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Our Lector Ministry: Proclaiming God’s Word from the Heart
When our parish lectors proclaim the Sacred Scriptures, they read from their hearts — out of love for Our Lord, and in awe of His Word.
“The lector needs to diminish so that the Word of God may increase,” says CC Crane, who coordinates the Lector Ministry at our parish. “They are encouraged to proclaim it in a way so that message can resonate with our parishioners. They are asked to proclaim God’s Word, not just read the words on the page. We want people to hear it the way it was intended to be heard. We want the hearer to be moved and changed by what we read.”
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Lectors assist during the Liturgy of the Word at Mass by proclaiming the readings of the Old and New Testaments in a meaningful way. They carefully review the Scripture passages and practice reading them aloud before reading them at church. Lectors usually read during the daily and weekend Masses.
“The Lector Ministry is truly important,” CC says. “We ask our lectors to take this ministry very seriously, and they do. We have such excellent lectors at our parish.”
Lectors are asked to prepare well ahead of time, for the good of all involved. Ultimately, the Lector Ministry is a crucial tool of evangelization within the walls of our parish home, enriching the spiritual lives of its volunteers as well as its beneficiaries.
“We ask them to reflect on the readings so that they understand what they are reading,” CC says. “The Scriptures we read as lectors could be the only Scriptures that someone hears in a week or even a year.”
Through this ministry, lectors build up their relationship with Christ, the Eternal Word. New lectors are required to undergo parish training soon after they sign up. The lectors are also guided on how to use appropriate resources, such as the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops audio and printed versions of upcoming readings. They are also given lector workbooks and other tools to prepare themselves to present God’s Word in an accurate, inspiring way.
Lectors who read at our 1 p.m. Spanish Mass are organized by Argelia Najera, who generously devotes herself to making sure the lectors have a great experience with their ministry.
“On the Monday before they read, I send each lector a picture of the upcoming Mass readings so that they can pray about the readings and work on them all week,” Argelia says. “We also ask our lectors to dress respectfully and bow before they read. I try to talk everything over with them on Sunday morning and remind them of what they need to do.”
Overall, those who serve as lectors find that it deepens their union with our parish family in a unique way.
“It helps us be more involved, and take more ownership in our parish community,” Argelia says. “The church needs people to participate! The more participation there is, the stronger and more dynamic the parish will be.”
Furthermore, it also allows them to more profoundly embrace the stewardship way of life.
“The greater the stewardship of your time, talent, and treasure, the greater your sense of purpose will be,” Argelia says. “The parish is your family, and whatever you invest in your family will bear fruit. The more you volunteer, the more you will form a personal connection with your fellow parishioners. The beauty of God’s Word is that it crosses all languages and cultures. It is the same in English as in Spanish.”
