Diaconate

“ The reader who may be interested in seeing an effort to connect the modern deaconess with the deaconess of antiquity is referred to The Ministry of Deaconesses by Deaconess Cecilia Robinson. This book, it should be said, contains much valuable and accurate information upon the subject, but accepts as proven facts the suppositions of the late Bishop Lightfoot upon the subject; who somewhat rashly asserted that “the female diaconate is as definite an institution as the male diaconate. ”

“ From all this it is evident that they are entirely in error who suppose that “the laying on of hands” which the deaconesses received corresponded to that by which persons were ordained to the diaconate, presbyterate, and episcopate at that period of the church’s history. ”

“ But Christian women have ever had special gifts in caring for the poor and sick and helpless, and the women of apostolic times must necessarily have had their part in these services of love. In addition to the diaconate appointed by the apostles recorded in the sixth chapter of Acts, we must look for a female diaconate as an office in the Church.018/14 This we do not fail to find. ”

“ It is a most discreditable custom for those who have been raised to the diaconate to serve as choristers, for it behooves them to give their whole time to the duty of preaching and to taking charge of the alms. ”

“ There is nothing sacramental in Anglican orders, and there never was, since England broke away from the Church, and, consistently enough, orders were expunged from the Protestant catalogue of sacraments in the very infancy of the Reformation. They still keep up a semblance of orders: they have what they call the diaconate, the priesthood, and the consecration of bishops. A deacon is ordained much in the same way as our own deacons, and he can perform all the duties of the parish, with the exception of the Communion Service. ”

“ On the 13th of March, Sabbato Sitientis, 1831, he received the Subdiaconate, This is the great step, as Catholics know, in the life of one destined for the priesthood. The Subdiaconate imposes perpetual celibacy, with the obligation of daily reciting the divine office, and it is then the young cleric is first styled Reverend. ”

“ So Erasmus: Unde neque diaconorum neque presbyterorum nomen esse opinor quod clarum ac manifestum. St. Chrys. says, “Their appellation and office is neither deacons nor presbyters: they were ordained upon a special emergency.”—It seems to have been commonly held in earlier times, that Acts vi. 1–6 is the history of the first institution of the Diaconate. Thus the Council of Nicocæsarea ordains (a.d. 314) that in each city, however large, the number of deacons according to the Canon ought to be seven, and for proof appeals to this history, πεισθήσῃ δὲ ἀπὸ τῆς βίβλου τῶν πράξεων. ”

“ If he should have touched the Sacrament he washes his fingers in a vase. Meanwhile the Deacon puts wine into the chalice, and the Subdeacon water, which the Priest does not bless, nor say over it the usual prayer: taking the chalice from the Deacon, he sets it on the Altar, saying nothing: and the Deacon covers it with the pall: then he sets incense in the censer without blessing it, and censes the oblations and the Altar in the usual manner, genuflecting before and after, and whensoever he passes in front of the Sacrament. ”

“ In one set of churchwardens’ accounts there is a curious entry of receipt from a deacon, who pays for damage done to certain vestments at the time of his ordination. In another, a collection was made from the parishioners for the support of the deacon; and in a book of directions for clerics, it is laid down as part of the deacon’s office to bring the pyx containing the Blessed Sacrament from behind the altar, where it had been hanging, and to place it on the table of the altar for the priest to communicate the faithful. ”

“ It is appropriate that the other priests present stand with the celebrant at the Altar, and join in the consecration of the gifts, in breaking the Bread, and in distributing Communion.
A deacon should read the Gospel and may lead the Prayers of the People. Deacons should also serve at the Lord’s Table, preparing and placing on it the offerings of bread and wine, and assisting in the ministration of the Sacrament to the people. In the absence of a deacon, these duties may be performed by an assisting priest. ”

“ Towards the end of the veneration of the Cross, the candles are lighted and the deacon spreads a corporal upon the Altar upon which the Blessed Sacrament is to be placed. Then follows the procession to the chapel in which the Host consecrated the day before has been kept. The deacon takes the chalice which contains the host and places it upon the Altar. The priest having adored the Blessed Sacrament, takes the chalice and proceeds in solemn procession to the High Altar. During the procession the triumphant hymn of the Cross "Vexilla regis" is sung. ”

“ And the deacon readeth the gospel: the which being finished, they return to the priest or bishop together. Which things we will more particularly go through. It is also to be noted, that in some churches, the deacon, when about to go to the rood loft, beginneth the antiphon which followeth benedictus in the nocturns, and while he is going thither, it is taken up, and finished by the chorus, to set forth charity: and it is sung without instruments, to denote that God commandeth us to have love alone. ”

“ The deacon, after receiving the ostensorium, stands up, places it on the corporal, and restores the Blessed Sacrament to the tabernacle. Meantime the celebrant, laying aside the veil, descends to his place at the foot of the altar, as soon as the Blessed Sacrament has been removed.
3. It is clear that in such case he ought to follow the general Rubric. The Ordo is intended to set forth the application of liturgical rules to particular cases; and it is no wonder that in a task so minute, errors should sometimes occur. ”

“ The rite of baptism ended, the sacrament of unction opens. This sacrament, called the seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit, is said to represent the "laying on of hands" in the early Christian Church. With a small feather, dipped once more into the sacred oil, the pope again touches the baby's forehead, chest, lips, hands, and feet, saying each time, "The seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit;" on which reader, deacon, and priest all break into chants of hallelujah! After unction comes the act of sacrifice; when the child, who has nothing else of his own to give, offers up the hair of his head. ”

“ When the deacon arrives near the door of the cancellata, one of the three candles is lighted, and all genuflect, except the subdeacon: the deacon then sings, Lumen Christi, the light of Christ, and the choir answers, Thanks be to God. The other two candles are lighted in turn, as the Deacon approaches nearer to the altar; singing the same words each time, but gradually in a higher tone. He then gives the reed to an acolythe; and before he sings the exultet or blessing of the Paschal candle, he receives the benediction of the Card. Celebrant, who once more puts incense into the thurible. ”

“ The Roman Pontifical prescribes, that besides the bishop and the usual ministers, there should be present twelve priests, seven deacons, and seven subdeacons, all habited in white vestments. After the elevation at those words of the canon, Per quem hæc omnia etc. a little before the Pater noster, the Bishop sits down before a table facing the altar, and exorcises and blesses the oil for the sick, which is brought in by a subdeacon. He then proceeds with the mass, and gives communion to the ministers and the rest of the under the form of bread alone60. ”

“ It is right, also, that the deacons, being [ministers] of the mysteries of Jesus Christ, should in every respect be well-pleasing to all. For they are not the ministers of meats and drinks, but servants of the Church of God. It is necessary, therefore, that they guard themselves from all grounds of accusation as they would from fire.
Ch. 3. In like manner, let all reverence the deacons as Jesus Christ, as also the bishop, who is a type of the Father, and the presbyters as the sanhedrim of God and the assembly of the Apostles. ”

“ Hence Isidore says (Epist. ad Ludifred.) : "It is a deacon's duty to assist and serve the priests, in all the rites of Christ's sacraments, viz. those of Baptism, of the Chrism, of the Paten and Chalice."
Reply to Objection 1: It is the deacon's duty to read the Gospel in church, and to preach it as one catechizing; hence Dionysius says (Eccl. Hier. v) that a deacon's office involves power over the unclean among whom he includes the catechumens. But to teach, i.e. to expound the Gospel, is the proper office of a bishop, whose action is "to perfect," as Dionysius teaches (Eccl. Hier. v) ”

“ The altar-slab or “table” alone is consecrated, and in sign of this are cut in its upper surface five Greek crosses, one in the centre and one in each corner. These crosses must have been anointed by the bishop with chrism in the ritual of consecration before the altar can be used. ”

“ For a long time the Roman Church, faithful to the example of the primitive church at Jerusalem (Acts vi.) , had only seven deacons. Their special function was the administration Cardinal deacons. of her temporal property, and particularly works of charity. Between them were divided at an early date the fourteen districts (regiones) of Rome, grouped two by two so as to constitute the seven ecclesiastical districts. Now the charitable works were carried on in establishments called diaconiae, adjoining churches which were specially appropriated to each diaconia. ”

“ Deacons are assistants to bishops and priests, having authority to preach, to baptize, to assist the priest at the holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and to give Holy Communion; but they have not the power to change bread and wine into the Body and Blood of our Lord, or to remit sins. ”

“ In the church of Ravenna however the bishop used to bless this candle (S. Gregory ep. 28, lib. 9) . In the Roman church, according to cardinal Gaetani, the last of the Cardinal priests usually blessed the fire, and the last Card. deacon lighted the lumen Christi, or triple candle, and the Paschal candle. The deacon used to bless the latter either at the steps of the presbytery, or from the ambo; and hence we find a marble column, intended to support it, fixed to the ambo in S. Clement's S. Laurence's, and S. Pancras' churches at Rome. ”

“ The table and supports on which the portable altar rests may be constructed of any suitable material, wood or stone, provided they have the proper dimensions. For the portable altar the Greeks generally use the antimensium, a consecrated altar-cloth of silk or linen, after the manner of our corporals. When a church is consecrated, a piece of cloth large enough to form several antimensia is placed on the altar. It is consecrated by the bishop pouring wine and holy chrism on it and stiffening it with a mixture consisting of relics pounded up with wax or fragrant gum. ”

“ One of the fathers related a story, saying:—On one occasion in Scete when the clergy were offering up the Offering, something which was like unto an eagle descended upon the Offering, and no man saw the appearance except the clergy; and one day a brother questioned the deacon about the matter, and the deacon said unto him, “I am not at leisure now [to discuss it] .” And afterwards when the time arrived for the Offering, and the clergy went in as usual to offer It up, the form of the eagle did not appear as it did before; and the priest said unto the deacon, “What is this? ”

“ The deacons have functions in the Eucharist and about the altar which point to an early date; they have also much administrative work of an important kind, and especial provisions are made for the care of the sick and the dead, and the burial of those who perish by shipwreck. One of the deacons is to be chosen as “ chief deacon ” (protodiaconus, i. 19, cf. i. 34) , and is charged with the care of pilgrims. -There are no doorkeepers or singers, who begin to appear circ. ”

“ Deacons are subordinate ministers appointed to assist parish priests in the work of parochial visiting and also, within certain limits, in the conduct of Divine worship and the administration of the sacraments. They may read parts of the service, but have no authority to bless or to absolve. They may preach by express and specific license from the Bishop. They may not celebrate the Eucharist, but may assist the priest who does so by reading the Gospel and administering the chalice. ”

“ On Maundy Thursday, several particles of the Blessed Eucharist, consecrated at the Mass sung that day, were reserved—a larger one for the celebrating priest on the morrow, Good Friday; the smaller ones for the viaticum of the dying, should need be, and carried in solemn procession all round the church, from the high altar to a temporary erection, fitted up like a tomb, with lights, and the figure of an angel watching by, on the north side of the chancel. ”

“ Duchesne, i. p. 509) ; in the 12th century the cardinal deacons, who then numbered eighteen, were no longer distinguished by an ecclesiastical district, as they had formerly been, but by the name of the church connected with some diaconia (loc. cit. p. 364) . By the time of Sixtus V. the connexion between a cardinal deacon and his diaconia was merely nominal. Sixtus reduced the number of cardinal deacons to fourteen; and this is still the number to-day. Except that his church is called a diaconia, and not a title, the cardinal deacon is in this respect assimilated to the cardinal priest ”