The ministry of Sacristan at Little Flower Parish is a busy one, an often invisible one, but a crucial one.
Every liturgy is made possible by the preparation and planning that happens behind the scenes by our faithful parishioners and volunteers. Let’s hear a little about Al and Lou, sacristans at Little Flower. Al came into the Catholic Church in 2011 through the RCIA process.
A Methodist by birth, Al remembers his preparation for his profession of Faith as a pivotal time in his life. “I wanted to know more”, he said “and I wanted to be a part of what I was learning, not just an observer.”
In Al and Lou’s case they were invited by Gina Jingco to “come and see” what she did to prepare for Mass as a sacristan and to help her if they had time. In our conversation, Al went on to say, “before I began the work of a sacristan I had no idea of what was required and the effort that is needed to have our celebrations in liturgy to happen”.
He went on the say, “I have a better appreciation for what is required now and that through this ministry I feel a closeness to Christ I’ve never felt before. Lou and I treasure our role of sacristans in the Little Flower Community.”
As we go through our life with regard to our faith, all of us search for a ministry relationship that will help us obtain a more intimate relationship with God. We may not act on that calling for any number of reasons in our personal life.
The most frequent one I hear is that we just don’t have enough time. Another one I hear sometimes is that I don’t feel welcome by the folks now doing that particular ministry. If you find yourself in either of those two camps, please give me a chance to talk to you about possible ministry within the Little Flower Parish community. If not with me, try talking to one of those involved in a parish ministry you think you might be interested in.
-Deacon Tom Gordon