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 [2]. For reasons not fully known or understood, the diaconate began to diminish as a permanent order in the Church in the Middle Ages, and apart from a few notable exceptions, was reduced for many centuries to a transitional order one had to pass through prior to presbyteral ordination. Leading up to the Second Vatican Council, many in the Church began to consider the value of the diaconate as a permanent degree of orders within the Church. The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council called for the restoration of the permanent diaconate in several of the Council documents, most notably in the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen gentium, and the Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church, Ad gentes. Reestablishment of a non-existent permanent diaconate by the Council after such a lengthy time was a monumental step and one of the enduring changes the Council made to ecclesial ministry [3].

The implementation of the permanent diaconate in the Church after the Council has coincided with continued development of its theology. Lumen Gentium provided an initial understanding of the theology of a permanent deacon as well as his duties, and called for the restoration of the permanent diaconate in regions where these duties can only be filled with difficulty. In Ad Gentes, the Council turned its attention to the missionary activity of the Church and noted that since there are men who are already carrying out the functions of the deacon’s office, it would be right and proper to strengthen them through ordination.

Understanding the theology of the permanent diaconate is key to understanding the nature and duties of deacons. In my role in initial diaconate formation, I spend a lot of time meeting with those inquiring about the vocation of a deacon. One of the questions that invariably arises is why anyone would seek ordination when almost everything a deacon does can be done by a layperson [4]. It is a question worthy of reflection. I believe part of the answer has to do with the theology regarding the sacramental grace that flows from the Sacrament of Ordination.

St. Thomas Aquinas tells us that sacramental grace is grace conferred specifically by each sacrament in order to obtain a special effect [5]. This grace helps the recipient of the Sacrament fulfill his purpose and is a promise from God that includes assistance to act in accordance with the Sacrament’s obligations. For example, the Sacrament of Baptism bestows on the recipient an indelible mark and the grace to live out the Christian life, while the Sacrament of Matrimony establishes an unbreakable bond and strengthens a husband and wife to live out their matrimonial vows, consecrating the spouses for the duties and dignity of their state [6]. As with Baptism, a sacramental character is indelibly imprinted on the soul in the Sacrament of Ordination, and those who receive sacred orders are strengthened for the obligations and duties of their state in life.

The conciliar and post-conciliar documents speak of the sacramental grace of the diaconate that flow to those who are ordained. The Council Fathers wrote that, “Deacons, ‘upon whom hands are imposed not unto the priesthood, but unto a ministry of service,’ are strengthened by sacramental grace to serve in the diaconate of the liturgy, of the word, and of charity to the people of God” [7]. The Fathers noted that, “it is only right to strengthen them by the imposition of hands which has come down from the Apostles, and to bind them more closely to the altar, that they may carry out their ministry more effectively because of the sacramental grace of the diaconate” [8]. Pope St. Paul VI noted that the diaconate is “not to be considered as a mere step towards the priesthood, but is so adorned with its own indelible character and its own special grace so that those who are called to it 'can permanently serve the mysteries of Christ and the Church’” (LG 41) [9].

When I was first responding to the call to the diaconate, I do not recall consciously seeking out the sacramental grace of ordination for its own sake. I was serving in various capacities as a layperson, using the gifts God has given through the baptismal grace we all share, and it was the recognition of the gift of diakonia in me by others that started me on the path to formation and ordination. Along the way, I had questions about the nature, the duties, and the obligations of the diaconate, and intellectual understanding began to unfold through the course of formation. But it was only after ordination, as I was becoming more proficient and fluent in the exercise of the duties of word, liturgy, and charity that I truly began to notice the efficacy of sacramental grace. I have found that the appreciation of the sacramental grace of ordination comes as much from experience as from theological understanding.

Ad gentes says that deacons “carry out their ministry more effectively because of the sacramental grace of the diaconate.” This effectiveness is not a result of a deacon’s own natural abilities or learned skill, but is rather a gift from God as the Holy Spirit works through him to serve others. It is the sacramental grace that enables the deacon to be an icon of Christ the Servant. As with all grace, it is a gift that is to be used, and it is necessary to cooperate with sacramental grace to experience this supernatural effectiveness in ministry.

Ad gentes also notes that ordination binds the deacon more closely to the altar, from which grace flows. Frequent participation in the Eucharist enables the deacon to cooperate with sacramental grace, and from there he goes forth to serve in his various places of ministry. After ordination, the pastor of the church where I was assigned initially did not want me to serve at the altar for weekday Masses, believing I was not needed. However, after he became the Director of Diaconal Formation, his eyes were opened to the reality of the grace that flows to the deacon in his service at the altar. He then invited me to begin serving at daily Mass as well, and apologized for denying me these graces by his strictly utilitarian attitude.

The gift of sacramental grace enables the deacon to be an effective minister. Bishop Shawn McKnight notes that,

“while diakonia, service and charity apply to all in the ecclesiastical ordo, it was the desire of the Council that deacons be given the witness of charity as their special charge among ordained ministers. It was the hope of the Council that the character of humble service would color the diaconate in such a way that deacons would be recognized as Christ’s servants” [10].

Through sacramental grace, the service of the deacon is the sacramentalized service of the Church and a driving force for the Church’s diakonia [11].

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1 See Dominic Cerrato, Encountering Christ the Servant: A Spirituality of the Diaconate (Huntington, Ind: Our Sunday Visitor, 2020), pp. 107-108.

2 See Compendium on the Diaconate: A Resource for the Formation, Ministry, and Life of Permanent Deacons, Enzo Petrolino, ed., (Libreria Editrice Vaticana, English edition in Huntington, Ind: Our Sunday Visitor, 2024), Chapters I and II.

3 Kenan Osborne, The Permanent Diaconate: Its History and Place in the Sacrament of Orders, (New York and Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2007), p. 93.

4 In many cases, special permission or delegation is required, and in many places this permission or delegation is not given, but it is nevertheless true.

5 St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica III, q. 62, a. 2, c.

6 Codex Iurici Canonici. c. 134.

7 Lumen gentium, 29.

8 Ad gentes, 16.

9 Paul VI, Apostolic Letter motu proprio Sacrum diaconatus ordinem, English translation in Compendium of the Diaconate, p. 137.

10 Shawn W. McKnight, Understanding the Diaconate: Historical, Theological, and Sociological Foundations, (Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 2018), p. 58.

11 John Paul II, Speech to the Deacons of the United States, September 19, 1987, in Compendium of the Diaconate, p. 161.