National Directory for the Formation, Ministry and Life of Permanent ...

18 Chapter 1V. The Church’s Ministry of the Word:The Deacon as Evangelizer and TeacherHerald of the GospelWitnessing the Wordin his own life, thedeacon leads peopleto their practice ofcharity and justice31. The deacon participates as an evangelizer and teacher in theChurch’s mission of heralding the word. In the liturgy of the word,especially in the Eucharist or in those liturgies where he is the presidingminister, the deacon proclaims the Gospel. He may preach byvirtue of ordination and in accord with the requirements of CanonLaw. 28 Other forms of the deacon’s participation in the Church’sministry of the word include catechetical instruction; religious formationof candidates and families preparing for the reception of thesacraments; leadership roles in retreats, evangelization, and renewalprograms; outreach to alienated Catholics; and counseling andspiritual direction, to the extent that he is properly trained. 29 Thedeacon also strives to “transmit the word in [his] professional [life]either explicitly or merely by [his] active presence in places wherepublic opinion is formed and ethical norms are applied.” 3032. In these and many other formal and informal ways, the deaconleads the community to reflect on their communion and missionin Jesus Christ, especially impelling the community of believers tolive lives of service. Because the deacon sacramentalizes service, heshould proclaim the word in such a way that he first witnesses itsempowerment in his own life. Then he can effectively challengeothers to practice the Church’s ministry of charity and justice in thesocial environments in which people live their baptismal vocation.By his own faithful practice of the spiritual and corporal works ofmercy, the deacon “by word and example . . . should work so thatall the faithful, in imitation of Christ, may place themselves at theconstant service of their brothers and sisters.” 31VI. The Church’s Ministry of Liturgy:The Deacon as SanctifierLiturgical ministry33. For the deacon, as for all members of the Church, the liturgyis “the summit toward which the activity of the Church is directed;at the same time it is the fount from which all the Church’s powerflows.” 32 For the Church gathered at worship, moreover, the ministryof the deacon is a visible, grace-filled sign of the integral connectionbetween sharing at the Lord’s Eucharistic table and serving the