May 13, 2015

By Deacon Kevin Mastellon
Staff writer

Lake Placid - Bishop Terry R. LaValley formally created the Council of Deacons of the Diocese of Ogdensburg when he met with permanent deacons and their wives in Lake Placid May 6 and 7.

The formation of a council was proposed to the deacon community by Bishop LaValley at the first Deacon Assembly held last June at the same venue.

The council is constituted to provide “prayerful, open reflection and fraternal dialogue among the deacons in collaboration with the bishop and priests of the Diocese of Ogdensburg.”

The bishop already meets regularly with an elected Council of Priests and a Council of Consecrated Life.

The by-laws of the Deacon Council provide for the election of five deacons representing defined geographic regions of the diocese and ministries not related directly to parishes.  The wives and widows of deacons will elect two representatives to serve on the council.  The bishop can make additional deacon appointments after the election.

The president of the St. Lawrence Society, the episcopal vicar for pastoral personnel and the director of deacon formation are all ex-officio members. 

The St. Lawrence Society was formed by deacons in the 1980’s for the mutual benefit and support of the Permanent Deacons of the Diocese. The society does not have the formal recognition of the bishop the new council will enjoy. The St. Lawrence Society will continue to function as it has for the foreseeable future.

The ad-hoc committee that crafted the document signed this week included Bishop LaValley, Father James W. Seymour, episcopal vicar for pastoral personnel; and Deacons Mark Bennett, Plattsburgh; John White, Ogdensburg; Gerald Savage, Tupper Lake and Kevin Mastellon, Watertown.

The election of representatives will take place this summer with the inaugural meeting of the council scheduled for early fall.