A man with a wife and four children was recently ordained in the Roman Catholic Church as a permanent Deacon.

Deacon Paul Flynn was ordained into the Diocese of Clogher on Wednesday evening (February 2) in St. Michael’s Church, Enniskillen, by Bishop Larry Duffy.

Paul is the second Deacon to be ordained for the Diocese of Clogher in the last four years.

Speaking to The Impartial Reporter about his role and all that it entails, Paul explained that he had always felt a call to ministry.

He said: “When I was thinking about third-level education, the priesthood came into my mind. But for some reason – I believe it was the Holy Spirit – I was guided to wait and see. I then went and got married to Angie, and the call to ministry was still there.

“When the Permanent Diaconate was launched by a number of dioceses in Ireland, I investigated and found through prayer and talking to others, I discerned that it was indeed to the Diaconate I was called.

A native of Lucan, Dublin, he now lives in Cavan town with his wife, Angie, and their children, Aisling, Peter, Leo, and Felicity.

Explaining his role, Deacon Paul said: “The main ministry of the deacon is charity, and this comes in many forms. As charity derives from the word 'love', my work involves working with people in a pastoral sense.”

Deacon Paul is heavily involved in parish life in St. Michael’s, serving as Musical Director of the 10.30am Sunday choir, and the Chaplain to Mount Lourdes Grammar School (MLE).

He added: “Music and chaplaincy are both ministries in their own right but being an ordained minister of the Church adds an extra dimension to these roles.”

Speaking of what a typical day looks like for him, he said: “A deacon’s first priority is his family. As I have a young family, I can be very busy doing the normal day-to-day stuff.

"So, after my wife and I get everyone out of the house, I either get a chance to say my daily office – Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer – at home, or when I get into work at MLE.

“I also attend Mass when I can, and once I am finished in MLE, I’m back on the road, doing school runs or taxiing the kids to sports or music, not to mention homework! Of course, all of these jobs are shared between Angie and me."

Speaking on what he hopes to achieve in the role, Deacon Paul said: “I want to help bring people to Jesus, or Jesus to them.

"I know that Jesus is already waiting for them, so I kind of just need to introduce them to each other.

"This is pastoral ministry, and it could be as simple as saying something over a cup of tea, chatting to a student, preaching at a Mass, or sitting with someone who has something difficult going on in their life.

“There are two things that I will be getting to do more as time goes on, and that is baptisms and funerals. It is especially important for me as these events are marked by people coming to Church to meet Jesus in these solemn moments.”

Looking to the future of the faith, Deacon Paul said: “As a married man, I believe that it would be wonderful if more married men considered becoming permanent deacons.

"Deacons are ordained ministers who live and work in the world, are mostly married, and provide that complementarity with the priests who have given themselves over fully to serve the Church, their spiritual family.

"I believe that married deacons and celibate priests, which is the current model, can provide for the pastoral needs of the faithful.”

He continued: “We are in such a different place than where we were even three years ago. Who knows what the Church and the world will look like in a number of decades?

"I’ll leave such decisions to the wisdom of the Holy Father and the bishops, I’m only interested in helping others, with the grace of God, where I can."