WARWICK — Philosophically speaking, the only actual difference between a blessing and a curse is our perspective. The lens and filter through which we choose to view our reality.
If, for example, we’re an otherwise healthy, twenty-something newlywed working nonstop toward our expected American dream, then we suddenly wake one morning to find we’ve lost the use of our left arm — our dominant arm — we could elect to wallow in self-pity and anger at God. Which, truth be told, is essentially how Warwick native Sean Magiera first behaved a quarter-century ago upon being diagnosed with a rare neurological disorder called chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP).
“Doctors originally told me, if it didn’t come back within a year, I would never have use of it again,” recalls Magiera, whose debilitating side effect persisted for the next five. An emergency medical technician (EMT) at the time, Magiera’s full-speed-ahead lifestyle came to a screeching halt. During this period of personal upheaval, he experienced what he describes as his very own St. Paul-like, road-to-Damascus moment.
“You get those voices when God’s talking to you,” he explains, “and He just simply said to me, ‘You wouldn’t stop. How else was I going to get you to listen?’ It was clear as day in my head.”
Magiera, who grew up in the Catholic faith, realized just how far he’d begun to drift — perhaps unwittingly, to a certain extent — from the Church that he always loved.
“There were times,” he confesses, “I wasn’t always the best Catholic. Working all these hours all over the place, not always so devoted to going to Mass. And that turned me around. That got me right back into church. Got me more focused.
“Yes, I have a disease,” he adds. “Is it easy? No, but most people would see it as a curse. Honestly, it has been beyond a blessing, because it drew me and my wife closer together ... and it drew me into this.” This, being the Diaconate Program of Formation for the Diocese of Providence.
After his diagnosis, Magiera and his wife, Lisa, started attending Mass regularly at St. Kevin Church in Warwick. Later, because of their two daughters, they got more and more involved, including with faith formation, eucharistic ministry, and whatever else would give them an excuse to immerse themselves in the church environment. At St. Kevin, they met and often served alongside its deacon, John Fulton, Ph.D., whose witness inspired Magiera to consider becoming one, too.
Deacons come in two varieties: transitional and permanent. The first are deacons on the path to become ordained priests in the Catholic Church.
For those like Magiera, a so-called permanent diaconate represents an especially attractive opportunity for married men who feel the call to serve the Church in ordained ministry.
To be accepted into the formation program, which is opened periodically, applicants must meet certain criteria and agree to undergo a rigorous course of collegiate-level study that takes years to complete. Once ordained, deacons are assigned to a parish (not necessarily the one they normally attend, though they can request it). Deacons can then proclaim the Gospel and may deliver homilies at Mass, oversee Bible study groups, lead Order of Christian Initiation of Adults programs (OCIA), offer blessings for people and items (rosaries, water, etc.), visit the infirm, and serve in other ministries.
For married candidates, their wives’ approval is not just a luxury, but a prerequisite for entry into the program. If at any point, up to the last minute, a wife decides she cannot support her husband’s vocation as a deacon, he must withdraw.
While candidates can be celibate, all seven men in the 2026 Class are married. Five of them are native Spanish speakers, including Johnston resident Enmanuel Cabrera. Like Magiera, Cabrera also heard God’s voice, not in his head, but in his ears. While listening to a homily during Mass in a New York church, Cabrera believed the words he heard were meant especially for him. “It was Jesus,” asserts Cabrera, “telling me to serve him by becoming a deacon.”
As soon as he returned to Rhode Island, he inquired with the diocese and began the process.
“I’m glad that he called me like that,” adds Cabrera. “In the program, I’m learning a lot about the Church. I’m very happy, and my wife is very, very happy for me. I’m ready to serve wherever the diocese needs me.”
At Magiera’s home parish of St. Kevin on October 26, Cabrera joined his six classmates for a Mass with the Rite of Installation as Acolytes, one of the milestones they’ll progress through before their expected ordination next year. Bishop Thomas J. Tobin, who called for this class of deacon candidates to be formed while he was still Bishop of Providence, presided over the ceremony.
The Diocese of Providence’s next Deacon Class features 16 men who began their studies this past spring and hope to be ordained in 2029. In the meantime, the current seven find themselves another step closer to the beginning of an exciting new season of their lives.
Astonishingly, the 50-year-old Magiera earns his living today working for his brother’s construction company. The man once forced to abandon his EMT career because he couldn’t handle delicate medical equipment now wields sophisticated power tools, having regained much of the movement in his dominant left arm.
“It’s been a wonderful, just a wonderful journey,” he exclaims. “Obviously, it’s a disease. It’s not the most thrilling thing, but it’s not the worst. I have a lot of muscle cramping. It comes and goes. The doctors don’t understand why it’s working, but it does.”
Magiera believes he knows the reason. God willing, he’ll become Deacon Sean at some point in 2026. As he advances toward that goal, he recognizes his inexplicable recovery as God’s hand at work. A reward for slowing down, listening, and finally focusing on the faith-centered life that his Creator wanted for him all along.
