Up in Beantown, Cardinal Sean used his blog this week to throw a little attention on the diaconate community — and it sounds like it’s booming:

I met with the permanent deacons’ community board, which meets six times annually.

Deacon Leo Donohue heads up that office, and recently we have brought in others to help him — Deacon Patrick Guerrini and Mary Reardon, SND, so he can focus on the formation of the new candidates to the permanent diaconate. Deacon Guerrini is now responsible for the life and ministry of the ordained deacons, including their continuing education and sister Mary is working with the wives of the deacons and their families.

I’m sure they will be of great assistance to him because we are expanding the diaconate program so that there will be a new class each year rather than every other year. We will also have two sites for the classes, one will be the new pastoral center in Braintree and the other will be at Austin Preparatory School in Reading to accommodate candidates who live north of the city.

It’s heartening to see this vocation thriving — and expanding!