Pope supports altar girls. Praise God!

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Lochias said:
Individual bishops have had the power to say Yes or No to altar girls for a while, now. Pope Benedict therefore supported altar girls, as did Pope John Paul II.

Why is this noteworthy?
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Because as you can see, a lot of people seem to think they didn’t. And now, even after posting what Pope Francis just said, they STILL don’t think he does lol.
 
Lochias said:
Individual bishops have had the power to say Yes or No to altar girls for a while, now. Pope Benedict therefore supported altar girls, as did Pope John Paul II.

Why is this noteworthy?
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You can’t say they ‘supported’ altar girls.

By virtue of the 1983 Code of Canon Law, female altar servers are allowed. It doesn’t matter if the dubium that clarified that only came in the 1992, the dubium only confirmed what the canon 230 § 2 said.

But as the response to the dubium made perfectly clear, it is the bishop’s prerogative to allow them in his diocese but he can’t impose them on either the pastors or the priest celebrating the Mass.

The fact that none of the Popes since 1983 has deemed it necessary to change that particular article in the Code doesn’t mean they ‘support’ female altar servers. They simply leave it up to the bishops and the celebrants. Redemptionis Sacramentum made it very clear that males altar servers are preferred.
 
thistle said:
Here in the Philippines females are not allowed to be altar servers or EMHC’s but they are normally the commentators and readers.
I have no problem with that.

As for the Pope he did not say females should be altar servers. Catholics jumping to such conclusions are just like non-Catholics jumping to the conclusion the Pope meant women should be priests.
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But in the bible it says woman cannot speak in the church especially not during mass:

1 Timothy 2:11-12:

“Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness. 12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet”

1 Corinthians 14:34:

“the women should keep silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be in submission, as the Law also says”
 
Mastiff_Eng said:
But in the bible it says woman cannot speak in the church especially not during mass:

1 Timothy 2:11-12:

“Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness. 12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet”

1 Corinthians 14:34:

“the women should keep silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be in submission, as the Law also says”
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^Thank goodness we’re Catholic and not Sola Scriptura fundamentalist protestants. 👍
 
Tony_Micelli said:
Last time I checked, parishes without altar girls which practice liturgical piety seem to have more vocations than those that do. The 60s are over, altar girls are a bad idea in my opinion. A church full of women will have no vocations period.

The pope is not advocating more women in the liturgy, but for women to be more like the Blessed Virgin Mary.
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Vocations to the priesthood are from the Holy spirit. Are we saying that altar girls can thwart the Holy Spirit.

Don’t we believe in the power of the Spirit any more?

What thwarts the Holy Spirit is an age where we have ears but do not hear.

For boys this is down to their dads.

Get the dad’s back in church and we’ll have boys on the altar and vying for the priesthood.

BTW you don’t get dad’s back in church or boys back on the altar by kicking the women and girls out.

Finally, I’ve read in various blogs that boys are different from girls, and that if boys have to serve with girls they let the girls take precedence, and then the boys withdraw and quit altogether.

I call that an unfounded cop-out. And yes I’ve read the blogs and participated in the polls where a majority feel than altar girls are an impediment: but they are self selecting polls, and not scientifically valid. They just poll a likeminded readership.

If the boy is not “man enough” to serve on the altar with a girl, then how is he going to be “man enough” to serve in a parish as a priest surrounded by women in the office and in most of the ministries?

What kind of boys do we have in our Church? Milksops?
Where are the men in the parish?

Boys: it’s time to Cowboy Up!
Men: It’s time to Man Up!

And stop blaming the girls!
 
I do not understand the point of having female servers, except to satisfy the politically-correct parents who believe that their little girl has a “right” to serve at Mass. The whole point of having boys assist the priest at Mass is to inspire vocations. The tasks that they do in the Novus Ordo Mass could be done by anyone or by the priest himself (except, perhaps, ringing the altar bells), but having young men working closely with the priest gives them a clearer sense of a possible vocation to the priesthood. This will not serve to inspire a young lady to consider a religious vocation, since women religious cannot, and never will, say Mass. There are many things that girls can do at Mass, but serving at the altar should not be one of them.
 
Cavaille-Coll said:
I do not understand the point of having female servers, except to satisfy the politically-correct parents who believe that their little girl has a “right” to serve at Mass. The whole point of having boys assist the priest at Mass is to inspire vocations. The tasks that they do in the Novus Ordo Mass could be done by anyone or by the priest himself (except, perhaps, ringing the altar bells), but having young men working closely with the priest gives them a clearer sense of a possible vocation to the priesthood. This will not serve to inspire a young lady to consider a religious vocation, since women religious cannot, and never will, say Mass. There are many things that girls can do at Mass, but serving at the altar should not be one of them.
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Well then, let me help you.

It’s called service.
 
Cavaille-Coll said:
I do not understand the point of having female servers, except to satisfy the politically-correct parents who believe that their little girl has a “right” to serve at Mass. The whole point of having boys assist the priest at Mass is to inspire vocations. The tasks that they do in the Novus Ordo Mass could be done by anyone or by the priest himself (except, perhaps, ringing the altar bells), but having young men working closely with the priest gives them a clearer sense of a possible vocation to the priesthood. This will not serve to inspire a young lady to consider a religious vocation, since women religious cannot, and never will, say Mass. There are many things that girls can do at Mass, but serving at the altar should not be one of them.
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I agree, there is no need for them at all.
 
If it is only about service, why not have adults serve at the altar? After all, they make less mistakes and are more efficient in their duties.
 
jediliz said:
well, my bishop does not allow girl servers in my diocese and** we have a very FULL seminary**, THANK YOU GOD!
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Our bishop does allow female altar servers. We have two overflowing seminaries. We are contributing to a $35 million dollar, 5 year renovation/remodel of the seminaries, so they can accept more men. THANK YOU GOD, INDEED!
 
Cavaille-Coll said:
If it is only about service, why not have adults serve at the altar? After all, they make less mistakes and are more efficient in their duties.
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Really?

We have adult servers at our parish and they are nothing like as graceful or efficient as the kids.

It’service that kids CAN do and traditionally HAVE done - they can’t join the Knights or run Inn From The Cold.

And I believe that a girl who serves at the altar can also be inspired to a vocation. Why couldn’t/wouldn’t she? Why do we humans seem so intent on putting limits on the Holy Spirit.

BTW I took exception to your PC parents quip in your first post in this thread. I’m very non-PC and wanted my daughter serving on the altar (as did she) since

A. there were no boys stepping up
B. there needed to be altar servers
C. she would be good at it
D. it would be good for her.

Nothing to do with “rights” and everything to do with responsibilities.
 
At my parish the altar servers tend to be adults. The altar servers at Daily Mass appears to always be one of the older men. This is 6:30 a.m. so I am not positive.😊 I am not sure the parish has enough youths to be altar servers.:confused: The few youths that serve as altar servers are both boys and girls. There is no school attached to the parish.

I assumed that Pope Francis was recognizing the existence of altar servers that are girls not saying it was a wonderful idea. I have learned to be careful of accepting the media reports on what he actually said.:sad_yes:
 
Debora123 said:
I don’t believe sola scriptura, if that’s what you mean. And neither does the Catholic Church.
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Didn’t the Catholic Church write the New Testament? 😉

It seems almost funny when they have female readers reading St. Paul in church.
 
Julian_Bashir said:
What sense would it ever make to say to a Priests “you have to have male cantors, and female aletr severs.” Run your own parish Father, and stand by your decisions with God.
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Since when is cantor a specifically or even primarily female office?
 
ProVobis said:
Didn’t the Catholic Church write the New Testament? 😉

It seems almost funny when they have female readers reading St. Paul in church.
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The NT was written by Catholic guys, yes. But once again, we are not sola scriptura. Are you trying to say we are?
 
DaddyGirl said:
Besides, we’re not talking about apostles. We are talking about a lay position that is meant for both male and female genders.
.
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Er no, altar servers in the Western Church are a reflection of the lesser deacons in the Eastern Churches; they are suppose to be minor clerics, commission with the great task of entering the Holy of Holies to assist the priest and perhaps it’ll serve as a gateway for their own vocation to priesthood (if they have one). Of course this becomes irrelevant when, sad to say, it is to put in the context of the Novus Ordo where no one has any respect for the Sanctuary because it’s just another part of the Church to enter as one pleases and stomp around (how many times I’ve gone to a Latin Church and have seen children and adults alike aimlessly wandering the Sanctuary hoping the priest will explain to them respectfully what that locale is and it never happens).

Logistically speaking as well I think it’s a poor choice to have boys and girls working on the same task together. It seems a bit old and stuffy but I learned this from experience; I was initially all for girl altar servers when I ran a rather large altar server program at a parish of about 50 servers. It seemed the more girls I got, the less boys were willing to come (and proximity to a priest is what many priests will say helped them determine their vocation!); furthermore it’s just a nightmare when (sorry ladies) many girls are together because they just congregate, talk and bicker even if it’s in the Sanctuary.

Anyway, altar girls are yet another infection of Catholicism from modernity in the sense that we want gender equality for a role that, quite frankly, doesn’t produce what the role is meant for in the first place but it’s ok because if a little girl wants it it must be good.
 
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