Deacon Prayer

Deacons have been servants from the start. For centuries in the Western Church the diaconate was mostly a step on the way to priesthood, but the Second Vatican Council restored the permanent diaconate, and Pope Paul VI put it into practice in 1967. Today many deacons are married men with jobs and families, serving at the altar, preaching, baptizing, and caring for the poor.

At ordination, the bishop hands each new deacon the Book of the Gospels and tells him to believe what he reads, teach what he believes, and practise what he teaches. That’s a lifetime’s work in one sentence.

A Deacon’s Prayer

Lord Jesus, you came not to be served but to serve.
Make me a true servant:
at your altar, in your Word, and among the poor.
Let what I preach be what I live.
Keep me humble, faithful and kind,
and help me balance my ministry, my work and my family.
St Stephen and St Lawrence, pray for me.
Amen.

For a Newly Ordained Deacon

Father, bless your servant who has just been ordained.
Pour out your Holy Spirit on him.
Make him wise in counsel, gentle with the hurting,
and generous with his time.
Amen.

For Deacons’ Wives and Families

Lord, thank you for the wives and children who share in a deacon’s calling.
Bless their sacrifices of time and attention.
Keep their marriages strong and their homes peaceful.
Amen.

Best Times for This Prayer

• On the day of a diaconate ordination.
• On 26 December, St Stephen’s feast, and 10 August, St Lawrence’s.
• For your parish deacon on the anniversary of his ordination.

Scripture Connection

“Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.” — Acts 6:3

The first deacons were chosen for practical work, yet the qualifications were spiritual: honest, full of the Spirit, wise. Waiting on tables and preaching the gospel were never meant to be separate.

Related prayers

For clergy, see the Prayer for Ordination and Prayer for Priests by St Therese. For a deacon who served the poor, the Volunteer Prayer.