A recent caller to the Cathedral of Christ the King rectory wanted to know if it were true that there are three priests in the archdiocese who are not allowed to say Mass, or to hear confessions. It was explained that the gentlemen in question, The Rev. Mr. Morris, the Rev. Mr. Danneher and the Rev. Mr. Scharer, could not, indeed, say Mass, hear confessions or perform other purely priestly functions because they are not priests, but ordained deacons, an ancient church office that goes back as far as the Old Testament.

Many other questions have been asked about the deacons: Can they marry? (No, they have already taken their vows of celibacy.) How should they be addressed? (Technically, they are called “Reverend Mister,” but, since they wear priestly garb including the Roman collar, it is perfectly correct to address them as “Father.”)

The practice of having deacons attached to a parish has dropped out of general use in modern times and, although Atlanta is not the first American diocese to adopt the experiment, it is perhaps being carried out more intensively here, in what is referred to as “the active diaconate,” with each deacon assigned to the full duties of his office.

The diacontae is one of the three steps of progress toward the priesthood, preceded by the sub-diaconate and followed by ordination to the priesthood. Ordinarily, the candidate for the priesthood would spend the summer before his final year in the seminary on vacation. He would then be given the diaconate in the fall and be ordained to the priesthood in the following spring.

In the case of the three deacons assigned here, Archbishop Paul J. Hallinan made arrangements for them to come here (they will all ultimately be assigned to the Atlanta archdiocese) and to be ordained to the diaconate on last June 9 in the Cathedral. They were then assigned to parishes-Father Danneher to St. Thomas More in Decatur, Father Scharer Morris to Our Lady of the Assumption. The services of the deacons is not only of assistance to their parishes, but provides them with practical experience which will be valuable to them later on when they are assigned to their first parishes as priests.

A typical day in the official life of a deacon begins with meditation and hearing Mass. After this their tasks vary, but follow a general pattern, including visiting the sick, instructing religion classes and working on parish records, particularly of baptisms and marriages. Sometime during the day they must recite the Office.

Since the beginning of the Church the deacons have been intimately associated with the Sacrament of Baptism and the administration of this sacrament is a regular duty. The deacons are also authorized to preach and the three attached here have preached regularly at Sunday Masses, in addition to reading the Gospel and the Epistle. An additional function is the deacon’s traditional task of taking care of the sacred vessels and the altar linen. All three deacons assist in their parishes with parish organizations, such as the St. Vincent de Paul Society.

Despite the wide range of the deacons’ functions there is, of course, a definite demarcation between their office and that of the priest. The deacon cannot say Mass, cannot hear confessions and cannot bless religious objects.

Of the three archdiocesan deacons, only Father Michael A. Morris is a native Atlantan. Born and raised in the West End, he went to school at St. Anthony’s, then to the preparatory seminary at Cullman. From there he went to St. Charles Minor Seminary in Maryland, then to St. Mary’s Major Seminary, also in Maryland, where he will return for his last year of studies before returning here for parish duties. Father Edward A. Danneher is a native of Williamsport, Penn. He, too, has been studying at St. Mary’s where he will return this fall. Father James F. Scharer is a Philadelphian, educated in that city’s parochial schools and later at St. Mary’s.

In addition to his regular parish duties, Father Scharer is actively interested in special teaching and has had four years experience with the deaf and two with the retarded. He is now teaching one deaf boy and gives religious instructions on Sundays at Rosewood, the state school for the retarded.