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Bishop Bruskewitz Retires But No Deacons?


Lil Red

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i don't get this....

Deacon Greg Kandra (who writes at Deacon's Bench), has a piece up about Bishop Bruskewitz retiring, but [url="http://www.patheos.com/blogs/deaconsbench/2012/09/the-vocation-that-lincoln-lacks-permanent-deacons/"]laments the lack of permanent deacons.[/url]

"Meantime, to this day, the diocesan vocations page in Lincoln does not list the diaconate as a possible vocation, and it does not list an office of the permanent diaconate, either.

Perhaps under the new bishop, things will change."

?? Obviously the bishop was doing something right, because according to the link:

"According to [url="http://www.dioceseoflincoln.org/Pages/about_home.aspx"][b]the diocesan website[/b][/url], there are 150 priests serving 134 parishes and 96,000 Catholics. There are 44 seminarians and 141 religious sisters."

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Yes, it does appear that Bishop Bruskewitz was doing something right in how he promoted vocations to the priesthood. It appears that Deacon Kandra, however, was disappointed that the good Bishop did not also show a similar zeal in promoting the permanent Diaconate.

Following Paul VI's [i]Sacrum Diaconatus Ordinem[/i], it is the decision of the ordinary to determine the need and extent of the permanent diaconate in his individual diocese. Bishop Bruskewitz appears to have felt that there was not a need of the permeant diaconate in his diocese. The article states that is because "he felt it would inhibit vocations to the priesthood." Deacon Kandra, a permanent deacon himself, clearly disagrees and believes this to be an unfounded fear. There can be found good arguments to both sides of this healthy debate (the need and extent of the permanent diaconate).

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filius_angelorum

Generally, in most dioceses with permanent deacons, deacons are undertrained and underpaid to perform the roles that they are given. Unless, as makes sense to me, deacons begin receiving full and complete seminary training, the permanent diaconate seems to me to be more of a liability than an asset.

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Groo the Wanderer

well...considering the permanent diaconate was restored at the Council of Trent, it took a while to get off the ground everywhere, not actually being implemented until after Vat II.

still waiting on full implementation of instituted acolytes that Pope Paul VI decreed. we just got em 3 yrs ago and still waiting for them to fully replace EMHCs

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I know many people, especially those who are committed to the EF liturgy and the things that pertain to it, who don't really care for the permanent diaconate. Some go so far as to say that it was just an excuse to get laity more involved (perhaps a little, but that's overly simplistic). Others just don't care for it. I knew a bishop who just never implemented it in his diocese and didn't have deacons until his successor took over (and he had no idea how to use them). Sometimes there are theological reasons, and other times just practical reasons. With Bishop Bruskewitz, I suspect it was the former.

I have had many experiences with permanent deacons. Some of them are crazy and really not up to the task. For instance, I've met deacons who didn't know that wine goes into the chalice (and he was serving at Mass with his bishop, who turned to him and said to try again!) Sometimes permanent deacons cause more problems than they help, particularly with theological formation. Depending on the diocese, permanent deacons aren't necessary and their roles can easily be supplemented by transitional deacons.

On the other hand there some great permanent deacons and they like to stand up for each other...

This is all to say, I don't think that permanent deacons actually help the number of priestly and religious vocations.

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[quote name='Groo the Wanderer' timestamp='1347761886' post='2482860']
well...considering the permanent diaconate was restored at the Council of Trent, it took a while to get off the ground everywhere, not actually being implemented until after Vat II.

still waiting on full implementation of instituted acolytes that Pope Paul VI decreed. we just got em 3 yrs ago and still waiting for them to fully replace EMHCs
[/quote]I just went back and saw this. Your bishop has instituted acolytes? He told me almost seven years ago that he wouldn't. I'm glad to see he changed his mind!

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brianthephysicist

[quote name='MIkolbe' timestamp='1347759015' post='2482836']
What does their training consist of?
[/quote]
Same question.


[quote name='Groo the Wanderer' timestamp='1347761886' post='2482860']
well...considering the permanent diaconate was restored at the Council of Trent, it took a while to get off the ground everywhere, not actually being implemented until after Vat II.
[/quote]
Can you give a little more history on this? I'm too young to remember a time without permanent deacons.

What was going on before the Council of Trent that led to them diminishing or being restricted or whatever it was that made it necessary to restore them?

Was it [i]more[/i] promoted to be implemented after Vatican II or was Vatican II the first time it had been promoted [i]at all[/i] since before Council of Trent?

[quote name='Groo the Wanderer' timestamp='1347761886' post='2482860']
still waiting on full implementation of instituted acolytes that Pope Paul VI decreed. we just got em 3 yrs ago and still waiting for them to fully replace EMHCs
[/quote]
What is an acolyte? The only 2 times I've ever heard of them was 1 from X-Men and 2 overheard two old church ladies :love: talking about someone reaching the level of acolyte on his way to the permanent diaconate.

I guess I should ask what their training consists of too.

And if a parish (or perhaps it makes more sense to say diocese) were to "institute" an acolyte, what does that mean? Is it a permanent thing like the deaconate can be? Or maybe semi-permanent?

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brianthephysicist

[quote name='MIkolbe' timestamp='1347759015' post='2482836']
What does their training consist of?
[/quote]
Same question.


[quote name='Groo the Wanderer' timestamp='1347761886' post='2482860']
well...considering the permanent diaconate was restored at the Council of Trent, it took a while to get off the ground everywhere, not actually being implemented until after Vat II.
[/quote]
Can you give a little more history on this? I'm too young to remember a time without permanent deacons.

What was going on before the Council of Trent that led to them diminishing or being restricted or whatever it was that made it necessary to restore them?

Was it [i]more[/i] promoted to be implemented after Vatican II or was Vatican II the first time it had been promoted [i]at all[/i] since before Council of Trent?

[quote name='Groo the Wanderer' timestamp='1347761886' post='2482860']
still waiting on full implementation of instituted acolytes that Pope Paul VI decreed. we just got em 3 yrs ago and still waiting for them to fully replace EMHCs
[/quote]
What is an acolyte? The only 2 times I've ever heard of them was 1 from X-Men and 2 overheard two old church ladies :love: talking about someone reaching the level of acolyte on his way to the permanent diaconate.

I guess I should ask what their training consists of too.

And if a parish (or perhaps it makes more sense to say diocese) were to "institute" an acolyte, what does that mean? Is it a permanent thing like the deaconate can be? Or maybe semi-permanent?

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Groo the Wanderer

acolyte docs:
[url="http://www.stmattcc.org/index.cfm?load=page&page=210"]http://www.stmattcc.org/index.cfm?load=page&page=210[/url]

perm deaconate docs::
[url="http://www.fwdioc.org/vocations/perm_deacon/Pages/default.aspx"]http://www.fwdioc.org/vocations/perm_deacon/Pages/default.aspx[/url]

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