During Jubilee, speakers urge expanding diaconate beyond parish walls

ROME (CNS) — The future of the permanent diaconate hinges on rediscovering its unique vocation of service, expanding its presence beyond the parish and strengthening its role as a bridge between the church and society, church leaders and theologians said during a meeting on the future of the diaconate.

Speakers from across the globe highlighted both the successes and challenges facing the diaconate during a Feb. 22 conference held outside the Vatican during the Jubilee of Deacons.

The conference took place on the eve of diaconate ordinations in St. Peter’s Basilica, which were scheduled to be presided over by Pope Francis. However, the Vatican announced the pope would not attend the event since he remains hospitalized with pneumonia.

"The deacon is not meant to be a remedy for the shortage of priests," said Deacon Gerald DuPont, president of the International Diaconate Centre and a deacon in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, Texas. Instead, each deacon is called to be "a model, animator and facilitator of ministries of charity and justice within the local diocesan church," he said.

While many of the world's 50,000 permanent deacons are deeply integrated into parish life -- often dedicating 10 to 20 hours a week to their parish duties on top of family and career responsibilities -- Deacon DuPont stressed the importance of broadening their ministry beyond church walls.

Nearly 40% of the world's deacons serve in the United States, where some dioceses now assign deacons both to a parish and a diocesan ministry of charity in an effort to reconnect the diaconate with its historical role of serving the poor and marginalized, he explained. However, Deacon DuPont acknowledged that it remains to be seen whether this dual assignment will become a lasting model.

In contrast, deacons in other regions often serve primarily beyond parish walls.

Father Gilbert de Lima, vice president of the International Diaconate Centre, said Asia and Oceania account for only 2% of the world's permanent deacons, and that although the ministry is well-established in Malaysia, Hong Kong and India and is expanding in the Philippines and Taiwan, its growth is still limited.

In Asia and Oceania, he said "deacons are essential in ensuring that the church's mission of charity and social justice reaches those on the margins of society." Yet, he acknowledged that integration into parish life remains uneven, with some priests, especially in rural areas, still struggling to understand the deacon's role.

"In Malaysia, deacons serve as a bridge between different cultures and faiths, ministering in multiple languages, supporting Catholic families in a non-Christian society and advocating for migrant workers," Father de Lima said. In Hong Kong, deacons assist victims of human trafficking and promote human rights, while in Australia and New Zealand they focus on indigenous outreach and social justice ministries, particularly in rural areas where priests are scarce.

Amid concrete pastoral challenges for deacons, theologians speaking at the conference emphasized the need to articulate a clear vision for the diaconate's future.

Father Dario Vitali, a professor of ecclesiology at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, stressed that the diaconate must be understood within the broader framework of a synodal and missionary church. Citing the Second Vatican Council's teaching that deacons are "ordained not to priesthood, but to service," he warned against reducing the diaconate to a substitute for priests or limiting it to liturgical functions.

"The deacon is ordained for service within his local church, not as a minister of the universal church," Father Vitali said, stressing that deacons are responsible for ensuring the poor and vulnerable are cared for and that their needs are brought before the altar.

Similarly, Serena Noceti, a professor of systematic theology at the Higher Institute of Religious Sciences of Tuscany, highlighted the deacon's role as a bridge between the Gospel and daily life. Citing the Synod of Bishops on synodality's final document, she described the deacon as a "go-between" who promotes a "consciousness and style of service" within the entire church.

She stressed that deacons must serve as "custodians and promoters" of hope, particularly in a world marked by social inequality, war and environmental crises, and said that their ministry should extend beyond parishes to places of suffering -- hospitals, prisons, and migrant centers -- where they embody the church's solidarity with the most vulnerable.

Theologians and deacons alike called for renewed formation programs that emphasize the deacon's role as a servant of both the liturgy and society. Father Vitali suggested updating the document that establishes general norms for the formation and function of permanent deacons to expand on new forms of ministry including digital evangelization, advocacy for human rights and interreligious dialogue.

"Deacons, please, restore to the church the specificity of your ministry," Father Vitali urged the hundreds of deacons and spouses in the crowd. "Help the church, through your ministry, to bend down to every form of poverty, pouring the oil of consolation and the wine of hope on every wound."