Q&A about the Altar Guild @ MLC

What is the Altar Guild?

The Altar Guild prepares the sanctuary for services and cleans up afterwards.

What are the Altar Guild’s responsibilities?

The Altar Guild is responsible for setting up communion and baptism and the cleaning of all the communion vessels after use.  The guild also makes sure all the linens used for communion and baptism are washed and ironed.  Another responsibility is changing the paraments for the different liturgical seasons.  The guild organizes the sacristy for what is needed for worship.  The guild members also assist in decorating the sanctuary for the different holidays celebrated during a liturgical year.

What is the sacristy, and what is stored there?

The sacristy is a room usually found rear of the altar for storage and preparation for communion and baptism.  The paraments for the altar and pulpits can be found there along with the vessels and linens for communion, wine, communion wafers and other supplies. The pastor’s alb (robe) and stoles are also found there.  Anything else that may be needed for the altar, such as candles, can be found in the sacristy.

How did you, Annette and Patricia, become involved in the Altar Guild?                                       

Annette: When I first spoke to Pastor Ceconi about becoming a member of MLC he asked me if I’d be interested in joining the Altar Guild.  After much thought I decided to say yes.  And as many of you know, Pastor Ceconi can be quite persuasive.

Patricia: My reason for joining was that Pastor Ceconi knew I had been involved with the Altar Guild at St. Olaves and he asked me if I would take on the challenge of setting up an Altar Guild for Martin Luther Church.

On behalf of the Altar Guild we would like to thank Pastor Ceconi for his design work, Vladymir for his wonderful carpentry work, and for Martin Haefele for his generous donation of hardware for the cabinets.