In the Archdiocese of Cincinnati this education is most easily obtained through the LPMP program, but there are other schools which provide the required education as well. Therefore, men in the Lay Pastoral Ministry Program are not taking classes in preparation for entry into the deacon program but to prepare themselves to minister whether they are called to the diaconate or not. The formation classes are on a three-year cycle corresponding to the length of the program and the need to give adequate attention to the men in formation and their families. A class will begin in September of 1998. Applications for the program are accepted from November through March preceding the beginning of a class in September.
Selection includes the receipt of all forms, certificates, transcripts, etc. as required.
Each man also takes a battery of psychological inventories and participates in an interview with a counseling professional. A deacon is called by the Archbishop , not the local parish community. Though a man is normally assigned to his home parish by the Archbishop, at the Archbishop's discretion he may be asked to serve somewhere else in the archdiocese where there is need for his ministry. Therefore, the question in the selection process is whether or not the archdiocese in the person of the Archbishop is calling a man to the permanent diaconate. The Archbishop entrusts the Diaconate Office with the responsibility of discerning whether a man has the appropriate motives, abilities, attitude and personality traits which are called for by Canon Law and the Guidelines of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops for permanent deacons.