Deacon (Latter Day Saints)

A deacon in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of the offices in the Aaronic Priesthood, the lowest in the Mormon priesthood hierarchy. In the modern church, a boy who has been baptized, confirmed, and found worthy may be ordained as a deacon at the age of 11 or 12. Deacons are given various responsibilities, including distributing the sacrament to the congregation.

Boys ordained as deacons belong to small priesthood quorums. Theologically based in the Doctrine and Covenants, the office of deacon developed in the early days of Mormonism, achieving its current form and structure in the early 20th century. The office of deacon also appears in other denominations within the Latter-day Saint movement.