HOMILY
Ordination to the Diaconate – 24 May 2025
Acts 6:1-7b; Ephesians 4:1-7, 11-13; John 12:24-26
As we continue to give thanks for the great gift of Easter, it is in Jesus’ name and through the power of his resurrection that we call forth our brother – Jan Carlo Perez – to the Order of Diaconate for service to this local Church of Scranton. What a blessing this day is for Jan and for his family, our Diocese and particularly for all those who have helped him to arrive at this faith-filled moment.
To Jan’s parents, Alex and Liana, and to his family, thank you for your steadfast commitment, example, support and the gift of your son to the Church.
And to the faith community of Saint Matthew in East Stroudsburg, to the parishes where Jan has served and the institutions of learning and formation that have been instrumental in bringing him to this day, particularly Saint Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore, to our diocesan vocation team led by Father Alex Roche and to all of the priests, deacons, religious, and faithful who, through your example and concern have helped to prepare Jan for ministry in the Church, know how grateful we all are to you.
Jan, I know that this has been a long journey for you. But I also know that it has been a journey well worth the time, the hard work and the deep commitment that you have given to it. It is so apparent that you have grown tremendously in your relationship with the Lord and have found your place in his plan. And so, we give thanks to God for the wonders that he works in our midst as he continues to call his sons and daughters to unique roles of service in his Church.
Jan, you are about to receive the Sacrament of Holy Orders at a unique and critical moment in the life of our Church. So carefully consider the call to which you’ve responded. In so many ways, our people are hurting, disillusioned and unsettled. They’re deeply affected by the divisions that exist among peoples – by wars that continue to rage in our world – and by the proliferation of values that increasingly disregard those of the Gospel for which Jesus gave his life. Yet, far more people than we might even imagine continue to look to the Church and to the Lord whom we proclaim as their greatest and only hope. … Jan, the Church needs you now, more than ever! Give God’s people reason to hope.
Recall Saint Paul’s words from his letter to the Church at Ephesus proclaimed just a moment ago: “Grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift.” Believe with all your heart, Jan, that God’s Spirit rests upon you this day and will pour his grace and mercy into your life, enabling you to bring hope, healing and peace to the people God gives to your care. For your part, be steadfast in holding on to the treasure of God’s love.
The nature of your calling, Jan, is further articulated by Jesus in today’s gospel. Its image of the grain of wheat provides an essential lesson rooted in the very nature of the love of which we speak. While the reward of God’s love carries us to eternal life, it is nonetheless a love that demands a response here and now. It is a love that comes at great cost! The risk of being hurt, of being broken, of losing some part of ourselves is the price of authentic, Christ-like love.
This particular gospel passage is situated at a pivotal moment in John’s narrative. It marks the end of his “Book of Signs” and prefaces the “Book of Glory,” which points to the reality of Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection. Jesus compares his glorification to a grain of wheat that is buried and dies to itself in order to produce new life. He then goes on to proclaim that the sacrifice and harvest of the grain of wheat are the fate and glory of anyone who would be his disciple. Indeed, the call to discipleship begins by dying to our doubts and fears, dying to our self-centered wants and needs, dying to our immaturity and prejudices. It then redounds to this challenge of the grain of wheat: only by loving is love returned, only by reaching out do we learn and grow, only by giving to others do we received, and only by dying do we rise to new life.
Our new Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, in his first homily to the cardinals who elected him, invited those who serve in roles of leadership in the Church to discover where our true and lasting peace is found. It rests solely within our commitment to serve with humility and joy and our willingness “to move aside so that Christ may remain, to make oneself small so that he may be known and glorified (cf. Jn 3:30), to spend oneself to the utmost” – like the grain of wheat – “so that all may have the opportunity to know and love him.”
So, if you want your ministry as a deacon to be fruitful, Jan, you must root yourself in Jesus’ life and love. The disciplines of prayer, obedience and celibacy that you are called to embrace this day are meant to enable you to grow in the same spirit of service and mercy that so characterized Jesus’ ministry. These disciplines are not obstacles, hurdles or distractions that are somehow detached from what it means to be an ordained minister of the Church. They are not meant to set you up as being better or greater than others. Rather, they are the vehicles that will carry you to a deeper union with Jesus.
Your service to the People of God as a deacon is a threefold ministry: service to the Word of God – service at the altar of the Lord – and service to the poor. Let’s reflect a bit on the ways in which you are called to serve.
As a deacon, you will proclaim the Gospel, preach homilies, convey the needs of the people of God in the General Intercessions and offer many other forms of instruction. You are to be an agent of the New Evangelization and proclaim Christ to the world. In receiving the Gospel of Christ, remember that your role is to proclaim the truth of the message of Jesus – a truth that you must first come to know and experience in your heart to convey it with authenticity.
As a deacon, you will also serve at the altar of the Lord, preparing it for the banquet of Christ’s sacrifice, distributing Holy Communion to the faithful, as well as to the sick and homebound. You will baptize, preside at weddings and funerals and other prayer services. … Be a good servant of the Church’s sacramental life and help God’s people to grow in their faith. Always point to Jesus who is our life and our hope – not yourself. And for as much as you seek to invite others to open their eyes in wonder and awe of Lord’s gift of himself, never become so immersed in the routine of ministry that you fail to marvel at the treasure that you have been given as a servant of the incarnate Lord.
Finally, as a deacon, you are called to be the living and working expression of the charity of the Church. To you, then, is entrusted in a special way the ministry of charity that is at the very origin of diaconal ministry. Never be reluctant to go to the margins of our world, our society and our Church where you will find the poor, the alienated and the broken. Be generous in your service, Jan, imitating the Lord who washed the feet of the apostles at the Last Supper.
And so, with great joy, Jan, the Diocese of Scranton calls you forth for the sacrament of Holy Orders. While you have been given tremendous gifts and talents, we pray that you will always rely upon the grace of God to fill up whatever may be lacking in you to carry out fully the ministry entrusted to you this day.
I now ask that you proclaim your intentions before the People of God and trust that God who has begun the good work in you will bring it to fulfillment.