“Being ordained is not an ascent but a descent, whereby we make ourselves small, lower ourselves and divest ourselves,” Pope Francis said in a message to 23 men from eight countries, including three from the United States, who were ordained permanent deacons in St Peter’s Basilica.
The 23 February ordination Mass at the Vatican was the culmination of a three-day Holy Year celebration that drew thousands of deacons, plus their wives and others, from more than 100 countries to Rome for communal prayer, discussion and celebration of the diaconate.
Archbishop Rino Fisichella, pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelisation, celebrated the Mass with 2,500 deacons and delivered the homily prepared by Pope Francis.
The pope was originally scheduled to preside over the Mass but remained hospitalised with pneumonia and was in “critical condition,” the Vatican said.
In his homily, the pope reflected on three essential dimensions of the diaconate: forgiveness, service and communion.
“Forgiveness means preparing a welcoming and safe future for us and our communities,” the pope wrote.
“The deacon, invested in a ministry that leads him toward the world’s peripheries, must see—and teach others to see—in everyone, even those who cause suffering, a brother or sister wounded in spirit and in need of reconciliation, guidance and help.”
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