April 6, 2018 at 1:53 p.m.
TWO PARISH MINISTRIES
Music, service keep these teens involved in parish life
At a time when many young people are shying away from the Church, teens at St. Michael the Archangel parish in South Glens Falls are finding their voices.
"I do believe that I've gotten a lot closer to my faith through the music," said Mary Hay, a rising senior at South Glens Falls High School.
Being involved in St. Michael's music ministry gave Mary and her brother, Ryan, an outlet when their mother was diagnosed with cancer.
"I felt very lost," Mary told The Evangelist. "Being involved in the Church definitely helped me get through that."
"It's definitely developed a stronger faith for me," said Ryan, who's about to graduate from South Glens Falls High. "I don't always have to sit and pray in order to connect [with God]. I can sing or play my instrument and connect in that way."
Mary and Ryan are part of the contemporary choir at St. Michael's, which includes adults and teens. The adults jokingly "give me a little bit of grief sometimes because I'm so young, but they treat me just like they would anyone else," said Brennan Dowd, a rising senior at Glens Falls High.
The choir is singing non-traditional gospel songs at Masses and mixing in languages like Swahili and Spanish, as well as different instruments.
"I enjoy gospel music a lot more now. There are more upbeat songs," said Mary.
Brennan plays the bagpipes. "I've done that for the church on a couple of occasions," he said.
Sally Scuderi, St. Michael's director of music ministry, says parishioners "love when the teens are singing."
The contemporary group evolved from the parish's long-standing children's choir. As those children grew up, they still wanted to sing, so Ms. Scuderi started the contemporary choir, opening it up to all parishioners. The group sings at the 10 a.m. Sunday Mass every week, while the children's choir only appears at Christmas and First Communion.
Teens in the music ministry have to balance school work, sports and community service with their rehearsal times. "It's difficult, but manageable," said Ryan.
The teens get some of their love for music ministry through a music camp called Music at Pyramid Life Experience, or MAPLE. The annual retreat at Pyramid Life Center in Paradox teaches students leadership skills for music ministry.
Brennan remembered "thinking this wasn't my thing. For a long time, I didn't really want to go to church. The only reason I was going was because my dad made me. I'm very thankful for that now, because I have all of these people who I can do music with."
ST. JUDE SENIOR ACOLYTES
A new "senior acolyte" ministry at St. Jude the Apostle parish in Wynantskill is giving older children of the parish more responsibility as altar servers.
The senior servers are trained to serve at more complicated Masses: for example, liturgies during the Christmas season or Holy Week.
Because St. Jude School ends at sixth grade, many of the children step down as altar servers when they move on to a new school. Parishioner Richard Scheinible created the senior acolyte ministry to encourage the older children to stay involved.
"Having well-trained altar servers is very important to a well-served liturgy," he explained.
In addition to being trained for serving at significant Masses, the senior acolytes help younger servers "by showing them when to do what, what to do and how to properly do it," St. Jude sixth-grader and veteran server Melody Ascioti told The Evangelist.
"They're first starting out. You have to remind them to keep their stance on the altar," said senior acolyte Eleanor Cepiel, an eighth-grader at the Academy of the Holy Names in Albany.
The adults of the parish appreciate the youth participation.
"The adults are supportive," said Cameron Gemmeill, a sixth-grader at St. Jude's. "They say 'good job' and things like that after Mass."
The senior acolytes might be old hands at serving Mass now, but they all remember when they were new at it. "Learning was hard. There were a lot of little things," Eleanor said. "It helps you understand what Jesus did in the Last Supper."
"I always thought they just called them napkins," remarked Connor Cepiel, a senior acolyte and an eighth-grader at AHN, referring to the white cloths used on the altar during communion. "They're actually called purificators."
Many of the senior acolytes are involved in other parts of the Mass, as well. Melody and Cameron often bring up the offertory gifts and serve as lectors. When the Academy of the Holy Names has special Masses, Eleanor will be a server or lector. Connor has done a lot of other community service.
"I want to be involved," he said. "It makes me feel like I am a part of something that I've always wanted to be a part of."[[In-content Ad]]
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