Bishop W. Shawn McKnight of the Catholic Diocese of Jefferson City will ordain 13 men into the order of deacons during a ceremony Saturday morning.
The men are to receive their sacraments of the Holy Orders at 10 a.m. at the Cathedral of St. Joseph, 2305 W. Main St. in Jefferson City.
The mass is limited to invited guests, but the diocese is providing a livestream of the ceremony on its Facebook page (@diojeffcity) and on its website, diojeffcity.org.
Deacons serve multiple roles and hold numerous responsibilities in the Catholic Church. They may conduct funerals and wakes; witness marriages; and participate in liturgy, preaching, teaching, or leading prayer and baptism.
All 13 men are married. They join 70 other permanent deacons in active service in the diocese.
Those receiving the sacrament are Jon Bequette, of Hallsville; Michael Berendzen and William Seibert, of Jefferson City; Brad Jones, of Lohman; Chris Korte, of Kirksville; Luke Mahsman, of Palmyra; Jaime Medina, J. Amapro and Luis Reyes, of Marshall; Nestor Montenegro, of Sedalia; Chris Sago, of Moberly; Robert Schowengerdt, of Clark; and John Watkins, of Hannibal.
The men's pastoral assignments are to be announced at a later date.