What if your pastor announced that from now on all altar servers will be adults?

[Phemie]

It might not be all about the children’s immaturity, but about his own inability to** select and effectively** **train **the altar servers. My current parish priest is phenomenal in his training of altar servers. We usually have eight boys for each Sunday morning Mass, and it’s a very reverent NO Mass. Our priest trains the altar servers regularly at retreat getaways for the guys.

Our pastor is of the opinion that it’s the job of the parishioners to do any such training and that he’s only there for sacraments. He wouldn’t get involved in altar server training on a dare. He would chastise anyone who dared suggest that we should put a push on for more male altar servers.

 

[Tracy07]

Our pastor is of the opinion that it’s the job of the parishioners to do any such training and that he’s only there for sacraments. He wouldn’t get involved in altar server training on a dare. He would chastise anyone who dared suggest that we should put a push on for more male altar servers.

Our childrens training is part given by father and part by the exsisting altar servers usually the head server although some of the other older children help the younger ones when their first learning.
Father does encourage the children before they begin to serve to first of all take a couple of weeks to observe whilst at mass the things that go on around the altar and it gets them used to what to expect.
I have to say my son has been serving for coming up to three years and he loves it, my son was actually trained by the eldest girl server as the head server was ill at the time and i have to say she trained him well and he has the utmost respect for her.
I think father would be most upset if anyone was to go to him and suggest girls shouldnt be servers he is always saying what a fine job all of the servers do girls included.
x

 

[Phemie]

Our pastor is just as happy without altar servers, consequently we don’t have more than two or three who are absent more often than they are present.

Today we had one, a kid who hasn’t been at church much in the past months because he played on a hockey team and their games were at the same time as Mass and yes, Mass always comes in second place (his mother calls it compromise, I call it something else).

He forgot what to do during the preparation of the gifts and went to sit down. I caught his eye from where I was sitting and motioned him back to the altar Big question mark in his eyes so I did a hand washing gesture and it was as though a light had come on. He was ok after that.

 

[Tracy07]

I know when my son first started he obviously would forget small things as they all do when just starting and he would be so upset with himself afterwards it took father to have a quiet word with him and explain to him its ok to forget sometimes.
He now makes sure he is there every week and never forgets a thing but he also knows that when he does its ok to get it wrong sometimes.
Thank goodness father had that word with him though because nothing i said would make a difference once father spoke to him he was ok.
We have one or two servers at the moment who are not coming for weeks then turning up for a couple and not again, its a shame really as they are good at what they do but i think with these particular kids going to secondary school and mixing with new friends has replaced the need and want to go to church i find that really sad.
x

 

[Anthony02]

Upon seeing various forms of undesirable behavior from both boy and girl altar servers, your pastor thinks this is not an effect of sex but of maturity. He decides that from now on all altar servers will be adults. Discussion?

In my parish, all alter servers are adults, (well, male college students). I don’t think it would affect anything.

 

[napoli426]

I think generally, kids are not prepared to reverently serve. If they are I would prefer children (I mean boys not girls of course!!). I altar serve every monday and I love it. I think a lot of boys get forced into in by there parents…and they are not serving by desire.

 

[stbruno]

I think generally, kids are not prepared to reverently serve. If they are I would prefer children (I mean boys not girls of course!!). I altar serve every monday and I love it. I think a lot of boys get forced into in by there parents…and they are not serving by desire.

The way things are going at our parish, the kids are not volunteering anymore. All our weekday masses are assisted by adults. The only times kids show up is when they have the possibility of receiving a stipend for a funeral or wedding.

Sadly that’s the case and the adults are more than willing to be given the opportunity.

 

[mystified]

I attended a funeral Mass yesterday. The two female servers both apeared to be old enough to be the mother of the celebrant.
The nearest TLM, miiiiiiles away from here, is always served by adult males.
I don’t remember reading or hearing of any age limit on altarboys/girls.

 

[Phemie]

I attended a funeral Mass yesterday. The two female servers both apeared to be old enough to be the mother of the celebrant.
The nearest TLM, miiiiiiles away from here, is always served by adult males.
I don’t remember reading or hearing of any age limit on altarboys/girls.

We accept altar servers when they’re 8. The Church, though, envisions adult acolytes and allows ‘altar servers’ when adult acolytes aren’t available.

I would prefer to see adult altar servers (even if they aren’t instituted acolytes) and the kids in the pews with their parents learning how to participate in the Mass in the way that 90% of those in attendance participate in it.

 

[roveau]

I asked the priest at our local parish if there was anything he could think of for me to do for the parish and he suggested I become a ‘senior altar server’ (that’s the term used here). I’m 59. Now I’m nervous. There is training though.