Q: I have a question regarding an Instituted Lector. In the entrance procession during Sunday Mass, when the is no Deacon, is it more appropriate for the Instituted Lector to carry the Book of Gospels than the Reader? I cannot find anything in any documents that specifically address this. It just seems right for the Instituted Lector to carry the Book of Gospels especially since he is in an alb. Your thoughts?
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A: The GIRM is not clear on this, as you indicate. At 99, it says that a lector must do the functions described at 194ff. And at 195 it says that the reader may be carrying the book in the absence of a deacon. In general the English translation of the GIRM used “lector” to mean an instituted lector and “reader” for a non-instituted lector.
I tend to agree that it seems right for a vested, instituted lector to carry the book of the gospels, but there may be circumstances that argue for a different solution.