TheSeven, often known as theSeven Deacons, were leaders elected by theearly Christian church to minister to the community of believers inJerusalem, to enable the Apostles to concentrate on 'prayer and the Ministry of the Word' and to address a concern raised by Greek-speaking believers about their widows being overlooked in the dailydiakonia or ministry.
Their names and an account of their appointment are given inchapter 6 of theActs of the Apostles (Acts 6:1–6). According to a later tradition they are supposed to have also been among theSeventy Disciples who appear in theGospel of Luke (Luke 10:1, 10:17). The activities of Stephen and Philip are the only two recorded and their works concern preaching, catechising and baptising. Philip is referred to as "the evangelist" inActs 21:8.
Although the Seven are not called'deacons' in theNew Testament, their role is described as 'diaconal' (διακονεῖντραπέζαις in Greek), and they are therefore often regarded as the forerunners of the Christian order of deacons.[citation needed]
The Seven Deacons were:
According to the narrative in Acts, they were identified and selected by the community of believers on the basis of their reputation and wisdom, being 'full of theHoly Spirit', and their appointment was confirmed by the Apostles.
Only Stephen and Philip are discussed in much detail in Acts; tradition provides nothing further about Nicanor or Parmenas. Stephen became the firstmartyr of the church when he was killed by a mob, and whose death was agreed to bySaul of Tarsus, the future Apostle Paul (Acts 8:1). Philip evangelized inSamaria, where he convertedSimon Magus and anEthiopianeunuch, traditionally beginning theEthiopian Orthodox Church.
Tradition calls Prochorus the nephew of Stephen and a companion ofJohn the Evangelist, who consecrated him bishop ofNicomedia inBithynia (modern-dayTurkey). He was traditionally ascribed the authorship of theapocryphalActs of John, and was said to have ended his life as a martyr inAntioch in the 1st century.[1]
According toCaesar Baronius'Annales Ecclesiastici, now considered historically inaccurate, Nicanor was aCypriotJew who returned to his native island and died a martyr in 76. Other accounts say he was martyred in "Berj," an unidentified place possibly confused withBotrys.
Timon was said to have been aHellenized Jew who became a bishop inGreece or inBosra,Syria; in the latter account, his preaching brought the ire of the local governor, who martyred him with fire.
After preaching for years in Asia Minor, whereHippolytus of Rome claimed he was bishop ofSoli (Pompeiopolis; though he may have been referring toSoli, Cyprus), Parmenas was said to have settled down inMacedonia, where he died atPhilippi in 98 duringTrajan's persecutions. Alternatively, Orthodox tradition says he died after being afflicted with an illness.[2]
Nicholas, who came from Antioch, was described in Acts as a convert to Judaism.[3] He was not remembered fondly by some early writers. According toIrenaeus'Adversus Haereses, theNicolaitanes, a heretical sect condemned as early as theBook of Revelation, took their name from the deacon.[4] InPhilosophumena, Hippolytus writes he inspired the sect through his indifference to life and the pleasures of the flesh; his followers took this as a licence to give in to lust.[5] TheCatholic Encyclopedia records a story that after theApostles reproached Nicholas for mistreating his beautiful wife on account of his jealousy, he left her and consented to anyone else marrying her, saying the flesh should be maltreated.[1] In theStromata,Clement of Alexandria says the sect corrupted Nicholas' words, originally designed to check the pleasures of the body, to justify licentiousness.[6] TheCatholic Encyclopedia notes that the historicity of the story is debatable, though the Nicolaitanes themselves may have considered Nicholas their founder.[1]