Eight men ordained as deacons by Chicago Archdiocese

Eight men, six from the North suburbs, have been ordained as deacons by Cardinal Francis George. They had to complete a four-year program through the Institute for Diaconal Studies at the University of Saint Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary.

More than 98 percent of deacons are married with families and most are also engaged in outside occupations. The ministries that deacons perform include the teaching mission of the Church, caring for the poor, performing baptisms and marriages, conducting funeral liturgies, presiding at wake services and assisting the priest at Mass. The archdiocese has the largest diaconate in the Catholic Church with more than 600 deacons.

The new deacons in the North suburbs are:

• Miguel B. Alandy, St. Mary of the Annunciation Parish, Mundelein.

• Peter Hajdu, St. Emily Parish, Mount Prospect.

• John E. Herbert and Joseph Tony B. Valdez, St. Martha Parish, Morton Grove.

• Christopher M. Murphy, St. Nicholas Parish, Evanston.

• George K. Webster, St. Raphael the Archangel Parish, Old Mill Creek.

Most of the deacons were ordained Sunday in a ceremony at Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago. More information about the diaconate is at www.usml.edu.