Purpose

To promote the order of the Diaconate by disseminating pertinent information, selecting and training candidates, providing opportunities for continuing education, and coordinating the pastoral supervision of ordained permanent deacons. Provide support for the wives, widows and families of the deacons.

Formation for the permanent diaconate is a shared vocational journey. For married men, God’s call is lived through two sacraments in harmony – matrimony and holy orders – forming one visible witness of Christ the Servant in the Church and the world.

Our Diaconate Formation program follows the guidelines of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and fully conforms to the National Directory for the Formation, Ministry, and Life of Permanent Deacons in the United States.

Through careful guidance and accompaniment, the program helps each candidate grow along the path of human and Christian development to which God has called him. A central focus of the formation process is vocational discernment, supporting each man as he prayerfully seeks clarity about his call to serve the Church.

Formation is offered through the four integrated dimensions of diaconal life: (a) human, (b) spiritual, (c) intellectual, and (d) pastoral. Candidates are supported through conferences, spiritual direction, days of recollection, annual retreats, and service to those in need.

If you are discerning a call to serve Christ and the Church as a permanent deacon, we invite you to prayerfully consider this journey of formation, service, and faith.

Diaconal Ministry is holding information sessions across the Archdiocese of Louisville for men who feel they are being called to the permanent diaconate. The dates of the sessions are listed below.

Saturday, October 10, 2026
10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
St. Stephen Martyr Church (Weiker Room – behind the gym)
2931 Pindell Avenue, Louisville, 40217

Sunday, October 11, 2026
2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
St. James Church (Rodney Thomas Room)
307 W. Dixie Avenue, Elizabethtown, 42701

Sunday October 18, 2026
2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Basilica of St. Joseph Proto-Cathedral (Maloney Room)
310 West Stephen Foster Avenue, Bardstown, 40004

Saturday, October 31, 2026
10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
St. Dominic Church
303 W. Main Street, Springfield, 40069

Sunday, November 8, 2026
2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
St. Michael Church (Liturgy of the Word Room)
3705 Stone Lakes Drive, Louisville, 40299

Saturday, November 14, 2026
10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Our Lady of the Caves Church (St. Bernadette Hall)
1010 S. Dixie Street, Horse Cave, 42749

Sacred Order of Deacons

The Sacred Order of Deacons is to be “a driving force for the Church’s service or diakonia toward the local Christian communities, and as a sign or sacrament of the Lord Christ himself, who ‘came not to be served but to serve.’ “The deacon’s ministry of service is linked with the missionary dimension of the Church: the missionary efforts of the deacon will embrace the ministry of the word, the liturgy, and works of charity which, in their turn, are carried into daily life. Mission includes witness to Christ in a secular profession or occupation.” In its renewal the Order of Deacons is permanently restored as “a living icon of Christ the Servant within the Church.” (National Directory)

From the inception of the order in Acts 6, “reputable men, filled with the Spirit and wisdom” have been called forth from the people of God that the Church may better serve those in need. The deacon is ordained to a threefold ministry of word, liturgy, and charity, and every deacon should be prepared to undertake each of these ministries in some way. The ministry of charity or service is most characteristic of the deacon. Service, however, depends on and flows out of the ministries of word and liturgy. Through word and liturgy, the deacon should lead others to the practice of charity and a commitment to pursue justice as well as experience these as a source from which he draws his own life and grace to carry out his service in charity and justice.

Deacons serve in many roles. For example, they serve in prisons and jails, hospitals and nursing homes, homeless shelters and soup kitchens, and many other places of service. All are assigned to a parish to assist in liturgy, catechesis, and proclamation of the Word.

Most work full time, outside the Church. Most are married and have children. A particular charism of the order is having a life and presence firmly planted both inside the parish and outside it. This gives the deacon a particular affinity with and ability to encourage the laity in their apostalacy.

If you are discerning a call to the Diaconate, please visit the Overview of Admissions and Formation.