Pentecost 1998
 

Preaching of Permanent Deacons

Introduction from the Editor

The GoodNews Letter, now in its twenty­sixth year of publication, has covered e wide range of topics related to preaching. When speaking about preaching, the articles usually refer to the preaching being done by priests. Recently, however, there has been an issue on Lay Preaching.

To differentiate this way, the newsletter almost entirely excludes mention of the important ministry of preaching which is done regularly by permanent deacons. I hope that through this issue our readers become more aware of the preaching ministry of the many permanent deacons in our country, and the unique gifts that deacons bring to the pulpit.

I thank those who brought this matter to my attention. I believe the articles contained in this issue of The GoodNews Letter examine the role of the preaching deacon as a distinct and special gift in the Church. I certainly learned quite a bit compiling this issue, as I always do. Enjoy!

Thoughts from a Preaching Deacon For better or worse

by Deacon Henry Libersat [The Priest, March 1994.1 Reprinted with permission.

I guess every priest who has been around permanent deacons has heard "horror stories" about these "new kids on the block." Deacons can be rather territorial about their functions in the liturgy. I remember one story I heard about a deacon in a southern diocese.

At the beginning of the Mass, the priest rushed into the penitential rite which the deacon was supposed to lead. The deacon and this priest didn't get along very well. When it came time to prepare the chalice, the priest again ignored the deacon.

When the priest walked over to wash his fingers, the deacon intoned in a loud voice, "Oh, Lord, wash away his iniquities and cleanse him from all his sins!"

The deacon may have felt he got even, but he didn't do much good for himself or the rest of the deacons in that diocese.

Just as human, Deacons have their faults. They can have prejudices and be impatient and rush in where angels fear to tread. They can put their feet in their mouths. They can embarrass God and everybody ­ after all, they are as human as their parish priests.

Most permanent deacons don't have the same education and training priests have had. They rarely are able to enjoy week­long conferences or even special week­day in­service training because they can't take off from their jobs.

Finally, most permanent deacons don't have the "pastoral judgement" that pastors and many associates have. They simply do not have the experience ­ and most haven't yet learned that "pastoral judgement" is really nothing more than doing what you want to do without getting caught!

The most frequent complaint I've heard from deacons throughout the country is this: "We can't preach." In some cases, a bishop won't give deacons the faculty to preach. In other cases, deacons have the faculty, but the parish priests won't let them preach.

Deacon Henry Libersat

Loves to preach

The reasons given by priests range from "our deacon doesn't have the gift of preaching" or "he lacks the skills" or "if we let him preach it cuts into our own preaching time" or "the people (whoever that is) don't want the deacons to preach."

I think deacons should be given the faculty to preach ­ as long as they are qualified to preach and have the gift of preaching. (I wish these conditions extended to faculties for all ordained ministers!)

I am a preaching deacon. I love to preach. In a way, I live to preach. I can't go to a movie, read a newspaper, watch people at the airport, rock a baby, mow the lawn, pay bills, read a bumper sticker, hear a country­western song, see a movie, go to work, or drive down a crowded highway without getting ideas for homilies.

I prepare my homilies ­ perhaps not as well as Jesuit Father Walter Burghardt who once said he spent 60 hours preparing any given homily (he was preaching once a month at that time). For Sunday homilies, I try to spend 10 hours in active preparation, but I do not settle for less than six hours. For the three­minute weekday homily the goal is one hour of preparation, but not less than 30 minutes.

Written homilies

"Preparation" includes reading and praying about the Scriptures and checking resources such as "Jerome Biblical Commentary," "The New Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture," and "Dictionary of Biblical Theology." Preparation also includes thinking about what is happening in the world, state, diocese and parish, checking with other preachers for ideas. Upon the advice of a priest-friend, I spend quite a bit of time in silence after reading the Scriptures. I actually ask God to help me discover what He wants said in that particular homily.

I have always written my homilies. In the first few years after I was ordained (1986), I "read" the homilies, sticking to the script exactly. I did this for two reasons: (1) I wanted to stay to the allotted time; I cut my preaching teeth at charismatic gatherings where people really want longer talks and homilies; I didn't want to get long­winded, so I followed the script; (2) I wanted to be sure I said precisely what I intended to say.

Become mobilized

In the last year, however, on the advice of my pastor, I no longer read the homilies. I still write them ­ and rewrite them about two or three times ­ but I no longer read them from the ambo. I don't memorize them, either. Rather I read and reread them until I have a good sense of the flow, then I take the three or four key thoughts and pray the Holy Spirit will take over.

Then I become mobilized as I preach from the front of the sanctuary. I'm happy I took my pastor's advice. I am much more comfortable "being myself" and speaking naturally to the people of our parish.

I have had all kinds of reactions to my preaching. Some people love me; a few hate my guts; most people say kind things as they leave Sunday Mass ­ which proves nothing except they are kind people. I have a few people ­ laity as well as parish staff and parish priests ­ with whom I check out my "performance."

Most of the preaching deacons I know spend a lot of time in preparation. Those who preach well surely do. Some deacons can prepare forever and simply do not preach well. By "preaching well" I don't mean preaching with eloquence or even with correct grammar and complete sentences. I mean "reaching the people with God's Word, giving them something to think about, encouraging them and even challenging them." But always loving them.

There is one thing people generally say to deacons who are good preachers: "You know what real life is all about. You're out there with us.

Needs cooperation

I think the preaching deacon brings a specific gift and credibility to the ambo. He lives and works in the world, has (or had) a family and knows how hard it is to make ends meet, to try to be patient with teenagers, to stay up all night with sick kids and yet have to work all day long. He knows what it means never to have a vacation from your vocation ­ the family goes where he goes, even if he and his wife need to be alone, or even spend time away from each other.

I believe there is a great potential for good in having permanent deacons become good preachers. I think parish priests would do well to encourage deacons to preach, to share their expertise and resources with deacons, to include deacons in their long range homily planning discussions and schedule them equally with the parish priests as homilists at Masses in the parish.

I think we can help one another with homilies. Sometimes I'll ask one of our parish priests or my brother deacon, "What's coming to you? What are you thinking about? What message do you think our parish needs to hear this weekend?"

Without such cooperation, it would be easy to miss the point entirely, as did one Louisiana priest who seemed never to consult with anyone, maybe not even with God.

The Gospel was the Good Shepherd. The priest started out with a beautiful story about how he had once been lost on a mountain in a heavy fog. He had been terrified. He called for help. In the distance, through the fog came the voice of a shepherd, "Here, over here, come toward my voice." He told us he had come down safely off that mountain, but instead of tying his experience to the lives of the people and make the connection with the Good Shepherd theme in the life of the community, this priest began a tirade about homosexuals and women priests!

New vision

I think Sunday homilies in any parish can be strengthened by shared preparation and by review of the homilist's effectiveness on a somewhat regular basis. After all, the homily is the only time most Catholics will hear any inspiration, instruction, invitation or correction. We simply have to make the most of it.

One priest I know has a group of people who independently pray over the Scriptures and share their thoughts with him as he prepares his homily.

The preaching deacon can (and should) bring a new vision, a new dimension to the parish preaching ministry. He speaks "the language of the people" naturally; he bridges the gap (if there is indeed one) between celibate clergy and conjugal laity; he sees the needs "in the world" firsthand and should be able to apply the gospel message to those needs.

Shared vision

I say "parish preaching ministry" because I see preaching as a real ministry ­ and the ministers should be prepared. I think the Sunday homilies should be approached with as much care and preparation as the annual lesson plans for religious education.

Not that homilists have to submit preplanned homilies at the beginning of the year ­ or even before Mass, but all parish preachers should share the same vision and all know the needs of the people as they live in the world. I think it is just as important to know the "needs of the people as they live in the world' as it is to know the needs of the parish ­ and in this, permanent deacons should be a great help.

Deacon Henry Libersat was ordained a permanent deacon in 1986. He is a veteran of 39 year in Catholic journalism. 29 of which have bean spent at "The Florida Catholic." He currently serves as the Editor/General Manager of "The Florida Catholic," which is headquartered in Orlando. Deacon Libersat preaches weekly in a parish and also preaches parish missions and other events. He is also author of several books. including "Miracle in the Marketplace" and "Godparents."

From the Director's Desk...

Dear Friends in Christ:

On May 16, 1998, the Board of Directors for the National Institute for the Word of God held our annual meeting. We reviewed this past year's accomplishments and set the course for the future.

I am happy to report that The Reverend George P. Schommer, OP, associate pastor of St. Gertrude's Church in Cincinnati, Ohio, and member of the Board of Directors, has graciously accepted the position of Associate Director of the National Institute. He will work alongside Mr. William Graham, our Associate Director of the past 25 years. All of the members of our Board of Directors welcome Fr. George to this position and look forward to working with him and benefiting from his pastoral experience and his experiences in parish mission preaching.

In addition, the Board of Directors unanimously agreed to create a Board of Advisors which will encompass a broad representation of the Church, including members both clerical and lay. The Board of Advisors would meet annually as well as be available for consultation regarding both ongoing and future projects. They would be a particularly beneficial supplement to our already existing Episcopal Advisory Board.

Of particular value, we believe, is our continuing association with the Catholic Coalition on Preaching, of which the Institute was a founding member. The executive committee of the CCOP is preparing for a national colloquium of leaders responsible for the various preaching ministries in the United States, with particular emphasis on the Sunday homily. Such leaders as bishops, rectors and academic deans of seminaries, superiors of religious institutes ­ in short, those responsible for the training of preachers and the conduct of preaching ministries ­ will be invited to attend. The colloquium will be held in the Fall of 1999.

Since the last issue of The GoodNews Letter, we are particularly pleased to report some of the activities of the Institute:

During the first two weeks of March, I represented the Institute at my annual Bible Seminar at the John Paul 11 Bible School in Alberta, Canada. During the Bible Seminar, I provided introductions to several biblical texts and gave talks on such topics as the "Catholic Understanding of the Bible" and "Fundamentalism." I will return to the John Paul II Bible School again next year.

The Dominican Laity invited me to their Day of Recollection on March 21st to do a workshop on preaching. The workshop was to initiate a determined effort by the Third Order Dominicans to focus on the mission of the Order and to enable them to more fully share in its ministry. During the workshop there were small group discussions on how the Dominican Laity can preach in their particular circumstances (work, school, home), exercising their ministry within the parameters of the Church.

The Institute also served a local parish by evaluating its Eucharistic celebrations for several weekends, offering both reflections and recommendations to the pastor and his liturgical team to help strengthen their celebrations.

In a few short weeks, I will depart for Winnipeg, Canada, where I will conduct Bible programs on the Book of Exodus and the Book of Psalms. I ask you to remember these undertakings in your prayers.

Over the years, I have preached several hundred parish missions throughout the United States and

Canada. My present duties teaching preaching at the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, DC, preclude my preaching extended missions, although I continue to be available for week­end retreats which have become increasingly popular.

When we receive requests for missions and other forms of preaching which we cannot fulfill, we refer callers to other preachers we know and respect. If your parish or organization should have a need for a preacher, please call us. We are able to refer you not only to preachers, but to rector formation leaders and persons competent in forming and leading Bible sharing groups.

Please be assured that I continue to remember all of our readership, friends and benefactors in my Masses and prayers, especially in a monthly Mass for our benefactors.

John Burke. OP

PREACHING STUDIO RENOVATED

Thanks to the generosity of Mike Ryman, a councilor of the National Institute for the Word of God and a member of the Dominican Laity, the National Institute has contributed S5,000.00 to the refurbishing of the Preaching Studio in the Dominican House of Studies. The refurbishing consists of the installation of audio drapes and state­of­the­art lighting. These additions will make possible the professional­quality video and audio taping of student preachers.

NEWS BRIEFS

The National Instutite for the Word of God and The GoodNews Letter are on the World Wide Web!!. Come visit us at our address: http://niwg.op.org/niwg/ and find Fr. John burke at burkeop@aol.com

Good News!!! The Hesburgh Center for Continuing Formation in Ministry announces a new beginning for its sabbatical program! The program will begin August 25, 1998 at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. For more information, or if you are interested in a sabbatical, please contact:

Rev. Eugene F. Lauer, Director

Heshurgh Center for Continuing Formation in Ministry

Catholic Theological Union

5401 South Cornell Avenue Chicago, Illinois 60615

phone: 1.800.265.4560 or 1.773.753.8000 fax: 1.773.324.4360

The Catholic Coalition on Preaching, an Association of National Catholic Organizations, is constantly growing ­ 20 full members to date. If you would like more information on how your organization can become a member, please contact:

Catholic Coalition on Preaching

CCOP President

36600 Schoolcraft Road

Livonia, Michigan 48150­1173

phone: 1.313.432.5538 fax: 1.313.432.5333

Is your parish interested in a parish Bible Mission? Please contact the Word of God office for more information.

The Aquinas Institute of Theology will be holding the Aquinas Summer Preaching Institute at the Dominican Conference Center in River Forest, Illinois from June 14­26, 1998. For further information regarding the program, please contact:

Admissions Office: 1.800.977.3869

mail: aquinas@slu.edu

web site: http://www.op.org/aquinas/

Collegeville Pastoral Institute Workshop:

Preaching While the Church is Under Reconstruction

This workshop begins by considering how church and society are in the process of transformation. Using a variety of biblical, homiletical, and theological methodologies, Thomas Troager leads you to explore ways of creating sermons that speak to our age of transition. Participants are actively involved in trying out these methods. You complete the workshop with an expanded repertoire of homiletical strategies.

Who Should Attend: Preachers and homilists, both ordained and lay, and thise preparing to preach.

Presenter: Fr. Thomas H. Troeger

Dates: August 3-7, 1998

Place: St. John's, Collegeville, MN

Registration deadline 7/20/98

For more information please contact the Collegeville Pastoral Institute: phone; 1.800.436~8431 fax: 1~800~44S.S899 e­mail: sales@litpress.org

Herald of Christ

by Deacon Alfred Mitchell

The bishop placed the Book of Gospels in my hands and said, "Receive the Gospel of Christ whose herald you are." I have a vivid memory of that event on the day of my ordination to the Diaconate. It was the morning of May 23, 1987. Caught up in the euphoria of ordination and celebration it took a while for those words to sink in.

I am now a deacon, a herald of Christ? Heralds announce, proclaim, preach. I had delivered practice homilies, given "reflections" before the congregation in my last year of formation, but now I am to preach. For the first few months it seemed relatively easy. After I used up all my stories, anecdotes and other ready material, I began to discover there was a lot more to it than I had anticipated. Conversations with fellow deacons revealed they were having similar experiences.

The Atlanta Archdiocese has had permanent deacons since 1977. Currently there are 135 of us. Most of us preach on a regular basis, usually one weekend per month. Some preach at all Masses on the weekend and others preach at one or more of the Masses, but not at all.

There are a few deacons who choose not to preach. Some, for various reasons, do not preach.

Personally, I've heard few deacons in our archdiocese preach because I'm usually in my own parish on Sundays. I do have occasion to speak with quite a few lay people about deacons who preach. The responses are generally favorable.

For men in formation, instruction in homiletics begins in the first year. The candidates begin in the first year with short presentations of one to two minutes on praying the psalms. In the second year they preside over evening prayer which includes a short reflection on the reading. In the third year they preside over communion services which also includes a short reflection on the reading. These reflections are critiqued by the director of formation.

In the fourth year of formation candidates receive more formal instructions in homiletics covering exegesis, critique, structuring the homily and similar matters. It may also involve bringing in an expert from the outside to instruct in the technical aspects of preaching, such as proper breathing, use of the microphone, eye contact, gestures, and voice inflection.

The late Archbishop James P. Lyke had a keen interest in the preaching of deacons and priests. He told me once that preaching by deacons was the one topic which came up more than any other when he talked with lay people about their impressions of deacons. At that time, it seemed the laity was not as favorably impressed by the preachinq of deacons as they now appear to be. This was one of the reasons he added a fourth year to the formation program.

Candidates now receive more instruction in homiletics than when I was in formation. The fourth year has

been very helpful. I think the men in the last class were better prepared than I was. Personally, I understand the value of classroom instruction. It, however, is only the beginning of becoming a preacher.

Sometime ago I read an article by Fr. Thomas McSweeney, director of the Christophers. In the article Fr. McSweeney related a portion of an interview he had with Father Walter Burghardt, S.J.. He asked Fr. Burghardt what makes a great preacher and he answered with this story:

"An Hasidic rabbi in the Ukraine told me that he had learned the meaning of love from two peasants. He was in a town in the countryside and there were two peasants at a table, drunk and gloriously in their cups. Each had his arm around the other. At one point Ivan tells Peter how much he loves him. But Peter replies, 'Ivan, do you know what hurts me?' Ivan said, 'Oh, how should I know what hurts you?' Peter answers, 'Well, if you don't know what hurts me, how can you say you love me?'

I'm convinced that those who have the honor of preaching, whether it be at the Sunday liturgy, a weekday liturgy, a funeral, a wedding, a baptism, or some other occasion, must know what hurts the congregation. Obviously, this means you have to be involved with the congregation and not just a mere "guest" preacher once or twice per month.

I listen carefully to the spontaneous intercessory prayers. They let me know what the people are praying for, what they're giving thanks for and where they're hurting.

Meeting and greeting the congregation before and after Mass is another way of knowing who's hurting Parishioners will often pause and ask if I will pray for a certain intention. They tell me about their children, their spouses, their jobs and their bosses and a lot of other things.

It's their way of saying, "I'm hurting in this area. Help me." Sometimes when they don't tell me, I ask. It lets them know I am concerned.

I serve on several parish committees and organizations. The informal chats that take place as the meetings progress are another important source of information on who's hurting.

I don't often get the opportunity to preach to other deacons, but as the vicar for deacons, I hear a lot about what is hurting them and their families: a child who is sick or having a problem in school; marital and financial difficulties; conflicts with a pastor or parishioners.

A second thing Archbishop Lyke did to improve preaching in the archdiocese was to invite Fr. J. Glenn Murray, a Jesuit priest from the diocese of Cleveland, to come to Atlanta and present a series of workshops on liturgy.

Attendance at Fr. Murray's workshops was very good. The presentations were very informative and helpful in Obtaining an overall picture of the liturgy and how preaching fits into the overall structure of the liturgy. Fr. Murray talked a lot about preaching and it's role in the liturgy. I was particularly impressed by his teaching on bringing the proclamation of the Gospel alive. He put so much power and effort into it that it made you feel the words and not just hear them.

A third initiative of Archbishop Lyke was to invite The Word of God Institute to put on a preaching workshop for the priests and deacons of the archdiocese in the spring of 1992. The workshop was presented by Fr. John Burke and Bill and Mary Graham. It was attended by about twenty­five deacons and a sizable number of priests also.

As stated earlier, in my beginning years as I deacon I knew it was important to preach to the hurts of the congregation. Knowing how to do it effectively was something I wasn't at all certain about. The workshop helped a lot.

Two subjects were of particular interest to me: "Relating the Gospel to Human Pain" and "Guide to Knowledgeable Listening". As a storyteller I knew something about the latter, but the former was pretty much uncharted territory for me.

It was after this workshop that I began to listen more to what the congregation was saying to me. To coin a phrase of the day, "I began to feel their pain." It was an eye­opening experience.

I'm a storyteller and I began to look for stories that I could use in my homilies. I found them everywhere: in books, in magazines, in the newspaper, on TV and radio and especially in the stories the people told me about their lives.

As often as is practical, I weave these stories, and parts of my own story, into my preaching. It's an excellent way of getting a point across. After all, Jesus was a storyteller par excellence. We can do no better than to emulate him in preaching, as in all else. I recommend storytelling in preaching to anyone who has not tried it.

A word about personal stories in your preaching: Be careful! It can be overdone. In a visit with a pastor I asked about how a certain deacon was doing. He said, "He's doing well, except for his preaching." When I asked him what the problem was, his reply was, Usome parishioners are beginning to tire of hearing about him, his wife and the grandchildren."

In personal stories you must also be sensitive to possible embarrassment of other family members. Don't assume they won't mind being included in your stories from the pulpit. They may mind. With these caveats in mind, give it a try.

The workshop made such an impression on me that I approached Fr. Burke about putting on a workshop the next year; one designed especially for permanent deacons. It was a great success. In addition to the two topics mentioned earlier "Relating the Gospel to Human Pain" and "Guide to Knowledgeable Listening," there were presentations on "Oral Interpretation of Sacred Scripture," "Self­image and Effective Preaching," and "The Eucharistic Homily: Invitation to Thanksgiving." I still have my notes and all of the handouts from that workshop.

The evaluations completed at the end of the workshop were overwhelmingly positive. One very valuable tool was the practice of getting together monthly with other deacons and reviewing the readings we would be preachiny on. We did this for quite a while. There are some deacons who still do this.

Preaching is hard work but I believe most deacons see it as a labor of love. It is for me one of the great joys of being a deacon. With God's help, I think I do a fairly good job of it. Occasionally, I'm asked how do I go about preaching. I think St. Francis of Assisi had it right when he said, ~preach the Gospel always, use words if necessary." We are indeed known more by our fruits than by our words.

God bless and good preaching.

Deacon Alfred Mitchell is the Director of the Office for the Permanent Diaconate. in the Archdiocese of Atlanta. He wee ordained in 1 987.

Special thanks go to Deacon John Pistone, Executive Director of the Secretariat for the Diaconate at the National Conference of Catholic Bishops. Deacon Pistone helped supply the information which got this issue off the ground.

For more information on the diaconate in your area, contact your diocesan offices or the Bishops' Committee on the Diaconate Secretariat, 3211 Fourth Street, NE, Washington, DC 20017­1194 (202.541.3038).

WE RECOMMEND...

"Diaconal Evangelization" by Deacon Anthony T. Barrasso. This article appeared in the May/June 1989 issue of Diaconate Magazine and is highly recommended.

"Deacons Today" by James L. Alt. This June 1997 issue of Catholic Update by St. Anthony Messenger Press describes the role of the permanent deacon in the Catholic Church today.

"The Diaconate: Possibilities and Challenges" by Gerard Kelly and Richard Lennan. This article appeared in the April 1997 issue of The Australasian Catholic Record. Be sure to check it out!

Homilies alive: Creating Homilies that Hit Home by Msgr. Francis P. Friedl and Deacon Ed Macauley. This book has proven to be a very popular, practical book for homilists. Homilies Alive! is available from Alt Publication. A series of articles on 'the art of oral communication. based on this book appeared in Deacon Digest throughout 1 995.

Preaching on Death: An Ecumenical Resource available from The Liturgical Conference This book contains four sets of scripture readings for a funeral with exegesis, illustrations and ideas for adapting homilies to the specific needs of the parish or congregation. Preaching on Death is available from The Liturgical Conference for the price of $12.50 per copy

Companion to the Prayer of Christians: Reflections and Personal Prayers by Father John Burke, OP. This companion book to the 'Prayer of Christians' or the Divine Office, provides a distinct focus for each psalm and connects the meaning of the psalm with our personal lives. This Companion will help you understand the psalms and see their relevance to your daily life, and, wrth such a perspective, it will carry you through even the greatest trials with hope. Available from the National Institute for the Word of God for the price of $6.95 per copy. (Liturgical Press, 1 995).

Preaching the Just Word by Father Walter J. Burghardt, SJ. In this book, Father Burghardt discusses why we must apply biblical justice ­ not merely legal justice ­ to matters concerning the poor, the oppressed and the marginalized. Father Burghardt advises other preachers that their sermons need not provide answers to the problems, but should instead sensitize awareness of social issues and show their religious importance. Preaching the Just Word is available from Liturgy Training Publications for the price of S22.50 per copy.

The Homilist's Guide to Scripture, Theology, and Canon Law by Father John Burke, OP and Father Thomas P. Doyle, OP. This book draws on all contemporary documents including the Code of Canon Law to guide ordinary ministers of preaching: bishops, priests and deacons. Homilist's Guide is available from the National Institute for the Word of God for the price of S 12.95 per copy. (Pueblo, 1987).

And be sure not to miss the following articles . . .

NCR series by Arthur Jones on The National Institute for the Word of God. This series appeared in the following issues of the National Catholic Reporter: 8/1/97, 8/15/97, 8/29/97, and 9/5/97.

Teachers for Preachers by Arthur Jones which appeared in the 1/10/98 issue of The Tablet.

Passionate Preaching by Mary Jo Dangel which appears in the May 1998 issue of St. Anthony Messenger. This article reviews the CCOP National Conference of last September.

The GoodNews Letter is published three times a year by The National Institute for the Word of God. Story suggestions, news items, and correspondence are welcome and may be forwarded to the Editor.