Are Lector Saints Important?

I have a prayer I say each time before I read at Mass:

Lord, please help me to read my best in order that Your Word is no longer on the page, but instead in the hearts, minds, and souls of those who hear me proclaim. Amen.

It is short, but it helps to center me and defines my role in the lector ministry I perform. I have seen a lot of other prayers out there on the web and I'm sure that each lector has their own prayer they say before reading.

But today I was looking at the list of lector saints I compiled years ago for a short publication that is now available on the website in the right column titled "Lector Saints."  I realized that they all lived in the early years of the Church. They are all men and the were all probably preparing to become priests. At a time when few people could read and write, the lector was essential because he read the Word of God to the people and probably, at least in some areas, fulfilled some clerical duties, perhaps legal in nature. But these saints are not, I think, too far back in time and too far removed from the duties of today's lectors to be worthwhile examples for the twenty-first century lector.  How are they still relevant? Well:

1. The lector saints had to be familiar with Scripture, not just the passages they read at Mass. Lectors today are supposed to also be familiar with Scripture and know what is going on before and after the passages they read at Mass.

2. The lector saints were respected by the people (remember, most who could not read) and were seen as authorities in teaching these same people what the Scripture meant. Today's lectors are in a similar situation. Few homilies are preached by bishops, priests, or deacons that take into account and explain both readings and Gospel, so it is the lector's job to make sure the correct emphasis is placed on words and phrases, that words are pronounced accurately, and that alliteration, inflection, and other rhetorical devices are adequately used. So preparation for today's lectors is necessary, just as it was for the lector saints.

3. The lector saints saw what they did and who they were as a ministry serving God through service to His people. Today's lectors have the same mandate in the ministry they are called to.  A lector must work to be a good lector.  Just standing up and reading on Sunday isn't enough. A lector must read the passage they will be proclaiming many times beforehand, spend some time reading before and after that passage in their Bible, and practice proclaiming out loud.

The lector saints, like other saints for other purposes, are examples for today's lectors.  We can take their lives and deaths and make them an inspiration for us.