By Rob Herbst The Catholic Week Ever consider the permanent diaconate? The Archdiocese of Mobile will conduct inquiry sessions beginning in January for those interested in entering the formation program. The series will consist of six Saturday morning sessions for the English-speaking cohort and six Sunday afternoon sessions for the Hispanic cohort throughout the archdiocese. Those interested are encouraged to talk with their parish pastor or contact the Archdiocese of Mobile Office of Permanent Diaconate. However, the inquirer should ensure that they meet the “General Criteria for Deacon Applicant” published at mobarch.org/diaconate. Those still interested after the inquiry period would continue with the application and interview process. An advisory board, composed of clergy and Catholic men and women of the archdiocese, will review each application package in order to make a recommendation to the archbishop, who makes the final decision whether to admit an inquirer/applicant into the aspirant path. The formal application, interview process and selection process is expected to take eight to 10 months. Those accepted would begin the formation process in August 2026. The archdiocese currently has 56 active deacons and 17 candidates in the formation program, who are scheduled to be ordained in June 2026. Still considering it? Three Archdiocese of Mobile permanent deacons provide some insight about the program and permanent diaconate.
Deacon William Harkins St. Ignatius Parish, Mobile Q: What would you say to someone who is considering inquiring about the permanent diaconate? A: I would say, this is great! Then I’d ask: Why are they considering the permanent diaconate vocation? What do they know about the permanent diaconate and the formation process? What his family, especially his wife if he’s married, thinks about this? Q: What is your best advice for someone to discern the permanent diaconate? A: Take your time with the discernment. Make sure you are praying about this possible path daily, ensure you are having conversations with your family, especially your wife, about this vocation. Keep your pastor up to date on your progress, ask him for guidance along the way. It is vital that a man discerning this vocation keeps his mind and heart open to God’s call. In particular, he must not get so focused on having to become a deacon that he’s made up his mind ahead of time that he must be ordained. I cannot stress enough that a man discerning God’s call to ordination as a permanent deacon must follow God’s call to that path. If God is calling him not to become a deacon, he should not pursue the path to ordination. This is a challenging process. The classroom work, group prayer, practical application training and retreats are not particularly difficult, but the formation takes years, allowing the man, his family, his pastor, the formation team and the Archbishop to assess whether or not the man is truly called to this vocation. Q: Tell me about how you decided to take that first step. A: In college and throughout my 20s, I drifted away from the Catholic faith I was raised in. When my daughter was born, I felt a strong call to come back to the faith so I could raise her well. In following this call, I fell in love with the Roman Catholic Church. As I was winding up my Marine Corps career, I found an article or two about the permanent diaconate in the Catholic Church, which caught my attention. The deacon’s vocation of service tugged at my soul. Then, I began seeking out priests, asking them about the vocation of a permanent deacon. At my last duty station, I met a Marine who was close to retiring from the Corps and was finishing up his formation to be ordained a permanent deacon. I began meeting with him informally, asking him questions about the vocation and the process. At times, my wife and I went to lunch with him so she could ask him questions as well. Within a few months of my retirement, I wrote Archbishop Oscar H. Lipscomb a letter describing my faith journey and my desire to pursue formation to be ordained a permanent deacon in the Archdiocese of Mobile. He wrote back, encouraging me to meet with him when I returned to Mobile. My wife and I had lunch with the Archbishop within a week or two of returning home and we had a great meeting, he assured me he had my letter on file and when a class was put together, I’d be contacted. He encouraged me to “do Church things” volunteering around my parish, St. Ignatius, as much as I could and let the pastor know of my desire to follow this path. I followed the Archbishop’s direction, feeling more and more assured this was what I was being called by God to do, and with my family’s full support I began my journey toward formation and ordination. Q: How challenging was the entire road to being ordained a permanent deacon, from inquiry to ordination? A:From the inquiry period to ordination, I found the road very challenging. Certainly, though, this was a period of great spiritual growth. The strain of spending one Saturday a month the first year (aspirant year), then Friday night, all day Saturday and Sunday morning once a month for three years (candidate years), took a toll on my family time. Preparing for the formation classes each month also took time away from family and recreation activities. This is part of the design of the process. The candidate and his family must understand the amount of time that a deacon will be called away from family activities. The formation process also allows the candidate, his family and his employer to assess the impact of the time commitment required of a deacon for church service on his recreational activities and the work he must do in a secular job to provide for himself and his family. Q: What has been the most rewarding aspect of being a permanent deacon? A:In general, the most rewarding part of being a permanent deacon in the Catholic Church is that I am blessed with so many opportunities to serve others. Specifically, baptizing each of my two grandsons was the most amazing grace I’ve received as a deacon.
Deacon Andrew Pitts St. Vincent de Paul Parish, Mobile Q: What would you say to someone who is considering inquiring about the permanent diaconate? A: Sit down with a deacon and ask them about their ministry. So many people don’t know what we do, how our formation happens, and what is required of us as deacons. Ask them to tell you both the joys and the difficulties in their ministry. Pray about it, spend time in front of the Blessed Sacrament, and be open that God may, or may not, be calling you to discern the diaconate. Q: What is your best advice for someone to discern the permanent diaconate? A: Be open and honest with yourself and with God. He may open the doors, He may close them, but always for His purposes. Formation might make you a deacon one day, or it might just make you a better and more faithful man, father and husband. Either way, be open. God will provide the answers you need in His time. Q: Tell me about how you decided to take that first step. A: My pastor had been speaking to me about it for a few years, but I was afraid because I was raising my two sons alone, I was busy in life and work and I didn’t know if I was ready. My bishop at the time stopped me one day and said, “I’ve heard you haven’t sent in your application for the diaconate. You need to do that tomorrow.” I guess it was my first lesson in clerical obedience! It was most definitely God speaking through my bishop and prompting me to move forward. Q: How challenging was the entire road to being ordained a permanent deacon, from inquiry to ordination? A: It was challenging. There was a lot of study time, a lot of self-reflection and some big challenges along the way. But I don’t regret any bit of it. It changed my life, made me a better man, a better Christian and brought me to this point as a deacon. Q: What has been the most rewarding aspect of being a permanent deacon? A: Serving others. Seeing the joy on someone’s face when you can do something to lift them up spiritually, physically or emotionally. It’s a call to love and there is no greater gift to give than love.
Deacon Charles Groves St. Thomas the Apostle Parish, Chickasaw Q: What would you say to someone who is considering inquiring about the permanent diaconate? A: The process is intense, but the blessings are endless. Q: What is your best advice for someone to discern the permanent diaconate? A: Pray constantly. Q: Tell me about how you decided to take that first step. A: I felt like God had something more he wanted from me as early as age 16 when I was a Baptist. He was much more persistent than I was, calling till I heard and answered. Q: How challenging was the entire road to being ordained a permanent deacon, from inquiry to ordination? A: As a convert, I didn't have much more than the basic knowledge of the Catholic faith than just what they taught in my conversion classes (in comparison to where I have come so far, not much). The challenge came from having to overcome this lack of knowledge - a road I am still traveling. Q: What has been the most rewarding aspect of being a permanent deacon? A: I would have to say two things: First, finding the truth that only Catholics possess. Second, the blessings I have received from sharing that knowledge and my time with those around me, especially my wife, long-time friends from my Navy days and those I have had the pleasure of working with in both the pre-marriage process and the process of annulments.