In renovating or restoring a historic Catholic Church, the goal is to eliminate or minimize the double altar look of the post-Vatican II theology.
At the Church of the Most Holy Trinity in Augusta, Georgia, we solved the problem of double altars by slicing the altar part of the once one-piece altar/reredos, away from the reredos. In fact, and this was complicated, there was a great deal of wasted space behind the reredos. Thus the entire altar was dismantled, and the reredos “re-mantled” but pushed back toward the back wall and the altar was sliced away from the reredos with plenty of room between the altar and reredos and also with the option of celebrating Mass easily either ad orientem or facing the nave.
In fact, I celebrated an ad orientem Bugnini Mass in the 1990’s the first time such was done in the Diocese of Savannah since Vatican II! I was way, way, way ahead of my time!
At Saint Joseph Church in Macon, Georgia, it was not possible to slice the altar-table away from its reredos and pull it forward as was done in Augusta. To do so would have destabilized the reredos possibly causing it to collapse forward and kill yours truly!
So the plan was to minimize the double-altar look. We elevated the entire sanctuary so that the old main altar would not be four steps up from the main floor of the sanctuary, but only one step up. Thus the new main altar is only one step lower than the old main altar, whereas previously the older free-standing altar was four steps below the old high altar.
What was accomplished by this is that from the nave, the new free standing altar appears to be the only altar and is not overwhelmed by the older altar.
This isn’t the best solution in general, but in this case it was the best and only solution possible to make it look like that there is only one altar when in realty there are two:
4 comments:
"To do so would have destabilized the reredos possibly causing it to collapse forward and kill yours truly!"
Quod Deus avertat!
This parish did things similarly to St. Joseph when it renovated:
https://www.harmanconstruction.com/news/bringing-history-to-life
https://catholicvirginian.org/news/st-francis-of-assisi-staunton-celebrates-renovationbishop-knestout-dedicates-new-altar/
Nick
If a high altar has historical and artistic significance it should be left alone. There is no need for a Cranmer Table because the rubrics of the Novus Bogus assume ad orientem celebration even though some bishops are in denial. However, I would agree a new sanctuary should be built such that the priest may perambulate the altar.
I can remember going with my father to the small, country Catholic mission church that we usually attended. We were told that the plain-but-Catholic "high altar" had to be removed, but no one knew why except "the chancery" said so. Years later in my present parish church, a cabal of modernist Priests had a list of parish churches they wanted to "modernize" and ours was on it. Unfortunately, the Bishop was all in favor of it so when a member of the cabal became our pastor, he had a parish "vote" on renovations. The ballot had a long list of items, e.g. new water cooler in the narthex, new ceramic tile floors, with checkboxes beside each. He didn't tell anyone that in counting the ballots he was going to count a vote in favor of anything as a vote in favor of it all. Of course, based on this dishonest method, the vote was counted as positive, and the wrecking began. Italian marble? OUT. Three-tier Olympiad platform in the middle of the church? IN. The church was transformed at great expense and with the Bishop's approval from a building with an ugly interior into one that is truly hideous and impractical. So, I have always been reluctant to give anything to any of our pastors' spending schemes.
My own opinion in 2026 terms, if a high altar is intact, leave it as it was intended to be. Your argument might have some degree of merit; but, given the state of the liturgy in your particular church, leave things as they are until and unless someone decides that modification (again) is necessary.
Post a Comment