question...

[StColette]

woohoo polar thank you

[Apotheoun]

[quote name='phatcatholic' date='Jul 12 2005, 07:40 AM']don't altar servers perform those same functions too tho?
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Yes, altar servers do some of the functions of an acolyte, but an altar boy is not instituted to a stable ministry by the bishop. Institution to the acolytate and the lectorate corresponds in the modern Roman Rite to ordination to the minor orders of the old Roman Rite. Thus, only men can be instituted to these two ministries. In the reformed Roman Rite the ministries of the lectorate and acolytate are open to any baptized and confirmed Catholic male; thus, although they are still transitional offices for those seeking ordination, that is not there only purpose. In reference to these two ministries Pope Paul VI said that, ". . . they are no longer to be considered as reserved to candidates for the sacrament of orders." [Pope Paul VI, [u]Ministeria Quaedam[/u], art. 1]

[Apotheoun]

Here are the norms established by the Latin Rite bishops of the United States for institution to the ministries of the acolytate and the lectorate:

[quote][b]Canon 230 § 1 - Liturgical Functions[/b]

On November 17, 1999, the Latin Rite [i]de iure[/i] members of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops approved complementary legislation for canon 230 § 1 of the [u]Code of Canon Law[/u] for the Latin Rite dioceses of the United States.

The action was granted [i]recognitio[/i] by the Congregation for Bishops in accord with article 82 of the Apostolic Constitution [u]Pastor Bonus[/u] and issued by decree of the Congregation for Bishops signed by His Eminence Lucas Cardinal Moreira Neves, Prefect, and His Excellency Most Reverend Franciscus Monterisi, Secretary, and dated June 14, 2000.

[b]Complementary Norm:[/b] The National Conference of Catholic Bishops, in accord with the prescriptions of canon 230 § 1, hereby decrees that a layman who is to be installed in the ministries of lector or acolyte on a stable basis must have completed his twenty-first (21) year of age. The candidate must also possess the skills necessary for an effective proclamation of the Word or service at the altar, be a fully initiated member of the Catholic Church, be free of any canonical penalty, and live a life which befits the ministry to be undertaken.

As President of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, I hereby decree that the effective date of this decree for all the Latin Rite dioceses in the United States will be September 1, 2000.

Given at the offices of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops in Washington, DC, on July 10, 2000.

Most Reverend Joseph A. Fiorenza
Bishop of Galveston-Houston
President, NCCB

Reverend Monsignor Dennis M. Schnurr
General Secretary[/quote]

[phatcatholic]

thanks bro