Lay Reading Best Practices
Lay Readers are responsible for these readings:
- Reading One – an Old Testament reading; although, in Easter this reading is always from the New Testament Book of Acts.
- The Psalm – when spoken by the entire congregation, the lay readers begins this shared prayer.
- Reading Two – a New Testament reading; it is an Epistle, or “letter”
- Prayers of the People – the prayers for intercession answered by the faithful
The first reader is responsible for the first reading, and for introducing and beginning the Psalm when it is spoken by the entire congregation in one of three formats:
- When the Psalm is read responsively by whole verse: this is when the lay reader reads the entire first verse, the congregation reads the second, and they continue in this order until it is complete.
- When the Psalm is read responsively by half verse: this is when the lay reader reads the first part of each verse, stopping at the asterisk (*), and the congregation responds with the rest of that particular verse.
- When the Psalm is read in unison: this is when the lay reader and congregation read the entire psalm together.
When the choir is singing the Psalm, the first reader does not need to introduce the Psalm.
The second reader is responsible for the second reading and leading the Prayers of the People. When the service includes a baptism, the second reader is responsible for leading the Prayers for the Candidates (see the seven prayers found in the Book of Common Prayer under this heading on pp.305-306). The Prayers for the Candidates replace the Prayers of the People in a baptism liturgy.
The assigned readings for each service are all found in our Book of Common Prayer. There are often optional or alternate readings available.
Holiday Readings
During religious and community holidays, there may be additional secular readings. These are determined by the clergy and sent to assigned readers ahead of time.
Holidays with special readings include services during Lent, Easter, Advent, Christmas, and community holidays like Thanksgiving (Eve) and Independence Day.
Scheduling
No one can easily predict their availability all the time. St. Anne’s lay readers are wonderful at helping each other out during scheduling changes.
You’ll be asked several times each year to let the team know about future dates that you will be unavailable to read. This helps us assemble the schedule, which is published online and updated each week.
Finding a substitute is easy if you’re scheduled to read on a day that you won’t be able to attend church. The email address for each lay reader is connected to the contact form on the schedule page. Switching scheduled days with someone is fine, but not required. Please make sure that George knows about changes so that the schedule can be updated and the proper person can receive a copy of the readings that week.
Remember that you are responsible for finding a substitute.
Best Practices for Reading
Practice the reading you’ve been assigned. Most reading schedules are published weeks or months ahead of time. Check your Book of Common Prayer or the online service at lectionarypage.net. The reading is almost always the same that will be assigned.
Many words in the Bible are not used in everyday language and can be difficult to pronounce. Our Reader community page has several resources to help. (Tip: you can also search for the passage on YouTube and listen to two or three different readings to hear others pronounce the difficult word.)
Arrive at church a few minutes early to compare what you’ve practiced against what’s in the service bulletin. The reading in the bulletin is always what should be read. If the readings differ, check with a priest. That’s one of the reasons you arrived early.
The stand at which everyone reads is called an ambo (pronounced am-bow).
There is a book on the ambo with readings marked by the Altar Guild. This is a great place to check to see if the readings in the bulletin, the book, and what you practiced are the same.
Please introduce the reading simply; for example:
- A reading from Genesis.
- We will read the Psalm responsively by whole verse.
- A reading from Second Corinthians.
- A reading from Revelation.
There is no secret to reading well. Remember that we’re sharing scripture and leading prayers.
Take your time while reading. Make sure to breathe and to give others a chance to follow along or pray. We have the opportunity to lead our church family’s worship, and no one is judging us or how we read. Love what you do, even if you make a mistake. We all do, and we all will again.