Did you know? Facts about our Faith & our Church a series by: Kevin Mathieu - Director of Liturgical Music & Parish Communications January, 2021 Issue Number: 2

Sacred Vessels & Altar Appointments

What are all those things called? - The Catholic Church has a long tradition of beautiful well appointed items used in the Sacred Liturgy, each having a special name and function. In this issue I will just scratch the surface to identify and explain most of the common items we see each week, and a few of the “special occasion” items that only appear a few times, or even only once a year. Please bear with me as I try not to get to “in depth” with the following descriptions. We can begin with one of the most recognized liturgical items, the Chalice. From the Roman word calix, a chalice is a tall, footed goblet for holding drink. In the Catholic Church, the chalice holds the blessed, then consecrated wine, the Precious Blood of Jesus Christ. Usually made of precious metals and sometimes richly ornamented, they show just how special what they contain is. The Catholic Church sets forth guidelines on construction and materials for chalices, one of those being, the cup that will contain the Precious Blood must be lined with precious metal (usually gold) if it is not constructed of it. While we all get to see the beautiful silver of Father Lizewski’s chalice, not many see the gold interior. Blessed by a Bishop (usually at a priests ordination) the chalice is truly the most important of the sacred vessels used at MASS every day. The Paten, usually seen resting on top of the chalice, holds the Host that the priest will consecrate to become the Body of Christ. The function of the paten is simple, to bear the priest’s host before and after consecration. The bottom of Father Lizewski’s paten is engraved with an image of the Blessed Mother. Next is the Ciborium. While the ciborium is shaped like a cup (the original shape was a specific type of drinking vessel in ancient Greece and Rome) it’s purpose is to hold the Communion hosts before and after consecration. Usually made of metal with a well fitting lid, the ciborium serves as a carrying vessel for the hosts in procession at the offertory, for distribution of Holy Communion, and as a safe storage vessel for the Blessed Sacrament when reserved in the tabernacle. Communion Cups are used to distribute the Precious Blood to the faithful when Holy Communion is observed in both forms. Traditionally, the priest’s chalice is to only be touched by himself and other ordained ministers (other Catholic priests, deacons, bishops, etc.) so the Communion cup would be the only vessel the laity would be able to handle to both distribute or consume the Precious Blood at Communion. Of course we are all familiar with the Tabernacle. We can consider it an elaborate or very ornate vault for the safe, dignified storage of the Blessed Sacrament in repose between MASSES and other liturgical celebrations. Since we have no way of knowing exactly how many people will attend a given MASS, extra hosts are always consecrated and must be reserved in the tabernacle until the next opportunity to Communicate the faithful (at a MASS or on a sick call). The tabernacle contains Jesus’ physical presence in our Church. Less often seen are some special items for the storage, transportation, and even display of the Blessed Sacrament. These include the Pyx, a small container with a latched lid that can hold just a few consecrated hosts for home visits and sick calls. The Luna a metal frame with glass front and back, and sized to hold a larger (priest sized) consecrated Pyx host. The luna, with a consecrated host inside is meant to be mounted in the very ornate display for the Blessed Sacrament, the Monstrance. The monstrance is used for adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, and benediction. In special processions on some feast days, the Blessed sacrament is Monstrance in procession carried in the Monstrance for all of the faithful to see. There are a few linens used at the Altar with some different names. The Altar cloth is the most familiar and needs no description here. Resting on top of the Altar cloth at MASS is the Corporal (arch. corporax, from Latin corpus “body”). Simply a square piece of linen upon which the chalice, paten, and ciborium are placed for the consecration. One of the primary functions of the corporal is to catch any particles or droplets of the consecrated Body and Blood of Christ that may inadvertantly leave the chalice, paten or ciborium. Next we see the Purificator that is draped over the chalice, but under the paten before the offertory (you see Father Jack remove this when he “deconstructs” his chalice after the intercessory prayers). The purificator is a simple cloth, often with a small embroidered design of a cross, used to cleanse or purify the edges of the chalice and Communion cups after the Precious Blood is consumed. Because both of these cloths come into contact with the Blessed Sacrament in both forms in their use, they are set aside to be washed in such a way that any particles are returned to the earth, and not sent into the sewer. Remember, each particle of the Blessed Sacrament is a piece of the Body of Christ! Atop the tabernacle is our Sanctuary Lamp. This candle burns all day and night, everyday, and is to call attention to the constant presence of Christ in the tabernacle. If the Blessed Sacrament is removed from the tabernacle, the sanctuary lamp is removed with it, or extinguished, and the tabernacle left open to show its emptiness. Moving from the Altar area to other parts of the sanctuary now, we come to the Credence Table. This small table is set to the side of the sanctuary for use by the acolytes (or servers) in their work to assist the Priest in preparing for the consecration. The credence table holds the following items that the servers will bring to the priest at the offertory. A set of stoppered glass vessels called Cruets which contain water and sacramental wine. The Lavabo Bowl and Lavabo Towel are brought to the priest after the Altar is prepared for the consecration(wine and water are poured, etc.). The priest uses these along with water poured from the cruet to wash and purify his fingers before the Eucharistic Prayer/consecration. In front of the statue of Saint Jude Thadeus is an ornate lacquered brass Reliquary. This display stand with a glass window in its middle contains a small holder in which is mounted a Relic of Saint Jude. Relics are designated by class (first class: items directly associated with the events of Christ’s life (manger, cross, etc.) or the physical remains of a saint (a bone, a hair, skull, a limb, etc.); second class: items that the saint owned or frequently used, for example, a crucifix, rosary, book, etc.; and third class: any object that has been in contact with a first- or second- class relic). Dating back to the beginning of the Catholic Church when the early MASS was often celebrated underground, sometimes in the catacombs(burial places) of cities atop the bones of the dead. In this tradition, a relic of a Saint is placed into the Altar of a Church. Sometimes the relic is sealed into a stone Altar (a niche is left by the craftsmen for this purpose and the relic is cemented in during the dedication of the altar by the Bishop), or in the instance of a wood altar, an Altar Stone is set into the wood just under where the chalice will sit, with the relic sealed in it (we have an altar stone set into our altar of sacrifice, but have no indication if a relic is still sealed inside or not. It could likely be Saint Aloysius if still present). When Saint Jude Chapel was built in 1962/63, a relic of Saint Jude was acquired and sat in a reliquary on the high altar next to the tabernacle. This same relic is now in the new reliquary on display by the statue of Saint Jude. Unfortunately we do not know the classification of this relic, but have no reason to doubt it’s authenticity.

Well, I don’t think I managed to stay as brief as I would have liked, but we did cover a lot of ground!

I thank you for the positive feedback received following the publication of our first issue and I hope you will all continue to enjoy this series.

Next month we will take a look at “Music During Lent & Silence in the Liturgy”, then in March, “Vestments”.

What would you like to know about? Submit questions or topic suggestions to Kevin Mathieu in person after MASS by email: [email protected] or by voicemail: 508-892-9950