Two men took a crucial step toward the priesthood Feb. 10, when Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila ordained them as transitional deacons for the Archdiocese of Denver.
Deacon Blaise Buches and Deacon Jose Delgado are studying for the priesthood at St. John Vianney Theological Seminary. Both were raised here in the Archdiocese of Denver and will serve at parishes within the region. While they constituted a smaller class of ordinandis, their ordination is no less significant, and indeed, their answer to God’s call is a great blessing for the archdiocese.
“My dear sons, in the readings you have chosen for today, Jesus reminds his disciples, and he reminds the two of you in the gospel, ‘The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many,'” Archbishop Aquila told the men during his homily. “You two, like the Levites in the first reading, are set aside apart from the community to serve them. You are designated just as they were designated. You two are set aside, responding to the call that the Lord has given to you.”
In answering that call, the archbishop continued, they must carry out their ministry and lay down their lives as deacons and eventual priests in imitation of the master.
“You are called to lay down your life as Christ has laid down his life,” the archbishop said. “No matter where Jesus was in the gospel, he constantly served and sought to do the will of the Father. The will of the Father was his very food, and that, my sons, must also be your food.”
The archbishop urged the men to rely on the gifts of the Holy Spirit as they carry out their priestly ministry, especially when the going gets tough. Their disposition is to be one of joy as they proclaim the gospel to those they serve.
“One of the marks and fruits of the Holy Spirit is joy,” he stressed. “It is not complaining. It is not lamenting. It is not saying, look at how much work I have to do. It is not moaning and groaning, but rather it is joyfully proclaiming the good news of the gospel.”
Living in charity is the mark of a true disciple, and charity will lie at the heart of the new deacons’ ministry. Archbishop Aquila reminded the man that this charity — love of God and love of neighbor — must emanate from all that they do.
“You also will be called upon to do works of charity, and whether they are to the homeless, to those who are sick or suffering, whether it is to those in prison or to those who come to you, who are wounded and hurt, always remember to exercise the charity of Christ,” the archbishop said. “Pray always to grow in the virtue of charity.”
Archbishop Aquila also warned the men of the inevitable persecution they will undergo as priests, for the Christian life and living the Gospel runs countercultural to the world. But they must take heart, he said, and remain attached to Christ the vine, because in their facing of hardships, they, like the saints, will find the strength to not only endure, but to rejoice in them.
“In today’s secular world, you, too, will be persecuted,” he said. “But be like Peter and John and rejoice in that persecution, living that beatitude when the Lord tells us, ‘rejoice and be glad when they persecute you, and utter every word against you,’ because you are being faithful to him. And yes, with our human ears and with our human eyes and with our human hearts, that can be difficult. But when our hearts and minds are truly conformed to Jesus, as the saints have shown us, it becomes much easier.”
It all stems back to Jesus, Archbishop Aquila told them. Citing Jesus’ words in the Gospel of Matthew, he commissioned the new deacons to give their lives for those they serve, in humble imitation of Christ for his Church.
“May you follow the words of Jesus: ‘Whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant. Whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave. The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’ May you give your life in 2024 and for at least another 50 years in serving our Lord as his transitional deacon and as his priest in the future.”
