The permanent diaconate, restored by the Second Vatican Council and Saint Paul VI, is the first degree of the sacrament of Holy Orders lived as a lifelong ministry, open to married and unmarried men. The Catechism describes the deacon as ordained 'not unto the priesthood, but unto the ministry', configured to Christ the Servant for the threefold ministry of the word, the liturgy and charity. A deacon proclaims the Gospel and preaches, baptises, witnesses marriages, presides at funerals and blessings, assists at the altar, and gives himself to the works of charity — usually while continuing his job and family life. Discerning it is a discernment for the man and, if he is married, for his wife and family with him.

What you need

• A stable life of faith, prayer and the sacraments, and active service in your parish
• If married, a stable marriage and your wife's free consent; if single, the readiness to embrace lifelong celibacy
• The age and freedom the Church requires (see the requirements step) and the health and capacity for several years of study
• The support of your pastor, who will be asked to recommend you

When to pray it

Daily, with the Liturgy of the Hours if you can begin it now — deacons are bound to pray Morning and Evening Prayer — and Mass as often as possible.

Steps

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   Step 1: Understand what a deacon does

   Read the Catechism's paragraphs on the diaconate and the USCCB's National Directory for the Formation, Ministry and Life of Permanent Deacons if you can find it. The deacon serves the word (proclaiming the Gospel, preaching, catechesis), the liturgy (assisting the priest at Mass, baptising, witnessing marriages, presiding at funerals outside Mass, exposition and benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, blessings), and charity (the poor, the sick, prisoners, the parish's works of mercy), and is meant to be a bridge between the altar and the world of work and family. He does not celebrate Mass, hear confessions or anoint the sick.

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   Step 2: Check the requirements

   The Code of Canon Law sets minimum ages for the permanent diaconate: twenty-five for an unmarried candidate and thirty-five for a married one, and the bishops of the United States have set thirty-five as the minimum for all candidates; many dioceses also set an upper age limit for beginning formation. A married candidate must have his wife's written consent. A married deacon who is widowed does not ordinarily remarry, and an unmarried man ordained deacon takes on lifelong celibacy. Candidates must be confirmed Catholics of stable life, sound doctrine and good reputation, with the health and education needed for formation.

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   Step 3: Inquire with the diocese

   Speak first with your pastor, who knows you and whose recommendation the diocese will ask for. Then contact the diocesan office for the permanent diaconate; most hold information evenings, and the director will meet you, and your wife if you are married, to talk over your life, your motives and the program. This inquiry period is a conversation, with no commitment on either side.

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   Step 4: Aspirancy

   Men accepted for discernment enter a period of aspirancy, usually about a year, in which the diocese and the aspirant test the call together: monthly gatherings for prayer, study and formation, a spiritual director, a retreat, and the involvement of wives. At its end the aspirant applies for admission to candidacy, and the bishop, having heard the formation team, either admits him in the Rite of Admission to Candidacy or does not. Either is a fruit of discernment.

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   Step 5: Formation

   Candidacy formation lasts several years — commonly three to four — and, like priestly formation, has human, spiritual, intellectual and pastoral dimensions: theology, Scripture, liturgy, canon law and homiletics, together with supervised pastoral placements, regular spiritual direction, annual retreats, and the daily prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours. Wives commonly share in much of it. The candidate's marriage, work and parish life continue throughout, and are part of what is formed.

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   Step 6: The ministries of lector and acolyte

   During formation the candidate is instituted by the bishop in the ministries of lector (to proclaim the Word) and acolyte (to serve at the altar and assist with Holy Communion), and canon law requires an interval of at least six months between receiving the ministry of acolyte and ordination. These are not ordinations but public steps by which the Church confirms the candidate's progress and gives him a share in her ministry.

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   Step 7: Ordination and assignment

   When the formation team, the pastor and the candidate's wife have been heard and the bishop calls him, the candidate is ordained a deacon: he promises respect and obedience to the bishop, the Church prays the Litany of the Saints▾ over him as he lies prostrate, the bishop lays hands on him and prays the prayer of ordination, and he is vested with the stole and dalmatic and receives the Book of the Gospels. The bishop then assigns him to a parish or another ministry, and his life as a deacon begins where his life as a Christian husband, father and worker already is.

Tips

• A deacon is not a 'mini-priest' nor a super-volunteer; he is ordained for service, and the parish should already see him serving.
• Your wife is not an appendix to your discernment. Most programs involve wives in formation, and her consent is required by canon law; discern together from the start.
• The ordinary path takes four to six years from inquiry to ordination; if that feels too long, ask what the hurry is.
• Your bishop, not you, assigns your ministry after ordination; discernment includes a willingness to serve where you are sent.