The New Acolytes in the Archdiocese of New Orleans

Here are the 19 men who became instituted acolytes Thursday night, along with Archbishop Gregory Aymond.


In the next 12 months they will assist the Deacon and Priest at Masses by setting the altar, helping distribute Holy Communion and other functions as needed.  They are not yet ordained, that will come in June, 2015, when finally, by God's Holy Will, these acolytes will become Permanent Deacons and members of the clergy.

Instituted Acolyte

Tonight the 19 men who comprise the Diaconate Formation Class of 2015 will be instituted as Acolytes.  This is the one of the really big steps necessary for ordination which is set for 13 months from now.


Many Catholics have no idea what is an Instituted Acolyte.  Here is an answer from the Catholic Answers Forum:

An instituted acolyte is a man who has been installed by a bishop to the ministry of acolyte. There are two such instituted ministries in the Church (not just in America, but everywhere)--to wit, lector and acolyte. Most people serving in the liturgical functions of reader and altar server are not actually installed to the ministry of acolyte, not that this is not allowed. Typically the only people in the US who are installed to these ministries are men on the way to the priesthood or diaconate.

-ACEGC

Good enough for my limited time this morning on the internet!  Basically, every man who is on a path to Ordination will spend some time as an Acolyte.  For me, before my own ordination, I served as an Acolyte for 2 years before I began my Diaconate ministry.  Normally, the time frame as an Acolyte before Ordination is 12-18 months. 

In our program an Acolyte gets to assist the Deacon on the altar to learn and observe more closely the movements and actions of the Deacon at Mass.  Of course an Acolyte has real duties, anything related to candles, he may dress the altar and he may be allowed to be a minister of Holy Communion. 

For our 19 friends tonight, this is both true institution to what used to be commonly referred to as minor orders and a major step toward the hopeful Ordination to the Permanent Diaconate!!

Community of Deacons celebrates St. Lawrence in New Orleans

As promised; a little look back on a long, blessed and faith-filled Saturday.  Starting with the last event of the day; our Community of Deacons celebrate the Feast of St. Lawrence!!  Every August 10th, the Archdiocese of New Orleans diaconate community gathers with a Mass and fellowship.  We recall the heroic witness of one of our deacon patrons; the great St. Lawrence, deacon & martyr.  Normally, our Archbishop celebrates the Mass and last night Archbishop Aymond presided and preached.  He encouraged us to persevere in ministry and proclaiming faithfully the Word of God!!  This message took on extra meaning this night as our 20 candidates, who comprise the next class to be ordained in 2015, were installed to the office of lector, also known as reader.  Now this is different from all the folks who faithfully serve as lectors in our local parishes.  These men receive a minor office, installed as a lector by the Archbishop, along the journey toward ordination.  Each candidate kneels before the Archbishop, touches a book of Scripture, will the Archbishop reads an oath to each candidate.  They respond in the affirmative and become lectors.  This minor order will be followed in a year by the next step, becoming instituted acolytes, then a year after that, ordination becoming Permanent Deacons.

Last night, in addition to family and friends, these candidates had about 100 of our community of Deacons present along with their wives.  After Mass, we gathered together for a community meal, fellowship, a chance to catch up with one another, to share stories of ministries and family events.

More than a handful of the Deacons sacrifice their evening to do the heavy lifting; cooking, serving, preparing the hall.  It is a tangible witness to what the Order of Deacons is truly all about.

As is always the case, the evening is complete with wonderful blessings; honoring St, Lawrence, having our Archbishop spending time with us, his Deacons, the celebration of Mass, 100 deacons processing in church in dalmatics, supporting our candidates, food and fellowship! 

We will do this again in December on the feast of St. Stephen and then again next year for good St. Lawrence.  St. Lawrence, deacon & martyr, pray for us!

The Acolyte

>>>As we instituted 20 candidates to the minor order of acolyte on this feast of St. Lawrence, this explains more about this ministry:

Acolyte
New Catholic Encyclopedia


January 1, 2003.ACOLYTE
Historically, an acolyte (i.e., one who follows, a companion) referred to the fourth and highest of the minor orders. The ministry of the acolyte, as well as that of the subdeacon, arose from a division of the ministry of the deacon. The chief duties of the acolyte were to assist the deacon and the priest in liturgical celebrations. As an order instituted by the Church, it was not considered a Sacrament, but a sacramental participating in the order of the deacon. By the motu proprio Ministeria quaedam, dated Aug. 15, 1972, Pope Paul VI suppressed the four minor orders and, as replacement, instituted the ministries of acolyte and lector, both of which are open to qualified laity. Pope Paul VI laid out the responsibilities of an acolyte as follows: "The acolyte is appointed in order to aid the deacon and to minister to the priest" (see Ministeria quaedam, VI). Ministeria quaedam lists the responsibilities of acolytes as follows: (1) to assist at the altar, by aiding the priest or deacon, at the Preparation of the Gifts in Mass, (2) to assist deacons and priests in other liturgical celebrations, (3) to aid in the distribution of communion, where necessary, (4) in extraordinary circumstances, to be entrusted with publicly exposing the Blessed Sacrament for adoration and afterward replacing it, "but not with blessing the people," and (5) "to the extent needed, take care of instructing other faithful who by temporary appointment assist the priest or deacon in liturgical celebrations by carrying the missal, cross, candles, etc., or by performing other such duties" (ibid.).

Although the minor order of acolyte as a stepping stone to the major orders has been abolished, the 1983 Code of Canon Law requires candidates to the permanent or transitional diaconate to have received the ministries of lector and acolyte (c. 1035 §1). Canon 1035 §2 stipulates that there is to be "an interval of at least six months between the conferral of the ministry of acolyte and the diaconate."

Deacon and Martyr: St. Lawrence

St. Lawrence - Martyr

Feastday: August 10


Saint Lawrence was one of seven deacons who were in charge of giving help to the poor and the needy. When a persecution broke out, Pope St. Sixtus was condemned to death. As he was led to execution, Lawrence followed him weeping, "Father, where are you going without your deacon?" he said. "I am not leaving you, my son," answered the Pope. "in three days you will follow me." Full of joy, Lawrence gave to the poor the rest of the money he had on hand and even sold expensive vessels to have more to give away.

The Prefect of Rome, a greedy pagan, thought the Church had a great fortune hidden away. So he ordered Lawrence to bring the Church's treasure to him. The Saint said he would, in three days. Then he went through the city and gathered together all the poor and sick people supported by the Church. When he showed them to the Prefect, he said: "This is the Church's treasure!"

In great anger, the Prefect condemned Lawrence to a slow, cruel death. The Saint was tied on top of an iron grill over a slow fire that roasted his flesh little by little, but Lawrence was burning with so much love of God that he almost did not feel the flames. In fact, God gave him so much strength and joy that he even joked. "Turn me over," he said to the judge. "I'm done on this side!" And just before he died, he said, "It's cooked enough now." Then he prayed that the city of Rome might be converted to Jesus and that the Catholic Faith might spread all over the world. After that, he went to receive the martyr's reward. Saint Lawrence's feast day is August 10th.

>>>The tradition of my Archdiocese for the Permanent Diaconate community is to gather in community to celebrate both the Feast of St. Lawrence and St. Stephen.  Tomorrow night, we will do so again, for the first time at a church on the Northshore of New Orleans.  We also will celebrate the institution of 20 candidates to the minor order of acolyte.

Celebrating Mass and 2 special events in Spanish

I do not speak a second language; shame on me!  With our ever growing Hispanic community and a robust Vietnamese community in this area we have many folks who speak both their native tongue and English.  Despite 2 years of high school spanish, I got nothing.  Tonight I attended a Mass celebrated in Spanish principally because one of our deacon candidates was being installed as a reader, a minor order along the way towards ordination.  And our candidate, being Hispanic and living in a parish that celebrates a Saturday evening Spanish Mass, was installed in a celebration in spanish.  Fortunately for me and the other one language only attendees, the Deacon delivered his homily in both Spanish and English and the Presider also weaved some English into the event.

Despite the language barrier there was something really beautiful and wonderful about being present for this celebration.  It's the same Mass celebrated in a different language.  It's the same Eucharist.  The words of Scripture proclaimed tonight are the same I will hear in English tomorrow as the Gospel is the same I will proclaim in the morning.  This was affirmation that the Church is truly catholic: universal!

Another celebration in tonights liturgy was something called a Quinceanera.  This is a beautiful celebration of the 15th birthday of a young lady.  Apparently it is a tradition within the culture with heavy Catholic overtones.  At the Mass tonight I witnessed many of the things in the article I'm posting in this post.  Of course the beauty of the young lady expressing her faith and receiving a blessing from the Priest was palpable.

So we celebrated, in Spanish, a wonderful Mass, the institution of a candidate as Reader and the Quinceanera.

La Quinceañera: a celebration of budding womanhood
Dale Hoyt Palfrey

The transition from childhood to womanhood is a significant passage for adolescent girls in almost all cultures. In Mexico, it is marked with the celebration of the Quinceañera, or 15th Birthday. From a north-of-the-border viewpoint, it may be seen as a cross between Sweet Sixteen and a debutante's coming out party. The celebration is a way to acknowledge that a young woman has reached sexual maturity and is thus of a marriageable age.

The most important component of the celebration is invariably a Misa de acción de gracias (thanksgiving Mass). The birthday girl arrives decked out in a fancy full-length dress - frills, pastel tones and matching hats or headdresses prevail. Flanked by her parents and padrinos (godparents), she is specially seated at the foot of the altar throughout the service. She may be accompanied by up to seven damas (maids of honor) and as many chambelanes (chamberlains), selected from among close family and friends.

At the end of the mass younger sisters, cousins and friends pass out bolos (commemorative favors) to those in attendance, while the quinceañera deposits her bouquet on the altar or in a niche honoring the Virgin Mary, most often that of the ubiquitous Virgen de Guadalupe.

The quinceañera traditionally has the option of further celebrating the occasion with either a viaje (journey) or a fiesta (birthday bash). While a trip to Paris and other European destinations was once the rage among the well-heeled, nowadays young women of all social strata generally opt for the party, complete with live band music. The degree of opulence of the event is directly related to the economic means of the girl's parents and godparents.

Urbanites frequently lease banquet halls for the dance, while village folks are more inclined to set up rented folding tables and chairs in a freshly cleared and swept huerta (orchard) or corral. To cover the multiple expenses, a host of padrinos and madrinas may be invited to sponsor, respectively, the dress, the music, the locale, the bar, the cake and the table favors.

While raucous banda, cumbia and salsa tunes tend dominate throughout the event, the culminating moment comes when the festejada (celebrant) and her number-one chambelán (escort) dance to a traditional waltz. Other indispensable highlights include a customary toast and the cutting of a multi-tiered birthday cake. Dripping in meringue frosting and decorated in hues to match the quinceañera's dress, the cake may be of such monumental proportions that the door leading into the party locale must be removed from it hinges.to accommodate it!

The origins of Mexico's quinceañera celebrations remain obscure, although the roots may well lie in the era of the Aztecs. According to Bernardino de Sahagun, in his chronicle Historia de Nueva España, it was traditional for the parents of a young Aztec maiden to formally acknowledge her passage into womanhood. This included a stern but tender exhortation to observe acceptable modes of behavior. For a full English translation of the passage "Advice of an Aztec Mother to her Daughter" see William H. Prescott's The Conquest of Mexico.

Regardless of how the tradition originated, regardless of the relentless onslaught of gringo culture prevalent today, the celebration of the quinceañera remains as one of the rites of passage that keeps the bonds of the Mexican family firmly cemented. Its fancy frills and frosting abide as rich ingredients for a niña's sweet dreams.

Steps along the path: Reader and Acolyte

Most Catholics are familiar with the three levels of Holy Orders: Bishop, Priest and Deacon. Of course the Permanent Deacon, despite unprecedented growth, is misunderstood by many. We always go back to Scripture, particularly the 6th chapter of Acts of the Apostles, to see the genesis of the diaconate. We can further heed the instructions by St. Paul about qulaifications for the Deacon(1 Timothy 3:8) (also see references in Romans 15:25, Ephesians 3:7). The charism of service for the Deacon can be attributed to Matthew 20:28. Church fathers wrote extensively of Deacons, notably Ignatius of Antioch and Clement of Rome. And the great example of Deacons through the ages like St. Stephen, St. Lawrence, St. Francis, to name a few, are well known to many a Catholic.

Today, as the restoration of the Permanent Diaconate is about 40 years old, candidates for ordination as a Deacon are subject to about 5 years of intense formation. After a period of inquiry, a man contemplating God's call to be a Deacon must submit an application and be subject to interviews, testing and scrutiny. If selected, he enters a full year of Aspirancy; a time when he receives instruction as he aspires to make a second application or request to be a candidate. Once a candidiate he will face institution to two minor orders of the church: reader and acolyte. Reader is distinguished from lector, although the duties are very similar. The difference is that reader is an instituted ministry, currently reserved to someone in formal pursuit of possible ordination. All of the candidiates for the Permanent Diaconate are instituted as Reader and serve in this role for at least a minimum of six months.


After Reader the candidate approaches the minor order of acolyte. This too is an instituted order and immediately precedes ordination. A candidate may serve as an instituted acolyte for a period of 6 months or longer depending on the needs of the formation process and perhaps the diocese. In my case, in post-Katrina New Orleans, I served as acolyte for a period of over 2 years. Acolytes are seen on the altar, they look like adult altar servers. They carry the cross in procession, light candles, may prepare the altar or assist the deacon or priest in doing so. He may be asked to distribute communion, as an extraordinary minister but one who is instituted. Like reader, the minor order of acolyte is only to be given to those in formation to be ordained as clergy.

Today our 2012 candidates were given instructions on the ministry of and functions of the acolyte. Soon these men will have completed 6 months as instituted readers and will become eligible to be instituted as acolytes. When this will take place is yet to be decided but for a candidate for the Permanent Diaconate it is fertile training ground for service and movement on the altar once ordained.

We come full circle. As our class of 2012 was receiving instructions about the order of acolyte, our 2010 class, currently acolytes, are preparing for their transition as ordination is now just one short week away.