Altar serving is an important ministry available to boys and girls in the third grade or older who demonstrate a willingness to assist our parish priests in the Celebration of Mass.
Our parish is blessed to have such a wonderful and devoted group of altar servers. Altar Servers observe a regular schedule of assigned Mass duties. If you are interested you may contact our parish priests or Jacy Northup at 935-7620 for St. Francis Church, or Bill Harding at 783-4411 for St. Romuald Chapel.
Schedule:
Our parish conducts Altar Servers training periodically during the year. A summary of the procedure for Mass is detailed in the following link.
To Help assist at Mass, here is a quick checklist for you to follow:
Before Mass Begins:
- Arrive at church 15 minutes early.
- Sign in for the proper Mass.
- Put on the alb (and colored scapular if you are a cross-bearer)
- Light altar candles and processional candles.
- Quietly wait for Father at the front door of the church.
Entrance Procession:
- When the opening hymn begins the cross-bearer leads the procession, holding the cross, walking slowly and reverently, down the center aisle.
- The altar servers follow holding the processional candles chest high.
- The cross-bearer will step to the sanctuary and stand facing forward near the music cantor.
- The altar servers will stand to the left behind the cross-bearer. (The priest will come and stand to your right).
- When the priest reaches the altar, he will genuflect to the tabernacle and the bow to the altar.
- As the priest proceeds to the sanctuary, the cross-bearer brings the cross into the sacristy and places the cross in its stand.
- The altar servers will follow the cross-bearer into the sacristy, placing the processional candles on the table leaving them lit.
- The altar servers and cross-bearer will stand in front of their chairs with their hands folded.
General items to remember during Mass:
- Be reverent, prayerful and quiet on the altar (except to whisper for assistance from an experienced server).
- Keep your eyes on the priest.
- Keep your hands folded in prayer when standing and folded in your lap when sitting.
- When presenting the water and wine cruets to Father, be sure to hold them with the handles facing outward so that Father can take them easily.
- Experienced servers, please assist the less- experienced servers on the altar so that they may learn the process correctly.
After Mass:
- Extinguish altar candles and processional candles.
- Help distribute parish bulletins.
- Neatly hang up your alb and scapular where you found them.
