To mark the 25th anniversary of ordination of the first diaconate class for the Diocese of Little Rock, 31 deacons were honored Saturday, Nov. 4 in a Mass celebrated by Bishop Emeritus Andrew J. McDonald at the Cathedral of St. Andrew in Little Rock. Also recognized were all deceased deacons and wives and family members.
In attendance were 15 of the honored deacons and their wives as well as four widows representing their late husbands. They were joined by several concelebrating priests, including Msgr. J. Gaston Hebert, diocesan administrator, and deacons from across the state.
 31 diaconate honorees Click here |
The readings proclaimed by two of the wives were the same as those read at the first diaconate ordination in 1981. Honored deacons served as ministers of the Word and Eucharist and their wives presented the gifts during the offertory.
Twenty-three men completed the first permanent diaconate program and 21 were ordained for the Diocese of Little Rock on Nov. 7, 1981, by Bishop McDonald. The other two were ordained for other dioceses.
Of the 23, six left diaconal ministry, leaving 17 to be honored.
Also honored were 14 additional deacons in the Diocese of Little Rock who were ordained or received formation in other dioceses 25 or more years ago.
During the homily, Bishop McDonald praised the deacons and their wives for their service and also noted their spiritual growth through the ministry.
“How could the Church of Arkansas ever have survived without you?” he asked.
Bishop McDonald explained that the role of deacon is rooted in the Bible and, after being repressed for centuries, was restored in the Catholic Church on Nov. 21, 1964.
“In Matthew’s Gospel Jesus picked the role of servant as the model for deacons,” he said. “So it has been, and may it always be true, that deacons and wives who labor in this vineyard of the Diocese of Little Rock, that you imitate Jesus in your efforts to serve the people committed to your care.”
The word “diaconate” comes from the Greek diaconia, which means service. According to the 1998 Directory for the Ministry and Life of Permanent Deacons, “The principal function of the permanent deacon is to collaborate with the bishop and the priests in the exercise of a ministry (of Word, Liturgy and Service) … calling all to conversion and holiness.”
Deacon Mathew Post, 81, a member of the first diaconate class of 1981, still actively serves at St. Mary Church in Altus.
In an interview with Arkansas Catholic, he said being in the diaconate has been the most rewarding experience of his life after raising a family.
He chose ministry to the sick as his primary diaconal ministry in 1977 and has been visiting nursing homes, hospitals and shut-ins within a 40-mile radius of St. Mary Church for the past 25 years.
“I really enjoy it. It’s very rewarding,” he said.
Teresa Brock, of St. Anne Church in Walnut Creek, Calif., came to the anniversary celebration to honor her late husband, Deacon Bill Brock, who was the first deacon to serve in the diocese.
Though ordained in the Diocese of Dallas, the Brocks came to Arkansas shortly after his ordination in 1974. She spoke of the challenges they faced in a ministry that many did not understand and how her husband handled it with faith and love.
“I remember when we went to Forrest City. The people asked, ’What do you think you’re going to do?’ And he said, ’We’re just going to love you.’”
The diocese presented 31 new dalmatics to the cathedral in the name of each of the honorees. A dalmatic is the outer liturgical vestment worn by deacons for special occasions.
The vestments, which resemble the chasubles worn by priests for certain cathedral Masses, are ivory with a red design down the center of both the front and back consisting of alternating lanterns with flames and crosses. Each dalmatic has the name of an honoree and the words, “Well done, my good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21) sewn into the back under the collar.
The 15 honorees present wore the dalmatics during the Mass and four widows carried the stoles from the dalmatics honoring their late husbands.
Deacon John Marschewski, minister to deacons and coordinator of the event, presented the dalmatics at a brunch before the Mass, where he asked Bishop McDonald to bless them.
At the end of the Mass, Deacon Tim Massanelli, of Our Lady of the Holy Souls Church in Little Rock, spoke on behalf of the class of 1981.
He thanked Bishop McDonald for his leadership and presented him with a gift for St. Joseph Home for the Elderly in Palatine, Ill., where he has served as chaplain since 2002.
“From the very beginning of the formation, throughout ordination and ministry, Bishop McDonald you were a strong supporter, shepherd, advocate, counselor, mentor and friend,” he said.
Msgr. Hebert followed Massanelli and also thanked the bishop on behalf of the diocese for his vision and the deacons and their wives for being faithful servants.
“Thank you for your patience, your understanding, your wisdom, and most of all, your love of Jesus Christ. Quite often you were an example to us in what we should have been as priests by the way you embraced your ministry and lived it out,” he said. “The people in this diocese are stronger in their faith because of you.”
He also thanked the wives and called them the “unsung heroines” who made their husbands’ “gift to the Church possible.”
Following the Mass was a reception at McDonald Hall. Earlier in the day honorees had brunch with Bishop McDonald and Msgr. Hebert and watched a slide show that included photos from the deacons’ years of service. Then several shared memories of their experiences.
Today there are nearly 100 permanent deacons incardinated with the Diocese of Little Rock.
First ordained deacon for the Diocese of Little Rock
Victor and Jane Stepka of Jonesboro (ordained 1978)
Class of 1981, the first diaconate class for the Diocese of Little Rock
Bob (deceased) and Virginia Clark of Jonesboro
Bud and Peggy Daven of Malvern
George and Henrietta (deceased) Edwards of Pocahontas
Don and Bettye Francis of Little Rock
Bill and Claire Hartmann of Little Rock
Dan and Frances Hennessey (both deceased)
Larry and Pauline Jegley of Little Rock
Don and Mary Lynch (both deceased)
Robert (deceased) and Loretta Maes of Little Rock
Tim and Dottie Massanelli of Little Rock
Matt and Mary Mattingly of Little Rock
Matt and Betty Post of Altus
Ed (deceased) and Katie Read of Enumclaw, Wash.
Oscar and Rodie Rohlman of Morrilton
Cliff and Mary Rowland (both deceased)
Frank and Helen Sluppick of Hot Springs
Keith and Pearl Woods of Wake Village, Texas
Deacons who served 25 years or more
Bernie and Marilyn Bauer of Hot Springs Village (ordained 1980)
Jerry (deceased) and Jean Becker of Bella Vista (ordained 1980)
Richard (deceased) and Jo Ann Bemrich of Round Rock, Texas (ordained 1974)
Bill (deceased) and Teresa Brock of Walnut Creek, Calif. (ordained 1974)
Bill and Beatrice (deceased) Cook of Rogers (ordained 1976)
Bill and Rose Cranford of Little Rock (ordained 1978)
Bill and Carol Friedman of Hot Springs Village (ordained 1978)
Arnold Hernandez of North Little Rock (ordained 1981)
Samuel (deceased) and Maryann Hilburn of Grapevine, Texas (ordained 1972)
Richard and Bernice Linstad of Mountain Home (ordained 1978)
Thomas and Rea Miller of Clarksville, Tenn. (ordained 1978)
Ray and Marie Siwek of Cherokee Village (ordained 1978)
Jim and Helene Thompson of Cherokee Village (ordained 1974)
