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100-481: Hiero or hieron ( / ˈ h aɪər ɒ n / ; Ancient Greek: ἱερόν , lit. "holy place" or "sacred place") is an ancient Greek shrine , temple , or temple precinct . Hiero may also refer to: Shrine Shrines are found in many of the world's religions, including Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Chinese folk religion , Shinto , indigenous Philippine folk religions , and Germanic paganism as well as in secular and non-religious settings such as

200-402: A bathtub madonna . Religious images, usually in some sort of small shelter, placed by a road or pathway, sometimes in a settlement or at a crossroads. Shrines are found in many religions. As distinguished from a temple , a shrine usually houses a particular relic or cult image , which is the object of worship or veneration . A shrine may also be constructed to set apart a site which

300-434: A Communion Table adorned with a linen cloth, as well as an open Bible and a pair of candlesticks; it is not referred to as an altar because they do not see Holy Communion as sacrificial in any way. Such a table may be temporary: Moved into place only when there is a Communion Service. Some nondenominational churches have no altar or communion table, even if they retain the practice of the " altar call " that originated in

400-538: A baldachin . In Ethiopian Orthodox Church tradition an icon is placed upon but towards the rear of the altar. It is away from the wall as in the Coptic tradition. In the West Syriac Tradition, churches have altars in the eastern part of the sanctuary. Altars of East Syriac Rite are similar in appearance to Armenian altars only they are not placed on a stage. Altars are often heavily decorated in

500-587: A crucifix or some other image of Christ. When a stone altar was placed in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Cambridge after rebuilding works in 1841, a case was brought in the Court of Arches which resulted in an order to remove it and replace it with a wooden communion table. In Anglican practice, conformity to a given standard depends on the ecclesiastical province and/or the liturgical sensibilities of

600-604: A crucifix , when required, can be either on the altar or near it, and it is desirable that the crucifix remain even outside of liturgical celebrations. A wide variety of altars exist in various Protestant denominations. Some Churches, such as the Lutheran , have altars very similar to Anglican or Catholic ones keeping with their more sacramental understanding of the Lord's Supper . Calvinist churches from Reformed, Baptist, Congregational, and Non-denominational backgrounds instead have

700-528: A liturgical color that may change with the ecclesiastical season . This outer covering usually comes all the way to the floor and represents the glory of God's Throne . In many churches it is the custom for a dust cover to be placed on the Holy Table between services. This is often a simple red cloth, though it may be made of richer stuff. Sometimes it covers only the Gospel Book or the front half of

800-486: A saint , on a pedestal or in an alcove, while others may be elaborate booths without ceilings, some include paintings, statuary, and architectural elements, such as walls, roofs, glass doors and ironwork fences. In the United States, some Christians have small yard shrines; some of these resemble side altars, since they are composed of a statue placed in a niche or grotto ; this type is colloquially referred to as

900-670: A sinner's prayer , which, in evangelical understanding, if truly heart-felt indicates that they are now "saved". They may also be offered religious literature, counselling or other assistance. Many times it is said that those who come forth are going to " be saved ". This is a ritual in which the supplicant makes a prayer of penitence (asking for his sins to be forgiven) and faith (called in evangelical Christianity "accepting Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Saviour"). Altars in Lutheran churches are often similar to those in Roman Catholic and Anglican churches. Lutherans believe that

1000-499: A yin-yang emblem is placed among peaceful settings to encourage meditation and study of Taoist texts and principles. Taoists place less emphasis on formalized attendance but include ritualized worship than other Asian religions ; formal temples and structures of worship came about in Taoism with the influence from Buddhism . Frequent features of Taoist shrines include the same features as full temples, often including any or all of

1100-597: A church may be referred to as either the Holy Table (Greek Ἁγία Τράπεζα ) or the Throne ( chu Prestól ). For both Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Eastern Catholics, the Holy Table (altar) is normally free-standing, although in very small sanctuaries it might be placed flush against the back wall for reasons of space. They are typically about one meter high, and although they may be made of stone they are generally built out of wood. The exact dimensions may vary, but it

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1200-517: A deity was placed and offered prayers, instead of visits to a temple. Among Tamil Hindu homes, according to Pintchman, a shrine in Kitchen is more common. If the family is wealthy, it may locate the household shrine in a separate room. The line between a temple and a shrine in Taoism is not fully defined; shrines are usually smaller versions of larger Taoist temples or small places in a home where

1300-543: A given parish. In the Parson's Handbook , an influential manual for priests popular in the early-to-mid-twentieth century, Percy Dearmer recommends that "All altars should be 3 ft. 3 in. high, and at least deep enough to take a corporal [the square of linen placed underneath the Communion vessels] 20 in. square, with an inch or two to spare." He also recommends that the altar stand upon three steps for each of

1400-516: A high altar in the main body of the church, with one or more adjoining chapels, each with its own altar, at which the Eucharist may be celebrated on weekdays. Architecturally, there are two types of altars: Those that are attached to the eastern wall of the chancel, and those that are free-standing and can be walked around, for instance when incensing the altar. In the earliest days of the Church,

1500-600: A local diocesan bishop or archbishop can designate a local (arch)diocesan shrine. For a shrine to be a national shrine , the approval of the country's Episcopal Conference is required. Similarly, the approval of the Holy See at the Vatican in Rome is required for it to be "international. The Roman Catholic 1983 Code of Canon Law , canons 1230 and 1231 read: "The term shrine means a church or other sacred place which, with

1600-685: A popular destination for pious visitation is the Zaouia Moulay Idriss II . The area around Timbuktu in Mali also has many historic Sufi shrines which were destroyed by Islamist in recent years. Many of these have since been rebuilt. A saint's tomb is a site of great veneration where blessings or baraka continue to reach the deceased holy person and are deemed (by some) to benefit visiting devotees and pilgrims according to Sufi beliefs. In order to show reverence to Sufi saints, kings, and nobles provided large donations or waqf to preserve

1700-476: A priest could take one with him and place it on an ordinary table for saying Mass. They were also inserted into the centre of structural altars especially those made of wood. In that case, it was the altar stone that was considered liturgically to be the altar. The Pontificale Romanum contained a rite for blessing at the same time several of these altar stones. In the East the antimension served and continues to serve

1800-486: A private bedroom, closet, or other space usually occupied by one person. They are used for practices of piety intended for one person (often referred to as a "private devotion"). They are also found in a minority of Protestant worship places; in Reformed and Anabaptist churches, a table, often called a "Communion table", serves an analogous function. The area around the altar is seen as endowed with greater holiness, and

1900-407: A rule be separate from the wall so as to make it easy to walk around it and to celebrate Mass at it facing the people. It should be positioned so as to be the natural centre of attention of the whole congregation. The altar should be covered by at least one white cloth, and nothing else should be placed upon the altar table other than what is required for the liturgical celebration. Candlesticks and

2000-468: A sense of the sanctity of the altar and its surrounding area persists. In most cases, moreover, the practice of allowing only those items that have been blessed to be placed on the altar is maintained (that is, the linen cloth, candles, missal , and the Eucharistic vessels). In Greek the word βωμός ( bômós ) can mean an altar of any religion or, in a broader sense, the area surrounding it; that

2100-605: A similar way to shrines by parishioners. Side altars are specifically dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus, to her husband Saint Joseph , or to other saints. A nativity scene could also be viewed as a shrine, as the definition of a shrine is any holy or sacred place. Islam's holiest structure, the Kaaba (within the Al-Haram Mosque ) in the city of Mecca , though an ancient temple (in

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2200-421: A solid front, which may or may not be ornamented. In many Anglican parishes, the use of frontals has persisted. When altars are placed away from the wall of the chancel allowing a westward orientation, only two candles are placed on either end of it, since six would obscure the liturgical action, undermining the intent of a westward orientation (i.e., that it be visible to the congregation). In such an arrangement,

2300-588: A tabernacle may stand to one side of or behind the altar, or an aumbry may be used. Sensibilities concerning the sanctity of the altar are widespread in Anglicanism. In some parishes, the notion that the surface of the altar should only be touched by those in holy orders is maintained. In others, there is considerably less strictness about the communion table. Nonetheless, the continued popularity of communion rails in Anglican church construction suggests that

2400-605: A wall or touching it, altars were often surmounted by a reredos or altarpiece . If free-standing, they could be placed, as also in Eastern Christianity, within a ciborium (sometimes called a baldachin ). The rules regarding the present-day form of the Roman Rite liturgy declare a free-standing main altar to be "desirable wherever possible". Similarly, in the Anglican Communion, the rubrics of

2500-521: A war memorial. Shrines can be found in various settings, such as churches, temples, cemeteries, or as household shrines. Portable shrines are also found in some cultures. Many shrines are located within buildings and in the temples designed specifically for worship, such as a church in Christianity, or a mandir in Hinduism. A shrine here is usually the center of attention in the building and

2600-455: Is a matter of consensus." Similarly, Ibn Qudamah (d. 620 AH) considered ziyāra of Muhammad to be recommended and also seeking intercession directly from Muhammad at his grave. The tombs of other Muslim religious figures are also respected. The son of Ahmad ibn Hanbal , one of the primary jurists of Sunnism, reportedly stated that he would prefer to be buried near the mausoleum of a saintly person than his own father. While in some parts of

2700-411: Is considered to be the " baptismal garment " of the altar. The linen covering symbolizes the winding sheet in which the body of Christ was wrapped when he was laid in the tomb . Since the altar is never seen uncovered thereafter, the table tends to be constructed more with sturdiness than aesthetics in mind. Above this first cover is a second ornamented altar cloth ( Indítia ), often in a brocade of

2800-609: Is focused on Lord Buddha or one of the bodhisattvas or arahants . Monks, nuns and laity will pay homage with the aide of Buddhist iconography at these shrines which are also used for Buddhist meditation . Typically, Buddhist shrines contain a statue of either Gautama Buddha, or (in the Mahayana and Vajrayana forms of Buddhism), one of the various Buddhas or bodhisattvas. They also commonly contain candles, along with offerings such as flowers, purified water, food, and incense. Many shrines also contain sacred relics , such as

2900-403: Is generally square in plan and in reasonable proportion to the size of the sanctuary. It has five legs: one at each corner plus a central pillar for supporting the relics which are placed in it at its consecration . A plain linen covering (Greek: Katasarkion , Slavonic: Strachítsa ) is bound to the Holy Table with cords; this cover is never removed after the altar is consecrated, and

3000-467: Is given a place of prominence. In such cases, adherents of the faith assemble within the building in order to venerate the deity at the shrine. In classical temple architecture, the shrine may be synonymous with the cella . Historically, in Hinduism , Buddhism and Roman Catholicism , and also in modern faiths, such as Neopaganism , a shrine can commonly be found within the home or shop. This shrine

3100-563: Is no use of the specific word altar ; the item in question is called the Lord's Table or Holy Table . This remains the official terminology, though common usage may call the communion table an altar. At the time of the Reformation, altars were fixed against the east end of the church, and the priests would celebrate the Mass standing at the front of the altar. Beginning with the rubrics of

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3200-528: Is offered as the "table of the Lord" ( trapeza Kyriou ) mentioned by Saint Paul . The rules indicated here are those of the Latin Church . The Latin Church distinguishes between fixed altars (those attached to the floor) and movable altars (those that can be displaced), and states: "It is desirable that in every church there be a fixed altar, since this more clearly and permanently signifies Christ Jesus,

3300-597: Is one of the ugliest positions that has been reported of Ibn Taymiyya". The Hanafi hadith scholar Ali al-Qari stated that, "Amongst the Hanbalis, Ibn Taymiyya has gone to an extreme by prohibiting travelling to visit the Prophet – may God bless him and grant him peace" Qastallani stated that "The Shaykh Taqi al-Din Ibn Taymiyya has abominable and odd statements on this issue to the effect that travelling to visit

3400-478: Is thought to be particularly holy, as opposed to being placed for the convenience of worshipers. Shrines therefore attract the practice of pilgrimage . Shrines are found in many forms of Christianity, but not all. Catholicism , the largest denomination of Christianity, has many shrines, as do Orthodox Christianity , Anglicanism and some forms of Lutheranism . In the Roman Catholic Church,

3500-1196: Is to visit or make pilgrimages to the tombs of saints, renowned scholars, and righteous people. This is a particularly common practice in the Indian subcontinent , where famous tombs include of saints such as Sayyid Ali Hamadani in Kulob , Tajikistan; Afāq Khoja , near Kashgar , China; Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sindh ; Ali Hujwiri in Lahore , Pakistan; Bahauddin Zakariya in Multan Pakistan; Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer , India; Nizamuddin Auliya in Delhi , India; and Shah Jalal in Sylhet , Bangladesh. Likewise, in Fez , Morocco,

3600-407: Is to say, the entire sanctuary . In an Eastern Orthodox or a Byzantine Rite Eastern Catholic church this sanctuary includes both the area behind the iconostasis , and the soleas (the elevated projection in front of the iconostasis), and the ambo . It is also called the βῆμα ( bema ). When one enters the sanctuary, one is said to be going into the βωμός or βῆμα . The altar itself in such

3700-453: Is usually a small structure or a setup of pictures and figurines dedicated to a deity that is part of the official religion, to ancestors or to a localised household deity . Small outdoor yard shrines are found at the bottom of many peoples' gardens, following various religions, including historically, Balinese Hinduism , Christianity . Many consist of a statue of Christ , Virgin Mary or

3800-477: Is usually physically distinguished from the rest of the church, whether by a permanent structure such as an iconostasis , a rood screen , altar rails , a curtain that can be closed at more solemn moments of the liturgy (as in the Armenian Apostolic Church and Armenian Catholic Church ), or simply by the general architectural layout. The altar is often on a higher elevation than the rest of

3900-540: Is usually placed in the main shrine. Confucian shrines exist outside of China too, mainly in Japan, Korea and Vietnam. There are also quite a number of Confucian shrines in Taiwan like Tainan Confucian Temple and Taipei Confucius Temple , they are well-maintained by the government. However, many Taoist temples dedicated a shrine for the worship of Confucius or Wen Chang Di Jun (God of Literature). In some countries around

4000-462: The strachitsa ). The Divine Liturgy must be served on an antimension even if the altar has been consecrated and contains relics. When not in use, the antimension is left in place in the center of the Holy Table and is not removed except for necessity. The Holy Table may only be touched by ordained members of the higher clergy and nothing which is not itself consecrated or an object of veneration should be placed on it. Objects may also be placed on

4100-749: The Al-Askari Shrine , and Imam Hussein Shrine . Other Shia shrines are located in the eponymous cities of Mazar-e Sharif ("The Noble Mausoleum ") in Afghanistan , and Mashhad ( al-Rida ) (" Martyrium [of Ali Rida ]") in Iran. The Mausoleum of Ruhollah Khomeini in Tehran houses the tombs of Ruhollah Khomenei , the leader of Iran's 1978–79 revolution , his wife , and a few other related people. In popular Sufism , one common practice

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4200-624: The Book of Common Prayer assumed an altar fixed against the wall, until Prayer Book revision in the twentieth century removed language which assumed any particular form of altar. As well as altars in the structural sense, it became customary in the West to have what in Latin were referred to as altaria portatilia (portable altars), more commonly referred to in English as altar stones . When travelling,

4300-498: The Disciples of Confucius . These temples are known as "Temples of Confucius" (孔廟) or "Temples of Literature" (文廟). Unlike Taoist temples, Confucian temples usually do not installed the images of Confucius but the tablets. It is argued that the temple was to honour Confucius's teachings, not Confucius himself. The temples consist of gardens and then a large pavilion where incense is burnt. The tablet or sometime an image of Confucius

4400-807: The Dome of the Rock and the smaller Dome of the Chain built on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem . The former was built over the rock that marked the site of the Jewish Temple and according to Islamic tradition, was the point of departure of Muhammad's legendary ascent heavenwards ( al-Mi'raj ). More than any other shrines in the Muslim world, the tomb of Muhammad is considered a source of blessings for

4500-500: The Methodist Church . Some Methodist and other evangelical churches practice what is referred to as an altar call , whereby those who wish to make a new spiritual commitment to Jesus Christ are invited to come forward publicly. It is so named because the supplicants, at the end of the sermon , kneel at the altar rails , which are located around the altar within chancel . Those that come forward will often recite

4600-629: The Roman , Greek , and Norse religions. The modern English word altar was derived from Middle English altar , from Old English alter , taken from Latin altare ("altar"), probably related to adolere ("burn"); thus "burning place", influenced by altus ("high"). It displaced the native Old English word wēofod . Altars in the Hebrew Bible were typically made of earth or unwrought stone. Altars were generally erected in conspicuous places. The first altar recorded in

4700-530: The Second Prayer Book of Edward VI published in 1552, and through the 1662 Book of Common Prayer (which prevailed for almost 300 years and is still in occasional use), the priest is directed to stand "at the north syde of the Table". This was variously interpreted over the years to mean the north side of the front of a fixed communion table, the north end of a fixed table (i.e., facing south),

4800-543: The Second Vatican Council they contained small side altars or bye-altars. Shrines are always centered on some image (for instance, a statue, painting, mural or mosaic) of Jesus Christ , of Mary, mother of Jesus , or of a saint, and may have had a reredos behind them. Today, Mass would not necessarily be celebrated at them. They are simply used to aid or give a visual focus for prayers. Side altars, where Mass could actually be celebrated, were used in

4900-643: The Wahhabi and Salafi movements, which believe that shrines over graves encourage idolatry / polytheism ( shirk ) and that there is a risk of worshipping other than God (the dead). The founder of the Wahhabi movement, Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab derived the prohibition to build mosques over graves from a hadith attributed to the Muhammad in which he said "May God curse the Jews and Christians who make

5000-535: The tabernacle , candles, ceremonial fans , a cross, and the Gospel Book . The altar is often located upon a kind of stage above a row of icons. Altars in the Alexandrian ( Coptic Orthodox Church ) tradition must have a square face upon which to offer the sacrifice. As the standard Coptic liturgy requires the priest to encircle the altar, it is never attached to any wall. Most Coptic altars are located under

5100-420: The Church continued to presume that the officiating bishop could circle the altar during the consecration of the church and its altar. Despite this, with the increase in the size and importance of the reredos , most altars were built against the wall or barely separated from it. In almost all cases, the eastward orientation for prayer was maintained, whether the altar was at the west end of the church, as in all

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5200-550: The Divine Liturgy and perform the ablutions . The Syriac Maronite Church, along with the other Syriac Churches, has freestanding altars in most cases so the priests and deacons can circumambulate the altar during processions and incensations. Traditionally the Maronite liturgy was offered with the priest and people oriented to the East but because of modern latinizations it is common to find Maronite liturgies offered with

5300-536: The Eucharist appears to have been celebrated on portable altars set up for the purpose. Some historians hold that, during the persecutions, the Eucharist was celebrated among the tombs in the Catacombs of Rome , using the sarcophagi of martyrs as altars on which to celebrate. Other historians dispute this, but it is thought to be the origin of the tradition of placing relics beneath the altar. When Christianity

5400-401: The Eucharist, celebrating it rarely. Both Catholics and Protestants celebrate the Eucharist at such altars outside of churches and chapels, as outdoors or in an auditorium. The Eastern Catholic Churches each follow their own traditions, which in general correspond to those of similar Eastern Orthodox or Oriental Orthodox Churches. All Christian Churches see the altar on which the Eucharist

5500-457: The Gospel is kept the antimension , a silken cloth imprinted with an icon of Christ being prepared for burial , which has a relic sewn into it and bears the signature of the bishop . Another, simpler cloth, the ilitón , is wrapped around the antimension to protect it, and symbolizes the "napkin" that was tied around the face of Jesus when he was laid in the tomb (forming a companion to

5600-738: The Hebrew Bible is that erected by Noah . Altars were erected by Abraham , by Isaac , by Jacob , and by Moses . After the theophany on Mount Sinai , in the Tabernacle —and afterwards in the Temple —only two altars were used: The Altar of Burnt Offering, and the Altar of Incense, both near where the Ark of the Covenant was located. The remains of three rock-hewn altars were discovered in

5700-403: The Holy Table before they are taken to the center of the church to be venerated by the faithful. In place of the outer covering, some altars have a permanent solid cover which may be highly ornamented, richly carved, or even plated in precious metals. A smaller brocade cover is used on top of this if it is desired that the altar decoration reflect the liturgical season. The Holy Table is used as

5800-441: The Holy Table, because it represents the Tomb of Christ, and the Gospel lessons for Sunday Matins are always one of the Resurrection appearances of Jesus . On the northern side of the sanctuary stands another, smaller altar, known as the Table of Oblation ( Prothesis or Zhértvennik ) at which the Liturgy of Preparation takes place. On it the bread and wine are prepared before the Divine Liturgy . The Prothesis symbolizes

5900-414: The Holy Table, but it may be large enough to cover the entire Holy Table and everything on it, including candlesticks and the seven-branch candelabra. Atop the altar is the tabernacle ( Kovtchég ), a miniature shrine sometimes built in the form of a church, inside of which is a small ark containing the reserved sacrament for use in communing the sick. Also kept on the altar is the Gospel Book . Under

6000-418: The Kaaba in Islamic tradition. The Green Dome sepulcher of the Islamic prophet Muhammad (where his burial chamber also contains the tombs of his friend Abu Bakr and close companion Umar ) in Medina , housed in the Masjid an-Nabawi ("The Mosque of the Prophet"), occurs as a greatly venerated place and important as a site of pilgrimage among Muslims. Two of the oldest and notable Islamic shrines are

6100-418: The Land of Israel: one below Tel Zorah , another at the foot of Sebastia (ancient Samaria), and a third near Shiloh . The word altar , in Greek θυσιαστήριον ( see : θυσία ), appears twenty-four times in the New Testament . In Catholic and Orthodox Christian theology, the Eucharist is a re-presentation, in the literal sense of the one sacrifice of Christ on the cross being made "present again". Hence,

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6200-544: The Living Stone. In other places set aside for sacred celebrations, the altar may be movable." A fixed altar should in general be topped by a slab of natural stone, thus conforming to tradition and to the significance attributed to the altar, but in many places dignified, well-crafted solid wood is permitted; the supports or base of a fixed altar may be of any dignified solid material. A movable altar may be of any noble solid material suitable for liturgical use. The liturgical norms state: This last norm explicitly excludes

6300-420: The Muslim world the mausoleums of the tombs are seen as simply places of ziyāra of a religious figure's gravesite ( Mazār / Maqbara ), in others (such as the Indian subcontinent ) they are treated as proper shrines ( Dargah ). Many modern Islamic reformers oppose the building (and sometimes the visitation of ) tomb shrines, viewing it as a deviation from true Islam. This mainly includes followers of

6400-692: The Philippines. They were either small roof-less platforms or standing poles split at the tip (similar to a tiki torch ). They held halved coconut shells, metal plates, or martaban jars as receptacles for offerings. Taotao may sometimes also be placed on these platforms. Other types of sacred places or objects of worship of diwata include the material manifestation of their realms. The most widely venerated were balete trees (also called nonok , nunuk , nonoc , etc.) and anthills or termite mounds ( punso ). Other examples include mountains, waterfalls, tree groves, reefs, and caves. In Germanic paganism , types of shrines were employed, but terms for

6500-435: The Prophet is prohibited and is not a pious deed." Shias have several mazars dedicated to various religious figures important in their history, and several elaborate shrines ( Marqad / Maqam ) are dedicated to Shia religious figures, most notably in Iraq (such as in the cities of Karbala , Najaf , Samarra ) and in Iran (such as in the cities of Qom and Mashad ). Specific examples of Shia shrines include

6600-411: The Table of Oblation. The Epitaphios and Cross are also placed on the Table of Oblation before the priest and deacon solemnly transfer them to the Holy Table. In addition to the higher clergy, subdeacons are permitted to touch the Table of Oblation, but no one of lesser rank may do so. The Table of Oblation is the place where the deacon will consume the remaining Gifts ( Body and Blood of Christ ) after

6700-413: The West, the Roman Missal recommends that in new churches there should be only one altar, "which in the gathering of the faithful will signify the one Christ and the one Eucharist of the Church." This does not exclude altars in distinct side chapels, however, but only separate altars in the main body of the church. But most Western churches of an earlier period, whether Roman Catholic or Anglican, may have

6800-401: The altar as part of the process for setting them aside for sacred use. For example, icons are usually blessed by laying them on the Holy Table for a period of time or for a certain number of Divine Liturgies before sprinkling them with holy water , and placing them where they will be venerated . The Epitaphios on Good Friday , and the Cross on the Feasts of the Cross , are also placed on

6900-411: The altar at the east end. Then the ministers and congregation all faced east during the whole celebration; and in Western Europe altars began, in the Middle Ages, to be permanently placed against the east wall of the chancel. Most rubrics , even in books of the seventeenth century and later, such as the Pontificale Romanum , continued to envisage the altar as free-standing. The rite of the Dedication of

7000-427: The altar represents Christ and should only be used to consecrate and distribute the Eucharist. Lutheran altars are commonly made out of granite, but other materials are also used. A crucifix is to be put above the altar. Sometimes relics are also placed around the altar. Altars in the Anglican Communion vary widely. In the Book of Common Prayer , the basis of doctrine and practice for the Church of England , there

7100-518: The approval of the local Ordinary, is by reason of special devotion frequented by the faithful as pilgrims. For a shrine to be described as national, the approval of the Episcopal Conference is necessary. For it to be described as international, the approval of the Holy See is required." In unofficial, colloquial Catholic use, the term "shrine" is a niche or alcove in churches, especially larger ones, used by parishioners when praying privately. They were formerly also called devotional altars , since before

7200-585: The building in imitation of the sanctuary of the Jerusalem Temple. Although in the days of the Jerusalem Temple the High Priest indeed faced east when sacrificing on Yom Kippur , the sanctuary within which he stood was located at the western end of the Temple. The Christian replication of the layout and the orientation of the Jerusalem Temple helped to dramatize the eschatological meaning attached to

7300-679: The cave of Bethlehem and also the Anointing Stone at which the Body of Christ was prepared after the Deposition from the Cross . The Table of Oblation is also blessed, sprinkled with holy water and vested at the consecration of a church, but there are no relics placed in it. Nothing other than the sacred vessels, veils , etc. which are used in the Liturgy of Preparation may be placed on

7400-456: The church. Churches generally have a single altar, although in the Western branches of Christianity, as a result of the former abandonment of concelebration of Mass , so that priests always celebrated Mass individually, larger churches have had one or more side chapels, each with its own altar. The main altar was also referred to as the " high altar ". Since the revival of concelebration in

7500-427: The context known to foreign cultures. However, they do have sacred shrines , which are also called as spirit houses . They can range in size from small roofed platforms, to structures similar to a small house (but with no walls), to shrines that look similar to pagodas, especially in the south where early mosques were also modeled in the same way. These shrines were known in various indigenous terms, which depend on

7600-554: The earliest churches in Rome, in which case the priest celebrating Mass faced the congregation and the church entrance, or whether it was at the east end of the church, in which case the priest faced the eastern apse and had his back to the congregation. This diversity was recognized in the rubrics of the Roman Missal from the 1604 typical edition of Pope Clement VIII to the 1962 edition of Pope John XXIII : " Si altare sit ad orientem, versus populum ... " When placed close to

7700-575: The ethnic group association. They can also be used as places to store taotao and caskets of ancestors. Among Bicolanos, taotao were also kept inside sacred caves called moog . During certain ceremonies, anito are venerated through temporary altars near sacred places. These were called latangan or lantayan in Visayan and dambana or lambana in Tagalog. These bamboo or rattan altars are identical in basic construction throughout most of

7800-612: The famous sacred tooth of Lord Buddha installed at a shrine in Sri Lanka . Site-specific shrines in Buddhism, particularly those that contain relics of past Buddhas and revered enlightened monks, are often designed in the traditional form known as the Stupa or Cetiya . Ancient Filipinos, and Filipinos today who continue to adhere to the indigenous Philippine folk religions generally do not have so-called "temples" of worship under

7900-514: The following features: gardens , running water or fountains, small burning braziers or candles (with or without incense ), and copies of Taoist texts such as the Tao Te Ching , Zhuangzi or other texts by Lao Tzu , Chuang Tzu or other Taoist sages. A number of Confucian temples and shrines exist across the sinophone world, it is a temple for the veneration of Confucius , great sages , eminent philosophers of Confucianism and also

8000-416: The graves of their prophets into places of worship; do not imitate them." Additionally, he commanded leveling of the graves ( taswiyat al-qubur ), which the scholar Imam Al-Shafi'i supported. The Wahhabi movement was heavily influenced by the works of the medieval Hanbali theologian Ibn Taymiyyah who was considered by them to be the "ultimate authority on a great number of issues". One of these issues

8100-940: The hall is commonly described as "enshrinement". By extension the term shrine has come to mean any place dedicated completely to a particular person or subject such as the Shrine of the Sun in Colorado Springs, Colorado . 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. They are used particularly in paganism , Christianity , Buddhism , Hinduism , Judaism , modern paganism , and in certain Islamic communities around Caucasia and Asia Minor . Many historical-medieval faiths also made use of them, including

8200-491: The north side of a free-standing table (presumably facing those intending to receive the Elements who would be sitting in the quire stalls opposite), or at the north end of a free-standing table lengthwise in the chancel, facing a congregation seated in the nave . Often, where a celebrant chose to situate himself was meant to convey his churchmanship (that is, more Reformed or more Catholic). The use of candles or tabernacles

8300-440: The old altar is so positioned that it makes the people's participation difficult but cannot be moved without damage to artistic value, another fixed altar, skillfully made and properly dedicated, should be erected and the sacred rites celebrated on it alone. In order that the attention of the faithful not be distracted from the new altar the old altar should not be decorated in any special way." The altar, fixed or movable, should as

8400-642: The place of offering in the celebration of the Eucharist , where bread and wine are offered to God the Father and the Holy Spirit is invoked to make his Son Jesus Christ present in the Gifts. It is also the place where the presiding clergy stand at any service, even where no Eucharist is being celebrated and no offering is made other than prayer . When the priest reads the Gospel during Matins (or All-Night Vigil ) on Sunday, he reads it standing in front of

8500-445: The practice customary in recent centuries of inserting relics into a specially created cavity within the table of an altar or altar stone . Placing of relics even in the base of a movable altar is also excluded. "In building new churches, it is preferable for a single altar to be erected, one that in the gathering of the faithful will signify the one Christ and the one Eucharist of the Church. In already existing churches, however, when

8600-489: The practice of ziyāra to Muhammad's tomb. The hadith scholar Qadi Ayyad (d. 554 AH) stated that visiting Muhammad was "a Sunna of the Muslims on which there was consensus, and a good and desirable deed." Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani (d. 852 AH) explicitly stated that travelling to visit the tomb of Muhammad was "one of the best of actions and the noblest of pious deeds with which one draws near to God, and its legitimacy

8700-527: The priest facing against the people from the opposite side of the altar, in imitation of modern practices in the Latin Church. In the Armenian Rite the altar is placed against the eastern wall of the church, often in an apse . The shape of the altar is usually rectangular, similar to Latin altars, but is unusual in that it will normally have several steps on top of the table, on which are placed

8800-560: The resting places for the respective remains of the two central figures of the Baháʼí Faith, the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh . They are the focal points of a Baháʼí pilgrimage : Other sites have been designated as Baháʼí Shrines, the most notable being the home of William Sutherland Maxwell and May Maxwell in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. In Buddhism , a shrine refers to a place where veneration

8900-511: The sacrificial death of Jesus the High Priest in the Epistle to the Hebrews." The ministers ( bishop , priests , deacons , subdeacons , acolytes ), celebrated the Eucharist facing east, towards the entrance. Some hold that for the central part of the celebration the congregation faced the same way. After the sixth century the contrary orientation prevailed, with the entrance to the west and

9000-470: The same purpose. The term movable altar or portable altar is now used of a full-scale structural altar, with or without an inserted altar stone, that can be moved. Movable altars include the free-standing wooden tables without altar stone, placed in the choir away from the east wall, favoured by churches in the Reformed tradition . Altars that not only can be moved but are repeatedly moved are found in low church traditions that do not focus worship on

9100-576: The sense of a "house of God"), may be seen as a shrine due to it housing a respected relic called the Hajar al-Aswad and also being the partial focus of the world's largest pilgrimage practice, the Hajj . A few yards away, the mosque also houses the Maqam Ibrahim (" Abraham 's station") shrine containing a petrosomatoglyph (of feet) associated with the patriarch and his son Ishmael 's building of

9200-399: The shrines show some level of ambiguity: In Hinduism , a shrine is a place where gods or goddesses are worshipped. Shrines are typically located inside a Hindu temple of various forms. Most Hindu families have a household shrine as well. For example, according to memoirs of Stephen Huyler of his visits to some Hindu homes, a part of home was dedicated to the household shrine. Here, image of

9300-687: The table upon which the Eucharist is consecrated is called an altar. The altar plays a central role in the celebration of the Eucharist , which takes place at the altar on which the bread and the wine for consecration are placed. Altars occupy a prominent place in most Christian churches, both Eastern and Western branches. Commonly among these churches, altars are placed for permanent use within designated places of communal worship (often called "sanctuaries" ). Less often, though nonetheless notable, altars are set in spaces occupied less regularly, such as outdoors in nature, in cemeteries, in mausoleums/crypts, and family dwellings. Personal altars are those placed in

9400-485: The three sacred ministers, and that it be decorated with a silk frontal in the seasonal colour . In some cases, other manuals suggest that a stone be set in the top of wooden altars, in the belief that the custom be maintained of consecrating the bread and wine on a stone surface. In many other Anglican parishes, the custom is considerably less rigorous, especially in those parishes which use free-standing altars. Typically, these altars are made of wood, and may or may not have

9500-473: The tombs and renovate them architecturally. Over time, these donation, rituals, annual commemorations formed into an elaborate system of accepted norms. These forms of Sufi practise created an aura of spiritual and religious traditions around prescribed dates. Many orthodox or Islamic purists denounce these visiting grave rituals, especially the expectation of receiving blessings from the venerated saints. The two most well-known Baháʼí Faith shrines serve as

9600-446: The visitor. Among sayings attributed to Muhammad include one stated as: "He who visits my grave will be entitled to my intercession." Visiting Muhammad's tomb after the pilgrimage is considered by the majority of Sunni legal scholars to be recommended. The early scholars of the salaf , Ahmad Ibn Hanbal (d. 241 AH), Ishaq Ibn Rahwayh (d. 238 SH), Abdullah ibn Mubarak (d. 189 AH) and Imam Shafi'i (d. 204 AH) all permitted

9700-445: The world, landmarks may be called "historic shrines." Notable shrines of this type include: Halls of fame also serve as shrines into which single or multiple individuals are inducted on the basis of their influence upon regions, cultures or disciplines. Busts or full-body statues are often erected and placed alongside each other in commemoration. This includes Halls of Fame that honor sports athletes, where an athlete's entrance to

9800-492: Was banned by canon law , with the only appointed adornment being a white linen cloth. Beginning with the Oxford Movement in the 19th century, the appearance of Anglican altars took a dramatic turn in many churches. Candles and, in some cases, tabernacles were re‑introduced. In some churches two candles, on each end of the altar, were used; in other cases six—three on either side of a tabernacle, typically surmounted by

9900-462: Was legalized under Constantine the Great and Licinius , formal church buildings were built in great numbers, normally with free-standing altars in the middle of the sanctuary, which in all the earliest churches built in Rome was at the west end of the church. "When Christians in fourth-century Rome could first freely begin to build churches, they customarily located the sanctuary towards the west end of

10000-481: Was the position on the visitation of Muhammad's tomb. According to Ibn Taymiyyah all the ahadith encouraging the visitation of the tomb are fabricated ( mawdu‘ ), are not contained in the six main collections of hadith or Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal , and violate tawhid al-uluhiya . This view of Ibn Taymiyyah was rejected by some mainstream Sunni scholars both during his life and after his death. The Shafi'i hadith master Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani stated that "This

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