By Bishop James Conley
During the past two weeks, I had the honor of attending graduations for our Catholic high schools throughout the Diocese of Lincoln and handing out diplomas to the graduates. I always enjoy attending these graduations because it’s a very important step in the lives of our young people as they set out into the world.
I took the opportunity to encourage the new graduates to use the gifts God has given them to evangelize a world that has become toxic to Christianity, and to serve as good and faithful disciples of Jesus Christ. I also told them to pray for the vocation that God has given them, whether that is to the priesthood or religious life, married and family life, or to some unique calling to serve. For in finding and living out your vocations, you will find profound meaning in your lives.
Of course, when we speak about a vocation, or calling, we first remember that all of us have the same fundamental vocation by our baptism: holiness. Our individual vocation is the way that we personally become holy; living lives filled with purpose and meaning.
Holy Orders
This Memorial Day weekend, we celebrate ordinations in the diocese, a celebration of those who have responded to God’s call to Holy Orders. I have the great privilege of ordaining five men to the sacred order of the diaconate, and two men to the sacred order of the priesthood. It is a grace and blessing to ordain them into those mysteries.
Ordination weekend is always a time of great joy for me, for the Diocese of Lincoln, for each one of you, and for the universal Church. It’s a sign of great hope. As we celebrate the ordination of these men who have spent years in intellectual, spiritual, human and pastoral formation, we realize that they enter into the mystery of holy orders—becoming deacons and priests—and thus entering more deeply into a life of service to which the Lord, Jesus Christ, has called them.
The sacrament of Holy Orders includes three orders: bishop, priest and deacon. The orders of bishop and priest are two degrees of participation in the ministerial priesthood of Jesus Christ. The diaconate is a call to service and charity, alongside the orders of bishop and priest.
A bishop receives the fullness of Holy Orders. As a successor to the Apostles, his very being is changed to carry out the threefold mission of Jesus: to teach, govern, and sanctify. I recognize this as my calling in life, that is, God’s plan for my life. It is humbling to possess such responsibility, and I ask for your continued prayers that I might shepherd the diocese according to God’s will and with the love of Christ.
The work of the priest
Priests are called to give themselves in love by configuring their lives more closely to Jesus Christ. In the administration of the sacraments, the priest acts in persona Christi, in the person of Christ himself, and the work of the priest is even more powerful when he is a man after the heart of Jesus Christ. All priests are called to proclaim the Gospel, to teach the truth, to offer the mercy of God in the sacraments of the Church, and these actions are even more efficacious when they are holy men of God.
The Diocese of Lincoln is blessed with many holy and generous priests who reflect the heart of Jesus. I am so grateful for their service to God and the people of the Diocese of Lincoln.
We continue to celebrate this “Year of St. Joseph” that Pope Francis has proclaimed for the universal Church. The life of St. Joseph provides much insight into all of our lives, especially in the lives of priests.
In his apostolic letter Patris Corde, recalling the 150th anniversary of the declaration of St. Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church, the Holy Father says: “Each of us can discover in Joseph – the man who goes unnoticed, a daily, discreet and hidden presence – an intercessor, a support and a guide in times of trouble. Saint Joseph reminds us that those who appear hidden or in the shadows can play an incomparable role in the history of salvation.” Like St. Joseph, some of the work that priests do is seen by others, and some is seen only by God or by a few, but regardless, the Lord will reward them for their generosity.
The order of deacon
We hear of a clear witness to the reality of the order of deacon in the Acts of the Apostles. Widows during the time of the early Church were often in tenuous positions. They did not have an inheritance or other financial assistance after the death of their husbands, and they generally did not have employment outside the home. They relied on their extended families for their financial support, and if that was not available they relied on the Church.
We hear in the Acts of the Apostles that widows were “being neglected in the daily distribution” (Acts 6:1), a task that was carried out by presbyters (priests). This charitable work needed to continue, but the Apostles also didn’t want to neglect the preaching of the Word of God, a fundamental task of priests. And so, seven reputable men were selected to the order of deacon, from the Greek word diakonos meaning “servant.”
First permanent deacon
At this year’s ordination, something new and unique in the history of the Diocese of Lincoln will happen. Among the five men to be ordained deacons, Dr. Matthew Hecker will be ordained the first permanent deacon for the diocese. Dr. Hecker is a husband, father and grandfather; he is the Chief Administrative Officer of the Lincoln Diocesan Catholic Schools.
Dr. Hecker has been in formation for the permanent diaconate in a program through the Archdiocese of Omaha for five years and has been discerning a call to the diaconate for more than 20 years. He heard the call to the diaconate, and in an organic fashion, brought it to me shortly after I arrived in Lincoln, and followed the call. Dr. Hecker will be serving as a deacon in his home parish of St. Joseph in Lincoln.
The ordinations this weekend are a reminder that we are called to pursue the vocation to holiness. We are to foster a culture that promotes holy vocations to the priesthood, to the diaconate, to religious life, and to marriage and family life. Please join me in praying for all of our newly ordained priests and deacons who will serve the Church in southern Nebraska.
