Appointed to the Task
"Brothers, select from among you seven reputable men, filled with the Spirit and wisdom, whom we shall appoint to this task, whereas we shall devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” (Acts 6:3-4)
The Hellenists complained against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution (v1). The Hellenists were not necessarily Jews from the diaspora but were more probably Palestinian Jews who spoke only Greek. The Hebrews were Palestinian Jews who spoke Hebrew or Aramaic and who may also have spoken Greek. Both groups belong to the Jerusalem Jewish Christian Community.
The conflict between them leads to a restructuring of the community that will better serve the community needs.
Serve at Table
So the Twelve called together the community of the disciples and said, “It is not right for us to neglect the word of God to serve at table". (Acts 6:2)
The essential function of the Twelve Apostles is the "service of the word," including development of the kerygma by formulation of the teachings of Jesus. Some commentators think that the word "serve at table" is not the serving of food that is described here but rather the keeping of the accounts that recorded the distribution of food to the needy members of the community.
Laid Hands
The proposal was acceptable to the whole community, so they chose Stephen, a man filled with faith and the Holy Spirit, also Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicholas of Antioch, a convert to Judaism. They presented these men to the apostles who prayed and laid hands on them. (Acts 6:5-6)
After Stephen and the others are chosen, they are never presented carrying out the task for which they are appointed. Rather, two of their number, Stephen and Philip are presented as preachers of the Christian message. They, the Hellenist counterpart of the Twelve, are active in the ministry of the word. The real purpose of the whole episode is to introduce Stephen as a prominent figure in the community whose long speech and martyrdom will be recounted in Chapter 7.
The customary Jewish way of designating persons for a task and invoking upon them the divine blessing and power to perform it is by way of "laying hands on them".