Diakonia of the Altar
Immediately following the rite of ordination, the newly ordained deacon, vested in alb, stole and dalmatic, begins to serve at the altar with the bishop. Service at the altar is at the very heart and center of diaconal ministry and identity, for the liturgy is “the summit towards which the activity of the Church is directed and the font from which all her power flows”.jpg)
Deacons as ordained ministers, “participate in the sanctification of the Christian community, in hierarchical communion with the bishop and priests.” (Basic Norms no. 28.) Just as the bishop and the presbyters are icons or images of Christ the Head of the Church, the deacon is an icon or image of Christ the Servant. It is through the deacon who proclaims the Gospel, that Christ calls his people to conversion and self-denial. The deacon who announces the intentions for the Church, for the world and for those in particular need or distress, so that God’s holy people can intercede with Christ the High Priest for everyone and everything.
At the conclusion of the Eucharistic prayer, it is the deacon who elevates the chalice containing the Precious Blood of the Lorld, which symbolizes both the life poured out in love by Christ on the cross and the call of every Christian to live a life poured out in the service of God and neighbor. As ordinary ministers of Holy Communion, deacons traditionally minister the chalice to the faithful. And at the conclusion of every Mass, it is the deacon who dismisses the faithful, sending them forth to love and serve Christ in their daily lives in their families, workplaces and community.
Deacons are also ordinary ministers of baptism and matrimony when presiding over these these sacramental celebrations outside of Mass; preside at liturgies of the Word and communion services; assist at or preside at Eucharistic exposition and benediction and in the absence of the bishop or priest, bless the faithful as well as places and things.
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