Bishop to ordain Colombian-born seminarian to transitional diaconate

Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney will ordain Carlos D. Penagos, a seminarian of the Paterson Diocese, to the transitional diaconate on Saturday, May 25, during a Mass at 10:30 a.m. at St. Margaret of Scotland Church in Morristown. It’s an important step before he is called to be ordained as a priest of the diocese.

During the Celebration of Ordination to the Order of Deacon, steeped in the rich traditions of the early Church, Bishop Sweeney will ordain Penagos, born in Piedecuesta, Santander-Colombia, to the diaconate.

A Thanksgiving Mass in English will be held on Saturday, May 25 at 5:30 p.m. at his home parish, St. Anthony in Hawthorne. A Thanksgiving Mass in Spanish will be held on Sunday, May 26 at 12:15 p.m. at St. Margaret of Scotland Church.

In the Roman Catholic Church, a transitional deacon is a celibate man who has been ordained a deacon and intends to become a priest. Transitional deacons are usually ordained to the diaconate after they complete their third year at the theological seminary.

The ministry of a deacon is to proclaim the Gospel, dispense the Eucharist, instruct Holy Doctrine, prepare for the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and preside over baptisms, marriages, funerals, and public prayer. A deacon also carries out acts of charity in the name of the bishop or pastor.

Penagos was born on March 8, 1996 in Colombia to Carlos E. Penagos and Ana I. Blanco.

His education included studies at Seminario Conciliar de Bogotá, Colombia in 2014, English as a Second Language at Rutgers University-Newark in 2015, studies at Holy Apostles College & Seminary from 2016 to 2017, and a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology in 2022.

Penagos was master of ceremonies for five years and a librarian assistant since 2017 at Immaculate Conception Seminary. He was a catechism teacher and was in charge of the Hispanic ministry for six weeks when he served St. Michael Parish in Netcong from 2016 to 2019. Penagos has been a Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) assistant for two years while serving St. Anthony Parish from 2019 to the present. In 2020, he was a virtual catechesis teacher at Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in South Orange in the Newark Archdiocese. Penagos was an RCIA professor, an altar-server trainer, and a Vacation Bible Course developer at St. Margaret of Scotland in 2023.