Seminarian receives ministry of acolyte

Seminarian Michael Figura is now a step closer to the priesthood after receiving the ministry of acolyte in Vatican City.

Figura and 24 other seminarians – all in their second year at the Pontifical North American College in Vatican City – received the ministry on March 3, conferred by Archbishop Joseph Augustine Di Noia, adjunct secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

The ceremony took place in the college’s Chapel of the Immaculate Conception.

Acolytes assist with distributing Holy Communion at Mass, purifying sacred vessels, taking Holy Communion to the sick and homebound and carrying a processional cross or candles during sacred liturgies.

In his homily on the Third Sunday of Lent, Archbishop Di Noia directed the seminarians to “serve the Church as Acolytes with the same zeal that Jesus himself exhibited in the cleansing of the Temple.”

In the rite of the Institution of the Acolyte, the archbishop placed the paten, which contains the hosts for the celebration of the Mass, in the hands of each candidate, saying, “Take this vessel with bread for the celebration of the Eucharist. Make your life worthy of your service at the table of the Lord and of his Church.”