A MINISTRY OF SERVICE . . .

The Revd Deacon Polly M. Bowen

In front of my computer monitor (and behind my keyboard) – where I can see it almost constantly as I work – is a picture of Jesus washing the feet of one of his disciples.  I keep it there year-round, to remind myself of the ministry of service to which I am called, but it is especially meaningful to me during this season of Lent.

A deacon is primarily a servant.  The Greek word diakonia means service, and when a deacon is ordained, s/he is given a brief outline of the pattern that service is to take, but it is up to each individual deacon, working directly under the bishop, to fill in the blank spaces in the pattern. 

Basically, the diaconate isn’t about doing; it’s about being.  It’s about being in relationship to God and the Church.  Ordination isn’t about the person at all – it’s about the Church, in which some are prophets, some apostles, some pastors and teachers, and so forth.  A deacon is ordained to powerless servanthood in a world (and sometimes in a church) that is obsessed with power.  Deacons are ordained to be the icon of powerless servanthood, and of the One who said, “I am among you as one who serves.”  The deacon is called to do ministry, but more importantly, to empower ministry, to help you to do your share of Christ’s ministry.  It’s a delicate balance between leadership and service.

Many of you are most familiar with what the deacon does at the altar on Sunday.  Being at the altar is a precious gift, but it is not the deacon’s ministry.  When you see the deacon in the Eucharist, you are seeing the liturgical expression of the deacon’s ministry in the world.  Deacons speak to the people often during the service, giving directions and leading the people in their responses.  They read the gospel, the ultimate calling of God’s People to service.  They preach, explaining the gospel.  They lead, or direct, the Prayers of the People, bringing the cares and concerns of the world into our liturgical prayer.  They lead us in the Creed, the expression of our faith, and in the confession of our failure to love and serve God and our neighbors.  They set the table, help to serve those who come to receive, and then quietly supervise the cleaning up after communion.  And all of this is preparation for the key liturgical role of the deacon: the dismissal, or sending forth: 

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.  Here again, YOU are addressed directly, as the deacon directs you to take the renewed strength you have received in the Eucharist, to go out into the world to do Baptismal Ministry.   This is because the ministry of service belongs to all of us, so there is a sense in which you, too, are deacons.

One of the key Bible passages for the deacon, as for all of us, is Matthew 25:35-36:

. . . for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me . . .

This passage is reflected in our baptismal promises: Will you proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ?  Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons?  Will you strive for justice and peace, and respect the dignity of every human being? 

All of us have been in service to the Lord since our baptisms.  The deacon is no more, no less a servant than you are, but being in holy orders, the deacon is the icon and model of your servant ministry.

This is never truer than during the season of Lent.  On Maundy Thursday (March 24) the deacon, along with the two priests of the parish (who are also deacons) will model this ministry in the washing of feet after the Agape meal.  They will reenact the servant example our Lord gave us on the night before he died.  The footwashing is a powerful and reverential ceremony, and I invite you to participate in this solemn activity. 

You will never be the same afterward.