these included encouraging more not less lay people to get involved in the work of the parish.
Yours etc.,
Dudley Berry,
Bedford,
Bedfordshire,
England.