I have gone from a 3000 member parish to a 6000 member parish. My previous parish has always had sacristans. We had only 1 priest and trust me there is a multitude of tasks to be performed to assure that everything is ready for the liturgy. There is approximately 30 purificators each week that needs to be washed and ironed, altar cloths that need care, corporals to be laundered and ironed. Towels from each mass to be laundered and folded. That is the laundry part, then the vessels must be washed after each mass and set up for the next mass, votive candles to change, holy water fonts to keep clean and filled, books to set up, supplies to inventory and order, recruitment, training and making sure everyone is there to perform their duties, i.e., EMHCs, altar servers, lectors, ushers, and the list goes on and on. In addition, there is a chapel also which needs much the same care, since the weekday masses are held there. It’s a big job that requires much time, but as someone said in an earlier post, it is a labor of love. Those of us who do this job are rarely seen and most, as yourself, do not even know we exist but the work goes on and we do it because we love serving the Lord. Most of the work we do is done not because we are asked to do it but because we see it needs to be done and know how much it helps our pastor to be able to place his focus on more important things than worrying about who is doing the laundry and cleaning the vessels.
Hopefully, this sheds some light on how much goes on behind the scenes.
