Deacon Chlopecki becomes first archdiocesan permanent deacon

Deacon John Chlopecki proclaims the Gospel during a Mass on Sept. 17, 2005, at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis during which the 25 men in the first archdiocesan deacon formation program became deacon candidates.

By Sean Gallagher

May 1 was a historic day in the archdiocese.

On that day, Deacon John Chlopecki became the first permanent deacon in the history of the Church in central and southern Indiana.

But there was no fanfare, no special liturgy, to mark the occasion.

It was simply the day on which the incardination process was completed whereby Deacon Chlopecki went from being a deacon of the Archdiocese of Chicago—for which he was ordained in 1991—to being a deacon of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.

The quietness of the occasion was just fine for Deacon Chlopecki.

“It’s important for me, but for celebration purposes, it wasn’t that important,” said Deacon Chlopecki, who works as a computer consultant and also ministers at St. Nicholas Parish in Ripley County.

Effective on July 3, he will be assigned to St. Anthony of Padua Parish in Morris.

Personally, though, Deacon Chlopecki was glad to see his incardination process completed.

“When you work for the archdiocese so long and you’re so involved, … you really want to be a part of it,” he said. “You want to be a part of it mentally, physically and, ultimately, spiritually, which incardination gives you—that full feeling of being a part of this archdiocese.”

Deacon Chlopecki and his wife, Marie, moved to Morris from Chicago in 1995 when Marie developed a disability.

At the time, there was no deacon formation program in the archdiocese.

“When I first moved down to the archdiocese, I prayed that there would be a diaconate someday,” Deacon Chlopecki said. “And I prayed, ‘Dear God, please let me be a part of it. Let me help bring this to fruition.’ And the good Lord gave me exactly what I prayed for, and more so than I ever thought it would be.”

He served on the committee that, starting in 2002, helped develop the current archdiocesan deacon formation program.

When men started applying for the program, Deacon Chlopecki interviewed each of them. He has continued to serve as a mentor for the 25 deacon candidates who are scheduled to be ordained a year from now.

As men are applying to be a part of the next deacon formation program, Deacon Chlopecki is interviewing many of them, too.

Benedictine Father Bede Cisco, archdiocesan director of deacon formation, said Deacon Chlopecki is an “exemplary deacon” for the deacon candidates and the faithful of the archdiocese in general “because of his commitment to service, his service to the program first of all, but also his care of the sick in the parishes that he’s served and of those in need.

“I think the fact that he’s become the first permanent deacon in the archdiocese gives us a better sense of the fullness of the sacrament of orders,” said Father Bede. “We now have all three orders [deacons, priests and bishops] represented in the archdiocese on an established basis.”

Although he has made history as the archdiocese’s first permanent deacon and, according to Father Bede, continues to be the primary example of the life and ministry for the archdiocese’s deacon candidates, Deacon Chlopecki looks upon his diaconal life and ministry from a more humble perspective.

“I try to do my best,” he said. “I live my life the best that I can. I try to give an example to all that I encounter through my words and actions.

“I have a prayer life, a work life. And I’m a husband and family man, a father. All those things combined make me what I am. And hopefully, I can be a good example for the rest of the men and even more so for the archdiocese.” †