The Disappearing Deaconess: Why the Church Once Had Deaconesses and Then Stopped Having Them
Language: English
Published by Eremia, 2021
- Softcover
- New

Seller: California Books, Miami, FL, U.S.A.California Books
AbeBooks seller since October 27, 2023
Condition: New
£ 13.86
Quantity: Over 20 available
Add to basketSeller Inventory # I-9780991016983
- Title
- The Disappearing Deaconess: Why the Church Once Had Deaconesses and Then Stopped Having Them
- Author
- Mitchell, Brian Patrick
- Publisher
- Eremia
- Publication year
- 2021
- Condition
- New
- Binding
- Soft cover
- Language
- English
- ISBN 10
- 099101698X
- ISBN 13
- 9780991016983
For all the recent research on deaconesses in the early Church, we still know very little about them, for two reasons: First, their duties were very limited, so there isn't much said about them in ancient texts. Second, their presence was also very limited: There weren't many of them anywhere outside Constantinople. In many places, there weren't any at all, and for a long time, there weren't any anywhere in the Orthodox Church. Why?
The Disappearing Deaconess examines not just the evidence of their existence but also patristic teaching on male and female and the evolution of various ministries in the early Church to conclude that the office of deaconess was inherently problematic for early Christians because it appeared to elevate women over men in the hierarchy of the Church, contrary to Christian beliefs about both the natural order and the divine economy. The book first summarizes what is known about deaconesses in the early Church, weighing various explanations for their decline and disappearance, then it surveys early Christian teaching on gender to provide a broader context for understanding the female diaconate before tracing the hierarchical evolution of Church organization-from the many more or less informal offices mentioned in the New Testament to the emergence of the clerical orders we know today, with increasing emphasis on the distinction of clergy and laity leading to the concept of "hierarchy" as understood by the sixth-century writer known as Dionysius the Areopagite.
The Disappearing Deaconess also includes two important appendices addressing proposals to reinstitute the order of deaconess and the larger issue of male and female as understood by the Orthodox Church. The first appendix is "A Public Statement on Orthodox Deaconesses by Concerned Clergy and Laity," signed by fifty-seven Orthodox clergymen and lay leaders and released January 15, 2018. The second appendix is the author's remarks at a conference on "Renewing the Male and Female Diaconate" organized by the St. Phoebe Center for the Deaconess, held in Irvine, California, on October 7, 2017. These remarks set forth a theological basis for the distinction of male and female as the key to understanding many gender issues, including the exclusion of women from clerical orders.
"Synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
About the Author
"About the title" may belong to another edition of this title.
California Books
Miami, FL, U.S.A.
AbeBooks seller since October 27, 2023
Shipping rates within U.S.A.
| Item | 3 to 7 business days | 2 to 5 business days |
|---|---|---|
| First item | £ 2.24 | £ 12.71 |
Payment methods
Store description
We have 20 years experience selling books worldwide! Friendly customer support. Your satisfaction guaranteed!
Specialty
All authorized categoriesSeller's business information
Miramar International Services LLC
FL, U.S.A.
Right of withdrawal
If you are a consumer you can withdraw from the contract in accordance with the following. Consumer means any natural person who is acting for purposes which are outside his trade, business, craft or profession.
Information regarding the right of withdrawal
Statutory right to withdraw
You have the right to withdraw from this contract within 14 days without giving any reason.
The withdrawal period will expire after 14 days from the day on which you acquire, or a third party other than the carrier and indicated by you acquires, physical possession of the last good or the last lot or piece.
To exercise the right of withdrawal, electronically fill in and submit a clear statement on our website, under "My Purchases" in "My Account". We will communicate to you an acknowledgement of receipt of such a withdrawal on a durable medium (e.g. by e-mail) without delay.
To meet the withdrawal deadline, it is sufficient for you to send your communication concerning your exercise of the right of withdrawal before the withdrawal period has expired.
Effects of withdrawal
If you withdraw from this contract, we will reimburse to you all payments received from you, including the costs of delivery (except for the supplementary costs arising if you chose a type of delivery other than the least expensive type of standard delivery offered by us).
We may make a deduction from the reimbursement for loss in value of any goods supplied, if the loss is the result of unnecessary handling by you.
We will make the reimbursement without undue delay, and not later than 14 days after the day on which we are informed about your decision to withdraw from this contract.
We will make the reimbursement using the same means of payment as you used for the initial transaction, unless you have expressly agreed otherwise; in any event, you will not incur any fees as a result of such reimbursement.
We may withhold reimbursement until we have received the goods back, or you have supplied evidence of having sent back the goods, whichever is the earliest.
You shall send back the goods or hand them over to California Books, Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S.A., without undue delay and in any event not later than 14 days from the day on which you communicate your withdrawal from this contract to us. The deadline is met if you send back the goods before the period of 14 days has expired. You will have to bear the direct cost of returning the goods. You are only liable for any diminished value of the goods resulting from the handling other than what is necessary to establish the nature, characteristics and functioning of the goods.
Exceptions to the right of withdrawal
The right of withdrawal does not apply to:
- The delivery of newspapers, journals or magazines with the exception of subscription contracts; and
- The supply of digital content which is not supplied on a tangible medium (e.g. on a CD or DVD) if you accepted when you placed your order that we could start to deliver it, and that you could not withdraw once delivery had started.