Q. Is there a minimum age before someone can be designated as a reader at Mass? Must that person be confirmed?
A. There is no minimum age, and having received the Sacrament of Confirmation is not a requirement. Carrying out this service to the Church is a matter of someone’s ability to read effectively in a faith-filled way during public worship.
The Evangelist, the newspaper for the Diocese of Albany, New York, carried a story last August about Jackson Raimo, who was only nine years old when he began reading at St. Clare Church in Colonie, New York.
According to that article, some parishioners consider Jackson one of the best readers they have ever heard. Many people are edified at how seriously he takes this responsibility and how effectively he proclaims the Scriptures.
Obviously, not everyone is comfortable reading in public. That skill, however, is not confined to a particular age.
