Boat boy or boat bearer are terms used for a junior altar server

Altar server

An altar server is a lay assistant to a member of the clergy during a Christian religious service. An altar server attends to supporting tasks at the altar such as fetching and carrying, ringing the altar bell and so on....

 position found in Catholic

Catholic

The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...

 and Anglican Churches. The role of a boat boy is to assist the thurifer (the senior altar server who carries the thurible

Thurible

A thurible is a metal censer suspended from chains, in which incense is burned during worship services. It is used in the Catholic Church as well as in Anglican, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic, some Lutheran, Old Catholic, and in various Gnostic Churches. It is also used...

) during liturgies in which incense is used.

The boat bearer carries the boat (a small metal container, Latin: navicula) which holds the supplies of incense

Incense

Incense is composed of aromatic biotic materials, which release fragrant smoke when burned. The term "incense" refers to the substance itself, rather than to the odor that it produces. It is used in religious ceremonies, ritual purification, aromatherapy, meditation, for creating a mood, and for...

. The boat has a small spoon

Spoon

A spoon is a utensil consisting of a small shallow bowl, oval or round, at the end of a handle. A type of cutlery , especially as part of a place setting, it is used primarily for serving. Spoons are also used in food preparation to measure, mix, stir and toss ingredients...

 inside which is used to transfer the grains of incense onto the red-hot charcoal

Charcoal

Charcoal is the dark grey residue consisting of carbon, and any remaining ash, obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis, the heating of wood or other substances in the absence of oxygen...

s in the thurible. Although at times the boat bearer transfers the incense himself, more usually he simply holds the boat open as the priest performs this task.

Whilst the thurifer may carry the boat himself, most thurifers find it more convenient having a boat bearer assisting them. The thurifer will usually want the boat bearer standing close by on his left - indeed, in some churches it is the custom for the thurifer to rest his left hand on the boat bearer's shoulder as he holds or swings the thurible with his right hand.

External links

• Liturgical Customary of the Church of the Advent, Boston - Liturgical Customary for the Thurifer
• Thurifer and boat bearer instructions at the Cathedral Church of Saint Matthew, Dallas, Texas
  Cathedral Church of Saint Matthew, Dallas, Texas
  The Cathedral Church of Saint Matthew is an Episcopal cathedral church located at 5100 South Ross Avenue in Dallas, Texas, in the United States....
  
  .

• Holy Smoke: The Use of Incense in the Catholic Church.