The Fireman (AKA, "The Deacon")
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| Actor Jonathan Roumie, who plays Jesus in the TV series "The Chosen" here portrayed in firefighter turnout gear. He claims to have worked with firefighters in the past. |
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| Actor Jonathan Roumie, who plays Jesus in the TV series "The Chosen" here portrayed in firefighter turnout gear. He claims to have worked with firefighters in the past. |
When I was in high school, some members of our class visited a major seminary to meet Catholic deacons in the year prior to being ordained priests. Today, these guys would be referred to as "transitional deacons," since Pope Paul VI restored the deaconate in the Catholic Church as a permanent ministry by the 1967 Apostolic letter Sacrum Diaconatus Ordinem.
Unlike transitional deacons (and priests) in the Latin (Western Rite) Catholic Church, married men may be ordained to the permanent deaconate, although they are not normally allowed to marry afterward. One such is a preacher in our church, a retired local fire chief who was named Fire Chief of the Year for 2014-2015 by the Mississippi Burn Foundation. There is a June 26, 2022 entry on Facebook about him, in which a certain Jenny Bosarge Hillyard and allegedly 29 others claimed that he was "...PHENOMENAL. He was certainly called by God to to spread the word of the Lord.,," Given that The Deacon's Bench website for June 27th, 2022, given the date of his ordination as "this morning," I'm not sure on what event she based her judgment. I have to admit, though, I agree with her sentiment. I think he definitely knows what he's doing.
One day, I ramarked casually to him about a deacon being like a fireman, "saving people from fires." This got me to thinking more about how experience as a firefighter, saving people from fires, might have prepared one for service as a representative, and model, of Jesus Christ, which is what a deacon is. I had to consult Wikipedia about some of the things that a firefighter is or does. The doings of Jesus are pretty well covered in Scripture. Here is what I found:
| About firefighters | About Jesus |
|---|---|
| The firefigher is a servant of his community. According to an article in the "The Seacoast echo", "this man's name is synonymous with "community servant," | Jesus came to minister, and to give his life for many. Matthew 20:28, Mark 10:45 |
| It goes on to say that he has served the fire service as a genuine example of a leader and mentor." | Jesus was acknowledged as a teacher, master and lord. John 13:13 |
| He has always taken time with his fellow firefighters to ensure they capture the knowledge necessary to be the best they can be. | He encouraged his followers to be perfect Matthew 5:48 and John 20:21 sent them as he, himself had been sent |
| A firefighter is a first responder trained in public safety and emergency response such as firefighting. His (or her) primary activity is control and extinguish fires. | There are a number of passages in the New Testament in which Jesus warned about the danger of fires: Matthew 5:22 13:40-50, 18:9, 25:41, Mark 9:43-49, Luke 3:17, John 15:6, etc. |
| He is first to respond to emergencies that threaten life, property and the environment | He is the one to call upon to be saved. Romans 10:13 |
| He rescues persons from unexpected confinement or dangerous situations and preserves evidence. | The Spirit of the Lord was upon Jesus, because he had anointed him to preach the gospel to the poor. He had sent him to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, recovering of sight to the blind, and to set at liberty them that are bruised, Luke 4:18 |
| Firefighters may also provide some degree of emergency medical service. Some certified as emergency medical technicians in order to deliver basic life support, and, more rarely, as paramedics to deliver advanced life support. | There are numerous instances of Jesus healing the sick and disabled, i.e.: Matthew 5:23-24, 8:3, 7, 9:20-22, 27-30, 11:3-5, 12:13, 22,15:30, 20:30-34, 21:14, Mark 1:40-42, 3:5, 8:22-25, 10:46-52, Luke 4:18, 5:24, 6:10, 7:3-10, Luke 14:4, 17:12-15, 18:41-43, John 4:47-53, 5:5-9, 9:1-7, 11:43-44 |
| Their most common method of extinguishing a fire is done by dousing the fire with water. | Water is seen in the New Testament as being the most effective method of purifying someone or something and making him (her, it) holy. In particular the sacrament of Baptism does this. Instances of baptism found in the New Testament include: Matthew 3:1-17, 20:22-24, 21:25, Mark 1:4-9, 10:38-39, 11:30, Luke 3:3-21, 7:29, 12:50, 20:4, John 1:25-33, 3:22-26, 4:1, Acts 1:5, 2:41, 8:12-13, 16, 36-38, 9:18, 10:47-48, 11:16, 13:24, 15-33, 18:8, 19:3-5, 22:16, Romans 6:3-4, I Corinthians 1:14-17, 12:13, 15:39, Galatians 3:27, Ephesians 4:5, Colossians 2:12, Hebrews 6:2, I Peter 3:21. The necessity of baptism can be found in: Matthew 28:19, Mark 16:16, Luke 3:3-21, Luke 7:29, John 3:5, Acts 2:38 |
| Sometimes the water has to be brought to the fire by pumper trucks, tanker trucks, fire hose, and fire extinguishers. | Like the tanker trucks and their operators, the Church supplies the matter and ministers of this sacrament. CCC 977-981 |
| Firefighters rescue persons from confinement or dangerous situations such as burning buildings and crashed vehicles. | Saving people from dangers to salvation was the mission of Jesus. Luke 3:6, 4:18, John 10:10, II Timothy 2:10, 3:15, Hebrews 5:9 |
| Firefighters frequently give fire prevention talks at schools and community events to advise the public on how to prevent fires | He did this by teaching the those around him and sent his disciples to do likewise. Matthew 4:23, 9:35, 11:1, Mark 4:1, 6:2, 6, 34, Luke 5:17, 13:10, 22, 21:37 |
| Other methods of fire prevention are by directing efforts to reduce known hazardous conditions or by preventing dangerous acts before tragedy strikes. | Much of Jesus' teaching was to "beware" of dangers to their happiness and ultimate salvation. Matthew 7:15, 10:17, 16:6, Mark 12:38, Luke 12:1, 15, 20:46 |
| Firefighters have occasionally been assaulted by members of the public while responding to calls. | The same thing happened to Jesus and his followers. Mark 13:13, Luke 6:22, 21:17 |
| Finally. theirs is a hazardous occupation, and they are usually at risk, and sometimes killed, protecting those they serve. | And as we know, Jesus died in the performance of his rescue of mankind from the dangers of sin. Matthew 20:28, John 3:16 |