One church I used to attend to before I moved had the seats for the Altar Servers and Lectors in the main body of the Church, not in the Sanctuary. Now it must be made clear that there was AMPLE space to have seats in the Sanctuary for them but for some reason they don’t have it there.
Is this proper?
Ideally there should be instiuted acolytes and instituted lectors sitting in the sanctuary with the priest, concelebrants and deacons.
This is clear from the 2002 General Introduction to the Roman Missal (GIRM) approved for the USA, which can be accessed from
romanrite.com/girm.html :
“188. … Upon reaching the altar, the acolyte places the cross upright near the altar so that it may serve as the altar cross; otherwise, he puts it in a worthy place. Then he takes his place in the sanctuary.”
“195. Upon reaching the altar, the lector makes a profound bow with the others. If he is carrying the Book of the Gospels, he approaches the altar and places the Book of the Gospels upon it. Then the lector takes his own place in the sanctuary with the other ministers.”
My view is that even if these ministers are not instituted they should sit in the sanctuary as described above.
With altar servers the need for this is clear. They are in the entrance procession, so why process into the sanctuary and then out again? How can they do their jobs, like holding the book for the priest, if they are not there?
I also think this is the intention of the GIRM with lectors. From the GIRM n. 120:
“120. Once the people have gathered, the priest and ministers, clad in the sacred vestments, go in procession to the altar in this order:
a. The thurifer carrying a thurible with burning incense, if incense is used;
b. The ministers who carry lighted candles, and between them an acolyte or other minister with the cross;
c. The acolytes and the other ministers;
d. A lector, who may carry the Book of the Gospels (though not the Lectionary), which should be slightly elevated;
e. The priest who is to celebrate the Mass.”
If the lector is not sitting in the sanctuary you get mini-processions during the Mass while they go to and from their pews.
The Ceremonial of Bishops has in Chapter 3, Cathedral Church:
“50 … Seats, benches, or stools should be provided in the sanctuary, so that concelebrants, or canons and presbyters not concelebrating but assisting in choir dress, as well as the ministers, all have their own places, and in such a way as to facilitate the exercise of their various parts in a celebration.” (Ceremonial of Bishops, Liturgical Press, 1989, ISBN 0-8146-1818-9, page 31).
Altar servers and lectors are clearly ministers. There are no directions that non-instituted lectors or altar severs sit outside the sanctuary.
