I keep mentioning the US Church’s three-year Eucharistic Revival. Hopefully people are remembering it!
There’s so many ways to revive our faith in the Eucharist. One way is to ensure we have beautiful vestments and vessels for Mass. This was a concern in the Old Testament. The high priest’s vestment was to be “skillfully woven” (Leviticus 8:7) and the altar was to be adorned
with lamp stands of “pure gold” burning “pure oil” (cf. Leviticus 24:1-4).
In the last three years, we’ve restored two gold-plated sterling silver chalices dating from the foundation of the parish in the 1940’s, a third chalice decorated with symbols of the Passion, and the huge monstrance in our adoration chapel. I’m very grateful to the parishioners who paid for these restorations. If you’d like to see the chalices, let me know after Mass. They are a great addition to the parish’s patrimony.
I’m also grateful to the people who maintain the church for Mass. Bob Tulini is our liturgy coordinator. He keeps the sacristy (the room with the vestments and vessels for Mass) in good order and keeps the liturgy itself in good order by training and scheduling our lectors,
Communion ministers, and altar servers. Arlene Boerum and her committee decorate the church for the seasons and our facilities staff, especially Bernadette Gismonde, keep the church clean.
If you’d like to help, consider training to be a sacristan. This role involves preparing the chalices, ciboria, and other vessels for Mass, lighting the altar candles, and a couple of other responsibilities. It only takes a few minutes before Mass and could be a great way for a couple to serve. You can reach out to Bob at rtulini@ctkhaddonfield.org.