The Question Box
Posted on December 2, 2007
Question
"It seems like girls are not welcome to serve at Mass anymore... is this really true? How come?
Answer
Well, THIS is a question I don’t know can be answered to the satisfaction of many, because of the emotional factors associated with it, but I will try. It might be helpful to go through some ideas and events of the past that have contributed to the anxiety that many may feel about this issue.** I think first of all, there is a terrible perspective of human dignity today that says “I have worth only if I can DO what I desire to do… and be able to do the same things as someone else is able to do.” More interest in “quality of life,” than in life itself. It’s an idea that “I have worth because of what I can accomplish… as opposed to “I have worth because I am a human being, precious in the eyes of the Lord… I have worth because of WHO I AM.” Well, God’s more interested in who we are as people, as opposed to what we may be able to accomplish! “Accomplishing” is a means to an end, not an end unto itself.** I think, too, there is a terrible misunderstanding of what the Sacred Liturgy – the Mass, in particular – is all about. The Mass makes present the Sacrifice of Christ on the Cross for our salvation (see Catechism of the Catholic Church 1330) and is an action of Christ the Priest Who lives and moves in the life of His Church. Both sexes most certainly are created in the image and likeness of God… the Son of God was a Man and chose male Apostles not only for missionary teaching and right order, but for cultic action in the life of His Church. The presence, role and leadership of women in the life of the Church is indisputable (see Acts 16 as an example). This all goes to the heart of why only men are ordained in the sacrament of Holy Orders: it’s what the Lord Himself did. I might direct the reader to the Apostolic Letter of John Paul II in May, 1994: Ordinatio Sacerdotalis. This instruction gives a pretty good [and brief!] background on the doctrinal aspect. Servers at Mass (acolytes) are extensions of the priest… and this is why, pretty much, boys and men assisted in cultic action in the life of the Church – this was also a principal source of guys discerning vocations to the priesthood, too.** In the whole milieu of social upheaval and revolution coinciding with Church renewal in the 1960s and 70s, the whole perspective on the Mass, for example, shifted from one of worship of God to affirming the “celebrating community.” We do everything we can to downplay the “vertical” perspective in favor of the “horizontal” in our worship, it can seem. The Mass is become the assembly of Christians engaged in the work of changing the world, rather than a people called by God to give Him praise and worship that He may become present among them! It’s not to say we should not be “bringing Christ to the world”! Truly, it’s He Who does the changing… but Mass is the official prayer and worship of the body of believers… the setting where we are disposed to His power and grace and able to become His co-workers.** The equality of sexes and races has most certainly been in the forefront of the collective conscious of western society for at least the last 100 years, really, and particularly in the aftermath of World War II (who minded the country while the guys were off fighting?!). It’s easy to see how this has affected life in the Church… but we remember that more than anything, the Church challenges and even counters the trends of secular society!** Many well-intended Church leaders wrestled with these dynamics… how to “include,” how to reconcile the “priesthood of the baptized” with the actions and identity of the ordained priesthood. Up until March 1994, girls were not permitted to serve at the altar for the aforementioned reasons… but the practice of "girl servers" had taken root in many spots around the world in defiance of Church authority for some time. And the “girl server question” was often depicted as an extension of a wider push that women should become ordained – it was a matter of “equality,” after all!** In March 1994, an interpretation of Canon Law by the Vatican permitted girls to serve at the altar with the permission of the local bishop. What was interesting about this permission was that Church authority stated “the noble custom of altar boys is to be maintained, and to be given pride of place… nevertheless, with the permission of the local Bishop… in the absence of sufficient male servers, girls may be admitted to such service at the altar.” This directive was further clarified that the local parish priest may determine the suitability of including girls in such service.** All of this may seem petty and discriminatory, especially if it's framed only in the context of secular society’s conception of “equality” of the sexes and the idea that any individual should never be denied in attaining whatever he/she desires. Can a girl carry cruets, candles, perform ritual actions the same as a boy? Of course! No reasonable individual would dispute this in terms of a boy’s or girl’s physical abilities! What’s at stake, though, is not only an entire sacramental understanding of our cultic life, but our whole understanding and appreciation of the complementarity of the sexes, to say nothing of our regard for the authority of the Church – does the Lord, indeed, continue to work in His Church or does He not? In addition, practically speaking, service at the altar is a proven setting for discerning of vocations to the priesthood!** Here at the Cathedral, both boys and girls serve at Mass and are given particular spheres of responsibility. Admittedly and in appreciation of Church directives, “pride of place” is given to the boys only in the interests of promoting vocations to the priesthood, but the dignity and grace of women involved in the Church’s worship is most decidedly appreciated and revered! I hope this may shed some light on this matter, which as I admit… I don’t know that it’s possible to respond to one’s distaste for liturgical practice in a satisfactory manner (trust me, I’ve experienced a great deal of derision and hostility because of it!), but as a Cathedral parish, we do, indeed, see it as our responsibility to be exemplary in faithfulness to the Church herself. Nobody has a "right" to serve at the altar -- "rights" in the way we conceive of them are not what the Kingdom of God is about -- and this is hard for our times to hear and to consider. I only hope and pray that some of this may respond to your concerns -- it's certainly not an arbitary or authoritarian determination. Thanks for your candid and direct question!
Recent Questions
- Why doesn't Midnight Mass start at 12 Midnight in many parishes?
- Why is there so much incense used at Mass lately? I know people who won't come to church because of the incense.
- Father, what is "Spy Wednesday" of Holy Week? I don't think I've ever heard of this. And by the way, what is "Pontifical Mass"? I see this referred to rather often recently.
- Father, if we "give up" something for Lent, is it for 40 days only? When does Lent end? Some people I know don't observe their Lenten sacrifice on Sundays... what's the deal?
- I've noticed that there seems to be more Latin music used at Mass lately. In honesty, I don't know that I like it but I think it's because I don't understand it. On the other hand, I've heard priests say that this was abolished? Please clarify if possible.