ALTAR

Presented by: Sothia Zlen Maleficio

Liturgical Art
 WHAT IS ALTAR?
An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of
religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic
purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches,
and other places of worship.
A usually raised structure or place on which sacrifices are
offered or incense is burned in worship.
A raised structure or place that is used for sacrifice,
worship, or prayer.
Any structure upon which offerings such as sacrifices are
made for religious purposes
 WHAT IS ALTAR?
The altar in the Catholic Church is used for celebrating the
Sacrifice of the Mass.
It is typically centrally located in the sanctuary, is to be the focus
of attention in the church.
At the beginning of the Roman Rite of Mass, the priest first of all
reverences the altar with a kiss and only after that goes to the
chair at which he presides over the Introductory Rites and the
Liturgy of the Word.
An altar is a raised area in a house of worship where people can
honor God with offerings. It is prominent in the Bible as "God's
table," a sacred place for sacrifices and gifts offered up to God.
WHAT IS ALTAR IN THE BIBLE?
It is prominent in the Bible as "God's table,"
a sacred place for sacrifices and gifts
offered up to God. The word altar comes
from the Latin altārium, meaning "high,"
and also to the Latin adolere, which means
"to ritually burn or sacrifice," which
suggests its early purpose as detailed in
the Bible.
3 PARTS OF AN ALTAR
The component parts of a fixed altar in
the liturgical sense:
the table (mensa)
the support (stipes)
the sepulchrum.
 ALTAR IN A CHURCH
Altar - This is the most noticeable feature
of a Roman Catholic Church. In
traditional cruciform churches the altar
stands in the middle of the east wall, at
the top of the cross shaped building.
REPRESENTATIONS OF ALTAR
A place of encounter – The Lord met Jacob in a crisis and
the next day he built an altar at that place (Genesis 28).
A place of forgiveness – The brazen altar of the tabernacle
sacrifice was offered as an advance testimony that there
would be a once-for-all sacrifice in God’s Son.
A place of worship – The most common altar built by
people to acknowledge their praise to God was the altar of
incense, the holy place where priests would offer worship to
the Lord on behalf of the people and themselves.
REPRESENTATIONS OF ALTAR
A place of covenant – An altar was built where the covenant was
made between the Lord and Abraham, and the land was sealed
as a timeless promise to Abraham and his offspring (Genesis
15).
A place of intercession – The prophet Joel called for intercession
by leaders on behalf of the people and their devastated
economy.
God has a place of “altering” for us – There is a place of “altering”
and a price of altering. Altars have a price–God intends that
something is “altered” in us when we come to altars. To receive
the promise means we make way for the transformation.
IMPORTANCE OF ALTARS IN WORSHIP
An altar is a place where sacrifice is offered, even if it is not
an event involving slaughter.
Altars could be natural objects or man-made constructs.
Four materials are recorded as being used in altars: stone,
earth, metal, and brick. Jerusalem temple had two altars:
the altar of incense and the altar of holocausts.
The altar of incense was placed inside the sanctuary in
front of the curtain screening the Holy of Holies.
The altar of holocausts stood in the courtyard of the
temple. Like the other objects in the courtyard, the altar
was made of bronze.
A PLACE OF INTERACTION BETWEEN
DIVINE AND HUMAN
Altars were places of exchange, communication, and
influence. God responded actively to altar activity. The
contest between Elijah and the prophets of Baal involving
an altar demonstrated the interaction between Yahweh
and Baal.
Noah built an altar and offered a sacrifice to Yahweh. God
smelled the aroma and found it pleasing. He responded to
Noah’s action by declaring that he would never again
destroy all living things through a flood.
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