The Diaconate Ordination of three Legionary brothers in the North American Territory—Dcn. Darius Lawrence, Dcn. Bernardo Ross, and Dcn. John Sester—was held on September 5 at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in Dallas, Texas. A weekend of events in cluding an adoration vigil and a Mass of thanksgiving were organized by Regnum Christi Dallas, warmly welcoming the over 400 guests who attended.
The transitional diaconate marks the last step before a Legionary is ordained to the priesthood, and is a time in which he grows in his understanding of pastoral ministry and develops a deep foundation rooted in prayer and humble service.
Meet the New Deacons
Dcn. Darius Lawrence, LC
"I pray that the Holy Spirit uses me as an instrument to share ...the joy that is a life lived with Christ and the family of the Church."
Dcn. Darius is originally from San Diego, California, and will be serving as an assistant chaplain at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina.
Dcn. Bernardo Ross, LC
“My goal is to simply learn from everyone around me, and bring others a little closer to Christ!”
Dcn. Bernardo Ross is originally from San Antonio, Texas, and will be serving in young adult ministry in Houston.
Dcn. John Sester, LC
“I hope to guide and serve with the Heart of Jesus, and I hope to spend my diaconate in preparation for the depth of the priesthood that is to follow.”
“Before you could discern his call, God was already calling you.”
Dcn. John Sester is from Rogers, Minnesota, and is taking on the role of assistant rector at Sacred Heart Apostolic School in Rolling Prairie, Indiana, where he will be working as a teacher and a member of the formation team.
Two more brothers were recently ordained to the transitional diaconate in their home countries and will be serving in the North American Territory this year: Dcn. Andrew Kang was ordained in Seoul, South Korea, and will be serving in Louisiana; and Dcn. Santiago Canales was ordained in Puebla, Mexico and will be serving in the Philippines. Together, they are among 21 Legionaries ordained as deacons worldwide this year.
Most Reverend Edward J. Burns, bishop of the Diocese of Dallas, was the main celebrant of the Ordination Mass, and thirty Legionary priests concelebrated, while four Consecrated Women of Regnum Christi sang in the choir, accompanied by Mihi Kim, a renowned internationally acclaimed Korean flautist who has been sharing her gifts in Legionary priestly ordinations in Rome for the past several years.
In his homily before the Rite of Diaconate Ordination, Bishop Edward shared his reflection on the first reading from Jeremiah: “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you; before you were born, I dedicated you.”
“A vocation does not begin on the day of ordination. It does not even begin when a man enters formation. A vocation begins in the very heart of God, our God who knows us. Long before you knew what God was going to do with your lives, God knew you. And before you could discern his call, he was already calling you.”
An evening of parayr and adoration for the deacons the day before the Ordination Mass.
A Challenge to Proclaim Truth in Contemporary Culture
Bishop Burns noted that all three newly ordained deacons are already active in evangelizing through modern media: Dcn. Darius produces a YouTube channel called Church Headlines, where he publishes a regular news recap about the most significant events happening in the Church and the world; Dcn. Bernardo is passionate about evangelization through modern media, seeking to present the Catholic faith in a clear and engaging way for a generation searching for meaning and truth; and Dcn. John is active on social media and a newly published author. Their willingness to engage in and evangelize in contemporary digital spaces is appropriate, said Bishop Edward, because “the Church has always gone wherever the people have gathered.”
“St. Paul went to the Areopagus. The missionaries crossed oceans. The Jesuits went to the frontiers. And today, some of those ‘frontiers’ have names like TikTok, Instagram, Spotify.”
He continued with a challenge:
“Today, the Church is not ordaining you to gain followers—the Church is ordaining you to make followers of Jesus Christ.”
In an age in which everyone has a platform and can instantly broadcast an opinion, Bishop Edward urged the newly ordained ministers to be different—to proclaim the truth with courage and fidelity to the modern world.
“Before asking, ‘What do I want to say?’ an ordained minister should ask, ‘Lord, what do you want your people to hear?’ And that requires prayer, a oneness with God, and listening to him.”
Find out More
Find out more about the six new Legionary brothers and deacons who joined the North American Territory this summer.
Share your prayers and congratulations with this year’s newest deacons here.
You can also follow these three new deacons on the “frontiers” of social media:
- Watch Dcn. Darius’ Church Headlines on YouTube,listen on Spotify, or find it in the podcasts on the Regnum Christi app.
- Creatively engaging contemporary culture, Dcn. Bernardo strives to open paths of dialogue that lead people closer to Christ—follow him on Instagram and TikTok.
- You can follow Dcn. John on Instagram and Facebook and find out more about his newly published novel.
Or find out more about the path to the Legionary priesthood at Discernment – Legionaries of Christ.