Key Descriptions of Deacons Based on the Ordination Service

Frequent Personifications of the Deacon

• A person ordained to lead and live out the Servant Ministry of Jesus Christ in the church and in the world
• An icon- inviting model and image- of Servanthood in the life and worship of the congregation
• A bridge between the church as gathered, worshiping community and the pain, needs, and broken-ness of the world
• A prophet of social justice and compassionate action, calling all the people of God to live the servant ministry of their Baptismal Covenant
• A leader, teacher, and nurturer of the church's social ministry

The Role of the Deacon

Key phrases from the charge in the ordination service for deacons lay out the life of diaconal ministry. Deacons are called to…

1. A Special Ministry of Servanthood Directly Under the Bishop

• A key relationship (historically and today): a voice of support for the bishop's vision for social ministry
• The expression of servant ministry as leadership
• The willingness and ability to move and to go where sent
• The freedom from parochial limitations

2. Serve All People (in the name of Christ), Particularly the Poor, the Weak, the Sick, and the Lonely

By extension, they also serve the marginalized, the alien, the ostracized, rejected, ignored, despised, and forgotten. The deacon primarily focuses to ensure that ALL God's people have a place at the banquet table; therefore, the diaconate is a ministry that makes concrete the inclusiveness of the Gospel.

3. Study Holy Scripture, to Seek Nourishment and Model One's Life on Them

Diaconal ministry is profoundly grounded in scripture, and deacons are called to a strong scriptural practice and profession. Where deacons are charged to find and live their lives and ministries out of the Word, priests are charged to use scripture as a resource. To embody the Gospel that deacons proclaim, deacons must live deeply into it.

4. Make Christ's Redeeming Love known to All Among Whom They Live, Work, and Worship

Diaconal ministry is exercised in the faith community AND in the household AND in the workplace- at the same time. Servanthood is a signature in all these arenas of life for the Deacon. In this way, the deacon leads all the baptized by example.

5. Interpret to the Church the Needs, Hopes, and Concerns of the World

The Deacon is often called a bridge; has one foot in the church and the other in the world. This is so that the gathered community is alway mindful of, holds up in prayer, and responds to in life the pain, brokenness, and hunger of the wider world.

6. Assist in Public Worship

Deacons model a role of service and proclamation in liturgy. Note that this is part of the charge, but only part. The Deacon's role in is always subsumed under service and is an arena for modeling and speaking the diaconal message. A Deacon is not primarily a liturgical person.

7. At all times, in Life and Teaching, Show Christ's People that in Serving the Helpless, they serve Christ

Deacons "show" [hence the language of Deacon as "icon"] and teach the baptized how to live out the Baptismal Covenant.