We’re proud to 60-member strong with about 10 to 15 members at each mass to assist and oversee the flow of each Eucharistic Celebration. Below are some findings over past experiences and requests that are needed by the assembly in order to have a good understanding of the wardens’ duties during the important “family feast”.
The History of Wardens
The wardens of today are descendants from a long line of people of God who have gone before them. We’re a ministry deeply rooted in scripture and tradition among the servants of God who comprise the membership of the body of Christ; wardens are called to provide a very special service in the exercise of a true Liturgical Ministry. We’re ministers of the Church and servants of the faith community in the highest moments of its self –realisation when it gathers to celebrate the Eucharist. Due to the nature of our service, wardens especially bring to the ministry a strong sense of community. We’re also Church builders who shoulder a large measure of responsibility for helping the church realise its identity and thereby become and express its best self through the worship deed that engages it.
Seating God’s Children
Such an understanding of the Liturgy has a special bearing on one of the basic but important functions of ushers – seating people. The Sunday assembly is a sacrament, a sign of unity in Christ. It should be experienced as a gathering not a scattering, so it’s absolutely crucial for good worship that people be – for example - seated together and not at the ends of all the pews with large gaps in between. As far as possible the church should be filled from the front to the back and not vice versa, leaving a bank of empty pews near the altar. Experience proves that people become very attached to “their pews” so we may not always be successful in getting them to change their seating habits. It would be good practice if pews in front are taken by the early arrivals so that the late comers can be seated unobtrusively and without distracting the praying, listening, reflecting assembly who are already in place.
Collections and the Meaning Behind
The Sunday collection isn’t the chief focus of the ministry of ushering. But it’s nonetheless an important part of it. The acceptance of money gifts on Sunday is a most venerable tradition among Christians going back to the apostolic church. The taking up of the collection should not be seen as a sordid necessity for keeping up with the operating expenses of the church. For us, it’s simple part of our expression of hospitality - an honourable task that presents to the faithful assembled a special opportunity to share in the mass action by making a sacrificial offering to be joined to the offering of Christ.
The church today is striving earnestly to improve the quality of Sunday worship. This is a matter of responding to the mind of Christ and following where his spirit leads. The spirit functions through many concrete factors such as acoustics, seating arrangement, ventilation, and so on. But because the church is people, the spirit works through them with their attitudes and feelings and postures. Most especially the spirit works through those who minister to the congregation in the role of the preacher, lector, musician, and Eucharist minister or warden who is engaged in the ministry of hospitality.
Duties of the Wardens
Here are just some of the duties we assume during the Eucharistic Celebration to ensure that the sacred rite is truly celebrated with warmth and good faith by all parishioners:
Accompanying Communion Ministers who have finished distributing Holy Communion at their designated points to other points where there are a long queues or to those who cannot stand in line
- Assisting to the public whose cars are blocked by parishioners during Mass
- Assisting other Ministries in any way during the Mass
- Help the elderly who come late to obtain seats
- Helping anyone who is in need of medical attention
Main Events where you’ll see us in full action:
- Palm Sunday – Procession
- Holy Thursday - Washing of feet and adoration till midnight.
- Good Friday - Veneration of the Cross
- Easter Vigil - Baptism of adults
- First Holy Communion
- Confirmation
- Assumption Feast – Procession
- Corpus Christi – Parish or District level- procession
- Christmas Masses
- All days of Obligation
Ensuring Mass is Observed in Holiness
Parishioners may forget that the Eucharistic Celebration is a holy occasion and be quick to misunderstand our need to correct them during the service but we do understand the need to be courteous when ensuring the following does not occur, out of respect for God in His hosue of worship:
- Receiving Holy Communion but not consuming the Host before returning to their seats
- Using hand phones to send text messages or SMSs during Mass
- Parishioners who disregard the instructions given by the Hospitality Ministers: example “jumping” of queue during Holy Communion
- Movement during the Novena when the Blessed Sacrament is exposed
- Reserving of seats after the Mass has started
- Teenagers talking / joking during Mass
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The hospitality ministry – informally known as the ministry of wardens and ushers - is one of the Ministries in the Church of the Assumption. It was formed together with the opening of the church in the year 1959.