Some scattered input on various ministries:
66. Besides the presiding minister, other available ministers (a reader, a cantor, an acolyte) should exercise their ministries. Family members may assume some of these liturgical roles, unless their grief prevents them from doing so.
The presiding minister and assisting ministers should vest for the vigil according to local custom. If the vigil is celebrated in the church, a priest or deacon who presides wears an alb or surplice with stole.
Commentary:
Local custom varies considerably on the lay ministries. Usually, the lector is from the family. Usually, the cantor or psalmist not. It can be a healthy experience or a nerve-wracking one for a family member to serve at liturgy. A good pastor or pastoral minister will get a sense how much can be asked of the family.
The vesture for clergy seems logical. The question in some places would be for a lay presider: alb or street clothes? Any thoughts on that?
17 August 2010 at 1:20 pm
I always have lay presiders wear an alb for Vigils. It reemphasizes that the Vigil is, in fact, a constituent part of the Church’s liturgical process for funerals. And it also enhances a lay presider’s authority in a situation where that could be questioned.