New director of diaconate talks about plans for the office

New director of diaconate talks about plans for the office

By William T. Clew | The Catholic Free Press

Deacon William A. Bilow Jr., director of the Office of the Diaconate for the Diocese of Worcester, said that when he was a eucharistic minister at his parish, Immaculate Conception in Lancaster, he began to think that God was calling him to something more.
“It’s more of a feeling,” he said. “God is pulling you, tugging you. The way to discern it is through prayer and spiritual direction. Sometimes you need a little nudge.”
No one can talk you into a vocation. It is a feeling that God is calling you, he said. That feeling began to grow stronger in 2003. He talked to priests and religious about his feelings andfelt the call to a vocation in 2004.
He said he had thought about the priesthood, but, as he prayed about it, it became clear to him that the call was to the diaconate, not the priesthood. He applied for discernment and was accepted in 2008.
Discernment is a five-year process of study, he said. He studied at Anna Maria College in Paxton, where he also earned his master’s degree in pastoral ministry. He was ordained a deacon in 2013 by Bishop McManus at St. Paul Cathedral.
He was assigned to St. Anne Parish in Shrewsbury where he still serves with Father John J. Foley, pastor, and Father Paul O’Connell, senior priest.
He had served as co-director of the Office of the Diaconate since April 2017 with Deacon Anthony R. Surozenski. When Deacon Surozenski retired in January, Deacon Bilow became director. The Office of the Diaconate is supported by the Partners in Charity annual appeal.
Deacon Bilow was born in Clinton and grew up in Lancaster. He graduated from Nashoba Regional High School.
He earned a bachelor of arts degree in mathematics and foreign languages, (French and Spanish) with a minor in computer sciences, from Assumption College.
He was employed by State Mutual Life Assurance Co., which became Hanover Insurance. He retired in March last year.
According to the diocesan website, “the Office of the Diaconate seeks to reach out to all by accepting the challenge to educate men in service of the Liturgy, in service of the Word, and in service of the works of Charity.”
Its mission is “to provide competent, well-educated, spiritually formed and pastorally skilled deacons who will work with the bishop, priests and lay pastoral leaders to meet the ministerial needs of the people of the Diocese of Worcester. To enable these deacons to be an integral part of the overall plan of meeting the pastoral needs of the people in the Diocese of Worcester.”
 The Office of the Diaconate has four priorities, Deacon Bilow said. One is to satisfy the demands of parishes and special ministries for diaconal services by assigning deacons to places they are needed.
Another is to ensure successful formation of deacon candidates. A staff of 15 works with deacon candidates, Deacon Bilow explained.  
A third, ensuring ongoing after-ordination formation of deacons in active ministry includes deanery meetings, days of reconciliation, continuing education and retreats, he said.
The final priority is giving pastoral care to deacons and to their wives if they are married, by supporting and ministering to their pastoral and spiritual needs.
 Permanent deacons are clerics who can perform all of the functions associated with their order, according to the website.  These include proclaiming the Gospel, preaching the homily, assisting the priest at Mass, administering the sacrament of baptism, distributing Communion, presiding over funeral and burial services, acting as the official witness at weddings and exercising certain ecclesiastical offices.  As servants of the Church, they also take on charitable or administrative duties.
Service to the community is the primary role of the deacon and by bearing witness to the ministry of service in a parish, he assists the whole community in becoming more aware of that aspect of their faith the website stated.  Secondly, the order of deacon sacramentalizes service. The deacon, as an ordained servant of the community, is more than a functionary but bears witness to that aspect of Jesus and his ministry in apostolic times.
In many parishes, the deacon is responsible for the baptismal preparation program for parents and administers the sacrament as part of that faith journey with the family and the child being baptized.
Single or married men can be ordained deacons.  Deacons take a vow of celibacy if they are ordained while single or if their wife dies.  They go through a training period of four and one-half years in theology, Scripture, canon law, spirituality, and pastoral ministry.  In preparation for their ordination, they are formally received into the ministries of lector and acolyte.  
Once ordained, he does not receive financial compensation for being a deacon, though the deacon may work in positions which receive compensation. Deacons are reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses, Deacon Bilow said.
He said currently there are about 14 men who have expressed interest in the diaconate. He said they range in age from the 40s to the 50s. Some are married, some are single. He said he expects that eight to 10 will join the diaconate.
On June 16 Bishop McManus will celebrate a Mass at St. Joan of Arc Parish, Worcester, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the diaconate in the diocese.
Other details are being finalized, Deacon Bilow said.