Letter from Ann Gary: We Are So Fortunate

I was shocked– shocked! — to realize recently that it has been over 50 years since I was first licensed– yes, licensed!–  to read at St. Paul’s. 

The length of time I have been reading was brought home to me by the fact that the Diocese of San Diego is celebrating its 50^th anniversary. When I first became a lector – excuse me, Licensed Lay Reader – San Diego was part of the Diocese of Los Angeles. An examiner from the diocese came down from Los Angeles to interview me and determine whether it would be appropriate for me to be licensed to read. 

The kind older associate priest who was helping me prepare for my examination warned me that sometimes the examiners might try to trip someone up by seeing whether they knew the difference between the abbreviation for Ecclesiastes (usually Eccles.), and that for Ecclesiasticus (Eclus.).[1] The examiner did pull that one, I did know the difference, and I was approved. I could say “And the rest is history,” but I would like to share some of that history.

That bit about abbreviations was important, because we had to know how to properly announce the lessons. AND, it was up to us to determine what the appropriate lessons for each Sunday were, and find them in our Bibles. In other words, we had to know what lectionary year we were in, and what Sunday of what season we were reading.

We lay readers vested, and participated in the procession, being nudged into our proper position between the choir and clergy. We sat at one end of the choir stalls, and read from the wonderful old wooden eagle lectern, on the epistle side of the church. What, you don’t know what the “epistle side” is? Back in those olden times (the 70s mind you, not the 50s) only ordained people could use the pulpit, located, of course, on the “gospel side.”

The first Sunday I read, I was very grateful to be vested, because my cassock hid my trembling knees. I was the first woman to read at St. Paul’s, and felt a tremendous responsibility. When our then-rector, Jack Sanford, made announcements mid-service, he first looked up at the ceiling, commented, “Well, it didn’t fall in,” and then continued with his announcements.

Even after readers no longer vested, and now read from the pulpit, where the lessons were placed for us, things were not nearly so well organized as they are now. I remember one Sunday when, at the time for the lessons, it became apparent that the scheduled reader wasn’t there. The celebrant saw me sitting near the pulpit, called down, “Ann, please get up and read.” So, I did.

Now, thanks to our wonderful team, Mark, Craig, Brooks and our vergers, we are notified ahead of time when we are to read, reminded and provided with the readings, and on Sunday the vergers make sure we are all in our places with bright, shiny faces.

As I said, WE ARE SO FORTUNATE NOW 

Ann Gary