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JKirkLVNV
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George Waters:
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dhgray
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YES you are wrong on this. My daughter asked to be an alter server because she wants to serve God. You were right in what you were taught as alter serving being a platue to becoming a priest. However, (as a society) we are not encouraging our sons to become priests, as usual, the women (girls) have to pick up the slack.This is one area that I wish the Church hadn’t given in on. I was disappointed when they allowed girls to be alter servers and assist the priest during Mass.
When I was growing up, I was taught that it was important for young men to be alter servers because it gave them an opportunity to assist in the Mass and discern whether or not they wanted to join the priesthood. Now, since girls can’t be priests, I didn’t quite understand why they were allowed to be alter servers.
It sounds like another Equal Rights Movement sticking their nose in the Church’s affairs. Am I wrong on this?
Does anyone know the reason why girls are now allowed to be alter servers?
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mrs_abbott
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There is NOTHING wrong with girls wanting to give back to God. Hello? I am a girl too!!!
I’m just saying that the move shouldn’t have been made to make them altar servers. I firmly believe that it’s necessary to at least give boys the opportunity to serve and the chance to discern the priesthood from assisting in the Mass next to the priest on the altar. By allowing girls to do that, they’re taking up the spots that used to be available for boys.
I understand that smaller parishes have shortages and whatnot. I used to belong to one BEFORE the girls were allowed to serve and if there was a shortage and/or the parish was really small, one altar server was plenty for Mass, especially if there were only 4 boys of age in the parish.
This is just a moderation in the Church that seems to support the theory I’ve heard many times about the Church “giving in” to the laity. Just speculation, of course.
What’s done is done, I know. It probably won’t change back. I’m not challenging the church’s authority, I’m simply saying I WISH it didn’t happen.
I’m just saying that the move shouldn’t have been made to make them altar servers. I firmly believe that it’s necessary to at least give boys the opportunity to serve and the chance to discern the priesthood from assisting in the Mass next to the priest on the altar. By allowing girls to do that, they’re taking up the spots that used to be available for boys.
I understand that smaller parishes have shortages and whatnot. I used to belong to one BEFORE the girls were allowed to serve and if there was a shortage and/or the parish was really small, one altar server was plenty for Mass, especially if there were only 4 boys of age in the parish.
This is just a moderation in the Church that seems to support the theory I’ve heard many times about the Church “giving in” to the laity. Just speculation, of course.
What’s done is done, I know. It probably won’t change back. I’m not challenging the church’s authority, I’m simply saying I WISH it didn’t happen.
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AltarMan
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I simply don’t buy that garbage that “no boys/men want to serve.” All it takes is effort.
At my main (Latin Rite) parish it is perhaps 60/40, male/female. Some Masses (we have several each Sunday) has traditionally been served by males only, despite desperate attempts by the female altar server coordinator to schedule girls to serve at those Masses. All it does is scare the girls being placed in an uncomfortable situation and offend those attending the Mass. So in sum, we have plenty of each sex and we could easily be all-male if there was not resistance to this.
I also attend another (Byzantine/Ruthenian Rite) parish. It is tiny, with one Divine Liturgy per Sunday but it has more than a dozen well trained altar boys. They are amazing. On Christmas day there is a procession of altar boys/future altar boys (all vested to the hilt) and they must number 25-30.
While female altar servers are indeed allowed under specific circumstances, allowing them after it became a long-time abuse is one of the few things that gives me real pause about the legacy of (the great) Pope Paul II.
At my main (Latin Rite) parish it is perhaps 60/40, male/female. Some Masses (we have several each Sunday) has traditionally been served by males only, despite desperate attempts by the female altar server coordinator to schedule girls to serve at those Masses. All it does is scare the girls being placed in an uncomfortable situation and offend those attending the Mass. So in sum, we have plenty of each sex and we could easily be all-male if there was not resistance to this.
I also attend another (Byzantine/Ruthenian Rite) parish. It is tiny, with one Divine Liturgy per Sunday but it has more than a dozen well trained altar boys. They are amazing. On Christmas day there is a procession of altar boys/future altar boys (all vested to the hilt) and they must number 25-30.
While female altar servers are indeed allowed under specific circumstances, allowing them after it became a long-time abuse is one of the few things that gives me real pause about the legacy of (the great) Pope Paul II.
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AltarMan
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If you didn’t have “boys of age” then men could have served…
I wouldn’t be too sure that serving at the altar won’t one day be limited to males again – not that the abusers will follow the direction any closer than they did in the past.
You let us down on this one, Pope John Paul II…
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mrs_abbott
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We’ll see what Pope Benedict has in store for us. I’m eager to see since I’ve only seen one pope in my lifetime. 
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vrunca
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I went to a catholic school back in the 70’s & early 80’s and wanted to become an “altar boy” but…I couldn’t because of my sex! And thank God, my daughter has the wonderful opportunity to serve at the Mass! (Both of my sons served too, my youngest still is!) Anyway, my sister is the principle of the school I went to and she was just doing a report on altar serving for some “caring” Catholics who wanted to ban altar servers from this parish. Since 1958, this school only had one young man go into the priesthood, (in fact he is a Bishop now)…never wanted to nor did he become an altar boy! The school has had five girls become sisters and one that went to Combermiere to the Madonna House to become one of their members…only one of them did this before the change occured to altar servers. The rest all did this after and all were servers!
Does this have anything to do with serving? I don’t know, but I thought it was interesting!
And ummm, for those of you who keep on about this is for the priests in training…the original altar servers WERE the priests for the Bishops, it wasn’t until the priests had to spread out more that the boys started serving! In my parish, which is a very small one where I live now, but active with youth, all of our boys are altar servers from age 9-18 and about half of our girls of the same ages. Yet three quarters of our servers are girls. Without them, there would be many, many masses without servers at all. In fact if we are without a server, it is the women who are the ones willing to step forward and serve, the men wont!
My daughter (and sons) have all been very involved with the church since they were infants! (if I was a greeter, I carried them with me at times), They are now adults or almost adult and all of them are very involved in the church, so if you think taking serving away from some who want to get involved…shame on you!
Does this have anything to do with serving? I don’t know, but I thought it was interesting!
And ummm, for those of you who keep on about this is for the priests in training…the original altar servers WERE the priests for the Bishops, it wasn’t until the priests had to spread out more that the boys started serving! In my parish, which is a very small one where I live now, but active with youth, all of our boys are altar servers from age 9-18 and about half of our girls of the same ages. Yet three quarters of our servers are girls. Without them, there would be many, many masses without servers at all. In fact if we are without a server, it is the women who are the ones willing to step forward and serve, the men wont!
My daughter (and sons) have all been very involved with the church since they were infants! (if I was a greeter, I carried them with me at times), They are now adults or almost adult and all of them are very involved in the church, so if you think taking serving away from some who want to get involved…shame on you!
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George_Waters
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Catholic2003
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I’ve yet to hear of even a single case where a boy wasn’t allowed to serve at the altar because girls had filled up all the “slots”.
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George_Waters
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Good post!
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George_Waters
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I agree! This whole thing is a non-issue in my parish. It seems it is only an issue to those who are really looking for an issue.
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AltarMan
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I have. The altar server “coordinator” at my parish clearly favors girls and adult female wanna-be priestesses.
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AltarMan
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Wow, that’s quite a sample size…
You’re flat-out wrong about having server-less Masses if it were not for females – unless you live in a female prison or convent. That attempt at an excuse is one of the oldest (and least valid) on record. Most people don’t even attempt its use anymore.
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anna1978
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At St George’s school (our parish school), every year a notice goes up ‘Would you like to be an altar-server?’ with details of what it entails and whom to contact. Every year one or two children ask their teacher for more information…the school has 800 pupils, and some children serve for YEARS…but the fact of the matter is, it’s no longer ‘cool’ to be an altar-server, and only few apply…
Anna x
Anna x
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AltarMan
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George Waters:
For those tying to justify the use of female altar servers by suggesting a “crisis of servers” were it not for female servers, perhaps they should instead put a little more effort into recruiting more males…
It only becomes an issue when people try to use it as an excuse.
For those tying to justify the use of female altar servers by suggesting a “crisis of servers” were it not for female servers, perhaps they should instead put a little more effort into recruiting more males…
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AltarMan
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That “notice” may not be enough.
How often are boys and their parents contacted directly? How often do existing altar boys recuit their friends? Is there a knights/pages of the altar program at your parish? Does your pastor ever preach on the need for servers?
The best recruiter I ever heard of was a PE coach at the local Catholic high school. He actively recruited youg men to serve at the altar. After a few years it become an honor (the group had quite an espirit de corps – it’s very cool to serve) and he had more volunteers then the could handle…
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AltarMan
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George Waters:
JKirkLVNV:
1.) Because it fills-up slots that should be filled by males who might just possibly be discerning a call to the priesthood or permanent vocation.
2.) Because it’s looked upon by many as a desperate attempt at a beach head for those dissident calling for priestesses and those advocating female deaconesses.
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mrs_abbott
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Ok, my brother’s chances to serve were cut back dramatically when girls entered the picture.
Catholic2003:
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JKirkLVNV
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George Waters:
JKirkLVNV:
I wasn’t offering any kind of comment (this topic pops up continuously, as a search of the forums would show) and, in fact, I’m a little leery of people who say “I will never…!!!” on issues that are not doctrinal and which are open to liberty. I’ve had a priest who was heard to say on more than one occasion “they’ll find out who’s in charge here!” He ran rough-shod over the parish and his going isn’t much mourned, though he is an orthodox man (that wasn’t the issue, it was “discipline” issues, things that could have been managed with tact and diplomacy). My point was simply to point out that in law, a bishop may not force his priests to have altar girls if they don’t want them. All that said, I personally would prefer to see serving at the altar restricted to boys, on the premise that it may well foster a vocation to the priesthood. AND, as I’ve said ad nauseum, I think the way to get boys interested is for their FATHERS to serve and then the sons will want to serve with their dads. Also, in fairness, our little girls are very reverent and do as good a job as the boys…it’s their shoes that get to me. They’re either clicking around the altar on heels or sliding around like Dorthy Hamill on skates in these embroidered oriental things that really look like house slippers. Boys AND girls should have some kind of standardish looking footwear, black loafers or something. It’s a distraction.
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AltarMan
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There are dozens of other ways she could choose to serve God.
Also, I don’t think the current shortage of priests is helped by an increasing number of altar girls…
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