 thumb|elizabeth catherine ferard, first deaconess of the church of england the ministry of a deaconess is, in modern times, a non-ordained ministry for women in some christian churches to provide pastoral care, especially for other women. the term is also applied to some women in the early church. the word comes from a greek word, diakonos (), for "deacon", which means a servant or helper and occurs frequently in the christian new testament of the bible. deaconesses trace their roots from the time of jesus christ through to the 13th century. they existed from the early through the middle byzantine periods in constantinople and jerusalem; the office may also have existed in western european churches. the female diaconate in the byzantine church of the early and middle byzantine periods was recognized as one of the major orders of clergy. a modern resurgence of the office began among protestants in germany in the 1840s and spread through scandinavia, the netherlands, britain and the united states. lutherans were especially active. the modern movement reached a peak about 1910, then slowly declined as secularization undercut religiosity in europe and the professionalization of nursing and social work offered better career opportunities for young women. a small movement still exists and its legacy is seen in numerous hospitals. non-clerical deaconesses should not be confused with ordained female deacons such as in the anglican churches and the protestant church in the netherlands. ==early christian period== the oldest reference to women deacons occurs in paulâs letters (c. ad 55â58). their ministry is mentioned by early christian writers such as clement of alexandria.commentary on 1 corinthians 9:5, stromata 3,6,53.3-4. and origen.commentary on romans 10:17; migne pg xiv col. 1278 aâc. secular evidence from the early 2nd century confirms this. in a letter pliny the yonger attests to the role of the deaconesses. pliny refers to "two maid-servants" as deaconesses whom he tortures to find out more about the christians. this establishes the existence of the office of the deaconesses in parts of the eastern roman empire from the earliest times. fourth-century fathers of the church, such as epiphanius of salamis,migne pg 42, cols 744â745 & 824â825 [[basil of cae
Anglican_ecclesiastical_offices Deaconesses Ecclesiastical_titles Feminist_theology