Guadalupe Shrine's Knights of the Altar featured in NCRegister

Knights, chivalry and their ideals have always been inspiring.

What if knighthood were under the patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary and associated with a Marian shrine?

That’s exactly what is happening at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in La Crosse, Wis., with the start of Our Lady’s Knights of the Altar.

This new altar-boys guild raises altar service to a new level, both in the sanctuary and out in the world.

The idea began in 2008, when Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke — at the time, the archbishop of St. Louis — was celebrating the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe at this shrine that he founded.

"During his visit, he mentioned it would be good to get a program together for altar servers," says the shrine’s Friar Joseph Schmitzer, a Brother of the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate.

Reflecting on that beginning, Cardinal Burke says that he wanted "from the very first foundation of the shrine that there would be a group of young men to assist with the sacred liturgy of the shrine. One of the most important aspects of the shrine is that the sacred liturgy be celebrated worthily."

The cardinal credits "Brother Joseph, who took it forward and has done a wonderful work."

Read more: http://www.ncregister.com/site/article/our-lady-inspires-youth-as-her-knights-of-the-altar/#ixzz2M1HpOdAn