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Deacons (diakonevw, diakonia, diavkono")
diakonevw
a word study from Gerhard Friedrich Kittel, The
Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, (
The concept of serving is expressed in
Gk. by many words which are often hard to differentiate even though each has its
own basic emphasis. ®
douleuvw means to serve as a slave, with a
stress on subjection. ®
qerapeuvw emphasises willingness for service and the
respect and concern thereby expressed (esp. towards God).
®
latreuvw means to serve for wages. In NT days it
had come to be used predominantly for religious or cultic duties.
®
leitourgevw denotes official public service to
the people or to the state, being used in the LXX for service in the temple and
in Christianity for service in the Church.
uJphretevw means at root to steer. In terms of
service, it signifies esp. the relation to the master to whom the service is
rendered. In Xenoph. ®
uJphrevth" is often used in the sense of
adjutant. As distinct from all these terms,
diakonevw has the special quality of indicating
very personally the service rendered to another. It is thus closest to
uJphretevw, but in
diakonevw there is a stronger approximation to
the concept of a service of love.
A.
diakonevw outside the NT.
1.
Fundamental to an understanding of
diakonevw in all its uses is the fact that it
has an original concrete sense which is still echoed in its figurative meanings.
In secular Gk.
diakonevw, which is first found in Herodot. and
is never too common, means a. “to wait at table”: Aristoph. Ach., 1015 ff.:
h[kousa" wJ" mageirikw`" komyw`" te kai; deipntikw`" aujtw`/ diakonei`tai;
Diod. S., V, 28, 4:
oiJ de; Galavtai …
deipnou`si de; kaqhvmenoi …
ejpi; th`" gh`" …
diakonou`ntai dÆ uJpo; tw`n newtavtwn paivdwn;
Athen., IX, 21:
o{tan ejranistai`", Karivwn, diakonh`/"; cf.
Plut. Virtutem
Doceri Posse, 3 (II, 440c). In particular it means
“to taste,” Ps. Luc. Asin., 53:
kai; pai`de" hJmi`n pareisthvkeisan oijnocovoi kaloi; to;n oi\non hJmi`n crusivw/
diakonouvmenoi; or “to direct a marriage-feast,”
Athen., IX, 20:
diakonou`men nu`n gavmou"; so also Athen., VI,
46; Dio Chrys.Or., 7, 65. b. Rather more generally it means “to provide or care
for,” Soph.Phil., 285 ff. In this sense it is often used of the work of women,
Plat.Leg., VII, 805e:
povteron h}n Qra`/ke" tai`" gunaixi;n crw`ntai kai; polla; e{tera gevnh,
gewrgei`n te kai; boukolei`n kai; poimaivnein kai; diakonei`n mhde;n diaferovntw"
tw`n douvlwn; Plut.Adulat., 22 (II, 63d):
hJ diakonou`sa presbu`ti". On the basis of these
original senses, it has c. the comprehensive meaning “to serve,” Hdt., IV, 154:
dihkonhvsein o{ ti a]n dehqh`/; Demosth., 9, 43:
tw`/ despovth/ diakonw`n; P. Oxy., II, 275, 10:
diakonou`nta kai; poiou`nta pavnta ta; ejpitassovmena aujtw`/.
In Greek eyes serving is not very
dignified. Ruling and not serving is proper to a man, Plat.Gorg., 492b. The
formula of the sophist: “How can a man be happy when he has to serve someone?”
expresses the basic Greek attitude (Plat.Gorg., 491e). This attitude is still
reflected in Plato’s characterisation of the servant as a contemptible flatterer
(Gorg., 521ab). In Gorg., 518, shopkeepers, bakers and others, as distinct from
physicians and the teachers of gymnastics, pursue activities for the nurture of
the body which are described as
douloprepei`" te kai; diakonika;" kai; ajneleuqevrou".
Service acquires a higher value only when rendered to the state, Demosth., 50,
2; Plat.Leg., 955cd:
tou;" th`/ patrivdi diakonou`ntav" ti dwvrwn cwri;" crh; diakonei`n.
Even the merchant, tradesman or moneylender can in his way render service in the
state, Plat.Resp., II, 371a ff. The statesman, however, does so directly, though
naturally in terms of an idealistic understanding. For the Greek, the goal of
human life is the perfect development of individual personality. This determines
the nature of service to others. Logically, the sophist argues, a real man
should simply serve his own desires with boldness and cleverness, Plat.Gorg.,
492a. Plato contradicts this, but his basic attitude is the same. The only point
is that a harmonious individual personality is for him interrelated to the
harmonious totality. Gorg., 508a:
fasi; dÆ oiJ sofoiv, kai; oujrano;n kai; gh`n kai; qeou;" kai; ajnqrwvpou" th;n
koinwnivan sunevcein kai; filivan kai; kosmiovthta kai; swfrosuvnhn kai;
dikaiovthta, kai; to; o{lon tou`to dia; tau`ta kovsmon kalou`sin.
The form of this
kovsmo" for social life is
politeiva. Hence the statesman rules as
diavkono" th`" povlew", not for the sake of
ruling nor for the sake of his own desires, but for the sake of the service laid
upon him, which consists supremely in the education of good citizens. Even this
service, however, is determined by the self-understanding of the ego as a
microcosm. Thus, even though it demands certain renunciations, it does not
entail any true self-emptying for the sake of others. Service is not one of the
powers which hold heaven and earth together, and it does not lead to sacrifice.
This view persists in Aristotle and
Hellenism. The significance of the
povli", however, gradually yields before a
stronger cosmic awareness in which the wise man has the sense of being a servant
of God, Epict.Diss., III, 22, 69; III, 24, 65. As such he is the instrument and
witness of God, Diss., III, 26, 28; IV, 7, 20. On the other hand, “if
expressions for service become more common in relation to God, they withdraw
into the background in relation to one’s neighbour.” To be sure, realisation of
the service to be rendered to God carries with it a certain interrelationship
with the totality of creation. But concrete obligations towards one’s neighbour
almost completely disappear. For the Greek in his freedom and wisdom there can
certainly be no question of existing to serve others.
2.
Judaism showed a much deeper understanding of
the meaning of service. Eastern thinking finds nothing unworthy in serving. The
relation of a servant to his master is accepted, especially when he serves a
great master. This is supremely true of the relation of man to God. It is
noteworthy that the LXX does not use the term
diakonei`n at all, but renders the Heb.
equivalents by ®
douleuvein, or, in the cultic sphere, by
®
leitourgei`n and
®
latreuvein. The harsher term
douleuvein is in no way thought to be
unsuitable.
Philo uses
diakonei`n in the general sense of “to serve,”
with a clear echo of the original meaning “to wait at table,” Vit.
Cont., 70:
diakonou`ntai de; oujc uJpÆ ajndrapovdwn;
cf. also Vit. Cont., 75. From the material
understanding of the concept of service one can see how Greek thinking softens
the severity of the Jewish view.
In Joseph.
diakonei`n occurs in three senses: “to wait at
table,” Ant., 11, 163:
eujqu;" wJ" ei\cen mhde; ajpolousavmeno" diakonhvswn e[speusen tw`/ basilei`
th;n ejpi; tou` povtou diakonivan; so also Ant.,
6, 52; 11, 166; 11, 188; a woman serves in the night: 18, 74; b. “to serve” with
the meaning of “to obey,” Ant., 9, 25:
basilikw`/ diakonw`n prostavgmati; cf. also
Ant., 17, 140; c. “to render priestly service,” Ant., 7, 365:
dievtaxev te mivan patria;n diakonei`sqai tw`/ qew`/ ejpi; hJmevra" ojktw; ajpo;
sabbavtou ejpi; savbbaton, at the Passover,
Ant., 10, 72:
tw`n iJerevwn …
diakonoumevnwn toi`" o[cloi".
B.
diakonevw in the NT.
Jesus’ view of service grows out of
the OT command of love for one’s neighbour, which He takes and links with the
command of love for God to constitute the substance of the divinely willed
ethical conduct of His followers. In so doing, He purifies the concept of
service from the distortions which it had suffered in Judaism. Jesus’ attitude
to service is completely new as compared with the Greek understanding. The
decisive point is that He sees in it the thing which makes a man His disciple.
1.
In the NT
diakonevw is first used in the original sense of
“to wait at table”: Lk. 17:8:
eJtoivmason tiv deipnhvsw, kai; perizwsavmeno" diakovnei moi e{w" favgw kai;
pivw; Jn. 12:2:
ejpoivhsan ou\n aujtw`/ dei`pnon ejkei`, kai; hJ Mavrqa dihkovnei, oJ de;
Lavzaro" ei|" h\n ejk tw`n ajnakeimevnwn su;n aujtw`/.
At table there is a palpable distinction between the worthy man reclining on the
couch and the girded servant or the attentive woman. It is thus a high honour
for the vigilant servants when their returning lord rewards them by girding
himself, setting them at table and coming to serve them (Lk. 12:37). The
astonishing act of Jesus in the appraisal of service is to reverse in ethical
estimation the relation between serving and being served (Lk.
The natural man—and especially the
Greek—would see no difficulty in answering the question who is greater, the one
who serves or the one who is served. It is obviously the latter. Jesus in His
emphatic statement (ejgw;
de; …) does not oppose to this view the general
thought that serving is greater than being served. Instead, He points to the
actuality: I am among you as a servant. This is said by the uncontested leader
of the disciples, by the Son of Man who knows that He is Lord of the
There is a variant reading of Lk 22:27 f. in Codex D. This
would give the following sense: “Better the leader be servant than the one who
sits at table. For I have come among you, not as one who sits at table, but as
one who serves. And you have grown through my service.” Blass and J. Weiss
regard this as the original version. It blunts, however, the sharpness of the
antithesis between the current view and that of Jesus, and reduces to mere
pedagogy the impressive reference to the manner and conduct of Jesus. It is
surely a later softening.
In a rather wider sense
diakonei`n means “to supervise the meal” in Ac.
6:2:
diakonei`n trapevzai". The reference is not
merely to the provision of food but to the daily preparation and organisation.
H. J. Holtzmann describes the men to whom this task was committed as organisers,
dispensers and overseers of meals,
trapezopoioiv. The
diakonei`n trapevzai" is brought into emphatic
contrast with the
diakoniva tou` lovgou, and embraces practical
love rather than the proclamation of the Word.
It is a debated question how this service, in which the
Hellenistic widows felt they were being overlooked, was executed in the period
depicted in Ac. 6, whether by the distribution of portions to those in special
need or by the arranging of common meals. The latter is more likely. For it
means that the overlooking of the Hellenistic widows was probably no mere matter
of partiality, and therefore of petty wrangling for the better portions, but a
radical difference of opinion on whether they should be admitted to the
fellowship and therefore whether they really belonged to the community. Possibly
such issues as the attitude to the Law and to the strict Jewish concept of
purity were already involved. For the committing of this service to the
Hellenistic Seven surely implies rather more than a purely external release of
the leaders of the community from administrative duties.
Martha’s care for her guest is
described as
diakonei`n in Lk.
2.
The same change in evaluation as we find in
respect of waiting at table applies everywhere in the NT to
diakonei`n in the wider sense of “to be
serviceable.” Sometimes the link with waiting at table may still be discerned,
as when it is said of the women who accompany Jesus:
ai{tine" dihkovnoun aujtoi`" (or
aujtw`/)
ejk tw`n uJparcovntwn aujtai`" (Lk. 8:3). Cf.
also Mt. 27:55; Mk. 15:41. In Mt. 25:42–44, however, Jesus comprises under the
term
diakonei`n many different activities such as
giving food and drink, extending shelter, providing clothes and visiting the
sick and prisoners. The term thus comes to have the full sense of active
Christian love for the neighbour and as such it is a mark of true discipleship
of Jesus. For what the Christian does to even the least of his fellowmen he does
to the Lord Himself. Here it is plain that “®diakonei`n
is one of those words which presuppose a Thou, and not a Thou towards whom I may
order my relationship as I please, but a Thou under whom I have placed myself as
a
diakonw`n.” In exact accord with His own
attitude as expressed in Lk. 22:26 f., Jesus draws from this basic insight the
demand of Mk. 10:43–45; Mt. 20:26–28:
o}" a]n qevlh/ mevga" genevsqai ejn uJmi`n, e[stai uJmw`n diavkono", kai; o}"
a]n qevlh/ ejn uJmi`n ei\nai prw`to", e[stai pavntwn dou`lo": kai; ga;r oJ
uiJo;" tou` ajnqrwvpou oujk h\lqen diakonhqh`nai ajlla; diakonh`sai kai; dou`nai
th;n yuch;n aujtou` luvtron ajnti; pollw`n.
Jesus consciously opposes this command to the natural order whereby the princes
of the nations lord it over them and their great ones exercise authority (Mk.
10:42; Mt. 20:25). The aim of Jesus and His disciples is not to set up human
orders in this world. Their concern is with the
This reversal of all human ideas of
greatness and rank was accomplished when the Son of Man Himself came, not to be
ministered unto (®
84, in exposition of Lk.
3.
This gives us at once the meaning of
diakonei`n in the community. According to 1 Pt.
4:10, every
charisma is a gift entrusted to man with the
condition that the man who has been blessed by it should serve as a good steward
of the manifold gifts of God. As there is at the beginning of this train of
thought (1 Pt. 4:7) an exhortation to prayer and brotherly love, so grateful
regard for God and concern for one’s neighbour together make the divine gift
which each is to receive into a gift which is owed to the neighbour. In 1 Pt.
4:11, as in Ac. 6, the
charismata are divided into ministry of Word and
ministry of act, the latter being specifically described as
diakonei`n. This ministry is to be discharged in
the power which God gives and to His glory alone. In true Christian service
there can be no thought of the righteousness of works or of religious pride. It
takes place both from God and to God.
The Christian has many opportunities
of service. Timothy and Erastus are assistants (diakonou`nte")
of Paul in the preaching of the Gospel (Ac.
4.
A particular service which played a great role
in the life of Paul was the gathering and transmission of the collection for the
saints in
5.
In the Past.
diakonei`n means “to discharge the office of a
deacon” (®
diavkono", 89): 1 Tm. 3:10, 13.
diakoniva
diakoniva denotes the activity of
diakonei`n. It Occurs in the various senses of
the latter both in secular Gk. and twice in the LXX: 1 Macc. 11:58:
kai; ajpevsteilen aujtw`/ cruswvmata kai; diakonivan
(where we have to render “table vessels of gold”); and Est. 6:3, 5 A:
oiJ ejk th`" diakoniva" (B:
diavkonoi).
In the NT
diakoniva means
1.
“waiting at table,” or in a rather wider sense
“provision for bodily sustenance.” Lk. 10:40:
hJ de; Mavrqa periespa`to peri; pollh;n diakonivan.
The supervision of the common meals in the early church is called
diakoniva kaqhmerinhv in Ac. 6:1 (®
85).
2.
It is also used for any “discharge of service”
in genuine love. Thus the house of Stephanas gave itself to the service of the
saints (1 C.
Service is orientated to the Gospel.
All effort to keep the Law is
diakoniva tou` qanavtou, diakoniva th`" katakrivsew".
On the other hand, faith in the glad tidings is
diakoniva tou` pneuvmato", diakoniva th`" dikaiosuvnh"
(2 C. 3:7–9). These phrases coined by Paul bring out the dialectical tension in
the Christian concept of service.
3.
It can also denote the “discharge of certain
obligations in the community.” The apostolic office is service acc. to R. 11:13;
2 C. 4:1; 6:3 f.; 11:8; Ac. 1:17, 25; 20;24:
th;n diakonivan, h{n e[labon para; tou` kurivou ÆIhsou`, diamartuvrasqai to;
eujaggevlion th`" cavrito" tou" qeou`; 21:19; 1
Tm. 1:12. So, too, is the office of the evangelist (2 Tm. 4:5), or the activity
of Mark, who combines personal service and assistance with missionary work (2
Tm.
4.
In keeping with Paul’s use of
diakonei`n the collection for
†
diavkono"
A.
General Uses of
diavkono".
1.
“The waiter at a meal,” Jn. 2:5, 9.
2.
“The servant of a master,” Mt.
3.
In the figurative sense, “the servant of a spiritual
power,” whether good or evil, 2 C.
When it is said in R. 15:8 that Christ
is a servant of the circumcision, this simply means, of course, that His work is
on behalf of
More difficult is Gl. 2:17: “If, then,
we who are accounted righteous in Christ are found to be sinners, is Christ a
servant of sin? By no means.” “Servant” here might be rendered “promoter.” This
would give us the following line of argument. In Jewish eyes everyone who does
not keep the Law is a sinner (®
aJmartwlov", I, 322; 325); this applies to all
Gentiles, with whom Jews may not hold table fellowship. Thus, if Christ causes
the Jews who follow Him to renounce the provisions of the Law, He is extending
the domain of sin which embraces all the Gentiles.—Yet it is not impossible to
keep to the stronger expression “servant of sin.” If we do, we must interpret
the saying in the light of Gl. 2:20. Christ Himself lives and acts in the man
who trusts in Him. If this man is found a sinner, this applies to the Lord
Himself dwelling within him, as though He were enslaved to sin. The absurdity of
the conclusion naturally illustrates the falsity of the presupposition, namely,
the Jewish view of sin.
4.
As
diakono" tou` eujaggelivou the apostle (®
ajpovstolo", I, 437) is
diavkono" Cristou` (2 C.
5.
Timothy is a “servant of God” to the degree that
with the preaching of the Gospel he confirms and admonishes the faith of the
Thessalonians (1 Th. 3:1–3). Timothy is also called a true servant of Jesus
Christ (1 Tm. 4:6). Epaphras is
suvndoulo" of the apostles and
diavkono" tou` Cristou` (Col. 1:7). Tychicus is
diavkono" ejn kurivw/ (Eph.
6.
Heathen authorities can also be called the servants
of God in the discharge of their office, since they are appointed by God and
have the task of maintaining God’s order in the world (R. 13:1–4).
7.
Paul describes himself in Col. 1:25 as a “servant of
the Church” (ejkklhsiva")
in virtue of his divinely given commission. Paul and Apollos are no more than
servants of both God and the Church as they use their gifts to bring the latter
to faith (1 C. 3:5).
B.
The Deacon as a Church Official.
1.
A distinction may be made between all these general
uses and the employment of the term as the “fixed designation for the bearer of
a specific office” as
diavkono" in the developing constitution of the
Church. This is found in passages where the Vulgate has the loan-word
diaconus
instead of the minister used elsewhere (cf. Phil. 1:1; 1 Tm. 3:8, 12).
Members of the community who are
called deacons in virtue of their regular activity are first found in Phil. 1:1,
where Paul sends greetings to all the saints in Philippi
su;n ejpiskovpoi" kai; diakovnoi". Already in
this phrase there emerges a decisive point for our understanding of the office,
namely, that the deacons are linked with the bishops and mentioned after them.
At the time of this epistle there are thus two co-ordinated offices.
We cannot gather with any certainty
from this reference what constituted the special work of these officers. It is
highly improbable that the reference is to two different aspects of the work of
the same men, since this is supported neither by the context nor by 1 Tm. 3:1
ff., 8 ff. Nor can there be any doubt that the description of office has here
become a definite designation. Nevertheless, we are not told what the offices
involved. Attempts have been made to deduce this from the contents of the
epistle. It has often been argued that special thanks are due to the bishops and
deacons for the affectionate gift which was sent to Paul in prison and which
they collected. This seems to be a very likely reason for the particular mention
of
ejpivskopoi and
diavkonoi in this epistle. E. Lohmeyer sets this
in the light of the main purpose of the epistle, namely, to strengthen the
Philippians in a time of persecution, in which their leaders were in prison. As
he sees it, this gives us the main reason for the special greeting to them.
There is no proof for this conjecture. The task of the
diavkonoi can in fact be deduced only from the
actual name of their office and from their later function.
That the diaconate stands in the closest relationship to the
episcopate is confirmed by 1 Tm. 3:1 ff. Here an account is first given of the
way in which a bishop must conduct himself (vv. 1–7), and this is followed by a
list of the requirements for a deacon (vv. 8–13).
Like the bishops, deacons must be blameless and temperate,
having only one wife and ruling their houses well. While the bishops must
satisfy many other demands, including an aptitude for teaching, deacons are not
to be doubletongued or avaricious—qualities necessary in those who have access
to many homes and are entrusted with the administration of funds. Yet inward
qualities are also demanded of good deacons. They are to hold the mystery of the
faith with a clear conscience.
That the primary task of deacons was
one of administration and practical service may be deduced a. from the use of
the term for table waiters and more generally for servants; b. from the
qualities demanded of them; c. from their relationship to the bishop; and d.
from what we read elsewhere in the NT concerning the gift and task of
diakoniva.
Appeal is frequently made to Ac. 6 in
explanation of the rise of the diaconate, though the term
diavkono" is not actually used. On this view,
the deacons undertake practical service as distinct from the ministry of the
Word. It is to be noted, however, that the Seven are set alongside the Twelve as
representatives of the Hellenists, and that they take their place with the
evangelists and apostles in disputing, preaching and baptising. This fact shows
(®
85) that the origin of the diaconate is not to be found in Ac. 6. It is
possible, however, that ideas gained from the existing diaconate influenced the
author when he gave its present form to his rather puzzling source concerning
the relationship of the Seven to the Twelve. If this is so, Ac. 6 may be
regarded as indirect evidence concerning the diaconate.
If we ask concerning the origin of the
diaconate, we must start with its relationship to the episcopate. It is
mentioned with this in the earliest sources, and was never separated from it.
The
diavkono" is not merely the servant of the
church, but also of the bishop. Two problems arise: a. how two integrated
offices came into existence; and b. how the Greek words
ejpivskopo" and
diavkono" came to be used to describe these
offices.
a.
There were two offices in the Jewish synagogues.
Conduct of worship was entrusted to the
ts,nEK]h' vaor, the
ajrcisunavgwgo", who was accompanied by the
ts,nEK]h' ÷Z¾j',
always translated
uJphrevth" and never
diavkono" in Greek. If any model is to be sought
for the Christian offices of bishop and deacon, this is where we shall find it.
It must be remembered, however, that the activity of the
ajrcisunavgwgo" and the
uJphrevth" is restricted to worship. The
direction of the synagogue is in the hands of the elders. There are also
collectors of alms (hq;d;x]
yaeB;G¾) who for their part have no connexion with
the conduct of worship. Thus we have in the Jewish community many points of
initiation for the Christian offices of bishop and deacon, but neither here nor
in paganism are there any exact models which are simply copied. The creative
power of the early Church was strong enough to fashion its own offices for the
conduct of congregational life and divine worship.
b.
The same is true of the terms adopted. These arose
in the world of Gentile Christianity, though Jewish Christianity contributed the
term
presbuvtero". Yet in pre-Christian Greek we
never find the words
ejpivskopo" and
diavkono" used in the Christian sense, whether
individually or in the distinctive Christian relationship. Early Christianity
took over words which were predominantly secular in their current usage and
which had not yet been given any sharply defined sense. It linked these words
with offices which were being fashioned in the community, and thus gave them a
new sense which was so firmly welded with the activity thereby denoted that in
all languages they have been adopted as loan-words to describe Christian
office-bearers.
The secular sense of
diavkono" corresponds to the meanings of
diakonevw and
diakoniva. It denotes one who waits at table,
Xenoph.Hier., 4, 1 f.; Demosth., 59, 33; with
oijnocovo" and
mavgeiro", Hdt., IV, 71 f.; Athen., X, 17; with
ajgorasthv", Xenoph.Mem., I, 5, 2; or
“messenger” with
a[ggelo", kh`rux and
spondofovro", Poll.Onom., 8, 137; Soph.Phil.,
497; “servant,” Aristot.Eth. Nic., VII, 7, p. 1149a, 27; Luc.Alex., 5;
turavnnou, Aesch.Prom., 944; “steward,” Demosth.,
59, 42; Aristoph.Av., 70 ff.; “as” sistant helmsman,” Xen.Oec., 8, 10 and 14;
“baker,” “cook,” “wine-steward” as
swmavtwn qerapeutaiv, Plat.Gorg., 518bc;
“statesman,” Plat.Gorg., 518b; of a woman “maid,” Demosth., 24, 197; 47, 52. It
is rare in the LXX, and occurs only in the secular sense. In Est. 1:10; 2:2;
6:3, 5 it is used for the courtiers and eunuchs of the king (Heb.
trev;m]). Acc. to Prv. 10:4, the fool shall be the
servant of the wise. In 4 Macc.
From these examples we can see that
the
diavkono" might have a cultic function. But it
is a long way from this pagan conception of the deacon to the Christian. If the
inscriptions teach us anything, it is that the original meaning of
diakonei`n (“to wait at table”) persisted. In
accordance with the saying and example of Jesus, early Christianity made this
the symbol of all loving care for others. Here is the root of the living
connexion between ethical reflection on service in the community and the actual
diaconate. Again, the persistent sense of waiting at table is reflected in the
fact that the Christian office had its origin in the common meal at the heart of
the life of the community, namely, the Lord’s Supper. Only in this way can we
understand the later history of the diaconate, which has always consisted in
assistance at divine service as well as in the external service of the
community.
With the episcopate, the diaconate
achieved its full stature only with the passing of the first, charismatic group
of apostles, prophets and teachers. The capacity for diaconate was also a gift
(1 C.
It is also stated that these succeed to the ministry of
prophets and teachers. Cf. also Herm.v., 3, 5, 1; s., 9, 26, The position of
deacons naturally changes with the rise of monepiscopacy. They become much more
subordinate in relation to the bishop. At the same time, a clear distinction
arises between deacons and presbyters. In 1 Cl., 44 presbyter is still an
imprecise term for the leaders of the community, but now three distinct offices
of bishop, presbyter and deacon emerge in this order (Ign.Mg., 2, 1; 6, 1). Thus
deacons are to have in the church an honour similar to that of Christ, bishops
to that of God (Tr., 3, 1). This gives us the basis of the later hierarchy,
though the development was slow. Deacons are assistants, representatives and
often successors of the bishops, e.g., Eleutherus in relation to Anicetus.
Shortly before 250 Fabian divided
2.
Alongside the deacons there were also deaconesses.
Their history begins with R. 16:1 where Paul describes Phoebe as
th;n ajdelfh;n hJmw`n, ou\san diavkonon th`" ejkklhsiva" th`" ejn Kegcreai`".
It is, of course, an open question whether he is referring to a fixed office or
simply to her services on behalf of the community. Similarly, there is no
agreement whether 1 Tm.