William Vit, diocesan seminarian, ordained transitional deacon

October 14, 2004

The Pontifical North American College announced the ordination of 12 American seminarians to the Order of Deacon on Oct. 7. William J. Vit, Jr., of the Diocese of Sioux City, was among those seminarians ordained.

The ordaining prelate was Bishop J. Peter Sartain of Little Rock, Ark., at the Altar of the Chair in the Patriarchal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican.

During the ordination ceremony, the celebrant, Bishop Sartain, said, "We have asked God to send workers into the field, and he has answered our prayers." He told the new deacons that Christ came to serve others and that they "are to be his icons." Referring to Christ, the bishop encouraged them, "lay down your lives for him and his people."

He told the deacons, "cling with all your might to the hope that fires the Gospel," and he explained that, "you who are earthen vessels will empty yourselves to pour out God's saving power."

Bishop Sartain directly addressed the parents of those to be ordained. He told them, "you have allowed God to work in your marriages." Speaking directly to the mothers, the bishop asked, "Do you realize that God called your sons from the womb?"

Speaking to the seminarians before their ordination, the North American College's rector, Msgr. Kevin McCoy, said, "My sons, you have been judged worthy to receive this sacrament of Holy Orders. The faith that God has given you is sufficient. Your faith is, after all, not just a matter of believing, but faith is your way of responding to so many of life's events. Your faith, as you live it, testifies to justice, to charity, to fidelity - to the virtuous life that Christ calls every one of his followers to live."

Msgr. McCoy is a native of the Diocese of Sioux City.

Before ordination, the seminarians completed extensive studies in both philosophy and theology. In addition to studying at one of Rome's Catholic universities, the seminarians were also given thorough spiritual and pastoral formation at the college itself. Now that the seminarians are ordained deacons, they are commissioned by the church to baptize, preside at weddings and funerals, bring communion to dying, preach homilies and proclaim the Gospel.

The North American College is the American house of studies located in Rome, where hundreds of diocesan priests have been formed near the heart of the church for service in dioceses around the United States. The vast majority of graduates from the college return to the U.S. to work in parishes. Several seminarians from the Diocese of Sioux City have studied there.

The Altar of the Chair, where the ordinations took place, is located in the apse of St. Peter's and was designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. The altar is a testament of thanksgiving to God for the life of St. Peter the Apostle and the gift of his continuing ministry, through successors such as Pope John Paul II, to the church and the world. The altar, which is a marvel of both architecture and sculpture, is a testament to the belief that the Roman Pontiff is a source of unity for the whole church and a repository of the Christian tradition.