This is so sad - what on earth is the thought process going on in the minds of boys or young men who are scared off of altar serving by girls? After all, having girls in most schools doesn’t seem to keep the boys away.
As for implying that the boys were scared away from the priesthood as a result - well, some strong vocation those boys must’ve had! Can’t help wondering what sort of priests they would’ve made.
Actually they probably would have made great priests since they knew innately that the role of men and women are to be different in the church. But besides that, how many young boys do you know want to do the stuff the girls want to do. Be honest with yourself and don’t think in terms of an adult, but in the terms of a young person for a few minutes. The reaction these young men had of quitting serving because girls were doing it, is actually a natural reaction. Boys at that age don’t like things that appear to be “sissy”. They don’t like dressing up for dances, they don’t like playing with dolls, they don’t want to appear to be effeminate and since we don’t have many good male role models in their father, or the priesthood to show them that serving in Church can be a manly thing, of course they are going to have second thoughts about it.
Even I as an adult after approaching a couple of archdiocese and spending some time at the seminaries had second thoughts about priesthood, and it’s not because there were “girls” around, but because of the people I met were, well, I can’t think of a better word but sissies. The seminaries I visited were populated by what most men would call sissies. The clincher was when I was told I was too straight, too masculine to be a priest, not only by vocation directors but by other seminarians.
Where are the men? They are trying very hard in this day and age to hang on to their masculinity, and the priesthood and serving at the altar doesn’t seem to be the place for that these days. If you want men to serve, then let the role be a man’s role without infringement by the women, or by the effeminate, let them maintain their masculinity and show them that being religious isn’t a girlie thing. Fathers, stand up, learn to serve at the altar, and volunteer a couple of Sundays a year. Let them see, that you as head of the household aren’t ashamed to serve at the altar. Mothers, let your boys be boys, let them rough and tumble with each other but teach them manners, and how to show charity without making them feel like they are “such good little boys”. Boys want to grow up and be men, and men want to stay men.
