A Manual for Acolytes. Dennis G. Michno

      

      A Manual

      for

      Acolytes

       The Duties of the Server At Liturgical Celebrations

      DENNIS G. MICHNO

       With illustrations by Richard E. Mayberry

      Appendix A of this book contains “A Form for the Commissioning of Servers at the Altar” from The Book of Occasional Services, published by The Church Hymnal Corporation, and used by permission of The Church Pension Fund.

      Copyright © 1981 Dennis G. Michno

      All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner.

       Morehouse Publishing

      Editorial Office 871 Ethan Allen Highway Ridgefield, CT 06877

      Corporate Office P.O. Box 1321 Harrisburg, PA 17105

       Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 80-81096

       Printed in the United States of America

       Sixth Printing, 1995

      To the Glory of God

      and in memory of

      Harold Louis Wright, Bishop

      Robert Lewis Meaney, Priest

      &

      Robert Morgan Gilday

       They served, and serve, in love, with faithfulness and loyalty.

       Acknowledgements

      My thanks to the Rev. R. DeWitt Mallary, Jr., and the Rev. Charles W. Scott for their patience and helpful suggestions; to Judith de Posz for intensive proofreading and special work on the glossary; to John Hoppe for encouragement and ideas; and to Evelyn P. Mallary, whose gentle push and fervent prayers helped bring this manual to light.

      DGM

      Table of Contents

       Preface

       Part One: An Introduction to Serving

       Chapter 1 How To Use This Manual

       Chapter 2 The Server’s Prayers

       Chapter 3 General Instructions

       Chapter 4 The Vesting of Servers

       Chapter 5 The Lighting of Candles

       Chapter 6 The Extinguishing of Candles

       Chapter 7 Before the Eucharist

       Part Two: The Holy Eucharist

       Chapter 8 An Outline of the Eucharist

       Chapter 9 Basic Instructions and Duties of the Server at the Eucharist

       Part Three: Specific Duties at the Eucharist

       Chapter 10 When There Is More Than One Server

       Chapter 11 The Acolyte

       Chapter 12 The Crucifer

       Chapter 13 The Thurifer

       Part Four: Other Liturgies

       Chapter 14 The Daily Offices: Morning or Evening Prayer

       Chapter 15 An Order of Worship for the Evening

       Chapter 16 Holy Baptism; Celebration and Blessing of a Marriage; Burial of the Dead

       Chapter 17 Processions

       Chapter 18 Proper Liturgies for Special Days

       Appendix A: A Form for the Commissioning of Servers at the Altar

       Appendix B: The Church Year

       Glossary of Terms

      Preface

       “THAT IN ALL THINGS GOD MAY BE GLORIFIED”

      The Book of Common Prayer states, At all celebrations of the Liturgy, it is fitting that the principal celebrant, whether bishop or priest, be assisted by other priests, and by deacons and lay persons. (BCP, 322 & 354)

      When serving at the altar, one is doing just this: actively assisting the celebrant in the worship of God. This is an important ministry and should be approached with dignity, humility, and care. The server should be well acquainted with the responsibilities and perform the duties with diligence. Sloppiness is to be avoided; stiff or artificial movement is to be avoided; careless or unseemly behavior is to be avoided. In all things, the server must be aware that the purpose in assisting at the altar is “that God may be glorified.”

      This manual is designed to describe those duties expected of you as a server. Server means one who assists—the terms acolyte, crucifer, and thurifer (as used in this manual) apply to specific responsibilities. No manual can be complete, inasmuch as the custom or use of each parish church varies. However, there are basic directions that apply, governed either by the rubrics of The Book of Common Prayer or by tradition. In all things, the specific manner in which one serves and the ceremonial used is determined by the parish priest or the person appointed for this purpose. Most of what will be expected of you can be found in this manual. Also, there may be ceremonies or duties described here that are not part of your parish liturgical life. These are listed as “optional variants” in the main chapter on serving (Chapter 9), and identified by “in some places …” in other parts of the manual. Again, your priest will instruct