National Directory

75

DIMENSIONS IN THE FORMATION OF DEACONS

and Charter for the Protection of Children andYoung People , as well as diocesan norms related to safe environment training g. Spiritual theology, the spiritual traditions of the Church as applied to one’s own spiritual journey, and the spiritual life of the faithful h. Liturgy and its historical, spiritual, and juridical aspects, with par ticular attention to the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults and to the liturgical rites the deacon will celebrate i. Canon law, especially canonical considerations pertaining to rights and obligations, diocesan structures, preaching, sacraments and sac ramentals, and the administration of temporal goods j. Ecumenism and interreligious dialogue principles, norms, and dimensions in pastoral ministry 40 k. Theology of Catholic evangelization: “evangelization of cultures and the inculturation of the message of faith,” multicultural expres sions of the faith, and missiology 41 134. This content is structured further in Norms 5 through 12 at the end of chapter six. Those responsible for the preparation of the academic component in the candidate and post-ordination stages of formation should determine a course of study that complies with this content prior to ordination, as well as a course of study that will further develop this content after ordination as part of a structured post-ordination program for continuing education and formation. Before ordination, the deacon candidate must demonstrate the proper level of compe tence in all these areas required for ordination and indicate his open ness to further development by post-ordination continuing formation.

Pastoral Dimension

135. An integral formation must relate the human, spiritual, and intellectual dimensions to pastoral practice. “The whole formation imparted to [the participants] . . . aims at preparing them to enter into communion with the charity of Christ. . . . Hence their formation in its different aspects must have a fundamentally pastoral character.” 42 Within that