January 13, 2013
Reflection
on Lectoring
Depending on the liturgical season, the response, “Amen” may
be spoken aloud by worshipers at Sunday Mass as many as 10 times. That is a large number of shared expressions
of belief and affirmation.
Some of those “amens” include:
- The amen
following the statement of faith in the Nicene Creed
- The Great
Amen following the Doxology in the Eucharistic Prayer
- The
amen spoken as each communicant receives
the Body and Blood of Christ
In our recent Reflections on Lectoring, we have
considered the special importance of sharing.
Sharing is not a technique. It involves feelings. For lectors, real sharing comes from a sincere
desire to make the Scriptures come alive for others.
One way to develop and enhance your sense of sharing is
through your heartfelt proclamation of “amen”
together with your fellow worshipers at Mass.
It is not something you do alone.
Your “amen” is a communal expression of belief and affirmation. And by listening prayerfully to how your
“amen” joins with the “amen” of others, you can experience a true sense of genuine
community.
Another important way to experience a sense of community occurs
when you exchange a handshake of peace. Saying,
“Peace be with you,” is an act of sharing by which you express a sincere wish
for the well-being of others.
The Mass offers many opportunities to deepen your
understanding of sharing. It is the kind
of understanding that can give greater sincerity and life to your lectoring. Amen.
More on this kind
of sharing next week.
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“Jesus
Christ himself is the “Amen.” He is the
definitive “Amen” of the Father’s love for us.”
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First Reading - Isaiah 40: 1-5, 9-11
Glad to Be a Lector
There are some readings that can make you feel glad to be
a lector. In today’s first reading there
is comfort, forgiveness, good news, and a loving shepherd who feeds his flock. There
is enough here to make every lector and every member of the assembly smile.
This reading begins the section of the Book of Isaiah
known as Second Isaiah. It marks a
change in tone from the first part of the book. The setting is the heavenly court with God’s
angels in attendance. It was the earthly
court of king Cyrus of Persia that issued the decree releasing the Israelites
from exile in Babylon. But Isaiah makes
it clear that it is God who is the ultimate source of Zion’s deliverance.
The reading starts with a command from God to, “give comfort to my people.” Then one of the angels in the heavenly court
cries out that “the glory of the Lord
shall be revealed.” Finally, Zion is
instructed to proclaim, “Here is your
God!”
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Second Reading - Titus 2:11-14, 3:4-7
No Easy Job
This reading is an example of why lectors need to
practice. One hundred and forty-two
words crammed into only two sentences.
Titus was one of Paul’s assistants best known for delivering
Paul’s “tearful letter” to the Corinthians and for taking up a collection in
Corinth for the Christian community in Jerusalem. At the time of this letter, Titus was in
charge of developing the church on the island of Crete.
It was no easy job.
In his letter to Titus, Paul quotes from a Cretan poet of the sixth
century B.C. named Epimenides who wrote, “Cretans
have always been liars, vicious beasts and lazy gluttons” (chapter 1
verse.12). If you read all three
chapters of this letter, you will see what Titus was up against.
© 2013, George Fournier
