The Ascension of the Lord
June 1, 2017

Reflection on Lectoring

Lectors are both proclaimers and witnesses of the Word.

Lectoring is a calling that involves proclaiming the Scriptures with fidelity and understanding.  It is a ministry that relies on both prayer and preparation.  It is also an act of sharing with the assembly that goes well beyond just presenting the facts.

A witness to the Word of Life is someone who has personally encountered the message.  Before lectors can share the Scriptures with their hearers at Mass, they must first have something to share.  They must have a personal reverence for the Scriptures and a belief in their importance in their lives.

At the beginning of the First Letter of John there is a wonderful description of the two-fold nature of witnessing, involving a personal encounter and a sharing with others.  The passage also suggests one result of this sharing - a fellowship with those who hear the words and with God.  Below are the first three verses of chapter one.

What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we looked upon and touched with our hands concerns the Word of Life.  For the life was made visible; we have seen it and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was made visible to us.  What we have seen and heard we proclaim now to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; for our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.

Witnessing to the message of the Scriptures involves a very real encounter with the words and with the author of the words.  It also involves an encounter with those who hear you speak those words.  What you “have seen and heard,” you also proclaim and witness to your brothers and sisters every time you serve as lector.

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First Reading  -  Acts of the Apostles 1:1-11
Witnesses to the World

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

In this week’s Reflection on Lectoring, we suggested that the lector is, in every sense, a witness to salvation history.  In today’s first reading, Jesus is speaking to his first team of witnesses.  He tells his apostles that the Holy Spirit will give them the power to witness to the whole world.

How should the people in the assembly hear the words, “you will be my witnesses”?  Should they think that Jesus was speaking to only a few good men who lived long ago?  Should they think that there is only a limited supply of the power of the Holy Spirit?  Or will they hear in those words a personal call to be God’s witnesses also?

Perhaps how they hear those words will depend a lot on how you proclaim them.  A lot will depend on whom you think Jesus is calling.

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Second Reading  -  Ephesians 1:17-23 
A Fervent Prayer

If you want to feel joyful, hopeful and proud, this is the perfect reading.  In today’s second reading St. Paul is praying for you that “the Father of glory, give you a Spirit of wisdom and revelation resulting in knowledge of him.”

He also prays that you will know the “hope that belongs to his call,” “the riches of glory in his inheritance,” and “the surpassing greatness of his power.”  It is not every day that someone prays that you receive all these things.

While reading St. Paul’s prayer, you get the impression he is pretty sure God will give us all these extraordinary gifts, if only we believe.  That is why he placed his Son as head of the church, which is his body, which includes all of us.  Perhaps, as you proclaim these words at Mass, it might be appropriate to show a similar kind of confidence.  Your hearers are your fellow worshipers, and you want the best for them.

Perhaps also, St. Paul’s prayer might be a prayer that everyone in the assembly can pray for each other.  A lot depends on how fervently you lead the prayer.

© George Fournier 2014