Server Training

[Matthew_Holford]

… 2 servers + choir…

I really do not know a great deal about EF Mass. However, I thought there was no singing at Low Mass. Why, therefore, would you have a choir for a Low Mass?

 

[HCC]

I really do not know a great deal about EF Mass. However, I thought there was no singing at Low Mass. Why, therefore, would you have a choir for a Low Mass?

At certain Low Masses, particularly on Sundays and Holy Days, just like at an OF, there are times when a choir will sing a hymn during the entrance/closing procession and during the Offertory, but not sing the parts of the Mass.

 

[newyorkcatholic]

My suggestions, based on what we do at my parish (which has OF and EF every single day, many times Sung, sometimes Solemn, and a few Pontificals even):

-go over parts before each Mass in the sacristy, and review frequently

-you should work with the other servers teaching them how to lay out vestments, prepare the chalice, etc, and while you do this lead by example – be a perfectionist.

-meet outside of Mass regularly to see how what you are doing conforms to a standard guide (I second the recommendation to use Jeffrey Collins’ book)

-always go over, after Mass, even if briefly and informally, what could be improved. Servers should do this themselves, e.g. I forgot to do x, or this wasn’t put in the right place, etc.

If there is sloppy genuflection and lack of enthusiasm, I think you should ask the priest to give a talk about reverence at the altar.

 

[Eric_Olsen]

I have been serving since 2005. I start out with low mass. I have trained a couple of other servers so far. I usually start out with the Latin pronunciations first. Make sure they take their time and speak clearly. It’s not a race. Once they have that down then I go through the rubrics where I say the parts of the priest and the server(s) in training do the other parts. Make sure they are relaxed. Just because the mass is rigid does not mean they have to be stiff as a board.

I try to print out the parts for the servers if they do not have them so they can practice at home. Also - make sure you pair one up with another that is experienced. Hope this helps.

Hello, everyone! My parish has been saying the Latin Mass every Sunday since the Motu Proprio, but our serving has been less-than-great. I became a server about 1.5 years ago, and I have been training myself to serve as an MC.

This has all been going well, but I’m hitting a snag, namely: what is the most effective way to train the other servers? I’m in my mid-20s, while the next oldest server is maybe 15. We started with several adult servers, but they have all since moved away for work and school.

Our present Mass is basically a Low Mass with 2 servers + choir. No incense, no torches, no MC, no candle-bearers. This appears to be an arrangement set up by our first server, an experienced MC. I’m also pretty sure it was meant to serve as a start, and not as a norm.

What I want to do is go through our present Mass with the servers to correct mistakes and standardize behavior. Then I want to progressively add in candle-bearers, torch-bearers, a thurifer and an MC. I also want to train them for weddings, funerals and baptisms, as well as benediction, processions and whatever else might come up. I was thinking of avoiding Holy Week and episcopal ceremonies, since neither of those is likely to happen in the near future.

Anyone have any suggestions?

 

[StevenDunn]

I highly recommend using “The Roman Catholic Ceremonial” by Jeffrey Collins. This book has been a great help to me in serving the Mass for one and a half years now.

lulu.com/product/hardcover/the-roman-catholic-ceremonial-volume-i-the-ordinary-ceremonies/4718663?productTrackingContext=search_results/search_shelf/center/1

Summary from the website

“The Roman Catholic Ceremonial presents a thorough and accurate, yet simple, explanation of the ceremonies of the 1962 Roman Rite. Volume I,the present volume, contains the functions of the ordinary parish church. (Vol. II, appearing soon, is on Pontifical ceremonies.) For all but the easiest ceremonies, scripts are provided for each participant to enable quick mastery of his particular duties. This feature will prove invaluable for the busy Master of Ceremonies, who often has little if any time to conduct rehearsals for even the greatest occasions. The text is rounded out with a clear exposition of basic ceremonial principles and the general rubrics of the 1962 Missal, as well as glossaries on ecclesiastical furnishing and vesture, and is complemented by schematic diagrams of the major liturgical functions. Whether a novice altar boy or a Prince of the Church, every minister of the altar will find reliable answers to his rubrical questions in The Roman Catholic Ceremonial.”

I’ll check it out! Thanks!

 

[StevenDunn]

When I was being trained as a server, one of the things that we were told that really made sense at the time was that when we were up there were were meant to be, if we were noticed at all, a kind of representation of what prayer and holiness looked like, rather then just being ourselves. So just likr the crusix on the altar represents something more meaningful even though it is really metal or wood, the servers should always appear calm, in prayer, and as much as possible not really noticible, so as not to take people’s mind off the Mass.

So we should wear boring shoes, not fool around, move in a dignified way, and maintain a proper posture of prayer. This isn’t being “fake”.

I don’t know if that would be likely to motivate them or not, or if you’ve already given them that kind of talk.

We’ve had that talk, but it’s one that needs to be repeated, especially for the younger boys.

 

[StevenDunn]

When we learned serving in grade school, we normally had a mentor assigned to us from the upper grades. The nuns graded us on the Latin before we started with the rubrics, either at each other’s homes or in the church itself. But there were lots and lots of practices. If anything I would train a couple or three extensively and then let them train others. I know it’s easier said than done but I think you may be taking on too much doing it yourself and that might be counter-productive in the long run.

You’re correct! I don’t plan on training every server like this, though. I’m putting most of my effort into the older boys so they can train their friends, brothers, etc. But while I’m training the older brothers I might as well have the younger brothers there with me learning, too.

We’re a small community, so it’s not a terrible burden. I’d guess only 100 people attend our Mass, and there are only 3-5 main servers( plus a lot of younger boys that aren’t ready yet and our large Squires program that is showing serious interest ). If I were to do it perpetually it would be too much.

 

[StevenDunn]

My suggestions, based on what we do at my parish (which has OF and EF every single day, many times Sung, sometimes Solemn, and a few Pontificals even):

-go over parts before each Mass in the sacristy, and review frequently

-you should work with the other servers teaching them how to lay out vestments, prepare the chalice, etc, and while you do this lead by example – be a perfectionist.

-meet outside of Mass regularly to see how what you are doing conforms to a standard guide (I second the recommendation to use Jeffrey Collins’ book)

-always go over, after Mass, even if briefly and informally, what could be improved. Servers should do this themselves, e.g. I forgot to do x, or this wasn’t put in the right place, etc.

If there is sloppy genuflection and lack of enthusiasm, I think you should ask the priest to give a talk about reverence at the altar.

Thank you very much!

 

[StevenDunn]

I have been serving since 2005. I start out with low mass. I have trained a couple of other servers so far. I usually start out with the Latin pronunciations first. Make sure they take their time and speak clearly. It’s not a race. Once they have that down then I go through the rubrics where I say the parts of the priest and the server(s) in training do the other parts. Make sure they are relaxed. Just because the mass is rigid does not mean they have to be stiff as a board.

I try to print out the parts for the servers if they do not have them so they can practice at home. Also - make sure you pair one up with another that is experienced. Hope this helps.

It does, thanks!