The Catechism of the Catholic Church states: “The altar of the New Covenant is the Lord’s Cross, from which the sacraments of the Paschal Mystery flow” (#1182). In a word, the Paschal Mystery is Jesus’ death and resurrection. All the sacraments flow from the Paschal Mystery, and draw us into it. As a single event, the death and resurrection of Jesus is the central event of our faith. We gather around the altar at Mass to participate in this central event of our faith. The offertory procession with gifts of bread and wine brought to the altar represents the “stuff” of our lives to be offered to God: blessings, weakness, joys, and sufferings. Our lives, represented by the bread and wine, are offered to God on the altar with Jesus to the Father. United to the offering of Jesus we participate in his Paschal Mystery. The Cross and the altar become one in the sacramental offering of bread and wine with the offering of Jesus as sacrificial Lamb. The Mass is first of all a sacrificial offering of Jesus to the Father, in which we participate through sacramental signs of bread and wine: “The altar is the symbol of Christ himself, present in the midst of the assembly of the faithful, both as the victim offered for our reconciliation and as food from heaven who is giving himself to us” (#1383).

 

“The altar is also the table of the Lord” (#1182). The Mass is also a meal where we share in the Body and Blood of the Lord to participate in a real way in Jesus’ offering to the Father. This sacred banquet centers on the altar, the place from which we receive the Bread of Life. Through Holy Communion we participate in the sacrifice we celebrate, and are taken up into the offering of Christ to His Father. Here is truly a Holy Communion, a holy communion of persons united in the love of Jesus.

 

The Martyrs of the Church, those who shed their blood for the love of Christ, witness to these beliefs in a profound way. For this reason the early church built altars on top of the tombs of martyrs. From this comes the tradition of placing the relics of the saints in the altar stone, a niche cut into the altar top. This is why the priest reverences or kisses the altar at the beginning and end of Mass (nowadays this is done whether or not there is an altar stone). In the Book of Revelation which describes the “heavenly liturgy” or Mass, we see: “I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne” (6:9). In the Old Testament the priests would offer animal sacrifices on the altar of the Temple. Blood would gather under the altar. Similarly, the Christian martyrs are present at every Mass, and in particular they surround the altar as the place of sacrifice and witness. Every Christian who gives witness (in Greek martyria) to Jesus gathers around the altar of sacrifice to find meaning and purpose there. To love the Cross of Jesus is to love his sacrifice; to love his sacrifice is to bear witness to it through the giving up of our lives for the kingdom. Every Mass inspires and strengthens us to share more fully in this sacrifice. 

 

“On the altar, which is the center of the church, the sacrifice of the Cross is made present under sacramental signs” (#1182). The altar is the center of worship at the celebration of our holy Mass. Architecture in our churches affirms this truth. Everything in the church should point us towards the altar. Vatican II teaches that the Holy Eucharist is the source and summit of the Christian life. Therefore the altar, the place where the Holy Eucharist comes about, is the center of our lives. A Carmelite monk once said: “He who knows where the altar is, from it learns to live.” The altar teaches us the meaning of human life.

 

The altar represents two aspects of the same mystery of Christ himself: the One who offers himself for our salvation and the One who feeds us to strengthen us for the journey of faith. In a unique way the altar is the meeting place of God with His people. Let us learn to live from the altar.

 

Fr. Will