text: On the subject of deacons and charity, we ought to note the longstanding precedent in Judaism for the collection and distribution of charity by men known to be of good character. The understanding that there was a debt to the poor, as well as systems to honor that debt, were thoroughly and admirably worked out in Jewish law and daily life well before the time of the apostles.  It seems unlikely that the Christian  approach was arrived at in ignorance of Jewish law and tradition.