Three men laid prostrate at the altar of the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul Saturday morning, May 9 in an act of faithful supplication, committing their lives in loving service to God and His people in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
Archbishop Nelson J. Pérez ordained Kevin J. Kelly, John A. Milius, and Shawn P. Terkhorn as permanent deacons before a mostly-filled church of family, friends, and other faithful.
“As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love,” Archbishop Pérez said in quoting Jesus Christ within the 15th chapter of the Gospel of St. John.
“No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.”
(See a photo gallery from the Mass here.)
Deacons Kelly, Milius and Terkhorn took in much advice and encouragement from the Archbishop to whom they pledged fidelity.
He thanked the deacons for their answer to God’s calling to live lives of generous service to the Church through the sacrament of Holy Orders.
He reiterated how, strengthened by the gift of the Holy Spirit, they will help the bishop and his priests in the ministries of the Word and in the eucharistic liturgy, and in Christ-like kindness in service to others.
“You felt in your heart this call to serve the Lord, to lay down your life for your friends, as the Gospel has said, to serve the Church in charity, to be that presence of God’s love in the world,” Archbishop Pérez said.
“You came to the Church with this movement in your own soul, and there began this dialogue, back and forth, between the Church and your formators and you and the Lord. And here we are.”
Deacon Kelly attends St. Bernadette of Lourdes Parish in Drexel Hill, where he will serve as deacon. His Mass of Thanksgiving was celebrated there last Sunday. He was married to his late spouse Patty, who died in 2005. Their son James Kelly will marry Kelsey Brown in July.
Deacon Milius and his wife Donna belong to Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Havertown, where he will serve as deacon. The parish celebrated a Mass of Thanksgiving there Sunday. They have two children, Francesca and Jack.
Deacon Terkhorn and his wife Carol belong to Corpus Christi Parish in Lansdale, where he will serve. Their four children are Julia, Bridget, Lily and Aoife.
Archbishop Pérez gave extra thanks to each new deacon’s family, particularly the wives who are offering so much support to empower their husbands’ sacrifices for the Church.
“Your wives have been an integral part of this formation. Kevin, your wife from heaven has walked with you, and I’m sure she gazes down upon you with a great smile and joy,” he said.
“So I want to thank the wives that are here, and Patty, who is in heaven. Thank them for also saying yes to the Lord and sharing their husbands with us.”
It was a day for Deacons Kelly, Milius and Terkhorn to receive Holy Orders from the Archbishop as he laid hands upon each deacon’s head.
They in turn solemnly promised to pray daily the Liturgy of the Hours and to obey the Archbishop and his successors.
Deacon Kelly, who is unmarried, also promised celibacy.
Those attending sang prayers through the litany of saints including St. Katharine Drexel, Philadelphia’s own saint whose resting place is mere feet away inside the same Cathedral Basilica.
Their fellow deacons offered fraternal embraces on the altar, a centuries-old welcoming to their ministry, while the Archbishop gave his own vocal embrace and sending forth.
“The Lord has given you an example that just as He Himself has done, so also you should do,” Archbishop Pérez said.
“As deacons, that is, as ministers of Jesus Christ who appear in the midst of the disciples as one who serves, do the will of God in charity from the heart. Serve others with joy as you would serve the Lord.”
Permanent deacons can either be married or single men, unlike transitional deacons, who are typically ordained into the Order of Deacons in the year before they are ordained for the priesthood.
Permanent deacons’ roles within the Church include assisting bishops and priests during Masses. They often proclaim the Gospel, preach homilies, prepare the altar for the Eucharist, conduct baptisms, officiate at marriages, and assist with funeral rites during vigils and at gravesites.
They are also teachers of the faith outside liturgical settings, often participating in catechetical roles of faith development.
Deacons offer Communion to sick and dying individuals, offer pastoral compassion, and promote the good works of the Church.
Their role as the hands and feet of Christ in offering loving service to others is what Deacons Kelly, Milius and Terkhorn will aspire to every day of their life, chosen by God to serve His Church in the Philadelphia region.
“It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give you,” Archbishop Pérez said on Saturday, again quoting the Gospel of St. John’s 15th chapter.
“This I command you: love one another.”
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