tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3682550116445790117.post3963239650586692831..comments2024-03-23T09:59:53.293+00:00Comments on LINEN ON THE HEDGEROW: It's altar girls again!Richard Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10826907710570316952noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3682550116445790117.post-8453179901762143042011-11-25T01:07:05.963+00:002011-11-25T01:07:05.963+00:00Looking back at my post I should perhaps clarify t...Looking back at my post I should perhaps clarify that the reason I didn't go back to serving OF mass was because I thought the young needed a chance - not because of female altar servers. I just realised how that came across.<br /><br />In general I don't think I favour female altar servers but I have never been at a parish that has any.<br /><br />I wonder if anyone has researched the effects of serving on vocations to female religious orders? Surely it is long enough now to perhaps have some perliminary stats?<br /><br />@Gentry - Good point.<br /><br />It's interesing that the EF Mass I attend has 5 guys who look to be between 18 and 35 in a congregation of about 40 whilst the OF has about 6 in a congregation of about 200.<br /><br />I wonder if there is a greater attraction to obviously orthadox expressions of the faith? Vocations to religious orders which wear full habit etc would seem to support that.<br /><br />Just a thought.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3682550116445790117.post-23898193521481775172011-11-24T00:00:02.898+00:002011-11-24T00:00:02.898+00:00I'm not sure that altar girls are the problem,...I'm not sure that altar girls are the problem, more a symptom. It's the flight of men from Mass which is deeply concerning. Of the four churches within striking distance, the men in the congregation tend to be of advancing years. No teens, no 20s, 30s or 40s and very few 50s. <br />The ratio of women to men is at least 80/20. The readers are women, the EMHCs are women, the procession of gifts tend to be all-women, the collections are taken by women, the children's liturgy supervised by women. I see some young boys at Mass with their mothers, but no fathers.<br />Where are all the males? At what stage are they lost?<br />Btw, I've completed 10 decades. You might get some more after the 15.Gentyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05569143943867323153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3682550116445790117.post-75635716295931299112011-11-23T11:59:08.020+00:002011-11-23T11:59:08.020+00:00hmmm...my brother stopped serving after girls inv...hmmm...my brother stopped serving after girls invaded the sacristy. Must be a 'guy' thing and I agree; it just didn't look right to see girls up there.<br /><br />I'm all for keeping church altars all-maleAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07439614087264567341noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3682550116445790117.post-31095069719840316092011-11-23T11:57:33.727+00:002011-11-23T11:57:33.727+00:00This comment has been removed by the author.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07439614087264567341noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3682550116445790117.post-25176565119727755732011-11-23T10:47:53.646+00:002011-11-23T10:47:53.646+00:00Thank you Michael, so good to have your support.Thank you Michael, so good to have your support.Richard Collinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10826907710570316952noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3682550116445790117.post-87476491806396578752011-11-23T10:40:17.022+00:002011-11-23T10:40:17.022+00:00Richard,
I think you're one brave blogger! How...Richard,<br />I think you're one brave blogger! However, I totally agree with you!<br /><br />Cheers,<br /><br />Michael.YE OLDE JARRA SCRIBEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10368297651311397134noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3682550116445790117.post-33729552564128423922011-11-23T07:12:10.710+00:002011-11-23T07:12:10.710+00:00I wonder how a priest would tell altar girls to st...I wonder how a priest would tell altar girls to stop serving. I wonder if their parents would leave the parish in a huff. I rather like seeing a pastor take a stand.Lenahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09173616693453942166noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3682550116445790117.post-78368471782932662312011-11-23T01:31:55.959+00:002011-11-23T01:31:55.959+00:00I agree completely. This is why I decided to sing ...I agree completely. This is why I decided to sing in the choir rather than go back on the altar and serve when I moved to my current parish about 8 months ago. <br /><br />I believe that serving can help young men to be open to the idea that they may have a vocation and all the time we have young men and boys who wish to be up there then those of us with the first signs of grey hair should move aside and just do enough to keep our hands in in case we are ever needed.<br /><br />(Having said that I do serve the EF Mass but that is something I want to do for as long as I can - and we don't have that many of us who will do that one - three to be precise)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com