Lazarus Anthony ordained as a permanent deacon

The Churchof St Anne celebrated the ordinationof Lazarus Anthony Jonathan to theministry of permanent diaconate onJuly 6.

Jul 21, 2016

 By Marlina Sara Sylvester
The Churchof St Anne celebrated the ordinationof Lazarus Anthony Jonathan to theministry of permanent diaconate on July 6.

He is the second permanent deaconin the Diocese of Penang. Thefirst one was Deacon Clement Samuelfrom Taiping.

The Bishop of Penang, SebastianFrancis, was the ordaining prelateand presider, with Archbishop JulianLeow, Bishop Emeritus Antony Selvanayagamand priests concelebrating.Deacons from Melaka-Johorwere also present.

The rite of ordination began afterthe Liturgy of the Word. Electionby Bishop Sebastian and consent ofthe people was followed by the examinationof the candidate and thepromise of obedience. While the Litanyof the Saints was sung, Lazarusprostrated himself before the altar.This was followed by the prayer ofconsecration by the bishop.

Lazarus’ wife, Maria Alphonse,then presented the deacon’s dalmaticand stole to Msgr Michael Cheahwho invested Rev Deacon LazarusAnthony Jonathan. This was followedby the presentation of theBook of the Gospels and the kiss ofpeace.

In his speech, Lazarus said thathe was very touched that his eldestdaughter had surprised him by attendingthis celebration. Monica iscurrently pursuing her Masters ofPublic Health Nutrition in Seattle.

Lazarus said that his wife is hisgreatest supporter, “You are the fabric,the purpose and reason for mycomplete life. If I had a flower forevery time you have helped me, Icould walk through a beautiful gardenforever.”

Born in 1956, Lazarus grew up inButterworth, was baptized, receivedfirst Holy Communion and the sacramentof Confirmation in the Churchof the NBVM, Butterworth. He wasactive in this parish before movingto Bukit Mertajam in 1983. Lazarusmarried Maria Alphonse in 1989 andthe couple was blessed with theirfirst child in 1992, followed by threemore children.

In 1996, Lazarus attended a sixweekencounter-seminar in Manilaon the New Image of the Parish. InJuly 2001, he attended the AsIPA(Asian Integral Pastoral Approach)in Nagpur, India. He also attendedthe First Mission Congress in ChiangMai in October 2006. These area few of the significant workshops/seminars attended by Lazarus beforehe joined as an external student inCollege General, Penang in 2013. In December 2014, Lazarus began hisdiscernment to the Permanent Diaconateat the suggestion and encouragementof Msgr Michael Cheah,Msgr Henry Rajoo (parish priest ofSt Anne’s BM), Fr Jude Miranda,Fr Michael Dass and Fr EdmundVoon, Deacon Clement Samuel andDeacon Dr Leslie Petrus.

Here is a short interview with the newly ordained Rev Deacon Lazarus Anthony Jonathan:

How was your participation in church as you were growing up?

From young, I was brought up as a good Catholic by my parents, although my father was a Lutheran convert when he married my mother. I was an altar server. When I started working, I joined the Parish Workers’ Group in the Church of NBVM, Butterworth. This group was initiated by Rev Fr Alexander Edwin. There I became an area group leader for a good number of years.

After I moved to Bukit Mertajam, I became involved with the parish youth group, then as BEC leader, prayer group leader, Parish Animating Team member and Parish Pastoral Council member and chairman.

At the diocesan level, I was involved in the Asian Integral Pastoral Approach (AsiPA) which provided formation and animated the BECs in the parishes. For many years, I was a member of the Central Coordinating & Animating Team (CCAT) and later the Diocesan Animating Team (DAT) which looked into animating the Renewed Parish Project (RPP) in many parishes in the diocese. Presently, I am the chairman of the BEC Animating & Formation Team (BECAFT).

Who was your role model in your diaconate journey?
Saint Lawrence, who was a deacon and martyr and a faithful companion of Pope Sixtus II, Rev. Fr. G. Belleville and Rev Fr Lucien Catel inspired me in this diaconate journey.

The three loves of Saint Lawrence that I admire most are Love for God, Love for his Bishop (Pope Sixtus II) and love for the poor.

Tell us more about the theme chosen. I chose the theme I came not to be served but to serve because these are Jesus’ words and he clearly lived out his life of servanthood reflecting this theme. The very act of Jesus washing his apostles’ feet at the Last Supper signifies clearly the servanthood of Jesus.

As a Deacon I am called to emulate the servanthood of Christ.

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