Altar Servers At Your Parish

[TeresaBenedicta]

I'm just curious as to what the "altar server" life is like at your parish. The poll wouldn't let me as anymore questions, so I'll ask them down here:

How many altar servers does your parish have total?
What sort of dress to your altar servers wear? (If cassock and surplus, are the girls included?)
What are the percentages of males-females who serve?

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My parish has a male-only altar serving crew, averaging from the age of First Holy Communion to high school seniors. We generally have around 7 or 8 boys serving per Mass (although for Corpus Christi we had 40 of them serving the Procession). I think we have somewhere around 50 or 60 altar boys, for a parish that has around 500 families (just to put it into perspective). Our boys wear a cassock and surplus when serving at the altar.

Edited June 14, 2010 by TeresaBenedicta

[Nihil Obstat]

We have three per Mass, girls and boys, usually between around eight and fourteen. They wear a simple robe..... I was taught that it's called an alb, but I'm not sure that's correct. It's a simple one piece with a hood and long sleeves, with a cord cincture at the waist.
ETA: Probably fifteen total in the whole parish. Most of them for 10:30, a few for 9, and sometimes one or two for 5pm.

Edited June 14, 2010 by Nihil Obstat

[homeschoolmom]

I had trouble voting:
Mixed
Ages 12-16
three or four on Sundays
no idea how many total
albs
More boys than girls, but I don't know the percentages. Boys serve on holidays and when we have a guest presider, girls fill in when needed.

[MIKolbe]

ours need some training. srsly.

[CatherineM]

We have a couple of girls, but mostly males, and mostly adult males.

[Hilde]

#1 Male and female mixed
#2 I voted high school but there are several over 18 serving.
#3 I voted 5-7 but there can be more.

[Apotheoun]

Only males (regardless of age) can serve the altar in the Eastern Catholic tradition.

[CatholicWing]

[b]Does your parish have male only altar servers, or do females also serve at the altar?[/b]
Male and female mixed

[b]What is the average age of your parish's altar servers?[/b]
Grade School (ages 8-14)

[b]How many altar servers usually serve at a Sunday Mass?[/b]
2-4

[zunshynn]

We only have men and boys...

For a high mass (we have one on Sundays), there are usually about 10 servers -- 2 MCs, a thurifer, 2 acolytes, 4 torchbearers and a crossbearer. For a Sunday low mass, there are usually usually two. The MCs and thurifers are older... late teens or early twenties, the acolytes are younger teens and the little boys are typically the torchbearers. I have only been to evening low masses during the week, and it's usually an older gentlemen that serves then... I don't know about the morning weekday masses.

The servers belong to the Altar Guild established by Pope Pius X, so they are allowed to become a part of it as servers in training for a year after recieving Holy Communion, and then as they are ready they can begin testing for the different levels.

At my home parish there are boys and girls... usually 3 I think for each Sunday mass... I don't know how many are involved with it though.

ETA... at my parish they wear black cassocks and surpluses. At my home parish they wear these alb sort of things with a cincture.

Edited June 14, 2010 by zunshynn

[Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam]

At the [b]Jesuit Parish[/b] that I attend:

Does your parish have male only altar servers, or do females also serve at the altar?
Only male altar servers

What is the average age of your parish's altar servers?
High school (14-18 plus some of the novices and sometimes the brothers so basically 14 all the way up to 60 depending on who of course)

How many altar servers usually serve at a Sunday Mass?
1-3 normally unless there is a special feast or the bishop is visiting and needs vimps or something which means the numbers get bumped up.

How many altar servers does your parish have total?
I don't know. There is a lot of fluctuation because the parish pulls from the local all boys high school. The congregation, which tends towards the orthodox side, does not at all mind the fact that only boys get the chance to serve and are generally happy to see different young men serving the altar. I graduated from the high school and whenever there is something special (like the Archdiocesan Corpus Christi Mass and Procession with the Bishop with the Mass at Immaculate Conception [the Jesuit Church] and then procession from there to the Cathedral). So it fluctuates, but they aren't hurting for servers.

What sort of dress to your altar servers wear? (If cassock and surplus, are the girls included?)
Cassock and surplus. No girls serve.

What are the percentages of males-females who serve?
100%-0%

*Note- They also have the prayers for vesting framed on the wall in both Latin and English incase you forget them or know them and don't understand. Awesome.

Edited June 14, 2010 by Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam

[SoonerCatholic]

Does your parish have male only altar servers, or do females also serve at the altar?
Male and female mixed

What is the average age of your parish's altar servers?
Grade School (ages 8-14)

How many altar servers usually serve at a Sunday Mass?
3-4
I don't know how many we have total, but they started using a 4th server more frequently because so many kids were interested, most of them come from our parish school, but by high school most lose interest. There are one or two adult servers but they usually serve holiday Masses. They wear cassock and surplice, but I think it looks odd on the girls.

[Gregorius]

Mixed.
Grade School.
Girls wear albs with these hood like things and cincture.
Young Guys wear red cassock and surplice.
Older wear black cassock and surplice.
anywhere from 0-3 during Mass. Many don't show up, so I can't give a total number.
I'm the only one who knows what he's doing. Everyone else took cues from our Deacon until he joined God.
I think I've seen more females at the altar total. I don't think the pastor has anything against mixed, but I usually serve with boys, that is, when I am not serving alone. I am the only one that can theoretically serve a TLM. And I never even been to one.

[laetitia crucis]

Current parish:

1. Male only
2. I'm not really sure what the average age, but I've seen a vast age range of altar servers -- from young children to older adults. I thought that was pretty cool.
3. We usually have about 3-4 per Sunday Mass (plus two deacons). Daily Mass always has at least one server.
4. I am uncertain about how many servers we have in total.
5. Red cassocks with white surpluses (sp?)... although I believe I've seen black cassocks before, too.
6. 100% male.

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At the first parish I ever attended, altar servers were both boys and girls with ages extending from post-First Communion all the way up to adulthood. There were always two altar servers per Sunday Mass, unless it was a Solemnity -- then we'd have four or five. They were white albs that look pretty much like this, except made from cotton: [url="http://www.aquinasandmore.com/catholic-gifts/Flax-Poly-Rayon-Blend-Alb/sku/62485"]Alb[/url].

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While in religious life, at all of our priests' parishes, there were only boy altar servers. Usually post-Communion age up to high schooled aged. They usually wore either red or black cassocks and white surpluses.

[MithLuin]

And what do the servers wear at your parish, [b]Apo[/b]?



My home parish growing up, we had mixed guys/girls, grade school age only, 2 at each mass (no crucifer/thurifer) unless it was something special. White albs (no hoods) with cord cinctures of the appropriate liturgical color. The altar servers were trained by the deacons or seminarian (if we had one). I think you had to be about 9 to sign up. Once you were no longer in elementary school, you could become a sacristan if you wished to continue serving. My sisters and brothers and I were all altar servers at some point.

The only time I was ever put in a cassock and surplice was when I was thurifer for my cousin's wedding...in an Episcopalian church.


My current parish is fairly similar to the one where I grew up, I think, though I don't usually pay much attention to the altar servers, so I'm not sure I know the guy/girl ratio. I think they have hoods on their albs and white cinctures, though maybe that was just during Easter season...and I think we have elementary through high school. Oh, and it's always 3, because they do have a crucifer, which is much nicer.

Edited June 14, 2010 by MithLuin

[Apotheoun]

[quote name='MithLuin' date='13 June 2010 - 09:52 PM' timestamp='1276487528' post='2128423']
And what do the servers wear at your parish, [b]Apo[/b]?[/quote]
They wear a garment called a sticharion, which is often in gold, but which is sometimes in other colors like the vestments depicted below:

[img]http://sites.google.com/site/thetaboriclight/metamorphosis/sticharion-01.jpg[/img] [img]http://sites.google.com/site/thetaboriclight/metamorphosis/sticharion-02.jpg[/img]