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Brothers,

On the heels of a truly blessed Convocation, and at the beginning of a new chapter with our incoming Archbishop, these are exciting and grace-filled times for our Archdiocese and our diaconate. There is a renewed sense of mission, unity, and forward movement. And yet, as we know well, even in seasons of hope and momentum, the cross remains close at hand.

St. John Chrysostom once preached, “Suffering can be a greater blessing than prosperity, for it unites us more closely to Christ.” He spoke not from theory, but from exile, betrayal, and hardship. His life, like that of St. Thérèse of Lisieux and St. Padre Pio, reminds us that suffering, when united to Christ, is never wasted. It becomes redemptive.

As deacons, we encounter this mystery daily. We carry not only our own burdens, but those of our brothers and our families: illness, loss, anxiety, struggles within marriage or with our children, and the unseen weight of ministry. These are not distractions from our vocation, they are part of it.

Lent draws us more deeply into this reality. It aligns us with the Paschal Mystery, Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection, not as an abstract truth, but as a lived experience. We are called not to avoid suffering, but to enter into it with Christ, to offer it, and to trust that God is transforming it.

Brothers, your quiet fidelity matters. When you stand beside your wife in her trials, when you sit with the grieving, when you persevere through your own suffering with faith, you are proclaiming the Gospel in its most powerful form.

St. Paul reminds us, “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed… struck down, but not destroyed” (2 Cor 4:8-9). This is who we are.

Let us continue forward together - shoulder-to-shoulder, bringing all we carry to the foot of the Cross, confident that through Christ, suffering is never the end, but the path to resurrection.

In Christ the Servant + Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam
Receive + Believe + Teach + Practice