June 14, 2014  This week our class was in Tujunga at Our Lady of Lourdes for an all-day end of year, all group retreat. Our last class will be in La Puente.  Our retreat was conducted by Deacon Matt Dulka. He is the Director of the Western Region for the Maryknoll Fathers & Brothers.

The focus of this retreat was not only what it meant to be a deacon or deacon couple, but what it also meant to be a missionary disciple of Christ.

Deacon Matt covered what Christ calls us to be with the different gifts from God. We, at our Baptism, become a disciple of Christ. Being this disciple is not one who is to come to worship in their local church and then go home. Rather, as a disciple of Christ, we are called to “Go Forth”. We are to take our faith, and step outside of our comfort zone of our home parish, and witness to Christ in all aspects of our life.  Witness where we work, shop, at home, with our friends or even go to school.

Deacon Matt quoted Pope Francis who said, “I prefer a church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security.”

Not only do we need to witness to Christ all of the time, we need to be Christ’s presence to those who may not know Him. These could be the poor, the homeless, those on the margins.   We are baptized in the water of forgiveness  to go forth and bring that forgiveness and spirit of Christ to those who do not know the love of our God, those who have seen that love but no longer see it in their lives.  As a child of God we are all loved by God, it is through those who witness and share that love that brings those on the margins closer to God’s love, to see the face of Jesus in all who serve.

Going forth, we witness Christ not only by helping those on the margins, but also by seeing Christ in each of them. We respect them. We listen to them. We support them by whatever means we can, whether  it is time, treasure or talent, we are inspired to help those who need to see the love of our Creator and know he is alive in us all.

When you look back at the life of Christ, you see that he did not just hang around the Synagogue and preach. He dined with sinners. He helped the sick. He visited the outcast. If Jesus did this during His life, how could He not expect any less from all of us.  To serve is to help, to do what Jesus did, to step out of our comfort zone and be the hands and feet of Christ.

Therefore, go forth!

If you are interested in becoming a Deacon or a Deacon Couple for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, please contact:

Diaconate Formation Office
Archdiocese of Los Angeles
3424 Wilshire Boulevard, 2nd Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90010-2241
213-637-7383​

 

Or, Attend an information day:

 

Sunday, July 20, 2014 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at St. Jerome Parish, 5550 Thornburn St.

Los Angeles, CA 90045

 

Sunday, October 26, 2014 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at Incarnation Community Center, 214 West

Fairview Ave. Glendale, CA 91202

 

If you have any questions about the Diaconate, please ask us or send us an e-mail at wyb@wyb.com.   As we complete this calendar year’s classes, we would again like to thank all of you. Thank you for your continued prayers.  Thank you for your continued support. Lastly, thank you for the occasional question on how that “deacon thing” is going.

 

Candy & Jay Krueger,

Candidacy Year I, Diaconate Formation,

Holy Family Church, South Pasadena, CA