Consecration

A dedication ceremony that sets people or objects aside for a holy purpose. A church can consecrate buildings, furniture, crosses, candlesticks and so on, or it can consecrate people for a holy purpose, such as lay reader or missionary.

Consecration can be for a limited period of time, such as a person's term of office, and it usually has a limited scope, such as for reading scriptures publicly.

The inner nature of the object or person being consecrated is not changed. The only thing that changes is an object's function or a person's tasks.