News from the East. . . .

The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa has announced its first formal step toward restoring the ancient office of deaconess. A commission of bishops will now examine how the restoration would unfold in the modern era.  But should the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate eventually restore the office, it is not foreseen that this could serve as a modern-day precedent for the Catholic Church to ordain women deaconesses.  According to the statement released by the patriarchate, the bishops decided on Nov. 16, the second day of their holy synod, to move forward with reinstituting deaconesses. This was after a presentation by Metropolitan Gregory of Cameroon, who “spoke on the institution of deaconesses in the missionary field,” followed by an involved theological debate and discussion.  “On the issue of the institution of deaconesses, it was decided to revive it and elect bishops on tripartite committee for detailed consideration,” the patriarchate’s media release stated.

While the Patriarchate is convinced that the female diaconate existed in the early Church, reaching its greater significance between the 3rd-5th centuries, the incomplete historical record makes it impossible to speak with authority the scope of their duties or the actual shape of this diaconal service.  This female diaconate seems to have died out by the 12th century.  The liturgical component of the female diaconate's service seems to have been limited to certain choirs of deaconesses for the Divine Liturgy, however, it is believed that they did serve as catechists for women, assisted in baptisms of female converts, and brought the Eucharist to female sick and housebound.  They believe the the historical record has established that the female diaconate was only for celibate women over the age of 40.  It is noted that while ordination rites for deacons and deaconesses in the Greek Orthodox tradition seem to be almost identical, these were parallel rites and institutions and were not thought of as interchangeable or equivalent roles since the female diaconate never progressed to priestly ordination or service.

In the Coptic Church, the female diaconate has seen to the needs of its members and dependents along with male deacons, however, the deaconesses have no liturgical function in the Coptic Church.  In the Armenian Church, all female deaconesses are nuns.

All of this, of course, gives larger context for the initiative of Pope Francis for Rome to study the issue of deaconesses, albeit within the larger perspective that such diaconal status could not lead to ordaining women to the priesthood.  Pope John Paul II spoke definitively on ordination but he did not declare anything definitive regarding women and diaconal ordination/consecration.  This group appointed by Pope Francis began meeting only November 25. 

Clearly the problems lie in the seemingly "separate but equal" status of the female diaconate which will hardly solve the issue for those in favor of the full opening of the priestly and episcopal offices to women nor will the parallel tracks necessarily console those who believe that any move in this direction can prevent the ultimate outcome of a change from male only to female ordination.  In addition, the histories of Eastern Christianity and Western (Latin) Christianity are distinctly different and there is little to support an ordained female diaconate in the West during that early period.  Finally there is the issue of "clericalizing" the laity -- one which seems to be a concern of Pope Francis.  Diaconal or mercy service may not be helped at all by institutionalizing this in a formal diaconate for women.  Especially in the West, though certainly in somewhat of a decline today, the role of the non-cloistered nun has been the focus of the the service that might be associated with the female diaconate.