The Sacramental Grace of the Diaconate

The diaconate has been a ministry in the Church from the beginning, instituted by Christ at the last Supper [1] and established as a ministry by the Apostles with the appointment of the first seven deacons in Acts chapter 6. For the first few centuries of Christianity, deacons were a permanent, vibrant ministry and office of the hierarchical constitution of the Church. There are references to the office of deacon in the New Testament epistles, the Apostolic Fathers, and the Patristic Tradition.