In Poland, 10 married men begin studying for diaconate

Published: 2005-10-27

WARSAW, Poland (CNS) -- For the first time in Poland, 10 married men started training for the diaconate in mid-October. Deacons will help their bishops, evangelize in their workplaces and might find it easier to welcome "lukewarm or religiously frigid" Catholics, said Father Krzysztof Debiec, director of the newly established Permanent Deacons Formation Center in Torun. In an Oct. 19 interview with Poland's Catholic Information Agency, KAI, Father Debiec said that after a three-year course of study the deacons will be able to conduct baptisms, marriages and funerals, preach and distribute Communion. Single men, eligible at age 25, are required to take celibacy vows; married men, eligible at 35, must have written consent from their wives, he said. More than 30,000 permanent deacons minister within the worldwide church. About half of them serve in the United States.

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