This is the sixth of a nine-part series explaining various aspects of the floor plan of a church. Holy Mother Church has deliberately filled her buildings with great symbolism; this series will introduce some of the many facets involved in designing and building this home for the Immaculata.

NB: These images and renderings are still approximations of the final design. They are meant to give general knowledge and perspective rather than a precise and final version of what will be built.

“The Sacristy”

By Fr. Jonathan Kopec

The sacristy of a church is an extension of the chapel. Far from being a storage room, it is meant to house the most precious items in possession of the church, and even the Blessed Sacrament Itself when there is a need for it. These days, the sacristy is often a space overlooked in the planning process (much to the chagrin of sacristans), but it was not always so.

Many a traveler to ancient, Catholic places in Europe has been surprised upon entry into a beautiful side-chapel in a magnificent cathedral to discover it is not a side-chapel at all, but rather the sacristy. Some of the old Gothic cathedrals currently have whole museums in their sacristies. Their magnitude and magnificence really only make sense: The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the center of all creation on a daily basis. That is the reason for dedicating our best when it comes to material, time, expense, aesthetics, etc. to the sacred Liturgy.

The sacristy can be thought of as a preamble to the Liturgy, and indeed, the beginning of it. It is the resting place of the various sacramentals and books, the sacred vessels, chalices and patens, the vestments; it is the place where each procession into the Holy Sacrifice or solemn Hour of the Divine Office has its start. It is in the ambience of the sacristy that the priest recollects himself in preparation to the Mass, and it is in the same place that he begins his thanksgiving after being filled again with the Divine Victim. With such a close connection to the Liturgy, it is necessary that the space be built and rendered in a truly fitting manner.

“But let it also be practical!” cries every sacristan that has ever lived. The sacristy must be well planned in order be both a beautiful and revered place in connection to the sanctuary, but also that it might be well-ordered and pragmatically fitted to the necessities of all of its functions.

Drawers and cabinets for vestments require much more space than a normal dresser or clothes’ closet, especially if the delicate vestments are not to suffer harm by folding or crimping.

Vesting tables must be large enough to hold full sets of vestments without risk of sliding off or damaging the material. There must be the utmost security for the precious chalices and patens as well as the tabernacle key.

Items for Holy Week, countless albs, linens, altar cloths, cruets, and all manner of liturgical articles must be stowed carefully, safely, and reverently, but at the same time with ease of access, for there is an enormous swirl of movement from the moment the first sacristan unlocks the door in the early dawn until the last sacristan locks it after all the Masses have been said. The layout, space, and maneuverability are of great importance to ensure mobility, and that everything be put in its proper place.

The new Immaculata’s sacristy will of course be a great improvement from our current situation. It will quadruple the space we have now, not including the extra, separate rooms that will be dedicated to the sacristy.

There will be a full room-size walk-in safe that will keep the most precious and valuable items safe in their storage, and also a separate work-sacristy where the polishing, cleaning, and preparing things will take place. The work-sacristy will be especially helpful, providing space where those messier jobs can be done without affecting the main sacristy.

A large center-island vesting table will be the main sacristy’s foundation piece. Harmoniously and well-designed closets, countertops, and drawers made of real stone and hand-carved wood, will line the walls. Everything will be tastefully and beautifully adorned to create a sacred ambience proper to the preamble of the Holy Mass. The separate spaces made large enough and aesthetically will provide a proper atmosphere of reverence in the main vesting area, and an efficient and effective area for all the other tasks connected to the Liturgy.

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The Sacristy (6/9)

The Immaculata Church Project