What are the duties of a liturgist?

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A wise mentor once told me, when in public, also consider the question that they did not ask.

That is what I did.

Your job duties are those that are given you by your boss, the Pastor. Your next pastor may change, add, or remove those duties. Your job title is not universal across all parishes.

(More than a decade working for the Diocese or Parish here, thank you very much)
 
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A decade in parish work is a very short time, actually. Why do you persist in arguing about this?
There are Catholic universities that offer liturgy in their curriculum.
It’s a legitimate job, and becoming more common as priests are stretched thin.
I’ve never thought it was wise to put words into other people’s mouths. :roll_eyes:
I’m out.
 
There are certainly going to be some office managers who could take on at least some of the roles of a liturgist at at least some parishes.

But I don’t think making a blanket statement makes sense.
 
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TheLittleLady said:
A wise mentor once told me, when in public, also consider the question that they did not ask.

That is what I did.

Your job duties are those that are given you by your boss, the Pastor. Your next pastor may change, add, or remove those duties. Your job title is not universal across all parishes.

(More than a decade working for the Diocese or Parish here, thank you very much)
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And those roles culminated come with a title. When one is planning, preparing and taking care of the facets of liturgy-they are a Liturgist. This happens because people are trained to do so. Priests hire music directors, not because they are not able do music but because they don’t wish to. I knew a priest who was an incredibly talented musician…like could sell tickets. He LOVED planning and preparing music for Mass. He LOVED directing the choir. He sat down with couples and figured out what music for their wedding and he sat with grieving families and planned music for funerals. So that church had no outside (volunteer or otherwise) Music director.

And I know a priest who did the parish’s finances because he was an accountant in another life. He, of course, always had the best auditors, transparency and he LOVED the whole aspect of handling money. Most priests lothe this task.

Priests can and do assign jobs. One priest I know has a spunky jack russel terrior. He pays one of the high school altar servers to go on a 3-mile jog. He is considered the “official parish dog walker”. Because when you do a job, it comes with a title.

To say “well you do XYZ job which entails ABC but we won’t call you an ABC because—reasons” is just some sort of weird adherence to the idea that everyone is equal. People should be acknowledged for what they do and that often comes up with a one-word description of their job.

If someone organizes the music, readings and sacramentals. If they ensure that the right antiphon is printed and ready for use, if they guide the priest on all things Liturgy, they are a Liturgist.

Of course, it’s at the discretion of the pastor. He could resume that role at any point. But he could also take on ANY role. Music minister, CCD teacher, director of religious education, director of youth ministires, finance chair…so to say “well it’s not universal” is just trying to ignore that there is such a role.
 
This is exactly right. The role of the liturgist is one that many in the parish office can do, with the pastor being the ultimate last word on any liturgy. In my parish most of it falls on the parish secretary. As I am the Director of Youth & Young Adult ministry including our small college, I guess I would be the liturgist for that once a week Mass as I prepare the binder for the readings.

While some large parishes may have a liturgist I really can’t see the need for one in a medium to small parish. We have one priest and approximately 1200 families. Our priest is very committed to our parish, including making sure the liturgy is proper. He is also very committed to the people. He celebrates 13 Mass every week. On the 4th Sunday of Advent/Christmas Eve he celebrated 7 Masses in the one day.

There are many roles to fulfill in any parish that make the life & work of the priest easier. Some parishes do things one way based on the needs of that parish. What needs are there of the parish and what roles need to be filled with professionals. The last parish I went to tried to rework the roles of it’s staff, gave them too many balls to juggle and many would get dropped.
 
It’s been my observation that a liturgist (other than the pastor) often is the most “useful” when it comes to “special” liturgies and seasonal variations. By special Masses I mean the Triduum liturgies, confirmation Masses, sacraments within the context of a Sunday Mass, cultural Masses (ie Simbang Gabi,) and the like. Such Masses often have rites/rituals which are not found/described in the Roman Missal or the G.I.R.M. and/or may require a fair amount of coordination between groups of people who don’t otherwise need to work together.

At my parish the pastor actually has another job as a seminary professor. (He had to get special permission from the bishop to be a pastor because normally the role as pastor is supposed to be a primary role.) In his case, having a liturgy director who he trusts is invaluable so we have a full time director of music and Liturgy.
 
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In our parish the liturgist, in cooperation with the pastor, sets the tone of the mass and parish community. This is accomplished by the many duties that people are unaware of.

This is a great undertaking, and often not appreciated.

May God continue to bless all who work to make thier parish communities a wonderful and holy place of worship and fellowship.🌸
 
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When we have those, it is generally left up to whoever is in charge of a certain ministry who works with the diocesan liturgist and chancellor to ensure the Mass is proper. The directors of RCIA will assist with the liturgies for RCIA, the DRE will assist with the FHC Masses, and the Youth Director, me, will work with the confirmation Mass. It is all part of our job duties. With our priest it is hardly needed as he has this incredible ability to remember everything, almost a photographic memory.

I can see where your pastor has a second role, he would need someone to help set things up. But as you said, it is a rare that a pastor has two separate roles as yours does. God bless him for his work in the seminary.
 
Horton said:
When we have those, it is generally left up to whoever is in charge of a certain ministry who works with the diocesan liturgist and chancellor to ensure the Mass is proper.
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What you say suggests that those in charge of the various ministries (DRE, RCIA director, Youth Director, etc,) have to be at least somewhat knowledgeable about liturgy already. Either that or you need to have a very proactive diocesan team that reaches out to parishes to give direction before special liturgies are planned at the parish level.
 
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We do have both. We know our duties well and preform them well. I also know I can call the diocese office at anytime to ask questions. I am not an expert liturgist but I know where to find one when it is needed. I am also very fortunate to work in the parish I do. Everyone gets along, no one has “territory” to protect, we all know our jobs, and there isn’t anyone, staff or volunteers, who “owns” a ministry. We all only have the best interest of the parish at heart, not our own fiefdoms. God has blessed me.
 
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