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Altar Servers

Duties and Responsibilities

 

Serving at the altar is a time-honoured tradition in the Catholic Church. Children who have already received First Communion have the opportunity, with training, to work with the priest during his most sacred duties of celebrating Mass. This includes holding candles, preparing the altar, helping the priest with the wine and water, ringing the bells at the appropriate time and serving at funerals and weddings when called upon.   It is a wonderful privilege.

 

Duties: During Sunday Mass, servers at the altar vest in robes, process with the celebrant and ministers and carry out various functions at the altar. Servers at the altar may also help with funerals and weddings when called upon to do so.

 

Qualifications: Altar servers need to be Baptized Roman Catholic, have received First Communion and disciplined enough to remain quietly attentive to the Mass.

 

Commitment: Servers are expected to serve according to a schedule, approximately once a month in teams of 3 and to arrive at Mass at least 10 minutes before we begin. Some special occasions will require extra rehearsals.

 

Training: Serving is a complex activity and takes time to learn. Training will be required. Servers will need to have demonstrated a basic understanding of their role before they are scheduled. Servers generally catch on quickly and find it enjoyable and easy once they get used to it.

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