Allan Netto
NORTHERN ARABIAN VICARIATE, MAY 09, 2012: May 04, 2012 was a red letter day in the lives of the freshly inducted altar servers and also in the annals of our parish. This was yet another grand occasion for us, wherein twenty three youngsters were officially inducted as Altar Servers during the Children's mass at 8.30 am. Just last month, we had the induction of thirty one altar servers.Those who desired to join the altar servers were invited for the first meeting in the month of September 2011. What followed was an intensive fortnightly preparation by a team of animators and senior altar servers teaching our new comers all about altar serving. The preparation included knowledge about the liturgy and other sacred articles which are used for liturgical services. Through the use of props and audio visual means, the animators taught the children the names of the various articles and their use in the liturgical services. Few hours were also spent on training the children on how to assist the priest at the altar. Various Salesians too made it a point to address the altar servers on various occasions.
Since Dominic Savio is the patron of the altar servers in our parish, the altar servers celebrated the feast of St. Dominic Savio on Saturday, May 05. The lay animators organized a special programme for all the altar servers and their family members.
The special programme began at 5 pm with a Holy mass with Fr. Joy as the main celebrant. He narrated various incidents from the life of St. Dominic Savio to the altar servers. He emphasized the universal call to holiness and how St. Dominic Savio shows us the way. He exhorted the altar servers to look up to Dominic Savio for inspiration and remain holy.
After the Eucharist, all the altar servers and their family members gathered in the hall for fellowship. Party games were organized for them.
All in all, the altar servers and their family members were very appreciative of the fact that the parish team and the lay animators made the feast of St. Dominic Savio very memorable to them.