Susan Phillips to be ordained a deacon in Episcopal Church

Susan Phillips and five other candidates will be ordained deacons in the Episcopal Diocese of Delaware during a ceremony at 1 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 5, at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Harrington. “At the service, we will be ordinands until we are ordained as deacons,” Phillips said. “There is a lot of ceremony and tradition in this. There is also great joy and celebration.”

This is the first class in the Diocese of Delaware to be what is known as the vocational diaconate. After four years of prayer, service, formation and study, the vocational deacons have specific tasks to do in their ministries of prayer and service but are not transitional deacons on paths to become priests. “I am different than when I started,” Phillips said.

Phillips is a member of the Episcopal Parish of All Saints’ Church in Rehoboth Beach and St. George’s Chapel in Harbeson. Candidates like her have been supported by members of their parishes - priests, Delaware Diocesan Bishop Wayne Wright, diocesan committees and ministry members.

The Rev. Max Wolf, parish rector, and the Rev. Christopher Moore, associate priest, have been key advisers and supported Phillips on her journey to become a deacon. “The ancient order of deacons is a gift, both to the church and the community in helping to connect compassionate people with the needs of the world,” said Wolf. “Susan is already doing this, and her ordination will further empower her ministries.”

Phillips has led and will continue to lead a mental health ministry as part of her preparation to be ordained a deacon. She and parish members interacted with residents of two Fellowship Health Resources (FHR) housing units: Taton House in Harbeson and Hope House in Milford. Besides visits to those two residences by Phillips and parish members, an every-other-month supper was hosted by Phillips and parish members at Saint George’s Chapel’s parish hall.

“Attendance at these suppers has grown,” Phillips said. “We offer a fried chicken supper and fellowship - everything from prayers to singing and dancing.”

As part of this ministry, the parish also started and maintains an emergency food and personal items bank at FHR’s Ellendale service center. Various parish fundraisers provide the funds for this work.

Members of the All Saints’ Parish choirs and congregations will attend the ordination. “Parishioners, family members and friends from around the country will be at St. Stephen’s that day,” Phillips said. Clergy who are present will be a part of the procession. As part of the service, Phillips’ two sons, Mark and Adam, will place the deacon’s stole on the newly ordained deacon. A reception will follow the ordination.

For more information on this event or Phillips’ ministry, contact the parish at 302-227-7202.