Bishop Steven Raica of the Diocese of Birmingham, Alabama, installed Diocese of Columbus seminarian Zachary Goodchild as an acolyte on Sunday, Dec. 10 at the Pontifical College Josephinum as part of an installation ceremony for lectors and acolytes at the seminary.
The ministries of lector and acolyte, which were once considered minor orders by the Church, were established by Pope St. Paul VI in 1973 with the apostolic letter Ministeria Quaedam.
Lectors are commissioned to proclaim the Word of God in the liturgical assembly and to instruct children and adults in the faith to prepare them to receive the sacraments. Acolytes are entrusted with attending to the altar, assisting the deacon and priest at Mass and distributing Holy Communion during the liturgy and to the sick.
In the rite, each candidate is handed a symbol of the ministry to which he is being instituted. Lectors receive a Book of the Gospels, and acolytes are presented with a chalice. The bishop encourages the men to fulfill the ministry faithfully.
Institution to these ministries are pivotal steps on the journey toward priesthood. Typically, seminarians are instituted as lectors in their first year of theological studies and as acolytes the following year.
Bishop Raica, formerly the bishop of Gaylord, Michigan, has served on the Josephinum’s Board of Directors since 2018.