Tom Kimble is an engineer. So, in his studies to become a permanent deacon of the Paterson Diocese, he has been drawn to classes like Revelation and Faith and Moral Theology.
“I’m a nuts and bolts guy,” said Kimble of St. Jude Thaddeus Parish in the Budd Lake neighborhood of Mount Olive. Yet he was surprised at how much he enjoyed his Christian Anthropology class. “The professor went about it beautifully, probing questions like, ‘What is a human person?’ and ‘Why does that matter?’ and pointing out that “God is three persons.”
The course will help him understand “the human side” of being a deacon, to serve God and neighbor, “to help me listen better, and to try to help people,” said Kimble, who is in a cohort with seven other men from the diocese who are on track to be ordained to the permanent diaconate in 2026.
The diocese’s diaconate academic studies are held at St. Paul Inside the Walls in Madison, and they are provided by the Center for Diaconal Formation at Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology at Seton Hall University in South Orange. Kimble said the professors are “amazingly intelligent and kind.”
The seminary and diocese began collaborating in 2011 to provide the diaconate intellectual formation. Deacon William Ruane, Permanent Diaconate director, was part of the second class of men who pursued their academic studies through the seminary. Even after years as vice president and associate general counsel for Wyeth, Deacon Ruane found becoming a student again an adjustment.
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“Whether one has college or post-graduate experience or not, returning to an academic environment after decades away is a daunting prospect. Despite the challenges, the academic formation provided by Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology is enriching in every way — spiritually, vocationally, and personally — and gives candidates a solid theological education,” said Deacon Ruane, who serves at St. Matthew the Apostle Parish in Randolph.
Kimble agrees that academic rigor is there for good reasons.
“It’s an ordained ministry; we’ll be performing baptisms, giving homilies, and providing spiritual guidance to people. We need to be formed properly,” Kimble said.
The seminary professors also speak at workshops for men discerning the vocation, known as “aspirants,” and their wives.
Deacon Andrew Saunders led the seminary diaconate program for several years and is co-director of the 4:12 Pathway for Pastoral Leadership Grant.
“One of the great examples of the success of our collaboration is that several former students have become diaconate leaders focused on forming future generations of deacons for their diocese,” Deacon Saunders said.
One of those leaders is Deacon Ruane.
“Other than my marriage, it’s been the best experience of my life. I’m still very close with the men I was ordained with,” Deacon Ruane said.
Kimble says the men in his class support each other.
“They’re my new brothers. We pick each other up all the time,” said Kimble, adding that he is grateful for the seminary faculty. “They’ve done a terrific job forming us to be good ministers, deacons, and good servants of the Church who can help people.”
