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Holy childhood in Mascoutah celebrates 150 years of faith

In a prayerful ceremony at the Cathedral of St. Peter, Bishop Edward K. Braxton ordained Rev. Mr. Nicholas Gregory Junker as a Deacon at 10:30 Saturday morning, Nov. 24, 2007. Deacon Junker, a son of the Cathedral Parish, was surrounded by his parents, Renee and Gregory Junker, his sister, Ashley Junker, his godmother, Deborah Asselta, and many other relatives. Priests of the Belleville Diocese and visiting priests concelebrated with Bishop Braxton. Many deacons, including the new deacon’s classmates from St. Mary of the Lake Seminary, Mundelein, Illinois, participated in the liturgy on the weekend of the Feast of Christ the King, the last Sunday of the Liturgical Year.

The Ordination to the Diaconate contains many important elements. By this rite, Deacon Junker was formally incardinated into the Diocese and became a member of the local clergy. He committed himself to pray each day for the Church and for the whole world by faithfully celebrating the Liturgy of the Hours. As a candidate for the Priesthood, he made a solemn commitment to live a chaste life of celibacy as a sign of his dedication to Jesus Christ and for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven. He placed his hands in the hands of the ordaining prelate, Bishop Braxton, promising obedience and respect to him and his successors. He then prostrated himself on the floor of the Cathedral sanctuary as the entire congregation called upon the aid of the saints praying the Litany of the Saints.
The central moment in Deacon Junker’s ordination took place when the Bishop silently imposed his hands on his head. He then invoked the Holy Spirit in the Prayer of Ordination. “We beseech you, Lord: look with favor on this servant of yours who will minister at your holy altar and whom we now humbly dedicate to the office of Deacon.”

Unlike the ordinations of priests, in which the gathered priests also impose hands after the Bishop, only the ordaining Bishop imposes hands on a Deacon. After this, Rev. Mr. Junker was vested as a Deacon in dalmatic and stole by his seminary classmate, Rev. Mr. Michael Cilibraise and the Bishop formally presented him with the Book of the Gospel, as a sign of his mission to proclaim the Word of God.

In his homily, Bishop Braxton reflected on the Sacred Scripture texts chosen by Deacon Junker for the Ordination, which they had reflected on earlier in the week at a meeting at the Bishop’s Residence, during which the Bishop formally called him to the Order of the Diaconate. The focus of that Lectio Divina was the future Deacon’s appreciation of the importance of vocation and election in his life and ministry. He stressed that, for him, his future ministry would not be a mere job or employment. His service to the Church is a true call from God. “In the first reading, (Jeremiah, 1:4-9) God calls Jeremiah, ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I dedicated you, a prophet to the nations I appointed you.’ Today, dear Nicholas, God speaks these words to you. You may wish to use Jeremiah words, ‘Ah, Lord God! I know not how to speak. I am too young.’ But God speaks to you, ‘Say not I am too young. To whomever I send you, you shall go. Whatever I command you, you shall speak. Have no fear.’ Have no fear! Have no fear of the pressures of the world which may not respect your ministry or the Catholic Church, to which you dedicate yourself.  Have no fear of tensions in the Church or of those who do not hold and teach the Catholic faith that comes to us from the apostles. This day the Lord extends his hands and touches your mouth saying, ‘Behold, I place my words in your mouth!’”

“What words does He place on your lips? Saint Paul, who was also elected by God, answers this question (2 Corinthians 4:1-7). ‘For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your slaves for the sake of Jesus.’ You are to preach Jesus Christ, crucified and raised from the dead. You are not to preach yourself, bright ideas from magazine articles, the latest theories about the enneagram, or popular psychology. You are to preach Christ, ever prayerful, knowing that you hold this treasure in an  earthen vessel.  Christ Himself will sustain you in your new ministry. In the Gospel (John 15:9-17), Jesus tells you as the Father loves Him, so also He loves you. He asks you to remain in His love.  Your unswerving love for God, for Christ, for the Church, and your fidelity to the magisterium of the Church will bind you in an intimate relationship with the Lord who says, ‘It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go out and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give you. This I command you: love one another.’ Never allow yourself to be turned away from the hope proclaimed by the Gospel!”