An altar is a structure upon which religious offerings or sacrifices are made. In Christian
theology, the Eucharist is a re-presentation of Christ’s death and sacrifice being made “present again”. Hence, the table upon which this sacrifice is re-presented is called an altar. The Anglican Book of Common Prayer (written in the 17 th century when anti- Catholicism was rampant), the phrase “Lord’s Table” is substituted to avoid the sacrificial implications of the word “altar”. The area around the altar is endowed with greater holiness than other areas of the church, and, as a result, some Anglo-Catholic parishes insist that only persons in holy orders can touch the altar’s surface. Most rubrics up to the 17th century envisioned the altar as free-standing. With time, reredos, or ornate altarpieces containing a tabernacle for the reserved sacrament above the altar, became ever larger. This forced architects to build altars against a wall. When a free-standing altar is used, the reserved sacrament is stored in an aumbry away from the altar. Current Catholic doctrine states that newly built altars should be the center of attention of the whole congregation. ~Gil Haas
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