On the Solemn Feast of All Saints, November 1, 2025, four men answered the call to serve as transitional deacons in a ceremony at St. Joseph’s Seminary in Yonkers. Hundreds of family members, clergy, and friends filled the main chapel at the seminary to thank God and support the seminarians in their new role.
Joseph Haas stood up and proclaimed, “Present,” announcing that he was ready to serve the Archdiocese of New York. Haas was one of four men ordained as transitional deacons by Bishop Robert Brennan of Brooklyn on November 1. The others were Paul Zwolak for the Diocese of Brooklyn, and Patrick O’Brien and Dillon Vita for the Diocese of Rockville Centre. Bishop Brennan was the principal celebrant, also representing Cardinal Timothy Dolan of the archdiocese and Bishop John Barres of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, accompanied by the archdiocese’s Bishop Gerardo Colacicco, and Rector of St. Joseph’s Seminary Bishop Joseph Massa.
“I feel great,” Deacon Haas told The Good Newsroom after the ordination. “There are moments where the Holy Spirit really comes through. The fact that God has chosen someone like me with all my imperfections and simpleness and was able to do something this extraordinary. God is great.”
His home parish is St. Mary’s in Washingtonville.
Bishop Brennan emphasizes the Beatitudes
In his homily, Bishop Brennan reflected on the significance of the Beatitudes as a lens through which to understand the diaconate. “Jesus didn’t just teach these things. He lived them. He passed through them. He embraced them. This is His ministry. He entered into radical solidarity with us,” the bishop said, calling the new deacons to follow Christ’s example.
Bishop Brennan offered a profound definition of service: “To serve means living in a certain simplicity of life, sharing burdens, shouldering crosses, walking with people, and listening attentively to God’s people as instruments of God’s love and mercy.”
The bishop acknowledged that he had witnessed the men already living out their calling. “Gentlemen, what a privilege it is for me to have come to know you in these years,” he said. “I’ve seen you living out the Beatitudes: serving food at parishes and soup kitchens, visiting the sick in hospitals, ministering in prisons, accompanying people in hospice.”
Bishop Brennan implored the newly ordained deacons: “Please, please, stay close to Jesus.”
The four deacons will continue their studies at St. Joseph’s Seminary and are scheduled to be ordained to the priesthood in May 2026 at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.