Three men will be instituted as readers on their way to the Order of the Permanent Diaconate
NEWS RELEASE
January 10, 2025
YOUNGSTOWN, OH – The Most Reverend David J. Bonnar, Bishop of Youngstown, will celebrate Word of God Sunday Mass on January 26, 2025, 4 p.m. at Saint Columba Cathedral. During the Mass he will institute three men as readers on their way to the Order of the Permanent Diaconate. The candidates for the Ministry of Lector are:
- Richard Hull, Guardian Angels Parish-Canton
- Matthew Richards, Saint Patrick Parish-Kent
- Kirk Wells, Saint Patrick Parish-Hubbard
On September 30, 2019, a Motu propio Apostolic Letter “Aperuit illis” issued by Pope Francis established the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time as the “Sunday of the Word of God.” Recalling the importance given by the Second Vatican Council to rediscovering Sacred Scripture for the life of the Church, Pope Francis explains the celebration has “ecumenical value, since the Scriptures point out, for those who listen, the path to authentic and firm unity.”
Bishop Bonnar says the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time is “a time for us to celebrate and study the power of God’s Word which we can so easily take for granted. The Word as heard in church and meditated on at home can always be a rest stop for our soul.”
Parishes across the Diocese of Youngstown are invited to find ways to mark this Sunday with a certain solemnity.
