THE MINISTRY OF SERVERS

Transcription

1 Collegeville Ministry Series THE MINISTRY OF SERVERS Third Edition Michael Kwatera, OSB LITURGICAL PRESS Collegeville, Minnesota

2 Photos by W. P. Wittman Photography Limited. Excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal, Third Edition 2010, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation (ICEL). All rights reserved. John Paul II s General Audience, August 1, 2001, copyright Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Used with permission by the Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by print, microfilm, microfiche, mechanical recording, photocopying, translation, or by any other means, known or yet unknown, for any purpose except brief quotations in reviews, without the previous written permission of Liturgical Press, Saint John s Abbey, PO Box 7500, Collegeville, Minnesota Printed in the United States of America Library of Congress Control Number: ISBN: (ebook)

3 In memory of Reverend Daniel Durken, OSB ( ), monk of St. John s Abbey and former director of Liturgical Press, who asked me to write the first edition of this booklet

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5 Contents Introduction vii 1 Preparing to Serve Mass 1 2 Postures at Mass 5 3 Directions for Serving Mass 8 4 Special Directions for Serving Funerals 17 5 Special Directions for Serving Weddings 20 6 Directions for Serving the Way of the Cross 22 7 Serving at Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament 25 8 Investiture Ceremony 29 Appendix A: Pope John Paul II Speaks to Altar Servers 32 Appendix B: When to Stand, Sit, and Kneel at Mass 35 Appendix C: My Substitutes to Serve 36 Notes 37 v

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7 Introduction Do you like to look at old photos? I do! Photos show me what my parents and I looked like years ago, where we spent our vacations, what activities meant a lot to us. One old photo that I especially like shows the servers in the parish where I grew up. The picture was taken when I was in the eighth grade. There we are, most of us standing on the steps of the altar, two of us kneeling in front (that s me on the left). And the priest who showed us how to serve Mass is standing at the side with a proud smile on his face. I like this photo very much because it helps me remember the years when I was a Mass server. Serving Mass meant a lot to me, and I wanted to do it well. Anything worth doing is worth doing well, my Dad used to tell me. It wasn t easy getting up extra early to serve Mass at 6:30 on weekday mornings, and it wasn t easy staying awake and alert at Christmas Midnight Mass. But somehow, the chance to be a Mass server made the difficult things worthwhile, even more than the yearly servers picnic did. Being a server means serving God and God s people at Mass. That is what makes serving Mass worth doing, and worth doing well. That is what makes good servers want to do their best. vii

8 viii The Ministry of Servers The priest who trained me and the other servers in grade school never called what we did at Mass a ministry, but he might have. Ministry is a word for the kind of service that the ushers, readers, extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, and priest give to God and God s people at Mass. Servers are really ministers. The name server clearly points out what they do at Mass: serve God and God s people by helping the priest and his fellow worshipers to praise God as well as they can. By helping the priest and people carry special objects and carry out special actions at Mass, they are really serving God. Why does the priest need servers to help him at Mass? From the early days of the church, people have thought that the priest shouldn t do everything at Mass, and so different kinds of people have helped him: deacons, readers, and acolytes. Today, servers do some of the tasks that acolytes did in the past (such as preparing the altar and sanctuary before Mass, and making the responses). Hundreds of years ago, an acolyte would carry the chalice, candles, and other items needed for Mass in a sack slung over his back. He would prepare everything for the Mass and then help the priest at the altar. When Mass was over, the acolyte would pack everything up again and carry it out. These acolytes were young men who were studying to be priests, and their serving at the altar gave them a good chance to learn what they needed to know about the Mass. That is why the church said that only boys could be servers, because only men could be priests. Today, it is still the rule that only men can be priests. But now servers do not need to be studying to be priests, and not all servers will become priests when they get older. In 1994, Pope John Paul II allowed girls to serve at the altar, if the diocesan bishop permits them to. It is good that girls have joined boys as altar servers almost everywhere in the United States. As servers give of themselves to help the priest and people worship better, they also receive God s help and blessing. Pope John Paul II once told a group of servers who came to visit him, Serving at the Eucharistic table and at the various liturgical celebrations, you draw directly from the wells of salvation the

9 Introduction ix strength necessary to live well today and then also to face your future more energetically. 1 Servers, like the other ministers at Mass, receive God s help for their important service. In one of his radio skits, humorist Garrison Keillor introduces us to a baseball pitcher who is so speedy a runner that he can actually catch his own pitches. Quite a feat! But wouldn t such skill eliminate the need for teamwork between pitcher and catcher? Like baseball, the liturgy thrives on teamwork, the more of it the better. No baseball team is composed only of pitchers or left fielders, and the liturgy similarly looks for many different ministers, especially during grand celebrations. Mass servers are welcome members of the liturgy s team, along with greeters, musicians, celebrant, readers, and extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion. Now as in the past, servers hands and feet are very helpful to the celebrant and other ministers as they perform their tasks. Part of the ministry of servers is to help set the pace for all who take part in the Mass. What you do there and how you do it can help other people to understand the Mass better and make their love for God stronger. As a server, you should try to become very involved in the Mass, so that other people will become involved also. The people in church will be watching you carefully. They are not so interested to see if you make mistakes, but they like to see what it means to be really involved in the Mass. People will take more interest in the Mass if they see you taking more interest in it while you serve. Former Bishop Kenneth Untener of Saginaw, Michigan, rightly tells us, It makes a difference how we carry the candles, whether and how we genuflect or bow, what kind of posture we have when sitting or standing, whether we seem to be prayerful and interested when we are not performing any actions. Many servers today seem to have little awareness of this. 2 Even at Mass, our outward actions and appearance tell others a lot about how we are feeling on the inside. At Mass, our actions and appearance should show that we love God and God s people. It should be clear to all who see us that we think serving

10 x The Ministry of Servers is worth doing and worth doing well. We should try to be the best servers we can be. I have written this booklet to help you serve God and God s people at Mass. Serving Mass is not exactly the same in every parish, because church buildings and priests and congregations are not the same. The celebration of Mass can be very different even in parishes that are close to each other. Each priest usually celebrates Mass like other priests, but he may do some actions in his own way. Usually the priest will tell you about these before Mass begins; but if he doesn t, try to be alert and fit your actions to his. It shouldn t be hard to do this if you know what usually hap pens at Mass. That is why practice is so important. Just as listening to instructions from the coach and careful practice make a person a good athlete, so listening to the directions from your instructor and careful practice will make you a good server. Practice is work, so please come on time and be ready to learn how to serve God and God s people. Happy serving! Father Michael Kwatera, OSB

11 1 Preparing to Serve Mass Before You Come to Church: 1. Get a good night s sleep before you serve so that you won t be drowsy at Mass when you serve in the morning. 2. Your shoes should be clean and quiet. Squeaky shoes or hard heels can disturb everyone at Mass. Some shoes call too much attention to themselves (for example, yellow tennis shoes with blue stars all over) and should not be worn for serving (even if they are your favorite shoes). If your shoes are not dirty or torn, it shows that you know serving Mass is an important task and that you prepared for it carefully. 3. If you have a head cold, be sure to have a handkerchief or Kleenex in your pocket. You may need to use it during a sneeze. 4. Your hands (including fingernails) and face should be clean. Most sacristies have a sink with soap and water where you can do a last-minute cleanup, if necessary. You try to look your best when you are going to a special party, don t you? Why not try to look your best for your important service to God and God s people at Mass? 1

12 2 The Ministry of Servers When You Come to Church: 1. Arrive at the church at least fifteen minutes before Mass begins. If the weather is bad, you will probably have to leave home a bit earlier than usual. 2. When you arrive at the church, stop and think about what a special building you are entering. Your church is a place where God lives with God s people in your parish, and a place where God s people come together to praise God. The church is the home that all the people of your parish own together. It is the place where they gather for some important family activities: baptisms, First Communions, confirmations, weddings, funerals. Many people who lived and died in your parish (maybe your grandparents and great-grandparents) worked hard to get the money needed to build a church that would be the best they could provide. Today you have a beautiful church because people who lived before you made sacrifices of their time and money. Always treat your church and all that it contains as very precious treasures, for that is what they are. They are precious treasures because they are the gifts that the people of your parish gave to God: they gave back to God what God had given them, and they were happy to do so. Always show care and respect for the church building and all its furnishings: chalices (the cups for the Blood of Christ), ciboria (con tainers for the Body of Christ), candles, vestments. 3. Put on a clean, unwrinkled cassock and surplice or, if it is the custom in your parish, a server s alb with a cord around the waist and maybe a wooden cross around your neck. Treat these vestments with care. Be sure that your cassock or alb is not too long nor too short: the cassock or alb should come to the tops of your shoes, not drag on the floor. Button or zipper the cassock or alb carefully (remember to button the neck). Handle the surplice so as not to tear it when putting it on or taking it off. Try not to spill wax on your vestments when carrying or putting out a candle. If your parish does

13 Preparing to Serve Mass 3 not use special vestments for servers, dress neatly in the way that is required in your parish. 4. Place the cruets (small pitchers) filled with water and wine in their usual place: either on the credence table in the sanctuary, or with the ciborium on the table in the church for the procession with these items. If your parish offers Communion from the cup, you may need to set out a decanter of wine as well. 5. Check to see that the bowl and finger towel for washing the priest s hands are on the credence table before Mass begins. You should know where the finger towels are kept in the sacristy so that you can put out a fresh one when needed. 6. You may be asked to place the needed books in their proper places in the sanctuary. You should know where they are kept in the sacristy so that you can find them easily. The Lectionary for Mass (the book of Scripture readings) should be placed on the lectern. The Missal (the book of the priest s prayers for Mass) should be placed near or on the celebrant s (priest s) chair (or, in some places, on the altar). Some parishes provide booklets with the Mass readings and prayers, or leaflets for the people to use during Mass. If so, these should be at the places where you will sit in the sanctuary. 7. About five minutes before Mass is scheduled to begin, one of the servers lights the candles on the altar. Sometimes you may be asked to light other candles also. During the weeks after Easter, you will light the large Easter candle that has a special place in the sanctuary. Lighting the candles tells the people that Mass is about to begin. You should light them in such a way that people will find it a pleasure to watch. When lighting the candles, know what you are supposed to do and be careful for the safety of the church and all who are in it, including yourself. Keep the flame away from your vestments. It looks better if you use wax tapers rather than matches to light the candles. But if you have to use matches, never drop

14 4 The Ministry of Servers the burnt matches into the candle holders. Be careful not to drip wax from the taper or the candles on the altar cloth, on the floor, or on your vestments. This will not happen if you keep the burning wick fairly short. 8. Turn off your cell phone before serving. Be quiet in the sacristy and avoid making unnecessary noise. The priest, readers, and extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion will appreciate a few moments of silence and prayer before they serve God s people at Mass. (A few moments of quiet and prayer isn t a bad idea for servers either. You can find a prayer to say before serving on the inside front cover of this booklet.) In some parishes, the priest may gather all the ministers together for a few moments of prayer before Mass begins. If so, take part in this time of prayer reverently. 9. Be especially ready to help the priest if he is a visitor to your parish. He may ask you some questions about how Mass takes place in your church. If he does, try to answer them clearly. He wants to serve the people at Mass well, just as you do, and you can be a big help to him.