New Priest, Deacons Ordained
By Amanda Hudson, News Editor
June 7, 2018
ROCKFORD—The morning of June 2 was “one of those moments (when) heaven touches earth,” said Bishop David Malloy at a packed Cathedral of St. Peter shortly before ordaining one man to the priesthood and three to the transitional diaconate.
In his homily, he spoke first to Robert Blood, John Kladar and Charles Warren, saying that “today, you and the Church take a step that will change you forever.”
To Jhonatan Sarmiento, the bishop recalled his year-ago ordination to the diaconate, noting that “during the last year, you have already lived as one in this world but set apart for Christ and for eternal service to Him,” adding that “since that day, the clock started ticking, pointing to this day.”
The steps of the Rites of Ordination to the diaconate and priesthood smoothly transitioned from the new deacons-elect to the new priest-elect and back again, distinct yet synchronized, with a shared time at the Litany of Supplication when saints of the Church are called upon for prayers.
Following that litany, Bishop Malloy laid hands upon the three new deacons, prayed the prayer of ordination and handed on to them the Book of the Gospels.
The ordination of priest-elect Sarmiento began with the prayer of supplication, followed by the laying on of hands by the bishop and other priests as the Holy Spirit was called upon.
Bishop Malloy prayed the prayer of ordination for a priest, anointed Father Sarmiento’s hands with holy chrism and handed over a paten of bread and chalice of wine for the celebration of the Mass, saying, “Understand what you do, imitate what you celebrate, and conform your life to the mystery of the Lord’s Cross.”
Mass continued with the newly ordained deacons and priest in their new roles.
“In His greatness and His closeness to each of us, God has a desire and a plan for us,” Bishop Malloy told all four men in his homily.
“Of course for all of you, brothers, this is an honor. It is an honor that is a reflection on Christ Himself ... Like Timothy (from the second reading), you will be young members of the clerical state. But that cannot diminish in any way your calling or the responsibilities entrusted to you ...
“The task that begins today in your living the diaconate and the priesthood is not for the faint of heart. Jesus calls His disciples — He calls you — to have a love for Him and for others that is ready to lay down your life for His friendship and for ours ... The task of giving your life is especially rooted in your ordination, and it won’t end in this life.”
Promises are made at ordination, and the men will find them to be “the source of our strength and our freedom,” Bishop Malloy said, adding a final note of encouragement.
“This is a service, it is a calling. But it is most especially a joy.”