The book provides a fundamental overview of central themes, basic developments, and important turning points in the nearly 2000-year history of Christian charity. It traces the basic principles of diaconal action in the Early Church and in medieval Europe. With the onset of the Early Modern period, the focus shifts to the German-speaking region, specifically Germany. From the Reformation period onward, it highlights Protestant and Catholic initiatives and discourses that paved the way for modern diaconal work. Exemplary practical and theoretical approaches are illuminated, which have historically been effective and may still hold significance today.