Candidates take Oath and Profession
Seven diaconate candidates took an Oath of Fidelity and gave a Profession of Faith on July 29, 2020, the final hurdle before the group will be ordained as Permanent Deacons on Aug. 15, 2020 at Epiphany Cathedral in Venice.
Bishop Frank J. Dewane presided over Mass and the ceremony at Our Lady of Perpetual Retreat Center in Venice where the men were concluding a 5-day canonical ordination retreat.
Jeffrey Ball of Ave Maria Parish, Ave Maria; Enrique (Rick) Castro of St. Cecilia Parish, Fort Myers; Ramiro Hernandez of St. Michael Parish, Wauchula; Jack W. Milholland Jr. of Our Lady of the Angels Parish, Lakewood Ranch; Roberto Pagán of Jesus the Worker Parish, Fort Myers; Vern W. Smith of St. Martha Parish, Sarasota; and Dr. William Soscia of St. Joseph Parish, Bradenton, are each concluding five years of discernment and study leading up to their ordination.
Bishop Dewane thanked Ball, Castro, Hernandez, Milholand, Pagán, Smith and Soscia, for having answered the call of Jesus to live their life in a particular way. “You have been chosen to a specific status which you are committed to. This Oath and Profession are a public expression of a promise to live your Faith in a precise way.”
During the Oath, the diaconate candidates recited the Profession of Faith for all to hear. The candidates then read the “Oath of Fidelity” and promised to “adhere to the teachings, which either the Roman Pontiff or the college of bishops enunciate when they exercise authentic magisterium.” The ceremony concluded with the signing of documents by the candidates and the Bishop.
The Bishop was joined by Father Fausto Stampiglia, S.A.C., Director of the Diaconate and Pastor of St. Martha Parish in Sarasota; Deacon William Ladroga, Director of Diaconate Formation; and J. Robert Gaitens, Associate Director of Diaconate Formation.
During the process to become a Permanent Deacon, the seven have received training in theology, canon law and pastoral ministry. In 2019, they were admitted as acolytes to assist priests and other Permanent Deacons on the altar during Mass. Prior to that, they were admitted as candidates when they publicly declared their intention of becoming Deacons and the Bishop accepted them. They were also instituted as readers so they could read the Scriptures during Mass.
To a man, they describe their journey toward ordination as both a challenging and life-changing process which started with answering a call from the Lord they heard deep in their heart. Each also credit their wife for supporting and joining them on this journey of enlightenment.
The mission of the Permanent Deacons of the Diocese of Venice is to: serve as ministers of charity, lead in identifying the needs of others and strive to meet those needs; serve as ministers of the Word, when they proclaim the Gospel, preaching and teaching in the name of the Church; serve as ministers of the Sacrament of Baptism; witness marriages; conduct wake and funeral services; and lead the faithful in prayer.
Their ordination ceremony, celebrated by Bishop Dewane, is 11 a.m. Aug. 15, 2020, Epiphany Cathedral, 350 Tampa Ave. W., Venice. The Mass, which was postponed from early June due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, will include the wearing of masks and social distancing whenever possible. All are encouraged and welcome to attend. A reception will follow in the Cathedral Parish Hall.
Bishop Frank J. Dewane introduced Father Martis, a Benedictine monk of Marmion Abbey and a well-known sacramental theologian who was in the Diocese of Venice for the annual Priest Convocation in the first week of December.
For this reason, Bishop Frank J. Dewane invites the Permanent Deacons and their wives to participate in a Memorial Mass each year as a time to pray for, honor and remember the Deacons and their wives who have passed away. The 2019 Mass was celebrated on Nov. 5 at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Retreat Center in Venice. Today, there are more than 75 Permanent Deacons, many seasonal, living and serving throughout the Diocese.
Carmelite Father Frederick J. Tillotson was born Oct. 4, 1942 in Pekin, Ill., the oldest of four children of Kenneth Foster Tillotson and Mary S. Cappel-Tillotson. He grew up in Puerto Rico and Sumatra, Indonesia, and attended high school at Aquinas College in Perth, Australia. He received his undergraduate degree from the Carmelite seminary and St. Bonaventure College (University) in Allegany, N.Y. Father Tillotson also holds degrees from the Gregorian University, Rome, Italy, and the University of San Francisco. He also pursued graduate studies at Oxford University in England, University College in Dublin, Ireland, and the University of London. He was ordained to the priesthood in Joliet, Ill., on Aug. 23, 1969. He has taught and held administrative posts in several institutions including Director and instructor for The Kino Institute (the Academy of Religious Studies for Catholic Diocese of Phoenix, an affiliate school of the University of San Francisco); president of Crespi Carmelite High School in Encino, Calif.; Head of School/CEO for Salpointe Catholic High School in Tucson Ariz.; administrator of St. Cyril of Jerusalem Parish, Tucson; and as president of the Washington Theological Union in Washington D.C.; Director for Clinical Ethics for the Franciscan Health System of Philadelphia; member of the Institutional Review Board of the University of Arizona for Human Subject Research; member of the Bishops Committee on Sexual Misconduct; chaplain to the Tucson Notre Dame Alumni Association; member and chaplain to the Equestrian Order of the Knights and Ladies of the Holy Sepulcher with the rank of Knight Commander. While with the Diocese of Phoenix, he served on numerous diocesan councils and committees. He has held Carmelite provincial positions as coordinator of school ministry and member of the provincial council, as well as for the Carmelite General Curia in Rome. For the Diocese of Venice, Father Tillotson has served as Pastor of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish for nearly eight years.
Deacon Henry deMena and Paul Unsworth of St. Agnes Parish helped deliver the supplies to St. Dominic Parish in Panama City on Nov. 2. There he spent the week helping to hand out needed supplies to people who are continuing to struggle to rebuild their lives nearly a month after the storm struck the Panhandle.
Deacon deMena and a colleague spent the week at the distribution center for food, water, personal hygiene, pet food and many other items located at St. Dominic Parish. The center operated from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and had a continuous stream of cars coming through.
Bishop Dewane paid tribute to the Deacons for answering the call of the Lord in a precise way and took time to honor those who came before to ensure they are not forgotten.
“Let us not just remember on a single day those who go before us,” Bishop Dewane concluded. “Let us not forget that example of strength they gave us before continuing on their journey toward the Lord.”
