30/06/2025
Our Mass Servers
"And he that will be first among you, shall be your servant.
Even as the Son of man is not come to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a redemption for many." - St Matthew 20:27-28
"For my flesh is meat indeed: and my blood is drink indeed.
He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, abideth in me, and I in him." - St John 6:55
We praise God for the blessing of the young men who serve our Sunday Masses and for the families that raised them.
Their dedication and discipline glorify God, and are examples for which our entire chapel community are justifiably proud.
On Sunday, by God’s grace, one of our servers was spared what could have been a very nasty head injury.
These fit young lads have very low resting heart rates which, during extended periods of relative physical inactivity and frequent changes of head elevation, result in periods where insufficient blood is pumped to the head, causing faintness.
This is not an uncommon phenomenon for fit young men, which is not helped by a glass of tap water.
The solution is to immediately lower the head to floor level at the first sign of faintness.
With the head at the same level as the heart, blood flow to the head is restored immediately and the faintness subsides as quickly.
Critically this avoids a fainting episode, with the attendant risk of head injury from a fall.
The congregation will recognise and understand when a server lowers himself, and once equilibrium has been restored he may then choose to either continue serving or move to a side chair, to be replaced in an orderly manner if necessary.
If only we could all faint at the altar, before receiving the precious body and blood upon which our eternal lives depend.
Once again we take this opportunity to recognise and reflect on the blessing these young men are to us all.
