Deacon 

Summary

An ecclesiastical office.1 The articles and covenants directed deacons to assist teachers in their duties.2 Deacons were also to “warn, expound, exhort, and teach, and invite all to come unto Christ,” though they lacked the authority to baptize.3 The first recorded instance of individuals being designated as deacons occurred at the 25–26 October 1831 conference in Orange, Ohio.4 A November 1831 revelation called for a president to preside over twelve deacons.5 A September 1832 revelation designated the office of deacon as an appendage to the lesser priesthood, later called the Aaronic Priesthood, and directed deacons to serve as “ministers unto the church.”6