08/18/2016

Ministers of Word and Service or Deacons to replace former four lay rosters in ELCA

Deacons in the ELCA

"Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body,
so it is with Christ." 

At the 2016 ELCA Churchwide Assembly in New Orleans, Louisiana, our church modified our governing documents to improve clarity, uplift collegiality, and foster complementary ministries in the ELCA. The work of the ELCA requires every member, each of whom have different calls, skills, and passions, and some of those to lead us in being Church for the sake of the world. The Constitutional changes overwhelmingly passed at the 2016 Churchwide Assembly confirm two rosters of leadership in the ELCA: Ministers of Word and Sacrament (Pastors) and Ministers of Word and Service (Deacons). The roster of Word and Service combines the three previous rosters of Diaconal Ministry, Deaconess, and Associates in Ministry. 

The former structure of four previous rosters contained ambiguity in details of seminary education, candidacy, call process, and the nature of how their ministry related to the congregation and larger expressions of the church. This new structure brings clarity to individuals discerning calls, those guiding them, and the congregations and communities in which they serve and engage. 

The Church Council and Board of Bishops are already working toward finalizing issues, which remain unsettled – such as candidacy requirements and the proper nature of the entrance rite for those called to the Ministry of Word and Service.

So, what is a Deacon exactly? Ministers of Word and Service are public leaders of this church, grounded in community and rooted in the word of God, who stand in solidarity with the poor and oppressed, proclaim God’s love, and commit to innovative service on the frontiers of the Church’s outreach ministries. Deacons advocate in prophetic service (diakonia), which invite us to ministries of accompaniment, that equipping all baptized Christians for ministry in God’s mission. (Source: Summary of section 7.61.02. of the ELCA Constitution as adopted).

In the Early Church, the Apostles struggled to distribute food to the poor with fairness and equality. Prayerfully, Church Fathers discerned it appropriate to call Stephen and others with particular skills for such service and administration to be public leaders (deacons) of the Church. Then as now, deacons proclaim God’s love by ‘waiting on tables, meeting the physical needs of the poor, hungry, sick, the disenfranchised and others living at the margins of society. Ministers of Word and Service of the ELCA continue this work, living into the role of servant leaders, equipping for service members of the Body of Christ for accompaniment ministries in the wider world. 

  
Other FAQ’s

1. Entrance Rite: Pastors will continue to be ordained as Ministers of Word and Sacrament. Deacons will be consecrated as Ministers of Word and Service. The Word and Service taskforce will consider whether or not Deacons should be ordained and make a recommendation to the next Churchwide Assembly.

2. Voting Body: Currently, the ELCA and Synod guidelines require that 40% of voting members at assemblies be Ministers of Word and Sacrament and 60% be others. This will remain in place until the taskforce determines if Ministers of Word and Service should be counted as part of the 40% or a part of the 60%. 

3. Deacon and Gender: Deacon is a gender-neutral term. St. Paul used it for Phoebe (Romans 16:1). The Deaconess Community will continue to exist as an intentional community of women within the roster of Deacons.  

4. Candidacy Requirements: The requirements for candidacy for this new roster will be finalized at the Churchwide office through the appropriate committees. There will likely be experiential learning requirements (such as CPE or an internship/placement), theological education at a Master’s Degree level, and other requirements of candidacy that will prepare an individual for leadership within the church.

5. Lay Rosters: With the new roster, we can begin to phase out the phrase ‘lay rostered leaders’. For voting purposes at Assemblies, Deacons are ‘lay’. However, this may change in the future. Using the term Ministers of Word and Service should replace anywhere we traditionally used the term lay rosters.