Deaconships

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An ecclesiastical position assisting a pastor, often responsible for service and community outreach
2. A role within a church that entails performing duties related to ministry and governance
3. The title for a member of a clergy traditionally tasked with various liturgical and administrative responsibilities

Etymology: Deaconships is simply the plural of "deaconship," and the more interesting story lies in the two halves of the word. "Deacon" comes from Greek "diakonos," meaning "servant" or "attendant," and entered English through Christian church usage, with the Old English form traceable to the same Latin-Greek channel of early Christianity. The sense of service at its heart is still present in the modern office. The second half, "-ship," is an old Germanic suffix that once meant "shape" or "creation," the same root as the English word "shape" itself. Its Old English form, "-sċiepe," gradually weakened to "-scipe" and then "-ship," and it came to mark a state, condition, or office. So "deaconship" literally names the state or office of being a deacon, and "deaconships" refers to several such offices or terms of service.

Synonyms: deaconate