The Lector proclaims the Word of God through the reading of Scripture at Mass. In this ministry we are able to publicly witness our faith, and to come to know the Word of God more deeply. This ministry is open to parishioners who have the gift of a good speaking voice and are at least 16 years of age. Lectors generally serve at a particular Mass on a rotating schedule.

General Qualifications

Men and women who take on the ministry of Lector are presumed to be of good faith, eager to serve their fellow Christians and willing to engage in ongoing formation into effective service. The mere wish or willingness to serve as Lector does not qualify one for the ministry. Basic abilities are required, but it is not essential that a Lector be highly gifted in the techniques of communication. What is important is that the Lector has the an adequate speaking voice, self confidence, maturity, poise and sensitivity to the diversity of one’s audience, and an affinity for reading scripture.

Lectors must have a willingness to rotate Mass assignments. As with any ministry, it involves personal sacrifice. Scheduling of lectors accommodates such needs as vacations or medical personnel on-call schedules when the lector advises the lector coordinator in advance of each quarterly schedule. Individual desires such as to NOT be assigned to a particular mass (Sunday 7:30 AM appears to be the least desirable for most) can not be accommodated; everyone is expected to rotate, although lectors are able to switch assignments with other lectors. It is understood that unforeseen last minute needs do occur and therefore every lector is asked to be open to receiving requests for schedule changes from fellow lectors.

When a schedule is disseminated, if you are assigned to a Mass that you seek to revise, the lector must call other lectors to switch assignments. The lector assigned remains responsible for being sure that his or her assignment is covered. If you wish to explore this ministry further, please review the Lector Handbook for more detailed information. All lectors will also receive the separate Lector Workbook that is published annually and includes all readings for the liturgical year. The workbook gives the lector a background for understanding of each reading. Knowing what a reading is about helps each lector ‘proclaim’ a reading, rather than simply ‘reading’ the passage.

Assignment Schedule/Publication Dates

For the convenience of current lectors the current lector assignment publication schedule lets you know WHEN the next schedule will be published so you can send special needs in advance. If you are involved in other St. Joseph’s liturgy and Prayer ministries (Eucharistic Ministers, Altar Servers, Choir, etc), please be sure to alert each applicable Ministry Coordinator of your special scheduling needs.

Assignment Schedules:

(The schedules are PDF documents. At times, there may be multiple schedules posted, especially near holidays where there is potential overlap of current and future schedules.)
The contact information of current lectors contains private information such as addresses and phone numbers and therefore is not available online.