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

The Ministry and Life of Deacons37institutions in which the deacon serves. Members of the diaconalcommunity are also in a unique position to reach out, as appropriate,in order to help the divorced couple and family deal with the challengesthe divorce may entail.IV. The Permanency of the Order of Deacons77. Underlying the restoration and renewal of the diaconate atthe Second Vatican Council was the principle that the diaconate isa stable and permanent rank of ordained ministry. Since the historyof the order over the last millennium, however, has been centeredon the diaconate as a transitory stage leading to the priesthood,actions that may obfuscate the stability and permanence of theorder should be minimized. This would include the ordination ofcelibate or widowed deacons to the priesthood. “Hence ordination[of a permanent deacon] to the Priesthood . . . must always be a veryrare exception, and only for special and grave reasons . . . Given theexceptional nature of such cases, the diocesan bishop should consultthe Congregation for Catholic Education with regard to the intellectualand theological preparation of the candidate, and also theCongregation for the Clergy concerning the program of priestly formationand the aptitude of the candidate to the priestly ministry.” 76Order of Deacons:Permanent and stableV. The Obligations and Rights of DeaconsIncardination78. “Through the imposition of hands and the prayer of consecration,[the deacon] is constituted a sacred minister and a memberof the hierarchy.” 77 Having already clearly expressed in writing hisintention to serve the diocesan Church for life, upon his ordinationthe deacon is incardinated into the diocesan Church.“Incardination is a juridical bond. It has ecclesiastical and spiritualsignificance in as much as it expresses the ministerial dedication ofthe deacon to a specific diocesan Church.” 78The Church’s Ministry of the Word79. As a participant in the Church’s ministry of the word, thedeacon heeds the charge given him at ordination: “Receive theGospel of Christ, whose herald you now are. Believe what you read,teach what you believe, and practice what you teach.” 79 The deaconIncardination:A juridical bond“Receive the Gospelof Christ, whoseherald you now are.”