are girls not important?

[Pinkyyy]

hi, I don’t mean to start a confrontation - this is just my upbringing in the lutheran church that comes out of me sometimes. I didn’t want to sound bad in the thread below about alter girls since the woman’s daugher would be reading the responses.

But, women can’t be priests (I can see this), and they can’t be deacons (can sort of see this), but why can’t they be alter girls? I mean, do we not want girls to participate in mass? They’re just to sit there and look pretty?

IMO, catholacism is shunning girls who may develop a more fuller and rich relationship with Christ but didn’t because they were “left out” and weren’t as important as the boys in their parishes. Can’t even be alter girls?

I just don’t get it. And is there a real reason or is it just because they say it’s that way and because (some) men don’t like it?

 

[birdie74]

I agree - I think that unless parishes can offer alternate ways for girls to have a close encounter with the mass, girl altar servers should be allowed. I’ve heard the argument that being an altar server is supposed to spark interest in the priesthood, so therefore only boys should be allowed to serve since only men can become priests. Even if it is true that altar serving is designed to spark interest in the priesthood, it’s not like girls don’t get anything out of being an altar server. They are right next to the altar, they gain a close understanding of how mass works, etc. That is valuable for us all, not just future priests! I guess they could be sacristan helpers or something, but it seems like these days the best way to foster a love of the mass in children is to allow them to serve at the altar.

I’ll be interested in the other replies. OP, I know there are other threads getting at this from similar angles; you might want to check them out.

 

[Inman]

First, start with element of catholic faith that the sacrament of holy orders is limited to men. The church believes this because Christ was incarnated as man and he picked 12 men to be his apostles. Deacon is the lowest rank of holy orders is therefore must also be limited to men.

Alter girls are allowed. However, as a practical matter, service as an alter boy has contributed to many vocations to the preisthood and diaconate later in life. So while the faith does not necessarily require it, the chuch has good reason to allow only alter boys, should it decide to.

That is not to minimize the role of women and girls to particpate in the mass. All of the faithfull is called upon to attend mass weekly and assit through prayers and participation. Woman can and do participate in other roles. In my parish, at least half of the readers (aside from the deacons of course) are female. Just in some cases women have different roles than men. Similarly married men have different roles than single men. However, all are human beings created in the image of God, therefore equally important.

 

[jpjd]

Your understanding is mistaken. The Church does permit girls to be altar servers.

Women can’t be ordained, which is why they can’t be priests or deacons (priests and deacons are ordained). Altar servers are of course not ordained, so girls can be altar servers.

 

[Apryl]

I agree - I think that unless parishes can offer alternate ways for girls to have a close encounter with the mass, girl altar servers should be allowed.

How many Altar Servers does your parish use on a given Sunday? In order to have those that are clear on the duties, they will need to do the job with some regularity, right? And not just once every three or four months.

That would lead me to see that you can’t expect every girl in the parish to have a chance to serve as an Altar Server, right? What about those other girls? What happens for them?

I never served as an Altar Girl when I was growing up, and rather than eating dinner right now, I’m cruising the CA Board…

 

[mercygate]

**ALTAR. **

A-L-T-A-R

Not “alter”. This drives me NUTS!

If you care enough to get into a thread about it, care enough to SPELL it right.

 

[Magnum_V8]

Christ chose men. That’s the short answer, I guess. Tradition does not show women in the role of men…so we keep that, too.

The Vatican has allowed female altar servers, so you can’t say they’re not allowed.

EVERYONE participates at Mass; that’s the entire point. Whether you’re in the sanctuary, or in the congregation, you are assisting at Mass in one form or another. You say that you were brought up Lutheran, so I wonder how well you were catechized on what is actually going on in a Mass. No offense; I’m a cradle Catholic and for a long time, I didn’t know either.

Here’s another thing: No priest, no Mass. The idea of altar boys, at least to some extent, was kinda like a recruiting process for the priesthood. Do you think that the decline in the number of priests has anything to do with the lack of altar boys? I can only speak for my diocese, but I certainly think its effected the whole thing, of course, among other things.

I was an altar boy while growing up, and I did have a desire for a period of time to become a priest, but family problems and an eventual breakaway from the Church changed that around.

I’d venture to say there are plenty of women who would tell you that their relationship with Christ is just fine, even without playing the role of altar server.

 

[LilyM]

How many Altar Servers does your parish use on a given Sunday? In order to have those that are clear on the duties, they will need to do the job with some regularity, right? And not just once every three or four months.

That would lead me to see that you can’t expect every girl in the parish to have a chance to serve as an Altar Server, right? What about those other girls? What happens for them?

I never served as an Altar Girl when I was growing up, and rather than eating dinner right now, I’m cruising the CA Board…

Well doesn’t that same logic preclude every single BOY from being an Altar Server just as much? What happens for those boys?

I’ve never been an Altar Server either, but I have done the readings, taken up collection, done the Offertory (giving the bread and wine to the priest), sung in the choir and served as EMHC. I don’t feel like I’ve missed out on anything at all.

 

[Magnum_V8]

Well doesn’t that same logic preclude every single BOY from being an Altar Server just as much? What happens for those boys?

Honestly, I don’t mean to turn this into a NO vs. TLM thread --we have enough of those-- but the Tridentine High Mass can have a multitude of boys serving in some capacity. So in that form of the Roman Rite, its certainly possible to cycle through the boys of the parish in a couple weeks, if there are a lot of young boys, thereby giving many of them the opportunity.

However, your question is valid concerning the Ordinary Form. Heck, in my Novus Ordo parish, I volunteered to serve, and I’m lucky if they schedule me once a month. The girls are up there every week, though.

 

[Pinkyyy]

**ALTAR. **

A-L-T-A-R

Not “alter”. This drives me NUTS!

If you care enough to get into a thread about it, care enough to SPELL it right.

wow, you’re right. I am a moron. Sorry for my stupidity. Are you happy now?

 

[japhy]

But, women can’t be priests (I can see this), and they can’t be deacons (can sort of see this), but why can’t they be alter girls? I mean, do we not want girls to participate in mass? They’re just to sit there and look pretty?

I wasn’t a priest, a deacon, or an altar server last Sunday. Does that mean I didn’t “participate in mass sic]”?

 

[true_believer]

Girls are allowed to be altar servers, and they should continue to be. I was a female altar server, and serving during the mass in this way led me to continue to serve during mass as an adult - only now as a Eucharistic minister. Allowing girls to be altar servers increases the likelihood that they will continue to serve the church when they become adults - the same as it does for boys.

And Magnum, I’m not perfectly clear on the situation in your parish, but in my experience as a female altar server, there are simply more girls willing to assist during mass than there are boys. Not to mention that there were multiple weekends when my sisters and I served in the place of others who didn’t show up. It’s not as if the priest favored us over the male servers, but it was just that he knew we would be willing to serve whenever asked.

 

[japhy]

The Vatican has allowed female altar servers, so you can’t say they’re not allowed.

Technically speaking, the Vatican has allowed the Bishops’ Conferences (and in turn, the diocesan Bishop) to decide whether or not to allow female altar servers. There is one (and I think only one) diocese in the US where female altar servers are not permitted.

 

[Pinkyyy]

Christ chose men. That’s the short answer, I guess. Tradition does not show women in the role of men…so we keep that, too.

The Vatican has allowed female altar servers, so you can’t say they’re not allowed.

.

You are right - I just said it wrong - I know they allow it, but I was referring to some saying it shouldn’t be allowed. Sorry for my miscommunication.

I am reading and thinking about (almost all) of your reply’s - you know the ones that actually address my question, not attack it. Thank you for replying!

And if I mispelled anything in this post…forgive me please

 

[Apryl]

Well doesn’t that same logic preclude every single BOY from being an Altar Server just as much? What happens for those boys?

Mine was not an argument to preclude any one (girls or boys) from being Altar Servers, only to point out that not being an Altar Server in no way keeps any one from God.

 

[Cristiano]

Girls are allowed to be altar servers, and they should continue to be. I was a female altar server, and serving during the mass in this way led me to continue to serve during mass as an adult - only now as a Eucharistic minister. Allowing girls to be altar servers increases the likelihood that they will continue to serve the church when they become adults - the same as it does for boys.

And Magnum, I’m not perfectly clear on the situation in your parish, but in my experience as a female altar server, there are simply more girls willing to assist during mass than there are boys. Not to mention that there were multiple weekends when my sisters and I served in the place of others who didn’t show up. It’s not as if the priest favored us over the male servers, but it was just that he knew we would be willing to serve whenever asked.

Congratulations!!! When did you get ordained?

I am Mercygate altar ego. Or is it alter ego???

 

[Apryl]

Congratulations!!! When did you get ordained?

No fair!

No one has to be ordained to serve on the Altar. That’s truly not the point that any one was making!!

There are roles for girls. What roles does your parish have for girls while the boys have the role of Altar Server?

What do we have for our kids to do in church during mass, that will help to keep their attention and encourage them to grow in their faith to help them to be Better Catholics when they grow up?

I personally do not care for female Altar Servers. We have them in my parish, and they do a great job, but I wish that there was something else for them to do. I would never say to one of them, ‘you shouldn’t be filling that role’, either. It’s just my opinion. The Bishop said it was ok, so as far as I’m concerned, the ‘if’ question is over in our diocese.

But if the girls aren’t serving as Altar Servers, what do we have them to do? As adults, we participate, but for children, it’s very easy to be distracted

 

[Cristiano]

No fair!

It is quite fair to me. If any non ordained Catholic (adding Deacons too) calls him/herself an Eucharistic Minister then they should expect the joke about being ordained.

 

[Pinkyyy]

Another question is maybe Christ chose men because of the times he lived in - I mean, they didn’t hold women in such high regard then (not talking Christ here, but society as a whole). Things were different then. Maybe if it was in this day and age instead of 2,000 years ago maybe it would have been done differently. But I guess that is just speculation.

 

[LilyM]

No fair!

No one has to be ordained to serve on the Altar. That’s truly not the point that any one was making!!

There are roles for girls. What roles does your parish have for girls while the boys have the role of Altar Server?

What do we have for our kids to do in church during mass, that will help to keep their attention and encourage them to grow in their faith to help them to be Better Catholics when they grow up?

I personally do not care for female Altar Servers. We have them in my parish, and they do a great job, but I wish that there was something else for them to do. I would never say to one of them, ‘you shouldn’t be filling that role’, either. It’s just my opinion. The Bishop said it was ok, so as far as I’m concerned, the ‘if’ question is over in our diocese.

But if the girls aren’t serving as Altar Servers, what do we have them to do? As adults, we participate, but for children, it’s very easy to be distracted

When I was a kid, and for 1900 years before that, kids didn’t have or need anything special to ‘keep our attention’, ‘encourage us to grow in our faith’ or ‘help us to be better Catholics’.

It was (is) the parent’s job, no-one else’s, to teach the child from the youngest possible age what the Mass is about so that they will appreciate it instead of being bored by it, even if they don’t serve in any capacity. And everything else about their faith besides!

It worked for me for nigh on 20 years until I served my first year as a reader.