Show Notes

Archbishop Vigneron discusses vocations to the permanent diaconate and religious life, emphasizing the many ways one can be called to ministry in the local Church.

0:25 – Archbishop Vigneron, Mary, and Mike greet each other and catch up on the past month.

1:49 – Mike asks Archbishop Vigneron to share and reflect on some of the themes in the Prayer for the Year of Priestly Vocations—a prayer that is being prayed during every Mass in every parish in the Archdiocese.

3:18 – Mary asks Archbishop to reflect on the Mass he celebrated to begin Respect Life Month and to share a little of what he talked about in his preaching that day.

4:49 – Archbishop, Mike, and Mary discuss Proposal 3 and share details about how listeners can find resources to help defeat this proposal.

6:30 – Mary introduces this month’s topic: vocations to the permanent diaconate and religious life. She asks the Archbishop to speak a little bit about the role permanent deacons play in both the universal Church and here in the Archdiocese of Detroit.

8:52 – Mike asks Archbishop to speak about the service component of permanent diaconate ministry and what that looks like in the day-to-day ministry of deacons.

11:42 – Mary asks the Archbishop if he has any specific memories of when, during his 1987 pastoral visit to Detroit, St. John Paul II gave an address to the deacons of the Archdiocese and their wives.

12:10 – Archbishop reflects on how, because of the sacramental economy of marriage, deacons’ wives—while not being ordained themselves—do serve an important and integral role in their husbands’ ministry.

14:45 – Mary shares that her father is a permanent deacon in the Archdiocese and reflects on the ways in which his ministry blesses their family.

15:17 – Mike asks Archbishop to introduce the topic of religious vocations.

17:57 – Mike asks Archbishop those discerning a vocation, especially a vocation to the priesthood, can discern between a call to the diocesan priesthood versus the religious priesthood. He also asks whether Archbishop ever felt a call to the religious priesthood.

20:54 – Mary asks Archbishop to describe the difference between a religious brother and a religious priest as well as between religious sisters and nuns.

23:18 – Mary asks about the steps involved in a religious order coming into a diocese to engage in ministry. Mike follows up with a question about religious orders that have come to the Archdiocese of Detroit during Archbishop Vigneron’s time as Archbishop of Detroit.

28:47 – Archbishop reflects on the ways in which the presence of religious orders bless a diocese.

30:31 – Mike asks Archbishop to share a little about the October 2 ordination of three new permanent deacons for the Archdiocese of Detroit.

33:24 – Archbishop shares a little of the message he shares with the religious of the Archdiocese during their annual jubilee Mass and celebration.

35:33 – Archbishop offers some advice on how the faithful can support vocations—to the priesthood, permanent diaconate, and religious life.

38:45 – The episode concludes with a prayer and blessing.