The climax of the week in Rome revolves around the Diaconate Ceremony on Thursday Morning at The Altar of the Chair in the Papal Basilica of Saint Peter's. Below, you will find a plethora of information about the Basilica, the Altar of the Chair by Bernini, the Ordaining Prelate and the Liturgical Rite of Ordination.

The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican

The Diaconate Class and the Pontifical North American College welcome you to the Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican. This church, the largest in Christendom, enshrines one of the holiest Christian sites, the tomb of the Prince of the Apostles and Christ’s chosen instrument as the minister of unity. “Thou art Peter,” Jesus solemnly affirmed, “and upon this rock I will build my Church; and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it.” (Mt 16:18) Since the apostle's crucifixion in Rome under the brutal tyranny of Nero, Christians have venerated this sacred spot. Even before the close of the first century, Pope Anacletus had built a makeshift oratory over the “Fisherman’s” tomb, and when Constantine rose to power in the fourth century, a splendid basilica was built here, lavishly decorated with rare marble, mosaics, draperies, tapestries, precious stones - the very floor around Saint Peter’s tomb was covered with silver and gold. Pilgrims from around the Roman Empire flocked here to venerate the first Pope’s relics and to admire the sumptuous beauty of his church. Despite centuries of invasions - until the ninth century the Vatican was outside the protection of city walls - the structure stood for a thousand years, and it was not until the fifteenth century that Popes were obliged to consider its reconstruction. The present church was begun in 1506 and consecrated in 1626, precisely 1300 years after the first basilica’s consecration on November 18, 326. Architects as gifted and diverse as Bramante, Raphael, Sangallo, Michelangelo, Maderno, and Bernini all contributed to the new church’s design, though the interior is largely the fruit of Bernini’s genius.

Saint Peter’s Basilica is neither the cathedral of the Holy Father (the Basilica of Saint John Lateran is the cathedral of the Bishop of Rome) nor a parish church; it is, rather, dedicated to the Universal Church and in a special way to the pilgrims who arrive to venerate the tomb of the Prince of the Apostles. You are not visiting someone else’s basilica, in other words: you are visiting your own. It is also important to emphasize that this is a very active church, hosting many Masses throughout the day, confessions virtually all day, baptisms, weddings, funerals, and, of course, ordinations. It is also used by the Holy Father for many ceremonial events like the celebration of principal feast days, the canonization of new saints, and the elevation of individuals to the College of Cardinals. The Roman Catholic Church has convened two Solemn Ecumenical Councils in this Basilica, the First Vatican Council from 1869 to 1870, and the Second Vatican Council from 1962 to 1965. In addition, daily adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament takes place in a chapel half-way down the nave, where you may wish to spend some time in prayer before ending your pilgrimage to the Eternal City.

The Altar of the Chair

ilgrims find in St. Peter's Basilica two focal points: the Altar of the Confessio (main altar), built over the tomb of the apostle, and the Altar of the Chair, which dominates the apse. Both are the work of Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680), whose work here put the definitive stamp on the Baroque period. If architecture is music frozen in stone, then the Vatican Basilica is a great hymn of thanksgiving to God for the life of St. Peter the Apostle and the gift of his continuing ministry in the Church.

xperts consider the Altar of the Chair a work of both architecture and sculpture. The dimensions alone are a testament to Bernini's surpassing genius: the Chair itself is over 20 ft. tall, the figures of the bishops between 13 and 16 ft., the whole work weighs over 150,000 lbs. - a massive project which took nine years to complete (1657-1666). Yet the scale gives rise to an even loftier purpose, namely, the symbolic representation of the ministry of St. Peter in the Church, handed on through the generations in an unbroken line from the Galilean fisherman to the German Theologian, Teacher, Prefect, Pope Benedict XVI, the 265th Successor of the Prince of the Apostles.

he center of the work is the “Chair of St. Peter”, referred to in Latin as a cathedra, whence derives the English word “cathedral.” This bronze sculpture is actually a very large reliquary, housing the remains of a wooden chair held by tradition to have been used by St. Peter himself when he lived in Rome. The cathedra of a bishop is the symbol of his authority to govern and teach the Lord's flock, and so the cathedra of St. Peter represents the ministry of the Bishop of Rome as the foundation of the Church universal, a foundation willed by the Lord Himself and sustained by His own prayer.

ather than power and domination, that ministry is one of love and service, as depicted on the Chair by the scene of St. Peter kneeling before Jesus, making his threefold confession of love and receiving in return the threefold commission to feed Christ's sheep (Jn 21:15-17). The three medallions above the Chair on the ceiling depict the source of that ministry and the price which it exacts. In the center is the consignment of the keys, flanked by St. Peter's crucifixion and the beheading of St. Paul.

nsupported in mid-air, the entire Chair appears to be held aloft by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit through the window above. At the base are four giant figures of the early Fathers of the Church, two from the East and two from the West: (left to right) St. Ambrose, St. Athanasius, St. John Chrysostom and St. Augustine. When the Litany of the Saints is sung during the Rite of Ordination, all the saints depicted in the apse will be invoked.

tudying Bernini's “homily in bronze” teaches us that the Successor of Peter is a source of unity for the whole Church and a repository of the Christian tradition. He is assisted in this role by his fellow bishops, the saints of the Church and the great Christian thinkers. Yet ultimately his work is sustained by no human power, but by the Holy Spirit, who never fails to be active in the Church.

Biography of the Ordaining Prelate

Rite of Ordination

• Do you resolve to be consecrated for the Church's ministry by the laying on of my hands and the gift of the Holy Spirit?
• Do you resolve to discharge the office of deacon with humble charity in order to assist the priestly Order and to benefit the Christian people?
• Do you resolve to hold fast to the mystery of faith with a clear conscience, as the Apostle urges, and to proclaim this faith in word and deed according to the Gospel and the Church's tradition?
• Do you resolve to keep for ever this commitment as a sign of your dedication to Christ the Lord for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven, in the service of God and man?
• Do you resolve to maintain and deepen the spirit of prayer that is proper to your way of life and, in keeping with this spirit and what is required of you, to celebrate faithfully the Liturgy of the Hours with and for the People of God and indeed for the whole world?
• Do you resolve to conform your way of life always to the example of Christ, of whose Body and Blood you are ministers at the altar?
  To this final question the elect answer: I do, with the help of God.

Promise of Obedience

Then the candidate goes to the bishop and, kneeling before him, places his joined hands between those of the bishop.
The bishop says,
"Do you promise respect and obedience to (me / your ordinary) and (my / his) successors?"
The elect respond, "I do"
"May God who has begun the good work in you bring it to fulfillment."

Invitation to Prayer

Then all stand, and the bishop, without his miter, invites the people to pray:
"My dear people, let us pray that God the all-powerful Father will mercifully pour out his blessings on these servant whom in his kindness he raises to the sacred Order of the diaconate."

The candidates prostrate his/themselves and the cantor(s) begin the litany of saints.  They may add appropriate saints (e.g. for the particular feast day, members of the ordained etc.)

The official litany is carefully divided into various groupings representative of the saints:
First the mercy of God is invoked
Immediately following is Mary, Mother of God, Queen of all
After Mary, the help of the angels is prayed for
Finally, the other saints are invoked:
Members of the Holy Family - John the Baptist, Joseph
Saints mentioned in the New Testament - Peter, Paul, Andrew, John, Mary Magdeline, Stephen
Martyrs of the Early Church - Ignatius of Antioch, Lawrence, Perpetua and Felicity, Agnes
Fathers of the Patristic Period - Gregory the Great, Augustine, Athanasius, Basil, Martin
Founders Representative of the Great Orders - Benedict, Francis, Dominic
Models of Consecrated Life - Francis Xavier, John Vianney, Catherine, Teresa of Avila
All Holy Men and Women in Heaven.

The bishop alone stands and, with his hands joined, sings or says:

"Lord God,
mercifully hear our prayers
and graciously accompany with your help
what we undertake by virtue of our office.
Sanctify by your blessing these men we present,
for in our judgment we believe them worthy
to exercise sacred ministries.
Through Christ our Lord."
            (All: Amen)

The Laying on of Hands

"A symbolic ceremony by which one intends to communicate to another some favour, quality or excellence (principally of a spiritual kind), or to depute another to some office. The rite has had a profane or secular as well as a sacred usage. It is extremely ancient, having come down from patriarchal times. Jacob bequeathed a blessing and inheritance to his two sons Ephraim and Manasses by placing his hands upon them (Genesis 48:14) and Moses on Josue the hegemony of the Hebrew people in the same manner (Numbers 27:18, 23). In the New Testament Our Lord employed this rite to restore life to the daughter of Jairus (Matthew 9:18) and to give health to the sick (Luke 6:19). The religious aspect of this ceremony first appeared in the consecration of Aaron and his sons to the office of priesthood. Before immolating animals in sacrifice the priests, according to the Mosaic ritual, laid hands upon the heads of the victims (Exodus 29; Leviticus 8:9); and in the expressive dismissal of the scapegoat the officiant laid his hands on the animal's head and prayed that the sins of the people might descend thereon and be expiated in the wilderness (Leviticus 16:21). The Apostles imposed hands on the newly baptized, that they might receive the gifts of the Holy Ghost in confirmation (Acts 8:17, 19; 19:6); on those to be promoted to holy orders (Acts 6:6; 13:3; 1 Timothy 4:14; 2 Timothy 1:6; Matthew 13); and on others to bestow some supernatural gift or corporal benefit (Acts, passim). In fact this rite was so constantly employed that the "imposition of hands" came to designate an essential Catholic doctrine (Hebrews 6:2)."
Then all stand.  The candidate(s) goes to the bishop and kneels before him.  The bishop lays his hands on the candidate’s head, in silence.

Prayer of Consecration
The candidate kneels before the bishop.  With his hands extended over the candidate he sings the prayer of consecration or says it aloud:

"Draw near, we pray, almighty God, giver of every grace, who apportion every order and assign every office; who remain unchanged, but make all things new. In your eternal providence, you make provision for every age, as you order all creation through him who is your word, your power and your wisdom, Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord.

You grant that the Church, his body, adorned with manifold heavenly graces, drawn together in the diversity of its members, and united by a wondrous bond through the Holy Spirit, should grow and spread forth to build up a new temple and, as once you chose the sons of Levi to minister in the former tabernacle (c.f. Num 3:5-10), so now you establish three ranks of ministers in their sacred offices to serve in your name.

And so, in the first days of your Church, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, your Son's Apostles appointed seven men of good repute to assist them in the daily ministry (c.f. Acts 6:1-ff), that they might devote themselves more fully to prayer and preaching of the word. By prayer and the laying on of hands they entrusted to these chosen men the ministry of serving at table.

We beseech you, Lord: look with favor on these servants of yours who will minister at your holy altar and whom we now humbly dedicate to the office of deacon. Send forth upon them, Lord, we pray, the Holy Spirit, that they may be strengthened by the gift of your sevenfold grace for the faithful carrying out of the work of the ministry.

May there abound in them every Gospel  virtue: unfeigned love, concern for the sick and poor, unassuming authority, the purity of innocence and the observance of spiritual discipline. May your commandments shine forth in their conduct, so that by the example of their way of life they may inspire the imitation of your holy people. In offering the witness of a clear conscience, may they remain strong and steadfast in Christ, so that by imitating on earth your Son, who came not to be served but to serve, they may be found worthy to reign in heaven with him,who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever.

All Answer: Amen

Investiture with Stole and Dalmatic
After the prayer of consecration, the bishop, wearing his miter, sits and the newly ordained stands.  An assisting deacon or priest puts a deacon’s stole and then a dalmatic on him.

Meanwhile, the following antiphon is sung with Psalm 84: Blessed are they who dwell in your house, O Lord.

'How lovely your dwelling, O LORD of hosts!
'My soul yearns and pines for the courts of the LORD. My heart and flesh cry out for the living God.
'As the sparrow finds a home and the swallow a nest to settle her young, My home is by your altars, LORD of hosts, my king and my God!
'Happy are those who dwell in your house! They never cease to praise you. Selah
'Happy are those who find refuge in you, whose hearts are set on pilgrim roads.
'As they pass through the Baca valley, they find spring water to drink. Also from pools the Lord provides water for those who lose their way.
'They pass through outer and inner wall and see the God of gods on Zion.
'LORD of hosts, hear my prayer; listen, God of Jacob. Selah
'O God, look kindly on our shield; look upon the face of your anointed.
'Better one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere. Better the threshold of the house of my God than a home in the tents of the wicked.
'For a sun and shield is the LORD God, bestowing all grace and glory. The LORD withholds no good thing from those who walk without reproach.
'O LORD of hosts, happy are those who trust in you!'
Any other song may be sung in addition.

Presentation of the Book of the Gospels
Vested as a deacon, the newly ordained goes to the bishop and kneels before him.  The bishop places the Book of the Gospels in the hands of the newly ordained and says:
"Receive the Gospel of Christ whose hearald you have become.  Believe what you read, teach what you believe, and practice what you teach."

Kiss of Peace
Lastly, the bishop stands and gives the kiss of peace to the new deacon saying:
"Peace be with you"
(Deacon’s response: "and also with you")
In contemporary practice, for cultural reasons in the west, the "kiss" of peace is typically a firm embrace of arms.

The Celebration of the Eucharist continues as usual.