Guild of Saint Stephen
The Master of Ceremonies at St. Mary’s Cathedral is George Brand, who is a founder member of the Guild in Aberdeen. He was appointed Cathedral MC in 1970 and now undertakes additional responsibilities as Diocesan MC. George was instituted as an Acolyte in 1985, and invested as a Knight of St. Gregory in 2002. He is also a member of the Scottish National Liturgy Commission.
A Brief History of the Guild
The Guild of St. Stephen was founded at the beginning of the last century, in 1905, and celebrated its Centenary Year in 2005. Its founder was Father Hamilton MacDonald, who was chaplain at the Convent of the Sacred Heart, at Hammersmith in London. St. Mary’s Cathedral Guild here in Aberdeen, was the second to be formed in Scotland, and was granted affiliation to the Archconfraternity at Westminster, in February 1960. The Guild Chaplain at that time was Father Mario Conti, now the Archbishop of Glasgow. There are a growing number of parishes throughout the Diocese of Aberdeen, where servers have been enrolled as members of the Guild. The Feast St. Stephen is celebrated on 26 December each year, when servers gather together to honour their patron saint.
Aims of the Guild
· to encourage, positively and practically, the highest standards of serving at the Church's liturgy, and so contribute to the whole community's participation in a more fruitful worship of God.
· to provide altar servers with a greater understanding of what they are doing, so that they may serve with increasing reverence and prayerfulness, and thereby be led to a deepening response to their vocation in life.
· to unite servers of different parishes and dioceses for their mutual support and encouragement.
New servers at the Cathedral are encouraged to join more experienced members within the sanctuary, where they can watch and learn at first hand. By this method they gradually gain knowledge and skill as they make progress in serving at the altar. Short practices are sometimes held after the weekend Masses, lasting about 10-15 minutes, alternatively as advertised in the Sunday Bulletin.
· to provide altar servers with a greater understanding of what they are doing, so that they may serve with increasing reverence and prayerfulness, and thereby be led to a deepening response to their vocation in life.
· to unite servers of different parishes and dioceses for their mutual support and encouragement.
New servers at the Cathedral are encouraged to join more experienced members within the sanctuary, where they can watch and learn at first hand. By this method they gradually gain knowledge and skill as they make progress in serving at the altar. Short practices are sometimes held after the weekend Masses, lasting about 10-15 minutes, alternatively as advertised in the Sunday Bulletin.
Rules of the Guild
· to serve at the altar with reverence, understanding and regularity, and with due attention to personal cleanliness and tidiness.
· to say short prayers in preparation for, and in thanksgiving after serving at Mass.
· to observe silence in the sacristy and great reverence in the sanctuary.
· to recite the Guild Prayer every day.
Membership of the Guild is open to any server without limit of age, who can serve Mass and who has shown a wish to live up to the objects and standards of the Guild. Servers will receive adequate training and have reached the necessary standard of serving within the sanctuary, and should serve satisfactorily for a minimum of six months before being enrolled as a member. The parish priest or local Director of the Guild, will decide whether a candidate is eligible and worthy of admission, and he is authorised to perform the ceremony of enrolment and invest the server with the Guild medal, using the prescribed form of enrolment.
If you would like to become an Altar Server at St Mary's Cathedral, then please download and complete the form below; get it signed by a parent or guardian if you are under 16 and hand it in to the Main Sacristy or the Cathedral Clergy House.
The Guild of St Stephen have their own web sitehttp://www.guildofststephen.org/ which is a mine of information about the Guild's history, traditions, organisation and its current activities.
· to say short prayers in preparation for, and in thanksgiving after serving at Mass.
· to observe silence in the sacristy and great reverence in the sanctuary.
· to recite the Guild Prayer every day.
Membership of the Guild is open to any server without limit of age, who can serve Mass and who has shown a wish to live up to the objects and standards of the Guild. Servers will receive adequate training and have reached the necessary standard of serving within the sanctuary, and should serve satisfactorily for a minimum of six months before being enrolled as a member. The parish priest or local Director of the Guild, will decide whether a candidate is eligible and worthy of admission, and he is authorised to perform the ceremony of enrolment and invest the server with the Guild medal, using the prescribed form of enrolment.
If you would like to become an Altar Server at St Mary's Cathedral, then please download and complete the form below; get it signed by a parent or guardian if you are under 16 and hand it in to the Main Sacristy or the Cathedral Clergy House.
The Guild of St Stephen have their own web sitehttp://www.guildofststephen.org/ which is a mine of information about the Guild's history, traditions, organisation and its current activities.
| Altar Servers leaflet and application form |
