Social ministry (diaconia) in Germany: an introduction

This article is devoted to the subject of social ministry in Germany. Te author defines the term “diaconia” in the context of German Christianity and describes the current system of social assistance carried out by various Christian denominations, as well as the contemporary state of diaconia / social ministry as a field of study in German education. Separately, the author considers the process of preparing social workers at Roman Catholic departments of theology. Te author highlights three aspects of this topic: first, the organizational structures of social ministry and the world-view of the employees of social ministry organizations; second, the system of diaconia / social ministry education and research; third, the theological foundations for social ministry.