Watching My Kids Acolyte

Boredom is a safe and loved child’s worst nightmare. Keeping the mind busy when the body is required to sit still is a challenge for most children, and my ADHD-diagnosed bunch finds it particularly challenging. However, I believe it is of great value to have children present in the worship services of the church. So when they were invited to learn how to acolyte, they lit up, body and brain. 

If you are not a regular attendee of Episcopal worship services, acolytes are members of the congregation who accompany the priest, processing in with a cross, torches, and a variety of other optional or occasional articles of worship.

The crucifer (often a teen or adult) usually leads the procession, holding high a cross for all to see. Followed by youth torch bearers with candles and a gospel bearer, these roles make up our weekly service teams. Recently, our priest has created smaller and safer versions of these items for younger children, a sight that brings a smile to every member of the congregation. Through the changing motions of the service, they move closer to the gospel book, ring sanctus bells during the Eucharistic prayer, and assist the priest with items on the altar. This requires children to pay attention in a way that they would not from the pews. Their proximity to the reading of the Gospel means they are more likely to catch the words being read. The need to pay attention to the movements and words of the priest means the proclamation of the Good News is embedded into their psyche in a way that will not easily be forgotten. 

Not all priests may be willing to have such young participants, so I am grateful that ours is enthusiastically welcoming.

 People were also bringing babies to Jesus for him to place his hands on them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”
—Luke 18:15-17, NRSVUE

I was a serious child who began taking sermon notes at a young age. Full of questions, I would have relished the opportunity to be part of the service. However, I did not attend this type of liturgical church, and as a teen, my only notable role of allowed participation was piano accompaniment to hymns. Even at prayer time, women and children were to remain silent. When I share this experience with my children, they look aghast at the constraints, which to them seem harsh, but to me, were normalized.  

One of the markers of Jesus’ ministry on earth was the way he upended social norms. He touched lepers, accepted women as disciples, dined with tax collectors, and invited all to look at children as leaders. Children would not have naturally been given leadership in the ancient world, so the interactions he had with children were instructive about the way the world was to be changed. Those who want to be great will need to be reminded of the vulnerable state of childhood. Such vulnerability does not preclude ability. It can be easy to assume that the work of the church and worship is only for certain people. The church’s work can be done by anyone willing to learn and share the Good News. Many hands make light work, and those hands can be old, young, or anything in between. 

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a child, whom he put among them, and said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
—Matthew 18:1-3, NRSVUE

Watching my children participate in the worship of the church gives me hope. I hope that they will never forget that they are beloved children of God and, as such, are full members of the body of Christ. I hope they remember that they will always be welcome, with their swinging legs, bored minds, and strange questions. This work of worship can be done at just about any age and stage of life.