Comments on: The Rise of the Altar Girls

By: Nina

Nina — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 00:38:16 +0000

This issue has been a great concern to me for several years. I am a cradle Catholic, who left the church, only to return and spend as much time as possible studying the teachings of the Catholic Church. My studies molded me into a traditional Catholic, much to my surprise. The modern church and its incorrect teachings changed Catholicism, and not for the better. I share the feeling of many who have written before me, there is little to add.
I have just returned from dropping off my son at the U of Dayton, a Catholic College run by Marianist priests. Mass was held in the morning and I could not believe that out of 20 EEM only 2 were male. The altar servers were female. At my local church, large parish, 2/3 or more of the EEM are female and it is a rare day when a male altar server is seen. This issue is similar my Mother and sisters Catholic Church. I am looking for an answer to the cause of decline in male participation at Mass. If anyone can refer me to articles on this issue I would be thankful.

By: Frank M

Frank M — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 00:33:48 +0000

Friends,

We will all be judged based upon how we meet our obligations for our state in life. Women especially should worry about their role as wives and mothers rather than being busybodies in the sanctuary. Young girls today are being set up for failure in this regard. Most are winding up as career whores on the pill. “Altar Girls” are a manifestation of a heretical degenerate feminist agenda. I feel sorry for all you “novus ordo” Catholics. You have no idea what has been taken from you.

By: Cathy

Cathy — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 23:50:44 +0000

I feel sorry for boys these days. If they can’t have a female that is in a position of authority over them, then they may as well forget going to med school or law school. They will find it “not cool”. The women that have been applying and entering these fields outnumber the boys 60 to 40. Boys at this stage have an advantage as the medical and law schools attempt to keep a 50/50 margin. This is done at the expense of girls that are superior to many of the boys applying. Maybe as parents we need to do a better job of not fostering the notion that having a female coworker or authority figure is somehow emasculating. Masculinity should not be thought of as the ability to put your foot on the neck of someone else. If that is the case, then boys would only be useful in military combat.
Most of the priest I know think that women should be able to become priest and feel that Rome is really on the wrong track. It is loss of power that keeps this issue going. I found the discussions interesting for one reason. This should not even be an issue in 2010.

By: Father Joe

Father Joe — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 21:54:04 +0000

Pope John Paul II told Mother Teresa that as long as he was Pope, there would never be altar girls. Two days later she was greatly shocked by the nonsensical clarification of liturgical law permissive of altar girls from the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. What happened in 1994? The Holy Father was in the hospital. The prefect took it upon himself to make the change. Afterwards, the Pope was furious. He told Mother Teresa that he allowed the change to stand because he did not want the public scandal of a Vatican fighting itself. If you look at the document in the ACTA, you will note that it is signed by the prefect, but the Pope never put his name to it.

Cardinal Ratzinger was a close friend and supporter of the Pope and he did not forget those who took advantage of Pope John Paul II. As Pope Benedict XV he has done much to clean house and to keep firmer control. He was a strong critic of the Assisi Conference and the religious indifferentism promoted by some of the liturgists. That is history, now. He also did much as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to salvage the damage from a problematical response to American canonists about the validity of Mormon baptism. The question arose because rebaptism is not the practice of the Church and because of marriage annulment cases. The more progressive Congregation for Divine Worship argued for the validity. Appreciating that there was a defect in intention (Mormons are Polytheists and not true Monotheists and Trinitarians), the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith released a clarification that such baptism was deemed invalid.

Today in the U.S., only the diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska excludes females from service at the altar. The Holy See, especially Cardinal Arinze, has tried to stress the traditional important of altar boys; however, strong language that was to be added to this effect in the General Instructions was struck when many American bishops complained. The girls may be very pious and good, but I lament the loss of the boys. Even attempts to dress them differently have been shot down by liturgists. Why can we not keep our boys in surplice and cassock and our girls in something else, either an adapted alb or better yet a junior habit with veil? We are not even supposed to refer to them as altar boys and altar girls, but generically as altar servers. I would prefer to call them “altar boys” and “hand maids.” But I doubt any of this will ever fly… too bad.

By: iyas

iyas — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 02:42:35 +0000

I think its a good thing, but the most appropriate is to be 50-50 thats will be cool

By: GG

GG — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 02:02:24 +0000

My son is 13 years old. During school break he is playing soccer with both boys and girls. I found out that children who have equal access to sports, class activities etc. are not brainwashed about gender. As an example, ipads, ipods, iphones are for both boys and girls. Yet Barbie and toys are focused on gender.

By: John Kabel

John Kabel — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 00:48:11 +0000

Boys (and their parents) will be more inclined toward service as altar boys when the Church gets the priestly penchant for buggery under control.

By: LJHS

LJHS — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 00:05:45 +0000

Respectfully, Meghan i couldn’t disagree more with your conclusions. If the Holy Father had an issue with female alter servers then he would come out and say as much. It’s bad enough that some perceive the Catholic Church as the Church of No (see Anne Rice’s FB fan page if in doubt) but to draw the conclusion that alter girls are harmful to priestly vocations is about the most insane thing i’ve read.
I consider myself a conservative Roman Catholic, completely in obedience to our Holy Catholic church…but until B16 himself comes out with a piece like this, i remain in the belief that alter girls are a wonderful way for females to feel more included with the Holy Mass.

By: Patricia

Patricia — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 22:32:15 +0000

Thank goodness for the safety of the Traditional Latin Mass from these ridiculous novelties. If there’s one thing more ridiculous than a girl dressed as an altar boy, it’s a female cleric in a dog collar.

Thank you, Archbishop Lefebvre!

By: NonCharon

NonCharon — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 20:05:35 +0000

As ice cream sales go up in a yearly cycle there is a corresponding increase in deaths by drowning. It is therefore prudent that ice cream be banned due to it’s use leading to deaths by drowning….

Or a third variable, hotter temperatures during the Summer, could be driving both changes.

Correlation is not causation. This is sloppy logic that may simply be covering a barely hidden misogyny.