Today is my 6th anniversary of ordination as a deacon. I feel it is important for me to keep this date in mind, because I don't believe my ordination as a priest erased by ordination as a deacon — I'm still stamped with the grace of diaconate in my soul. In fact, I find that a lot of the tasks I do from day to day are actually much more diaconal tasks than presbyteral ones.
What does it mean for me, to be a deacon? I believe that the ministry of deacon is that which bridges the sacerdotal ministry of the priests and bishops with the charismatic apostolate that comes from baptism. The baptized have a mission in the world, derived from the grace of baptism, but it can be chaotic at times in its practical application. The ordained ministry exists to keep it apostolic, i.e. true to the teaching and ministry of the Apostles. The deacon acts as a special interface between the two: present among the works of the baptized apostolate, he represents the apostles to such works, and he helps bring the fruits of the apostolate to the altar of God as a holy sacrifice of thanksgiving. Liturgically, we see this when the deacon goes to prepare the gifts for the altar, before asking the priest to actually make the offering. But the calling has the Eucharist as its summit, it also has it as its source: the deacon also dismisses the people at the end of mass, for them to go into the world and bear good fruit once again. This presence in the Eucharist, therefore, sets the tone for the whole ministry of diaconate, *most of which* is meant to be in the world, helping organize works of charity and other works of the apostolate.
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