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Gulf Pine Catholic
•
July 28, 2017
Deacon’s faith strengthened by ministry to the sick
BY DEACON WARREN GOFF
Sacred Heart Parish, Hattiesburg
I have been involved with this
ministry for all of my 24 years as a
deacon for the Diocese of Biloxi. It
actually began many years ago with
two members of our prayer group in
Pascagoula deciding to go to the
hospital on Sunday mornings
between masses.
I will never forget that first visit.
It was Bragg Moore, EddieWilliams,
and myself. We were so nervous. We
sat outside the hospital for quite awhile trying to work
up a little courage. I even remember the first room we
entered. It was Mrs. Buffet, Jimmy Buffet’s grand-
mother. She broke the ice with her faith in God and
appreciation of our visit
It has truly been a blessing over the years to have
the honor of bringing the Eucharist to so many people.
My faith has been strengthened by the faith of those I
have visited and it continues each day of my ministry
to the sick. Many of our people are facing a life chang-
ing sickness and still others are preparing for the ending
of their life’s journey. Seeing their faith through those
trying times has an effect on you.
I have been involved in many ministries over the
years and the ministry to the sick has been one of the
most fulfilling, especially as I serve the People of God
in the Hattiesburg area. The parishioners of Sacred
Heart Parish here in Hattiesburg have been such a great
gift to Nancy and me
Next year I will be ordained twenty five years. As
long as my health holds up I plan to continue with the
same ministry that started so many years ago with two
friends standing outside Singing River Hospital trying
to get up enough nerve to go in.
I hope that with God’s blessing and continued good
health, to try to live up to one of the heroes in my life,
Deacon Bob Everard, who is still ministering to the
sick at the young age of ninety years old. It is his
example that defines the Ministry of a Deacon on their
life’s journey. Seeing their faith through those trying
times has an effect on you.
Goff
Deacon Karl
Koberger, of St.
Joseph Parish in
Gulfport, visits a
hospital patient.
Hospice ministry enables deacon to
be ‘instrument of Christ̕s mercy and
companionship’
BY DEACON MICHAEL SAXER
Imagine that you had an opportunity to help a fam-
ily through one of its most trying moments. Imagine
that you are invited to become a temporary member of
a household of faith. The moment you enter the house
you can feel the faith. People are sad, but they are
strong. They are ready; they are hungry for the love and
support of the Church and for the sacramental Presence
of our Lord. He is indeed present in their faith. Imagine
that you are asked to become the embrace of the
Church for her children at such a difficult moment as
the passing of a loved one. That is the reward that I get
from being a deacon in the Catholic Diocese of Biloxi.
Diaconal ordination has blessed me with the opportu-
nity to become an instrument of Christ’s mercy and
companionship through hospice ministry with Notre
Dame Hospice, a ministry of the Archdiocese of New
Orleans. Through this ministry, Christ fulfills his prom-
ise: “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.
(John 14:18)”
I was first introduced to this ministry by Father
Mike O’Connor during the last year of diaconal forma-
tion. I went into it thinking that it was a great opportu-
nity to prepare myself for the passing of my own par-
ents. Little did I realize I would be able to help so many
people, not just for myself and for my family. I am able
to strengthen and encourage people by reminding them
of healing power of Anointing of the Sick and Viaticum,
and then facilitating a timely visit by
their pastor to administer these
Sacraments (Catechism of the
Catholic Church paragraphs 1516
and 1524). My father, Deacon
Robert Saxer, MD, passed away
recently, and I experienced a pro-
found sense of assurance and calm
even as I comforted my mother and
my siblings. Because of this minis-
try, I knew how to speak words of comfort to my loved
ones, remain strong in my faith, and was thankful that
the Holy Spirit gave me the grace.
Another wonderful result of this ministry is that
when people are suffering, they become open to the
Good News that our Catholic Faith has to offer. I have
witnessed how God can use the death of a loved one to
make people feel the love the Church has for them.
Once they feel this, they are eager to wrap themselves
in its embrace.
I am grateful to God for having called me to this
ministry and thankful to Bishop Louis for allowing me
to continue to serve in this ministry that I have come to
love. I am also thankful for the support of my wonder-
ful faith-filled wife Janet, and the encouragement of my
pastor Father Michael Marascalco, the people of St.
Clare Parish, and the team at Notre Dame Hospice. If
anyone is interested in hospice ministry, contact Deacon
Mike Saxer at (228) 216-4365.
Saxer
“I’m so pleased to hear that Bishop Kihneman has
approved a new formation program for permanent dea-
cons in the diocese and I sincerely hope that men who
desire to serve the church and God, will answer the call
of a vocation to this ministry.”
A native of Hattiesburg, Deacon Finnegan and his
wife have been blessed with three grown children:
Kenneth, Natalie and Darren, and six grandchildren:
Talia, Kelly, Andrew, Isabelle, Lucy and Georgia.
Permanent Diaconate
From page 12
Msgr. Flannery remembers Father Quinn as a
visionary.
“He could look at any situation and know how best
to approach it,” he said.
“During his time there, the city quadrupled in size.
It went from 400,000 to 800,000 people. Part of that
was caused by drugs in the mountain villages. If you
lost a crop for two years in a row, you had nothing. You
had no seeds to sow. So, people moved at that point and
a lot of them became squatters on the side of the moun-
tain. A lot of the growth happened to be at Perpetuo
Socorro (Perpetual Help). He responded to that need.
He could see that people were living in cardboard
boxes. So, he started this program of building cinder-
block homes and he ended up building 2,250 of them in
his time.”
Msgr. Flannery came back to Mississippi in 1974
and ministered to the poor in the Mississippi Delta. He
retired from active ministry in 2014 and currently
resides in Madison.
He continues to visit Saltillo on an annual basis.
Saltillo Mission
From page 9