The Role of the Lector in the Church

Lectors are to proclaim the readings from sacred Scripture, except for the gospel, in the Mass and other sacred celebrations; they are to recite the responsorial psalm between the readings when there is no psalmist, and, in the absence of a deacon, to present the intentions for the general intercessions.

They may in certain circumstances direct the singing of the psalm response and the participation by the faithful; and if called to do so, to instruct the faithful for the worthy reception of the sacraments.

Lectors may also be required to read parish announcements.

That they may more fittingly and perfectly fulfill these functions, they to prayerfully meditate on sacred Scripture. Aware of the office they have undertaken, they are to make every effort and employ suitable means to acquire that increasingly warm and living love and knowledge of Scripture that will make them more perfect disciples of the Lord.

A layperson, woman or man, who is to be installed in the ministries of lector must have completed their eighteenth (18) year of age. The candidate must also possess the skills necessary for an effective proclamation of the Word or service at the altar, be a fully initiated member of the Catholic Church, be free of any canonical penalty, and live a life which befits the ministry to be undertaken. A lector may not also be a Eucharistic Minister.

Commissioning of Lectors

Unlike Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, lectors do not need a special commissioning to serve at mass.

Preparing for the Ministry of Lector

•General Preparation

Lectors are to develop a knowledge and familiarity with scripture and its proclamation that will enable them to proclaim the word in such a way that the Christian assembly may benefit deeply from it. This preparation consists, first of all, in the lector nourishing his or her own prayer life with the study of the Sacred Scriptures, especially through the practice of regular scriptural reading.  Secondly, this preparation consists in learning the vocal techniques of proclamation, so that he or she may make use of the resources of the human voice in such a way that the intonation, pitch, pacing, and timbre of the speech may most effectively convey the content of the sacred writings.

•Specific Weekly Preparation

Before reading at mass, lectors will want to ensure that they have a true familiarity with the scriptural texts that they are to proclaim that day. This preparation will need to involve the ad-vance study of the scriptural texts to be proclaimed, possibly in their context within the whole of scripture, and within the context of the liturgical year and the other readings for that day. This proximate preparation may also consist of practice in reading the scriptural texts, which should take care to avoid a sense of the dramatic, while presenting the readings in all of their depth and richness.

Dress

The lector's task is to help the gathered assembly to encounter God in His Word. Thus, everything that the lector does during mass should aid the faithful to focus on the scripture. This means that the lector's dress should not distract from the reading of the Word of God, but should rather express the dignity of the Word, and the importance that the lector assigns to their service.  The lector's dress should not be in any way revealing or distracting, and should correspond to the importance of the Word of God.

Number of Lectors

Ordinarily there is only one lector for Mass.

Arrival time

Lectors should arrive at least 15 minutes before the start of Mass and let the celebrant know you are there, find out if there are any special circumstances, make sure the lectionary is set to the correct readings and placed on the ambo. Check any preliminary announcements.

The Mass Greeting

If a cantor is present for the Mass, he or she will do these opening statements. If no cantor is present, the lector will do the following: About 20 seconds before the official time of Mass, greet the congrega-tion from the ambo with these word: “welcome to ___________ ( name of church – either St. Thomas Aquinas parish, or St. Basil’s Chapel) Today is _________________(the Sunday of the liturgical year, or special feast day), our celebrant is ___________, assisted by ________  (if assisted by a deacon).  Then state the purpose of the second collection, if there is one. Then immediately proceed to the back of church for the procession.  If the cantor is making the opening statements, the lector should go directly to the church entry with the Book of Gospels and join the celebrant.

Mass Procession

In St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Basil lectors take part in the procession at the beginning of Mass, and may also carry the Book of the Gospels (though not the lectionary or sacramentary) in the absence of a deacon. In coming to the altar, when no deacon is present, the lector may carry the Book of the Gospels, which is to be slightly elevated to about eye level. The lector walks in front of the priest and behind the altar servers and cross bearer. Upon reaching the altar, the lector makes a profound bow. If she is carrying the Book of the Gospels, then without waiting for the rest of the procession, she approaches the back of the altar and places the Book of the Gospels upon it. Then the lector takes her own place. If not carrying the Book of Gospels, the lector waits for the celebrant and bows when he does and then takes her seat.

Approaching the Ambo

The readings should read from the ambo (lectern). In approaching the ambo, if passing in front of the altar, or if approaching from the center aisle, the lector makes a profound bow to the altar and then proceeds to the ambo. There is no need to bow to the altar from any other place, nor is it necessary to go out of the way to pass by the altar in order to bow. Genuflecting is inappropriate. The lector should be immediately ready to begin the readings as soon as the opening prayer is completed. Therefore, while the opening prayer is being said, the lector should proceed to the sanctuary so as to arrive at the ambo as the prayer ends.

Proclaiming the Word

Of principle importance is the way in which the lector makes use of his voice in the proclamation of the Word. The General Introduction to the Lectionary gives a few simple criteria: ‘A speaking style on the part of the readers that is audible, clear, and intelligent is the first means of transmitting the word of God properly to the assembly’. The best use of inflection, pause, projection, phrasing, emotion, articulation, parsing and pace require careful preparation and training.  In applying these techniques of proclamation, however, the lector should remember his basic task of presenting the Word of God. Thus, a style of reading that would present simply dull recitation of words should be avoided, as should a style that would turn the reading of scripture into a dramatic act. The lector's physical posture should express the dignity of the Word, and should help the faithful to focus on the Word itself, rather than on the lector's movements or gestures.  In the case of the passion narratives on Palm Sunday and Good Friday, lectors may be assigned to take the role of the narrator and the voice, while the part of Christ is read by the priest celebrant.

• Responsorial Psalm – If a cantor is present to lead the psalm, the lector steps away from the ambo and in St. Thomas upstairs or downstairs, stands aside until the psalm is completed and then returns to do the second reading. In St. Basil’s the lector should move to the side bench and be seated until time for the second reading. If there is no cantor, the lector leads the psalm in the ordinary manner.
  

Removing the Lectionary

After the second reading is concluded, if the Book of Gospels has already been placed on the altar, the Lectionary should be removed by the lector and placed on the shelf under the ambo, or, at St. Basil’s, on the small platform next to the ambo, so that there is room for the Book of Gospels when the priest or deacon carries it from the altar to the ambo.

The Prayers of the Faithful

When no deacon is present, the lector, after the introduction by the priest, may announce from the ambo the intentions of the Prayer of the Faithful. In this case, the lector should take into consideration the difference between the intentions and the readings from scripture. As the intercessions are prayer texts, they should be prayed by the lector, and not simply read. After the Prayers, the lector remains at the ambo until the celebrant says the concluding prayer. The lector should be immediately ready to begin the prayers as soon as the Nicean Creed is completed. Therefore, the lector should proceed to the sanctuary so as to arrive at the ambo as the Creeds ends.

Concluding Rites

In those cases where lectors are seated in the sanctuary, they will also process out of the church together with the celebrant. Otherwise they will remain in their seats. The book of Gospels will not be carried in the Recessional.

Lector Terms

Lectors are asked to serve a two year term, but may be asked to continue when the term is expired. The reason for the term is to allow as many people as possible to participate as liturgical ministers.

Lector Schedules

The lector schedule will be prepared by Lisa Folloni and mailed or emailed to each lector, together with telephone numbers. The lector schedule will be posted in the sacristy as well as on the parish web site www.stthomasaquinas.com/lectors. The schedules will be for varying periods, usually for two or three months, based on the Liturgical or seasonal calendars.

Lectors will be asked to occasionally rotate through other Masses rather than always do the same one, so you will be asked to list your favored Mass as well as another Mass that you will be willing to do.

It is the responsibility of the lector to arrange for coverage in the event he or she cannot make the as-signed Mass. They should also let Lisa know. Her phone number is___________.

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