Position of Sacristy

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DILCIA

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I know in most churches the sacristy is either behind or to one side of the sanctuary, which is the custom. What want to know is it absolute? Can it be the other end of the (small) church? If it is laid down I would like to know where so I can read it. Thanks.
 
DILCIA said:
I know in most churches the sacristy is either behind or to one side of the sanctuary, which is the custom. What want to know is it absolute? Can it be the other end of the (small) church? If it is laid down I would like to know where so I can read it. Thanks.
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I do not believe that there is an absolute prescribed location for the sacristy. I think proximity to the sanctuary is useful mainly for practicality. I had a little think about this and I cannot think of a church I know where it is located other than to the right of the sanctuary: as one looks towards the sanctuary from the nave.
 
behind or to one side of the sanctuary

…hummm that would be the location of most altars. Long time since I’ve heard of the word ‘sanctuary’ except of the ancient ‘right of sanctuary’.

I’ve heard reference to the tabernacle being he sanctuary for the Holy Eucharistic. If you mean that gilded, secure, safe like enclosure the priest removes the communions wafflers from… I dunno. Over time everyone I’ve ever seen has been in the exact same position.

That being so I’m sure the Church has guidance on the proper positioning of this. imo it’s akin to the Ark of the Covenant and the Church covers everything of consequence.

Someone will know for sure.

The sacristy can be any designated place the priest prepares for mass.
 
Our sacristy is quite far from the sanctuary, the nave, and beyond the gathering space.
 
The sacristy’s proximity to the sanctuary is for practical reasons, but there is nothing in anything I’ve ever read that dictates it.

The church back in my home village was built about 80 years ago. There is a door from the nave to the sacristy, but there is also a hallway connecting the sacristy to sanctuary, behind the high altar back in the day when we had one, and now behind a half wall. Makes it much easier to go back and forth. From the mid 60s to at least the 80s, the entrance procession & recessional were always from the sacristy door, across the nave and into the sanctuary and vice versa, rather than from the door of the church at the back of the nave to the front. No, the Pastor was not seen shaking hands before or after Mass. I’m glad that has changed.

Perhaps my memory fails me, but I can’t recall an entrance procession when I was a kid. Father and the altar boys always seemed to magically appear in the sanctuary from behind the altar.
 
Our sacristy is in the back of the church, the far end from the altar. The celebrant et al gather in the sacristy then process the length of the church down the main aisle. It works well.
 
Joe_Kelley said:
Our sacristy is in the back of the church, the far end from the altar. The celebrant et al gather in the sacristy then process the length of the church down the main aisle. It works well.
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It works well for the procession but I would think it makes for many long walks to get things set up for Mass.
 
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