I was asked to be the sponsor for confirmation yesterday and happily accepted. It is such an odd thing when you mix tradition and aesthetics of liturgy with modern style and fads and then produce a homily telling the congregation not to give into the world and modernism. Irony, I suppose. It was a blending of chant with gospel(seriously), reverent boy servers with girls that(sorry for the reference) reminded me of Jedi fighters(their mode of dress) and although we had 4 priests and one deacon, the cup parade was brought out at communion as reminder that "we are all one". Eh. While I can say it was no where near as dreadful as the first communion of a few weeks past, it was odd in the mix of orthodoxy and protestant "inclusionism"(if that makes sense). Not everyone needs to be on the altar. It is not a right. Just as I don't want a priest running my business and, God forbid, sewing for me or doing my taxes, I also believe it is not our call as laypeople, to do the job a bishop or priest is called to do. You don't need to have a cup, serve to prove a point(or because you can), etc. I would love to see a "no, you are a girl/woman, I need to encourage the boys to serve and here is why..." in our diocese. See it without the priest getting a wrist slap, that is. Can you imagine the vocations we could have in Covington with implementing all boy servers in each parish? If people are taught the truth and girls are given another job or club in a parish, it could foster so much more.
On the girl servers:
In July 2001, the Holy See’s Congregation for Divine Worship issued a response to a bishop’s question (dubium) concerning the possible admission of girls and women as altar servers. The response, a further explanation of the Circular Letter to the Presidents of Episcopal Conference, March 15, 1994, no. 2, that granted permission for bishops to admit female altar servers, made it clear that only a diocesan bishop may decide whether to permit female servers in his diocese; furthermore, that no priest is obliged to have female servers, even in dioceses where this is permitted. The letter stressed that no one has a “right” to serve at the altar, and also strongly reaffirmed that altar boys should be encouraged
More female server infoOn the mix of chant and full out gospel song that was performed after communion...no clue. That choir is so good and strong, I just don't get it. It is weird unless, they felt the need to get with the times(which was the whole point of the homily).
All in all, it was good to see at least a semblance of orthodoxy in the diocese. Being a pontifical Mass, I would be shocked to see the rave/club/puppet show environment we experienced at the first communion. Thankfully, I was not shocked.
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