Ordering of Deacons in the Book of Common Prayer
The Ordering of Deacons is the rite by which candidates are ordained to the diaconate in the Book of Common Prayer tradition. It forms part of the Ordinal, the set of services for making deacons, ordaining priests, and consecrating bishops. In Anglicanism, the rite expresses the church's understanding that a deacon is called to minister under episcopal authority, to assist in public worship, to read the Scriptures, to preach when licensed, to care for the poor and needy, and to help prepare the people for the sacraments. The service is therefore both a public act of ordination and a concise statement of Anglican teaching about ordered ministry.
Historical development
The first English Ordinal was issued in 1550 and was later incorporated with the Prayer Book tradition. Its rites reflected the Reformation concern that ordination should be conducted in a language understood by the people and should be grounded in Scripture, prayer, and the laying on of hands. The deacon's office was retained as one of the three historic orders of ministry, alongside bishops and priests, but its duties were described in terms suited to the reformed liturgy of the Church of England.
The 1552 and 1662 forms preserved the basic pattern of examination, prayer, and imposition of hands. The 1662 Book of Common Prayer placed the Ordering of Deacons among the ordinal services and made it a standard text for Anglican churches shaped by the English Prayer Book. Later Anglican provinces revised the rite in different ways, but many retained its central elements: presentation of candidates, inquiry into vocation and doctrine, prayer for the Holy Spirit, laying on of hands by the bishop, and delivery of the New Testament as a sign of the deacon's ministry of the Word.[1]
Structure of the rite
In the classical Prayer Book rite, the candidates are presented to the bishop after the sermon. The bishop asks whether those presented are lawfully called and duly examined. The congregation is then invited to declare any known impediment, showing that ordination is not a private arrangement but an ecclesial act performed in the presence of the church.
The examination of the candidates sets out the duties of the diaconate. The candidate promises to serve God and the church, to read the Gospel in the congregation, to instruct the young, to baptize in the absence of a priest when necessary, to preach if admitted by the bishop, and to seek out the sick, poor, and helpless so that they may be relieved through the church's care. This description links liturgical service with pastoral and charitable work.
After the Litany and prayers, the bishop lays hands on each candidate and admits the person to the office of deacon. The giving of the New Testament follows, accompanied by words authorizing the deacon to read the Gospel and, if licensed, to preach. In the 1662 rite, the newly ordained deacons then assist in the celebration of Holy Communion, reflecting their role within the eucharistic assembly.[2]
Theological significance
The rite presents ministry as a calling received through the church rather than a merely personal decision. The candidate's inward sense of vocation is tested by examination, public consent, and episcopal ordination. This pattern reflects Anglican concern for both personal calling and visible order within the church.
The diaconate is also portrayed as a ministry of the Word and of service. The deacon is charged with reading the Gospel, teaching, and, where authorized, preaching. At the same time, the office is closely associated with practical care for those in need. This combination has shaped Anglican understandings of deacons as ministers who connect the church's worship with its works of mercy.
The rite also preserves the distinction between deacons and priests. Deacons may assist at the altar and carry out specified pastoral duties, but the Prayer Book rite does not assign to them the priestly ministry of consecrating the Eucharist or pronouncing absolution in the same manner as a priest. This distinction became important in Anglican discussions of apostolic order, episcopacy, and the relation of the threefold ministry to the wider catholic tradition.