Ministers of Hospitality

Becoming a Hospitality Minister

As a Minister of Hospitality you play a key role in how others see and experience Christ. You truly become the face and hands of Christ, opening His home to all those who enter.  To welcome others to mass and then to see them off as they begin their week is truly a gift of yourself.  To commit to making another person feel part of our community each weekend is again, a gift of yourself.  Even parishioners who have been members of St. James for years and years feel more like a family when another takes just a moment to say “Good Morning, Good Afternoon or Good Evening.”  And it makes the days ahead even better with the simple wishes of “It was good to see you. Have a good week.  Or enjoy the day.”

As Ministers of Hospitality, we should arrive to the church at least 20-25 minutes prior to the mass.  Ministers of Hospitality, along with all ministers, need to wear a nametag.  This opens yourself to let others know you are willing to be called by name, just as Jesus calls us by name.

There are three areas which parishioners enter and exit; the side by the Rectory, the side by Broad Street and the front doors at Main Street.  Bulletins for after mass are on the tables at each area.  In the main entrance, prayer aids and missals are located during Advent and Lent.  Many times there are other events, materials, or ministers who use this area.  It sometimes becomes a gathering space and an opportunity for you to meet many others in our parish.  There is a closet in this area too where the baskets for the collections are kept.

During the collection, four Hospitality ministers need to take a basket each and begin at the front of the church processing down each aisle allowing for the donations to be placed inside.  At some masses there may only be two Ministers of Hospitality available.  You may ask another parishioner to help or you both may choose to go up the center aisle and pass the baskets.  Once this is completed, the baskets can be emptied into one, with two ministers taking the collection up the center aisle and then to the side of the Little Church. The Vestment Sacristy is where the deposit can be made into the counter.  There is a document that is signed by the minister making the deposit for each mass.  The ministers can then take the basket(s) back to the closet, making sure you enter back into the main congregation during the appropriate time.  Ministers may have to wait a moment , listening to the consecration from the side by the Reconciliation Room, before coming back down that side of the church.

After mass, Ministers of Hospitality give the bulletins to each parishioner or family as you wish them on their way with a cheerful “Good-bye, Have a good day, Have a good week”, etc.  We also check the church and pews to be sure it is ready for the following mass.  And lastly, check the doors inside and outside to be sure they are closed.

Becoming a Hospitality Minister is a challenge and true gift to St. James.  We do not know what another has had to face that week or even that day to get to mass.  I simple “hello and Welcome” with a smile can truly bring another person to Christ and “open doors” for them like no other may have done for them before. If you would like to become a Minister of Hospitality please contact adykes.stjamesparish@gmail.com or contact me through the Parish Center at 375-5887.