Questions of faith: What about deacons?

(Vatican Radio) In the debate about priestly celibacy and married clergy, in discussions about a vocation to service in the church versus the vocation to marriage people often forget that the figure of married clergy already exists in the Catholic Church. What about the deacons?

We often hear them referred to in liturgies but who exactly are they? Where do they come from? What makes a deacon temporary or permanent? Do they have a specific role within the Church or are they ‘just’ the priests helpers? What distinguishes a vocation to the diaconate from a vocation to the priesthood? And can encouraging married men to think of a vocation to the diaconate help in local Churches with fewer and older priests?

These are just some of the questions sent in by listeners that our very own official from the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Msgr. John Kennedy , answers in this week’s episode of Questions of Faith, as he helps us to navigate the modern world and rediscover what we believe and why we believe. Listen:

So if you have any questions, big or small, why not ask the official? You can do this by submitting them to Vatican Radio’s – English Section Facebook page as a post or private message and tuning in each Tuesday to find out the answers to your Questions of Faith.