I would want to know what doggone kind of deacon he is. All I know is what Wikipedia tells me, “Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Church, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Scandinavian Lutheran Churches, the Methodist Churches, the Anglican Communion, and the Free Church of England, view the diaconate as an order of ministry.”

And what IRS tells me in Pub 517, “Most services you perform as a minister, priest, rabbi, etc., are ministerial services. These services include: • Performing sacerdotal functions; • Conducting religious worship; and • Controlling, conducting, and maintaining religious organizations (including the religious boards, societies, and other integral agencies of such organizations) that are under the authority of a religious body that is a church or denomination. You are considered to control, conduct, and maintain a religious organization if you direct, manage, or promote the organization's activities.