For Great Lector Meetings, Step Out of the Box
-
In my parish a few years back, we put together a lector workshop for the first time in several years. And with this time lapse, one of our goals was to achieve maximum attendance.
We wanted to highlight the freshness and welcoming atmosphere of the meeting with an agenda far beyond 101 lector basics. Because most of our lectors were experienced, the last thing they needed was how to make eye contact, project their voices, or pronounce Phrygia and Pamphylia.
A few weeks before the meeting, we mailed personal letters (not emails) to our lectors inviting them to join me, their coordinator, with our pastor, deacons and guest speakers. The letter covered the meeting agenda and topics along with its social, inspirational and fun benefits. The result was an 80-plus percent attendance because of its friendly tone of inviting, and not mandating anyone to attend.
Prayer Services Set the Tone
To begin our meeting, our pastor opened with prayer, comments on the importance of the ministry, and appreciation to everyone for their commitment and hard work.
We then followed our pastor with a prayer service of readings, Psalms, a Gospel and reflections performed by several lectors chosen in advance.
Next, we went on to a candlelight ceremony with additional prayers, a blessing of our lectors and rite to renew their commitment. An example of this candlelight service, blessing of lectors and rite of renewed commitment can be found in Rev. Peter Schineller, S.J's Handbook for Lectors.
We then concluded the prayer service with the music video, Word of God, Speak by Mercy Me. The prayer service at the start of the meeting set a beautiful spiritual tone for the rest of the morning.
Multiple Topics
Following the prayer service, speakers covered several topics in 10- to 15-minute segments such as; Seven Capital Sins of the Lector, Spirituality Before Technique and Responsibilities Off the Ambo. The key to avoiding boredom was to keep the meeting moving along in rapid-fire succession.
War Stories Ignite
The highlight of the morning was a feature presentation called "Lectors Unleash," where a few of our most passionate lectors gave uplifting five-minute testimonies on what the lector ministry meant to them.
They talked about how they became a lector, what encouraged them to choose the ministry, who prompted them, situations, events, notable moments from the ambo, what the ministry means to them today and anything else they felt had value for their fellow lectors.
I’ve always tried to choose lectors whom I knew could tell their stories in inspiring, interesting and fun ways, and also who are likable. As I introduced each lector, I’d say something about them . . . a little praise for something they did in our church, a special thanks for opening themselves up, or just how neat of a person they are in general.
As each of them shared their hearts with us, we laughed (and sometimes roared) at the mistakes they made in their rookie years, listened on the edge of our seats to their more successful moments, and connected heart-to-heart when they expressed their love and passion for our work.
Giving your lectors an opportunity to witness their feelings for this ministry is a great way to spark your meetings.
Bottom Line
Our meeting was a huge success for several reasons. In the end, our lectors all felt respected and good about themselves, especially our veterans who'd “been-there-done-that” with same ‘ol meetings covering same 'ol topics on procedures, protocol and proclamation 101 techniques.
It was a three-hour session that flew by and was over before we knew it.
The More Frequent, the Better
One-time annual or occasional meetings, no matter how inspiring at the moment, seldom provide enough to retain our commitment to this ministry. They may launch us, but they won't keep us in flight and it's only a matter of time before we're back to business as usual.
We may depart from annual or semi-annual lector gatherings in high spirits, but if we merely listen and not act upon what we hear, it's all for naught. So it’s important to gather with other lectors regularly to keep our ministry alive and burning in our hearts between our assigned Sundays.
Try this with a few of your most committed lectors, and then pass the word about your successes. Word-of-mouth from the bottom up usually creates better results than any top-down parish mandates.
If you’re planning a lector meeting soon, do a little research first. Get a good feel for your lectors' sentiments and areas of need. Then put something together . . . just for them.
Word travels fast around a parish about ministry meetings, and a carefully planned one may just be the way to create positive buzz about your next lector meeting.
