I was not an Altar server as a child, but many of my cousins were. Half of them are no longer Catholic. The other half are very devout.
I have a theory that if you are an altar server, you will either grow up to be a great Priest or a fairly decent Stand-up Comedian. So many Comedians “used to be Catholic—altar server in fact.” And every good Priest that I have gotten to know, all were Altar servers growing up. I have not met one Priest who was not an Altar server as a boy.
My one Cousin had the job of lighting the candles and he had the wick thing so far out that the flame was more like a torch. Vwoosh! We used to joke that he was going to burn the Church down : ) He is one of the ones who no longer goes to Church. Of the three brothers, only one still goes to Church and he now attends a Methodist Church I believe.
I think it is cool that we have a Grandfather & Grandson who serve together. The boy’s Dad has problems with addiction and is in and out of the boy’s life. I often Pray for this young man, that if God is calling him to be a Priest, that he is open to God’s call.
My other Cousin (and daughter’s Godfather) is a Franciscan Friar after having had a really good job working for the Pentagon. He has taken a vow of poverty and now serves the poor. He too was an altar server growing up. He was also home-schooled. Very smart guy. His hobby is wood-working and he loves to make practical things for their Friary and he even made my Step-Dad, who used to be in a Christian Rock Band, a custom guitar! Just an amazing guy who loves serving God and sharing the love and joy of Christ with all.
Hello. I am new to this forum. I only wish to share on this particular subject that I was an Alter Boy (not server) and learned Latin which was difficult but I now cherish all things Latin. I believe that everything about our Faith, if we heard the history or explanation, if we had the patience to sit and listen, then we would understand and accept it. On this subject of this serving, I know a Priest who hopes to, at his Parish, return to boys only as servers. He can provide an excellent explanation as to why. Peace to you.
Yes, in the 1960’s. I didn’t grow up to be a priest, though I was a volunteer hospital chaplain for a few years. I have written a lot of humor and even had a lot of it published. I was a sit-down comic at work. One co-worker said to me, “You are too funny for your own good.”
I am 74. In my time we had to learn the server responses in Latin. At that time there were so many servers we retired when we entered high school. Things are so different today.
Yes I was an altar boy in the late 70’s. My mother passed away at the age of 36. I was 14. I was bounced from family member to family member , but the rest if my family took good care of my sister. I eventually ended up living on the streets until I was old enought to collect welfare (16 years old). I overdosed and was found in a stairwell where I slept and was taken to the hospital. I had no pulse but was brought back to life. I am now a father and grandfather, and a Knight Of Columbus. Praise be to God!!!