Liturgical Furniture

Disposition of an Altar, Altar Stone, and the Remanding of a Church to Secular Use

One of the more beautiful rites in the Church is the Rite of Dedication of a Church and Altar, majestic precisely because it seeks, with profound solemnity, to honor two great mysteries of Christian life: Baptism and Sacrifice. The altar and the walls of the church are treated as the reborn Christian by being bathed in blessed water and anointed with sacred Chrism. To be marked with Chrism is a profound reality and leaves an indelible mark. It is precisely the Sacraments that use the sacred Chrism, which are the unrepeatable Sacraments in the Church. Once marked with this sacramental of the Holy Spirit, one is permanently marked. Perhaps this is a main reason why the Church has never seen it fit or necessary to develop a rite for the relegation of a church or altar to profane use, precisely because she envisions an anointed church in a similar fashion to the Christian: the baptismal anointing is permanent; there is no way to undo it. Salt may become insipid (cf. Mk 9:50), but it never stops being salt. 15

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