Deacons: Emissaries of the Kingdom
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The ministry of Catholic deacons is often understood as a ministry of service to those in need. In this model of the diaconate, the deacon’s chief concerns are service to the poor and the pursuit of social justice. This model stresses the role of deacons “in the field of human development and the promotion of justice,” and remains the dominant model in Catholicism today.1
This vision of the diaconate, while commendable, begs an important question: is the diaconate necessary?
If the deacon is primarily a social worker – a position already capably filled by laypeople – then it is reasonable to conclude that deacons are unnecessary. When framed as a ministry whose purpose is “service of others,” which happens to be “a mandate from which no Christian can be excluded,” the diaconate may appear superfluous.2 Many dioceses throughout the world have arrived at this conclusion, and today resist the restoration of the permanent diaconate.3
This situation is due, at least in part, to the belief that charitable service is the defining characteristic of the diaconate. This understanding is based on the nineteenth century interpretation of diakonia as self-giving service to the needy. While service to those in need is one aspect of diakonia, later scholarship demonstrates that it is neither the sole nor the primary
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1 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, National Directory for the Formation, Ministry, and Life of Permanent Deacons in the United States (Washington, D.C.: USCCB Publishing, 2005), no. 107.
2 John N. Collins, Diakonia: Re-Interpreting the Ancient Sources (New York: Oxford University Press,
2009), 44.
3 John N. Collins, Deacons and the Church: Making Connections Between Old and New (Leomister, Herefordshire: Morehouse Publishing, 2003), 2.
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meaning of the term. The service encompassed in diakonia, as it turns out, includes far more than works of charity.
The Meaning of Diakonia
In antiquity, the word diakonia primarily meant service on behalf of someone greater. It was most often used to indicate service on behalf of the gods or on behalf of the state.4 The term did not primarily refer to service for the benefit others (such as the needy), which is how it is used today. Rather, diakonia was understood to mean “actions undertaken in the name of another person.”5
A person who carried out diakonia was referred to as a diakonos. As understood in antiquity, a diakonos “is one who is commissioned to fulfill a vital task, to carry out a mission on behalf of another, an executive who acts on behalf of a constituted authority.”6 In the literature of the period, the word diakonos could also correspond to an angel who conveys an announcement.7
While “servant” is a common translation of diakonos, the word “emissary” is the translation favored by some,8 as it better captures the nuances implied by the term. A diakonos was not a common servant who performed menial tasks. Rather, a diakonos was someone trusted by a higher authority to fulfill an important commission. Carrying out that commission was the
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4 Paula Gooder, “Diakonia in the New Testament: A Dialogue with John N. Collins,” Ecclesiology 3, no. 1 (2006): 35.
5 Klaus Kiessling, “Humble Waiting-on-Tables or Missionary Going-Between?,” New Diaconal Review
1, no. 4 (2010): 35.
6 Paul Avis, “The Diaconate: A Flagship Ministry?,” Theology and Ministry 2 (2013): 2.10.
7 Athenagoras Peckstadt, “The Deacon in the Orthodox Church,” Eastern Churches Journal 8, no. 1 (2001): 44.
8 Gooder, “Diakonia in the New Testament: A Dialogue with John N. Collins,” 46.
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“service” that the diakonos performed. The word “emissary” effectively conveys this distinction, since in the ancient world “emissaries (diakonoi) were often sent by a king or other high-ranking individual to transact business on the ruler’s behalf.”9
This understanding of diakonia and diakonos is substantiated by the scholarship of John N. Collins.10 His work demonstrates that these terms were primarily used to indicate commissioned service to a higher authority in Greek literature and the New Testament.11 Other scholars, such as Anni Hentschel, have independently arrived at the same conclusions.12 These scholars “agree that the diakon word group does not have the exclusive or general meaning of humble service motivated by love for one’s fellow man but rather appears in the semantic context of a representative, messenger or envoy.”13 Collins’s interpretation of these words is now widely accepted, and the majority of scholars agree with his linguistic conclusions.14
This change in scholarly opinion is reflected in the 3rd edition of A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, which was published in 2000. This authoritative work lists the first definition of diakonia as “service rendered in an intermediary capacity, mediation, assignment” and it defines diakonos as “one who serves as an intermediary in a transaction, agent, intermediary, courier” or as “one who gets something done, at the behest of a superior, assistant to someone.” Notably, it lists “Christ as God’s agent” as an example of
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9 Benjamin L. Hartley, “Deacons as Emissary-Servants: A Liturgical Theology,” Quarterly Review, 1999, 375.
10 Gooder, “Diakonia in the New Testament: A Dialogue with John N. Collins,” 34–35.
11 John Hunwicke, “Diaconia in the Tradition of the Roman Church (1),” Fr Hunwicke’s Mutual Enrichment (blog), May 2, 2017, https://liturgicalnotes.blogspot.com/2017/05/diaconia-in-tradition-of-
roman-church-1.html.
12 Avis, “The Diaconate: A Flagship Ministry?,” 2.9.
13 Gert Breed, “The Meaning of the Diakon Word Group in John 12:26 Applied to the Ministry in Congregations,” Verbum et Ecclesia 35, no. 1 (2014): 1.
14 Gooder, “Diakonia in the New Testament: A Dialogue with John N. Collins,” 47.
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diakonos in the New Testament.15 This edition of the lexicon departs from previous versions in that it no longer associates diakonia or diakonos with serving at tables, but instead connects both words with serving as an intermediary or agent.16
Thus, it is evident that diakonia is service on behalf of – or representing – someone greater.17 Relating this to the office of deacon, a question emerges: on whose behalf does the deacon serve? Whom does he represent?
A Special Connection
By looking at the history of the diaconate, it becomes apparent that the diakonia of deacons was service on behalf of the Deity and the Church. First, deacons were “emissaries of God (as portrayed in the angel imagery).”18 Second, deacons were emissaries of the Church.19 They were understood to have a “commission from God mediated by the Church,” which was mediated through “the Bishop, who is the first diakonos of the local Church.”20
From the first centuries of the Church, a special connection existed between the deacon and his bishop. As is manifest in “the earliest scriptural and patristic evidence, the deacon has been
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15 Walter Bauer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, ed. Frederick William Danker, 3rd edition (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), 230.
16 Gooder, “Diakonia in the New Testament: A Dialogue with John N. Collins,” 46.
17 Gooder, 44–45.
18 Hartley, “Deacons as Emissary-Servants: A Liturgical Theology,” 376.
19 Gooder, “Diakonia in the New Testament: A Dialogue with John N. Collins,” 43.
20 Anthony Gooley, “Deacon: Herald of the Gospel,” The Pastoral Review, 2007, 11.
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associated in a unique way with the bishop.”21 The exceptional nature of this relationship is unambiguously highlighted in the third century Didascalia Apostolurum:
"Let the bishops and the deacons, then, be of one mind; and do you shepherd the people diligently with one accord. For you ought both to be one body, father and son: for you are in the likeness of the Lordship. And let the deacon make known all things to the bishop, even as Christ to His Father. But what things he can let the deacon order, and all the rest let the bishop judge. Yet let the deacon be the hearing of the bishop, and his mouth and his heart and his soul; for when you are both of one mind, through your agreement, there will be peace also in the Church."22
This passage testifies to the significance of the deacon’s bond with his bishop, which is also witnessed in the letters of St. Ignatius of Antioch.23 This evidence, along with other writings from the period, lead Collins to conclude that “the notion underlying the relationship between bishops and deacons is that of agent.”24
The historical record offers many examples of deacons functioning as agents of their bishops. In fourth century Rome, the deacons possessed a stronger connection with their bishop, the Pope, than did his priests. In fact, the deacons were entrusted with recommending candidates for the priesthood, whom they presented them to the Pope.25 Throughout the Church, deacons “were the bishop’s immediate and confidential collaborators. He charged them with special missions and
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21 William T. Ditewig, “From Function to Ontology: The Shifting Diaconate of the Middle Ages,” in A Companion to Priesthood and Holy Orders in the Middle Ages, ed. Greg Peters and C. Colt Anderson (Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2016), 349.
22 R. Hugh Connolly, Didascalia Apostolorum: The Syriac Version Translated and Accompanied by the Verona Latin Fragments (Wipf and Stock, 2010), 109.
23 Anastasios D. Salapats, “The Diaconate in Ignatius’ Epistles,” Theologia 70, no. 2–3 (1999): 516.
24 Collins, Diakonia, 243.
25 Edward R. Hardy, “Deacons in History and Practice,” in The Diaconate Now, ed. Richard T. Nolan (Washington: Corpus Books, 1968), 19–20.
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duties of inspection, and often enough the presbyters, who were elderly and retiring, fell into the background.”26
Deacons were often sent on special missions by their hierarchs, during which they would represent their bishops as emissaries. Throughout this period “deacons still bore the responsibility of conveying official letters among bishops and representing their bishops – including the Pope – at significant occasions and councils.”27 In fact, the Pope would send deacons to be his official representatives at the imperial court in Constantinople.28
It was customary for deacons to represent their bishops at synods and councils, when the bishops were unable to attend.29 There were even instances of deacons, serving as representatives of the Pope, presiding over archbishops and bishops at councils.30 As late as the Council of Trent, one of the three presidents of the council (from 1545-1547) was a deacon.31 Historically, the participation of deacons in Ecumenical Councils was not unusual.32 Athanasius of Alexandria, to name a famous example, played a vital role in the Council of Nicaea while still a deacon.33
During this era of history, it was common for deacons to be elevated to the episcopacy. In some local churches, it was customary to choose the next bishop from among the deacons. Otherwise, the diaconate was ordinarily held as a permanent office. As Henry Chadwick explains, “The
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26 Lev Gillet, “Deacons in the Orthodox East,” Theology 58 (1955): 417.
27 John Chryssavgis, Remembering and Reclaiming Diakonia: The Diaconate Yesterday and Today
(Brookline, Mass: Holy Cross Orthodox Press, 2009), 63.
28 Hardy, “Deacons in History and Practice,” 21–22.
29 Ditewig, “From Function to Ontology: The Shifting Diaconate of the Middle Ages,” 359.
30 Hardy, “Deacons in History and Practice,” 25.
31 Hardy, 26.
32 Photios Touloumes, “The Diaconate in the Orthodox Church,” accessed May 2, 2017, http://orthodoxyinfo.org/Diaconate.htm.
33 Chryssavgis, Remembering and Reclaiming Diakonia, 58.
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diaconate was not originally a probationary order for the presbyterate, but normally lifelong, unless a deacon was made a bishop. In great cities like Rome the office was powerful.”34
The power held by deacons led to tensions with the presbyterate. According to Lev Gillet, “the diaconate was very closely associated with the bishop and to some extent put the presbyterate in the shade. It provided an opportunity for the exercise of power, and in some cases attracted power-seekers.”35 As the influence of deacons was increasingly perceived to rival that of bishops,36 a backlash occurred.37
This resulted in the eventual suppression of the diaconate. “During the Middle Ages,” writes William T. Ditewig, “the diaconate transitioned from a mature, respected and even powerful order of ministry into a shadowy, secondary order whose members were in the final stage of preparation for ordination as presbyters.”38 The diaconate was degraded into an inferior clerical rank, whose functions were aesthetical and unnecessary.39 In practice, the diaconate “ceased to be a real office.”40 The once important role of deacons as agents or emissaries faded into memory.
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34 Henry Chadwick, The Early Church (Harmondsworth, Middlesex: Penguin Books, 1973), 48.
35 Gillet, “Deacons in the Orthodox East,” 415.
36 Chryssavgis, Remembering and Reclaiming Diakonia, 60.
37 International Theological Commission, “From the Diakonia of Christ to the Diakonia of the Apostles,” 2002,
http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/cti_documents/rc_con_cfaith_pro_05072004_di aconate_en.html.
38 Ditewig, “From Function to Ontology: The Shifting Diaconate of the Middle Ages,” 346.
39 Chryssavgis, Remembering and Reclaiming Diakonia, 64.
40 Josef Hornef, “The Order of Diaconate in the Roman Catholic Church,” in The Diaconate Now, ed. Richard T. Nolan (Washington: Corpus Books, 1968), 60.
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Restoration and Renewal
The Second Vatican Council made the monumental decision to restore the diaconate as a permanent order.41 The council also clarified and expanded church teaching on the diaconate. Church documents now recognize that the “diaconate is not an abridged or substitute form of the priesthood, but is a full order in its own right.”42
One of the fruits of this development is a definitive recognition of the sacramentality of the diaconate. Whereas some of the scholastics questioned its sacramentality,43 today the Catechism of the Catholic Church explicitly affirms it, stating that:
"Deacons share in Christ’s mission and grace in a special way. The sacrament of Holy Orders marks them with an imprint (“character”) which cannot be removed and which configures them to Christ, who made himself the “deacon” or servant of all."44
Also, the catechism states that the ordination of deacons “confers a gift of the Holy Spirit that permits the exercise of a ‘sacred power’ (sacra potestas) which can come only from Christ himself through his Church.”45 This confirms that ordination transforms the deacon, incorporating him into the ranks of the “essentially different.”46
Along with a new appreciation of the diaconate, the Second Vatican Council and subsequent Church teaching recognize the traditional connection between the bishop and the deacon.
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41 Paul VI, “Sacrum Diaconatus Ordinem,” 1967, http://w2.vatican.va/content/paul- vi/en/motu_proprio/documents/hf_p-vi_motu-proprio_19670618_sacrum-diaconatus.html.
42 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, National Directory for the Formation, Ministry, and
Life of Permanent Deacons in the United States, no. 50.
43 International Theological Commission, “From the Diakonia of Christ to the Diakonia of the Apostles.”
44 Catholic Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd edition (New York: Double Day, 2003), no. 1570.
45 Catholic Church, no. 1538.
46 Sarah Butler, “Women as Deaconesses,” Josephinum Diaconal Review, 2015, 51.
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Although the understanding of diakonia as service to the needy is present in church documents,47 elements of the deacon’s traditional role – as an agent of the bishop – are also acknowledged.
For example, the Congregation for the Clergy’s Directory for the Ministry and Life of Permanent Deacons speaks of the deacon’s “participation in the bishop’s ministry conferred by the Sacrament of Holy Orders and by canonical mission.”48 In a similar vein, Pope John Paul II, referencing Hippolytus’s Apostolic Tradition, teaches that the deacon’s ministry is “service to
the bishop.” As well, he refers to the deacon’s status as “the bishop’s helper.”49 Building on this, the National Directory for the Formation, Ministry, and Life of Permanent Deacons in the United States recognizes the “constant understanding of the Church that the deacon enjoys a unique relationship with the bishop.”50
Also, the Catechism of the Catholic Church states that:
"At an ordination to the diaconate only the bishop lays hands on the candidate, thus signifying the deacon’s special attachment to the bishop in the tasks of his 'diakonia.'51
Deacons are ministers ordained for tasks of service of the Church; they do not receive the ministerial priesthood, but ordination confers on them important functions in the ministry of the word, divine worship, pastoral governance, and the service of charity, tasks which they must carry out under the pastoral authority of their bishops."52
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47 Collins, Deacons and the Church, 10–11.
48 Congregation for the Clergy, “Directory for the Ministry and Life of Permanent Deacons,” in
Compendium on the Diaconate: A Resource for the Formation, Ministry, and Life of Permanent Deacons
(Washington, D.C.: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2015), no. 8.
49 John Paul II, “Functions of the Deacon in Pastoral Ministry,” in Compendium on the Diaconate: A Resource for the Formation, Ministry, and Life of Permanent Deacons (Washington, D.C.: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2015), no. 1.
50 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, National Directory for the Formation, Ministry, and Life of Permanent Deacons in the United States, no. 30.
51 Catholic Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 1569.
52 Catholic Church, no. 1596.
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The language used in the catechism to describe diaconal service is based on Lumen Gentium’s vision of the diaconate:
"At a lower level of the hierarchy are deacons, upon whom hands are imposed "not unto the priesthood, but unto a ministry of service.” For strengthened by sacramental grace, in communion with the bishop and his group of priests they serve in the diaconate of the liturgy, of the word, and of charity to the people of God."53
This framing of the deacon’s ministry as the diaconate of liturgy, word, and charity harkens back to the early Church.54 As we shall see, the deacon carries out this three-fold ministry on behalf of and “under the pastoral authority of the bishop.”55
Diaconate of the Liturgy
The liturgical life of the Church serves a crucial eschatological purpose.56 “Through signs and words,” writes B. David Kennedy, “the liturgy makes real the paschal mystery of Christ and reveals the eschatological reality of the Kingdom.”57
To fully comprehend the role and purpose of deacons, it is necessary to the consider the liturgical aspect of their ministry.58 As Georges Florovsky states, “the Eucharist is the heart and the center
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53 Vatican Council, “Lumen Gentium,” 1964, no. 29, http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat- ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html.
54 Hornef, “The Order of Diaconate in the Roman Catholic Church,” 67.
55 Catholic Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 1596.
56 Benjamin D. Williams and Harold B. Anstall, Orthodox Worship: A Living Continuity with the Temple, the Synagogue and the Early Church (Minneapolis, Minn: Light & Life Pub Co, 1990), 98.
57 B. David Kennedy, “The Liturgical Role of the Deacon in the Constantinopolitan Tradition,” New Diaconal Review 1, no. 3 (2009): 41.
58 B. David Kennedy, “The Liturgical Role of the Deacon in the Constantinopolitan Tradition Part II,”
New Diaconal Review 1, no. 4 (2010): 23.
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– and indeed the foundation – of the Church, which is herself the Body of Christ. The diaconate, as a distinct ministerial order, can be understood adequately only in this eucharistic setting.”59
The liturgical role of the deacon is especially prominent in the Byzantine rite. In fact, the prominence of the deacon is one of the characteristic features of the Byzantine liturgical tradition.60 In it the deacon performs a mediatory service, which Lev Gillet describes as follows:
"On the one hand, the deacon “serves” the priest (or bishop), who in turn “serves” God in the liturgy. In his capacity as assistant to, or representative of, the priest, the deacon receives offerings, censes, gives certain instructions to the faithful, reads the Gospel and may deliver a homily…
On the other hand, the deacon is in a certain sense the representative of the faithful vis-à- vis the priest; for instance, several times in the course of the liturgy he peremptorily requests the priest to perform such and such a ritual action."61
In this mediatory capacity, the deacon serves as a “bond of unity” between the celebrant and the faithful.62 This is consistent with the meaning of diakonos as “intermediary,” and diakonia as “mediation.”63 Hence, the deacon’s liturgical role also reflects his identity as an intermediary or emissary, a “go-between.”64
There is a long tradition that connects the order of deacons with the Levitical order of the Old Testament. This connection goes back to the early centuries of the Church,65 and reflects the
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59 Georges Florovsky, “The Problem of Diaconate in the Orthodox Church,” in The Diaconate Now, ed. Richard T. Nolan (Washington: Corpus Books, 1968), 95.
60 Florovsky, 86.
61 Gillet, “Deacons in the Orthodox East,” 419.
62 Touloumes, “The Diaconate in the Orthodox Church.”
63 Bauer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 230.
64 Hartley, “Deacons as Emissary-Servants: A Liturgical Theology,” 377.
65 Peckstadt, “The Deacon in the Orthodox Church,” 48.
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patristic tendency to find antetypes of the new covenant in the old.66 This connection is made explicit in the consecratory prayer for the ordination of deacons in the Roman Rite, which recalls how God “chose the sons of Levi” to be “ministers of your tabernacle.”67 Just as Levites assisted the priests and the High Priest in the liturgy of the Temple, so deacons assist the priests and the bishop in the liturgy of the Church.68 This connection with the Levites underscores the diaconate as being a cultic, liturgical role, more so than as a ministry of service to the needy.69
There is also a longstanding tradition of linking the ministry of deacons with the ministry of angels. Both John Chrysostom and Theodore of Mopsuestia make this connection.70 In the Byzantine liturgical tradition, the deacon is seen as “an angelic servitor assisting at the heavenly liturgy.”71 This interpretation is frequently reflected in Byzantine iconography.
In his treatise On the Divine Liturgy, Germanus of Constantinople describes how “the deacons, images of the angelic powers, go around with the thin wings of linen oraria as ministering spirits sent out for service.”72 The Ukrainian Catholic catechism, Christ – Our Pascha, expounds on this symbolism:
"Over the sticharion the deacon puts on the orarion. This is a long band which hangs over the left shoulder and which the deacon raises as he calls the faithful to prayer. The
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66 Thomas O’Loughlin, “The Perception of the Diaconate in the Early Middle Ages,” New Diaconal Review 1, no. 4 (2010): 45.
67 Catholic Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 1543.
68 John Hunwicke, “Diaconia in the Tradition of the Roman Church (2),” Fr Hunwicke’s Mutual Enrichment (blog), May 4, 2017, https://liturgicalnotes.blogspot.com/2017/05/diaconia-in-tradition-of-
roman-church-2.html.
69 John Hunwicke, “Diaconia in the Tradition of the Roman Church (4),” Fr Hunwicke’s Mutual Enrichment (blog), May 10, 2017, https://liturgicalnotes.blogspot.com/2017/05/diaconia-in-tradition-of-
roman-church-4.html.
70 Salapats, “The Diaconate in Ignatius’ Epistles,” 518.
71 B. David Kennedy, “Diaconate in the Eastern Churches,” Deacon Digest 3, no. 4 (1986): 34.
72 Germanus I, On the Divine Liturgy, trans. Paul Meyendorff (Crestwood, New York: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1984), 67.
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orarion symbolizes the wings of angels: deacons, like the angels who are 'ministering spirits' (Ps 103[104]:4; Heb 1:14), are at the service of the liturgical community."73
The connection between deacons and angels further supports the interpretation of deacons as emissaries or agents.74 The Hebrew word “angel” means “messenger or envoy.”75 This corresponds to “courier,” which is one of the meanings of diakonos.76 In the New Testament, Hebrews 1:14 speaks of angels as “spirits in the divine service (diakonian).”77 Just as deacons serve on behalf of the bishop,78 angels serve on behalf of the Lord.79 Throughout the scriptures, angels frequently function as envoys or intermediaries. Hence, the angel imagery associated with deacons further points to their role as emissaries.80
Finally, the association of deacons with angels reflects another truth: that the earthly liturgy of the Church is a manifestation of the eternal liturgy in heaven. In the heavenly liturgy, which is referenced in sacred scripture,81 angels serve as liturgical ministers in the worship of the Lord. Although it is not apparent to our human senses, the Church’s liturgy serves as “an entrance into the dimension of the Kingdom.”82 When the Church gathers to worship on earth, we are mystically joined to the worship in heaven. As Alexander Schmemann explains, the Eucharistic
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73 Synod of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Catechism of the Ukrainian Catholic Church: Christ - Our Pascha (Kyiv, Edmonton: Committee for the Catechism of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, 2016), no. 634.
74 Hartley, “Deacons as Emissary-Servants: A Liturgical Theology,” 376.
75 Matthias Joseph Scheeben, Joseph Wilhelm, and Thomas Bartholomew Scannell, A Manual of Catholic Theology: Based on Scheeben’s “Dogmatik” (London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Company, 1906), 376.
76 Bauer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 230.
77 Hartley, “Deacons as Emissary-Servants: A Liturgical Theology,” 376.
78 Catholic Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 1596.
79 Catholic Church, no. 351.
80 Hartley, “Deacons as Emissary-Servants: A Liturgical Theology,” 376.
81 Scott Hahn, The Lamb’s Supper: The Mass as Heaven on Earth (New York: Doubleday, 1999), 119– 20.
82 Williams and Anstall, Orthodox Worship, 93.
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liturgy is “the Church’s entrance into heaven, her fulfillment at the table of Christ, in his kingdom.”83 Through his liturgical ministry, the deacon participates in the liturgical diakonia of the angels, and serves as a diakonos of the heavenly kingdom.
Diaconate of the Word
It is also the diakonia of deacons to announce the Gospel message. This occurs within – as well as outside of – the Church’s liturgical life. Deacons proclaim the Gospel to the Church and to the world “in the name of their bishop.” Because of this sacred commission, the deacon is referred to as “herald of the Gopsel.”84 In the words of B. David Kennedy, “the deacon is the herald of the Good News, the angel that brings the glad tidings of salvation.”85
The association of deacons with the spread of the Gospel may have a linguistic component. In the New Testament, the word “diakonia” is sometimes used to designate the commission received by members of the Church to evangelize.86 In Acts of the Apostles, for example, the diakonia of Stephen and Philip includes “the ministry of preaching and witness.”87 Today, the deacon’s commission to share the good news is made manifest – in a concrete way – in his liturgical role as the proclaimer of the Gospel.88
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83 Alexander Schmemann, The Eucharist: Sacrament of the Kingdom, trans. Paul Kachur (Crestwood, N.Y: St. Vladimirs Seminary Press, 2003), 27.
84 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, National Directory for the Formation, Ministry, and Life of Permanent Deacons in the United States, 460.
85 Kennedy, “The Liturgical Role of the Deacon in the Constantinopolitan Tradition Part II,” 19.
86 Gooley, “Deacon: Herald of the Gospel,” 10.
87 Chryssavgis, Remembering and Reclaiming Diakonia, 41.
88 Gooley, “Deacon: Herald of the Gospel,” 14.
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The deacon’s connection with the Gospel is further attested to in the practice of the early Church. During the persecutions, the Church appointed deacons to be the custodians of Gospel books. When not in use, the deacons would hide these books in their homes. This was a vital and dangerous responsibility, as the guardians of Gospel books frequently faced martyrdom.89
As a preacher of the Gospel, the deacon is empowered by the Holy Spirit. Through his preaching, as in other aspects of his ministry, the deacon exercises the “sacred power” (sacra potestas)90 imparted by the sacrament of Holy Orders. For preaching is not a “personal gift,” but a “charism” that is given.91
The deacon’s diakonia of the word is not carried out under his own initiative. Rather, in his “evangelizing role, the deacon collaborates with the diocesan bishop,”92 and operates under the bishop’s authority. Hence, “the deacon is not an independent agent,” but teaches and preaches “on behalf of the bishop” and “the whole Church.”93 In this sense, as well, the deacon is an agent or emissary.
Diaconate of Charity
There is a tendency to find the purpose of the diaconate in Acts chapter 6, which chronicles the choosing of the Seven:
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89 Rosalind Brown, Being a Deacon Today: Exploring a Distinctive Ministry in the Church and in the World (New York: Morehouse Publishing, 2005), 54.
90 Catholic Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 1538.
91 Schmemann, The Eucharist, 79.
92 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, National Directory for the Formation, Ministry, and Life of Permanent Deacons in the United States, no. 107.
93 Touloumes, “The Diaconate in the Orthodox Church.”
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"Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, the Hellenists murmured against the Hebrews because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution. And the twelve summoned the body of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brethren, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” And what they said pleased the whole multitude, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Proch′orus, and Nica′nor, and Timon, and Par′menas, and Nicola′us, a proselyte of Antioch. These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands upon them."94
Based on this passage, it is often concluded that the diaconate was instituted to provide needy widows with sustenance. This frames the diaconate primarily as a ministry of service to the poor. According to this line of thought, the fundamental purpose of the deacon is to perform works of charity. Charitable service becomes “the distinctive and defining characteristic of a deacon.”95
If this understanding of the diaconate is accurate, it calls us back to the original question: is the diaconate necessary? After all, service to the needy – while of vital importance – is the duty of all Christians.96 What is the point of an ordained ministry whose purpose is to engage in work that all Christians should be engaged in already?
Upon closer scrutiny, the actual commission of the Seven is not clear-cut. Was their purpose really to “serve tables” of Greek-speaking (Hellenist) widows whom the Church “neglected in the daily distribution” of food? Such a scenario seems improbable, since we were told earlier, in Acts 4, that:
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94 Acts 6:1-6 (RSV).
95 Anthony Gooley, “Deacons and the Servant Myth,” The Pastoral Review 2, no. 6 (2006): 3–7.
96 Gooder, “Diakonia in the New Testament: A Dialogue with John N. Collins,” 55.
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"There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet; and distribution was made to each as any had need."97
Thus, according to Acts 4:34-35, there were no hungry, needy widows in the Church at that time. But two chapters later the Seven are appointed. Is Luke contradicting himself? Drawing from the work of John N. Collins,98 Anthony Gooley offers an alternative interpretation:
"If we take the Greek text, as it is reproduced in RSV, we are able to construct a better picture of what is really happening in Acts 6.1-7. The Greek speaking Christians are complaining that their widows are being neglected in the daily diakonia. In Acts the diakonia is the proclamation of the Gospel. They are neglected for two reasons, the Aramaic speaking Apostles predominantly concentrate their proclamation in the Temple and the widows, who cannot comprehend the language and for social reasons are mostly restricted to the home, are overlooked in this daily diakonia. The solution proposed by the Apostles and agreed to by the whole Church is to appoint seven from among the Greek speaking community to do that daily diakonia in the homes of the Greek widows or as the expression in the Greek has it, to minister tables. Both the Apostles and the Seven had been entrusted with the same diakonia which is to minister or proclaim the word."99
In other words, the common translation of Acts 6:1-6 is flawed. The original Greek says that the widows were being neglected in the daily “diakonia,” which the RSV translates as “distribution,” implying the distribution of goods. According to Collins, a preferable translation would be daily “preaching of the word.” Luke’s Greek speaking audience, familiar with the ancient usage of diakonia to indicate a sacred commission, would make this connection. This is especially
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97 Acts 4:34-35, RSV.
98 See Collins, Deacons and the Church, 47–58.
99 Gooley, “Deacons and the Servant Myth.”
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plausible when you consider that, throughout Acts, Luke uses diakonia to mean the preaching of the Gospel.100
According to this line of reasoning, the Seven were not waiters, appointed to deliver food to the widows. Rather, they were preachers – appointed to deliver the Gospel – in a language that the widows could understand. The Seven would preach to the widows “when Greek speakers came together at their tables.”101
This interpretation gains credence when you consider that, immediately following his ordination, Stephen is shown preaching.102 In fact, there is no reference to Stephen – or any of the Seven – engaging in works of charity. Instead, Stephen, “full of grace and power,” preaches the Gospel so effectively that he is martyred.103 Philip, likewise, serves as a preacher and evangelist. He proclaims the Gospel to the Ethiopian eunuch, baptizes him, and then spreads the Good News throughout a series of towns.104
Nonetheless, even if the ministry of the Seven only consisted of feeding widows, an important fact remains. The Seven were selected by the Apostles to carry out diakonia, a task commissioned by a higher authority.105 If they served food to the hungry, they did so as commissioned agents of the Apostles. Such a role is consistent with the full meaning of diakonia, as understood in antiquity. However, it is a stretch to conclude that serving food is the essence of diaconal ministry. Instead, it is more plausible that the crux of diaconal ministry is carrying out will of the Church, as mediated by the Apostles and their successors.
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100 Collins, Deacons and the Church, 56–57.
101 Collins, 57.
102 Gooder, “Diakonia in the New Testament: A Dialogue with John N. Collins,” 44.
103 Acts 6:8-7:60, RSV.
104 Acts 8:26-40.
105 Gooder, “Diakonia in the New Testament: A Dialogue with John N. Collins,” 44.
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It is in this spirit that the deacon engages in the ministry of charity. He is commissioned by the Church to seek out the poor and marginalized, ministering to them on behalf of the bishop. For deacons are “the bishop’s agents and representatives, acting on his behalf and in his stead,” serving as his eyes and ears.106
Historically, the deacon oversaw charitable works on the bishop’s behalf. He served as an “oeconomus,” managing the Church’s outreach.107 As “emissaries of the bishop,” deacons “were often placed in charge of coordinating ministries (particularly for the poor) among the local churches where the bishop had oversight.”108 Even today, the deacon’s “charitable and social work is done in the name of the hierarchy,”109 as it was in the early centuries of the Church. Thus, the deacon’s charitable work – like his other ministries – point to his identity as an agent of a higher authority.
Manifesting the Kingdom
By considering the deacon’s threefold ministry of the liturgy, of the word, and of charity, we have demonstrated that the deacon’s role is that of an emissary or agent. As an emissary who exercises a “sacred power” bestowed through the sacrament of Holy Orders,110 the deacon makes present that which he represents, which is the Church.
This leads us back to the central question: is the diaconate necessary?
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106 Florovsky, “The Problem of Diaconate in the Orthodox Church,” 83.
107 Kennedy, “Diaconate in the Eastern Churches,” 29.
108 Hartley, “Deacons as Emissary-Servants: A Liturgical Theology,” 376.
109 International Theological Commission, “From the Diakonia of Christ to the Diakonia of the Apostles.”
110 Catholic Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 1538.
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The answer must be yes, for the diaconate itself is a constitutive element of Christ’s Church. This is explicitly taught by Ignatius of Antioch in his epistle to the Trallians:
"In like manner, let all reverence the deacons as an appointment of Jesus Christ, and the bishop as Jesus Christ, who is the Son of the Father, and the presbyters as the sanhedrim of God, and assembly of the apostles. Apart from these, there is no Church."111
The diaconate is not superfluous, for the Holy Spirit established it as an essential component of the Church. During the Second Vatican Council, Cardinal Leo Jozef Suenens emphasized this to argue for the restoration of the diaconate. He maintained that “the diaconate is an essential part of the Church’s hierarchy, and to reject it would be to set aside an institution willed by God Himself.”112
Arguments against the diaconate usually reduce the office to function.113 If a layperson can perform the same functions, it is argued, then the diaconate is unnecessary. This reasoning is resoundingly rejected by the International Theological Commission:
"Finally, there are some who also throw doubt on whether in fact a non-ordained member of the faithful does perform exactly the same "munera" in the same way and with the same salvific effect as an ordained deacon. Even if they seem to be the same functions as are exercised by a non-ordained member of the faithful, the deciding factor would be what the deacon was rather than what he did: the action of the deacon would bring about a special presence of Christ the Head and Servant that was proper to sacramental grace, configuration with Him, and the community and public dimension of the tasks which are carried out in the name of the Church. The viewpoint of faith and the sacramental reality of the diaconate would enable its particular distinctiveness to be discovered and affirmed,
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111 Ernest Cushing Richardson and Bernhard Pick, The Ante-Nicene Fathers: Tanslations of the Writings of the Fathers Down to A.D. 325 (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1905), 67.
112 Hornef, “The Order of Diaconate in the Roman Catholic Church,” 76.
113 William T. Ditewig, “Deacons: Myths and Misperceptions,” Deacons Today: Servants in a Servant Church (blog), August 12, 2016, https://billditewig.wordpress.com/2016/08/12/deacons-myths-and-misperceptions/.
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not in relation to its functions but in relation to its theological nature and its representative symbolism."114
Wherever the deacon goes in his ministry, he makes the Church – which is “the kingdom of Christ now present in mystery”115 – manifest in the world. In this sense, the deacon serves an eschatological purpose. Through the diaconate of liturgy, he “highlights the reality of God’s reign.”116 Through the diaconate of the word, the deacon is a “herald of the Gospel,”117 proclaiming the coming of the kingdom. Through the diaconate of charity, his “ministry of compassion and social justice is oriented toward the coming reign of God.”118
Therefore, the deacon – as a commissioned envoy (diakonos) – attests to the presence of something greater than himself: God’s kingdom, of which the “Church is the seed and beginning.”119 Thus, in the words of Pope John Paul II, deacons “serve the kingdom of God in the world.”120 In time, when it reaches “the fullness of growth,” the Church “will appear in its eternal glory as the Kingdom of God.”121
As an emissary of this nascent kingdom, the deacon “witnesses to the coming reign of God,” but also “proclaims that the kingdom is, in part, already here.”122 This is the perhaps the foremost
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114 International Theological Commission, “From the Diakonia of Christ to the Diakonia of the Apostles.”
115 Vatican Council, “Lumen Gentium,” no. 3.
116 Hartley, “Deacons as Emissary-Servants: A Liturgical Theology,” 376.
117 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, National Directory for the Formation, Ministry, and Life of Permanent Deacons in the United States, no. 460.
118 Hartley, “Deacons as Emissary-Servants: A Liturgical Theology,” 376.
119 Catholic Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 567.
120 John Paul II, “Deacons Serve the Kingdom of God,” 1993, no. 7, http://www.ewtn.com/library/PAPALDOC/JP931005.HTM.
121 Vladimir Lossky, The Mystical Theology of the Eastern Church (Crestwood, New York: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1976), 178.
122 Hartley, “Deacons as Emissary-Servants: A Liturgical Theology,” 378.
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role of the deacon: he is an eschatological symbol, whose presence attests to the existence of a hidden realm in our midst, which slowly, steadily, strains toward completion.123
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