myself, be a personal journey into a calling I have felt for years. As a candidate for the diaconate
of the Diocese of Brooklyn, I hope to be part of a ministry that has grown rapidly since its
reestablishment. The modern deacon is an integral part of the Church, men called to the
ministry of, the Word, charity and service.
By laying on of hands the Apostles ordained the first seven deacons, Stephen, Philip,
Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicholas of Antioch. Men chosen because they were
filled with the Holy Spirit, faith and wisdom. It might seem that these men were chosen to take
care of the more mundane tasks of serving at table or the distribution of alms, however, there is
evidence that they went out from the beginning of their ministries and preached and baptized the
faithful. It would, indeed, be the preaching of Stephen which would cost him his life. What does
the reference to serving at table mean? What role did the Apostles have in mind when they
established this ministry? Are these men to simply be waiters at table or do the Apostles have
more in mind as they lay hands on these first seven? The laying on of hands by the Apostles
certainly suggests a ministry set apart from the mere task of serving a meal at table. These men
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