Catholic Diocese of Spokane, Washington
Office of the Permanent Diaconate

Members of the Deacon Council:
Present: Deacon John Sicilia (ex officio); Deacon John Ruscheinsky, chairman; Deacon Eric Meisfjord, vice-chairman/secretary; Carol Dahl; Deacon Dave Dudinsky
Absent: Deacons Scott Brockway, Ken Dunlap. Member Jeannie Toulou, wife of Deacon Alvin Toulou, died April 5. Her absence was felt most acutely.
Guests: Bishop William S. Skylstad; Deacon Roy Dahl

The meeting began, with prayer, at approximately 10:01 a.m.

For those alert readers who missed the minutes of the January meeting, that gathering was first postponed, then canceled. There has been no meeting of the Deacon Council since Oct. 25, 2006.

Deacon John Sicilia provided updates on a number of issues:

Bishop Skylstad and Deacon Sicilia, aided by Deacons John Byrne, Cary Heth, Chalo Martínez, Eric Meisfjord, and wives, will present an informational session for men who have expressed a desire to pursue deacon formation. The presentation, involving such topics as the application process and the expectations of the formation program, is scheduled for Saturday, June 30, at 10 a.m. at Bishop White Seminary. Other deacons certainly are welcome to participate as well. Deacon Sicilia reported 27 formal inquiries; notice has been published in Inland Register; there may be more inquiries. Deacon Sicilia reported that inquiries have come from a wide geographic range, not just the Spokane Metro area. No start date for the next class has been set; neither has a deacon formation director been named. Bishop Skylstad suggested that the program might be able to get off the ground fairly quickly.

Friday, June 15, at 7 p.m., Luis Ramos will be ordained to the diaconate at St. Patrick Church, Pasco. He completed his formation with the last group of Hispanic deacons.

Friday, June 29, at 7 p.m. at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes, four deacons will be ordained to the priesthood.

Code of Conduct: Only one deacon (who shall remain nameless) is not current on Code of Conduct training.

The bishop’s barbecue for deacons and their families will be Aug. 17 on the grounds of Immaculate Heart Retreat Center.

A couple of parishes in town have requested increased deacon presence. The Deacon Personnel Committee will examine those situations and make recommendations.

Deacon Mack Mackin is in Sacred Heart. Medical Center, recovering from a broken hip. He would appreciate visits, especially from members of the first two deacon classes.

Deacon Sicilia would like to offer Spokane as a site for the 2010 meeting of the National Association of Deacon Directors. Spokane affords a number of advantages, and has some name recognition nationally within the Church (for reasons many and various and, yes, positive), and specifically the deacon community nationally. The membership of the region would assist in this endeavor, as would the Spokane Convention Bureau; the question is, can sufficient deacons volunteer their time for the four days of the meeting, particularly in terms of hospitality, welcoming, liturgy, and workshops? He anticipates the effort would require the commitment of at least 20-30 deacons and their wives; the meeting probably would draw around 250 individuals from across the country. Please give it some thought. More discussion will follow at the bishop’s barbecue in August.

Deacon Policy Manual:

Deacon Dahl has been revising the Spokane Diocese’s Deacon Policy Manual. He suggests that the Spokane manual address only the needs of particular policy items here that either are not covered by the National Directory, or are given to the local Ordinary’s discretion. Some small things would change within Spokane’s structure; titles especially. There also is a call for increased post-ordination formation. The Council encouraged Deacon Dahl in his work. He will circulate a draft in time for discussion at the October 13 meeting of the Council.

Deacon Meisfjord reported on Continuing Education/Formation.

Four presentations were given in the past year: Mary Butler, Victims Assistance Coordinator; Father Mark Pautler, on the intersection between canon law and marriage; Msgr. John Steiner, on the diocese’s bankruptcy; Father Gene Tracy, on preaching.

Attendance has dropped over the past year; why is unclear. Those who attend the evenings speak highly of the content. They are scheduled for evenings, and are “Spokane-centric.”

Immaculate Heart Retreat Center is in the process of acquiring new state-of-the-art video equipment. Perhaps presentations could be recorded and distributed via DVD; barring that, recorded digitally and copied to CD. (NB: Father Pautler’s presentation was distributed via audio CD.) The diocesan web page (http://www.dioceseofspokane.org) may well have streaming video capability, so that presentations could be posted and then viewed online. None of these solutions negates the clear value of deacons gathering in a room to interact, learn, and reflect together.

A new series of presentations will be scheduled and announced this summer.

Another option: putting together a weekend educational program, similar to what Gonzaga University offered some years ago, which is then promoted within the region as a continuing education/formation opportunity for deacons. Deacon Ruscheinsky offered the use of Immaculate Heart. Consensus was that the depth of talent in the diocese is rich indeed; we have the resources to accomplish such an endeavor.

It was pointed out, too, that many parishes offer opportunities for continuing education: adult faith formation, missions, and so forth.

Outreach to deacons:

Deacon Meisfjord presented the question: Should the deacon community organize a systematic outreach to the older members of its community – those retired, those scaling back their ministry; the widows of deacons, as well.

A “prayers requested” site on the diocesan web page might be a good way to keep current concerns before the community. A monthly postal mailing and e-mailing of prayer requests also might be of help, particularly with deacons who don’t use computers. (And make sure the individual being prayed for knows about and approves that the situation is going to be presented in such a public way.)

The prayer outreach is unquestionably helpful, but the personal contact also has great benefit for everyone.

Deacon Sicilia will send out a notice, advising people to submit information to Mary Jane Sever, the secretary at Bishop White Seminary and for the Director of Deacons, regarding prayer requests. Deacon Meisfjord will investigate people’s desire to take part in such an ad hoc outreach committee.

Deacon Ruscheinsky steps down as chairman at the end of this meeting. Elected the new chairman of the Deacon Council is Deacon Eric Meisfjord; newly-elected as vice chairman/secretary is Deacon Scott Brockway.

Deacon Ruscheinsky offered his congratulations to the new officers and his own reflections on his time on the Council, postponed from the cancelled January meeting.

Ultimately, the life of a deacon is answering the call to service; it’s about the life of the diocese. “You never know what you’re going to be called to do,” he said. The deacon community in the diocese, “thanks to our bishop,” is very much alive. “I hope as chairman I was able, in some way, to touch the diaconate,” he said. “Being a deacon is a humbling experience…. I’m thankful I’m a deacon. Thank you for the opportunity to serve this past year.”

Final comments from Bishop Skylstad:

He thanked Deacon Ruscheinsky for his service. He acknowledged that the deacon community in the diocese has grown tremendously, with a strong sacramental presence in the diocese, well accepted by the priests.

The diocesan community has experienced a traumatic four years. It has been tough on the priests, resulting in a lot of “ragged edges,” and any way that the deacons can support the priests in their ministry would be most appreciated. The Church “will be better and stronger,” he said, and will “continue to build for future. The journey is mysterious and profound and grace-filled.”

He hopes to appoint a new director of deacon formation “very quickly. I’m really looking forward to another class,” he said. The high level of interest in the diaconate around the diocese shows the impact of deacon ministry.

He will be giving a talk on the spirituality of deacons at the National Diaconal Institute of Continuing Education (NDICE) later this summer. If anyone has any points they think are particularly appropriate for him to make, please drop him a line.

He thanked the deacons for their “prayers and support and witness and good work. And the diaconal witness includes the wives, and their participation in diaconal ministry. It’s a great witness to the Church,” he said.

The next meeting of the Deacon Council is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 13, at Bishop White Seminary at 10 a.m.

Deacon Ruscheinsky offered the final prayer; Bishop Skylstad gave the final blessing, concluding the meeting at approximately 11:28 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Deacon Eric Meisfjord
Chairman elect