Posted on 01/09/2016 3:12:21 PM PST by NYer
I was thinking along those lines myself. The girls are fine but I don't think that being altar servers gives THEM the idea to be nuns.
Boys, becoming priests, have the authority to say the words that allow God to change the bread and wine into the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of our good Lord.
THAT is the uniqueness of boys' possible future. Not girls. Sorry.
Are you speculating?
In our parish, on those occasions when no boys are present, the priest serves alone. That includes all aspects of the liturgy, including the censer and incense boat which are repeatedly used throughout every mass.
You are right about that, Mrs. Don-O. At our parish, the boys are aged 10 and up. Recently, we lost a handful of the big boys to college (including my own oldest son), but it doesn’t stop them from quizzing and drilling the younger ones whenever they’re home from school. Before Mass, the college men lurk around making sure everything is done just so, and correcting things when they aren’t.
Several of them still vest and serve when they’re home, and ALL of them would serve if necessary. At least two are seriously thinking about the priesthood. The congregation loves seeing the college men come back and the altar boys DO look up to them. It is considered a great honor (and extremely masculine) to serve at Mass.
I love watching them all. LOL...I’ve often described their movements as being somewhere between a complicated military formation and a ballet.
BTW, the girls in our parish comprise the very, very talented schola.
Regards,
It also implies intimacy. You’d think in this day and age both priest and community would insist on a more austere and respectful approach. Why does every adult want to be a pal to children? Children don’t even like it!
At my mother’s funeral Mass, yet again I witnessed sloppy girls (dressed as monks!) running around the altar seemingly without knowing what they were doing. In my youth and at the Tridentine Masses I’ve attended in NYC, the altar boys are so well-trained they are practically invisible. They were not and are not a part of some “show”.
Well said.
Part of my boys’ training was to make themselves as unobtrusive as possible: Never rush (NEVER run!!), be dignified no matter what calamity occurs (like an accidentally spilled-over thurible that sets the carpet on fire), and remain reverent under every circumstance.
I do admit to watching them more closely than I should — at least when they first started. I just wanted to see what we had to work on at home. I no longer feel the need to watch them; they know what they’re doing.
Regards,
I am amazed at how sloppy the girls are. Perhaps, as someone else suggested, kids today are just not disciplined enough. That’s very sad. But at least you did your job! Happy New Year to you.
Why default to girl servers? If there aren't enough boys, recruit men. Might help foster delayed vocations.
Also greeters. I head a greeters ministry.
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