St. Joseph Parish-Manchester

Church Guidelines

The parish church of St. Joseph Parish is sacred space. The primary focus of the church is worship. It is where we gather to celebrate sacraments and pray. It is also a place where the community of faith gathers to celebrate. Such times of celebration can be sacred in nature, or sacred by virtue of the life of the parish. Thus, even as we gather for liturgy, we may also gather in our church for other events such as graduations, musical performances, etc.

The following guidelines are offered to insure that the space retains its integrity.

1. The use of the worship space, i.e. the sanctuary, contains the following prohibitions:

v The ambo is reserved for the proclamation of the Word of God. When talks or presentations are given, a separate podium is to be used.

v The altar is reserved exclusively for Eucharist. It is never to be used as a storage table for various objects used in conjunction with an activity. A separate table is always to be used in such instances.

v It may be appropriate that the Blessed Sacrament be removed from the tabernacle for an activity. This is to be clarified with the pastor.

2. All non-liturgical events scheduled in the church must receive the explicit permission of the pastor.

3. A request form is to be completed whenever the church is used for non-liturgical functions. This includes scheduling times of practice for events, which are to take place in the church. Respect for the space is to be maintained during such practice times. The form must be completed and approved before any activity will be scheduled.

4. All events (liturgical and non-liturgical) must be scheduled, approved and written in the parish calendar.

5. The following non-liturgical activities have automatic approval, provided they do not conflict with liturgical celebrations:

v Prayer services (including exposition)

v Meetings for sacramental preparation such as parent meetings dealing with First Holy Communion, First Reconciliation, Confirmation

v Decorating and preparing for liturgical celebrations

Thank you for your cooperation in all this.

Approved 6/25/01, revised 4/11/02 churchguide