Easter is fifty days, from the Vigil to Pentecost, and the sacristy is busier than in Lent: more Masses, more baptisms and weddings, the Paschal candle lit at every liturgy, and First Communions in many parishes. Most of what is needed was ordered in Lent; this list is about what runs out.
Through the octave
- White and gold vestments at every Mass; a second white chasuble is useful when visiting priests concelebrate.
- Altar candles in the festal size, and a follower for the Paschal candle so it burns evenly through the season.
- Hosts: Easter Sunday attendance matches Christmas, and the octave's daily Masses are fuller than usual.
- Holy water bottles for parishioners taking home water blessed at the Vigil; the font and stoups are refilled.
Baptisms, weddings and First Communions
Easter is the traditional season for baptisms, and the Paschal candle stands by the font for each one. Each baptism needs a baptismal candle, a white garment or bib, the oil stocks and a certificate for the register. Weddings resume after Lent and need the Order of Celebrating Matrimony, a rose or white set and a kneeler for the couple. First Communion classes, usually in late April or May, need hosts in the people's size, a reserved-pew sign for each family, and the gift-shop stock of rosaries, holy cards and First Communion sets.
Ascension and Pentecost
Ascension is white; Pentecost, the last day of the season, is red, with incense and the Sequence. After Pentecost the Paschal candle moves to the baptistry, where it is lit for baptisms and funerals until the next Vigil. Vestments go back to green for Ordinary Time, so the green set should be checked for wear before the long stretch to Advent.
Questions
Where does the Paschal candle go after Pentecost?
To the baptistry or beside the font, where it is lit for baptisms and brought to the sanctuary for funerals. It is not used at ordinary Masses outside the Easter season.
What does a baptism at the Vigil need?
A baptismal candle lit from the Paschal candle, a white garment, the oils of catechumens and chrism in their stocks, a towel, and the register and certificate afterwards.
Which color for Pentecost?
Red. The rest of the Easter season, including Ascension, is white or gold.