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The terms ‘deaconess’ and ‘deacon’ refer to an office of service in the church that exists today and dates back to the first century. The terms themselves are derived from the Greek verb, diakonein, and its cognate nouns diakonos and diakonia. Diakonein meant to serve or to minister. The noun diakonos, or deacon, meant servant or minister. This article will trace the development of the diaconate historically and theologically for both men and women. The approach will be chronological as the roles of deacons and deaconesses changed over time in the church and society – from the early role of deacons as assistants to bishops to the present diverse roles of deacons and deaconesses in various Christian denominations and churches today. Much of the literature on deacons concentrates on the deacon’s liturgical roles. While not forgetting their important liturgical roles, this article will concentrate on the deacons’ and deaconesses’ role and the role of the church in the care of the poor. Woven into the historical development of the diaconate will be relevant scriptural citations and interpretations, the life and experience of the community of faith within which deacons and deaconesses worked, and social scientific engagement and interactions with the topic.