Dcn Kevin Murrin

It’s not out of character for Deacon Kevin Murrin to mull over things. He earned a Ph.D. in Political Science at Ohio State by analyzing the trade patterns of the most powerful countries in the world.

His responsibilities at Huntington National Bank involve analyzing large sets of data to create credit policies. And, his path to the deaconate was a slow but steady analysis over the span of a decade. “My vocations developed slowly, or at least my realization of it did,” said Deacon Murrin. “Even when I was in college, some had asked if I wanted to be a priest. However, I never felt the call to be a priest.”

While working on his graduate degree at OSU, he met his wife, Arlene, at the Newman Center and they have been married for 19 years. The couple, members of Church of the Resurrection in New Albany, has four children: Isaac, 17, David, 15, Matthew, 11, and Elizabeth, 9.

About five years into their marriage, Deacon Murrin developed an interest in the deaconate and he began exploring this ministry. “Similar to dating my wife, the more I learned about the diaconate, the more this ministry to the church feels right,” he said. “Nevertheless, my deepening of the call continued to develop over time.” Deacon Murrin met with deacons and discussed discernment and continued his involvement in parish life, helping with Pre-Cana preparation, ministry of the sick, liturgical ministry, coaching soccer and as RCIA Director.

The pondering and considering ended abruptly as he was teaching RCIA one evening. For several years, he had been using Caravaggio’s painting “The Calling of St. Matthew” to discuss how the candidates and catechumens may be thinking about their response to God’s call to join the Catholic Church.

“It struck me that I was, in many ways, the same as St. Matthew,” he said. “I have been considering the deaconate for some time, hearing the call, yet I always found some reason why now was not the right time, why someone else would be better. I again hear the call of the Lord but this time I would put into His loving care all of the obstacles for me entering the diaconate.”

With the analysis complete, Deacon Murrin said he plans to be guided by, “the most common words spoken by Jesus after His resurrection, ‘Be not afraid.’”