Arlington Diocese to Allow Female Altar Servers
Arlington Diocese to Allow Female Altar Servers:
The diocese that serves Roman Catholics in Northern Virginia today lifted a ban on female altar servers at church Masses, ending a decade-long campaign by liberal Catholics.
But the bishop of the Arlington Diocese said each of his 67 parishes can decide whether to continue the ban.
"No priest shall be required to make use of female altar servers at any Mass at which he presides," Bishop Paul S. Loverde said in a document sent to his parishes today.
The late Pope John Paul II ruled in 1994 that females can assist priests at Masses. But he left the decision to each diocese. Most agreed to lift the ban.