Does an altar have to be rectangular?

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Hi guys,

I’m an artist who is currently creating the interior furnishings of a cathedral. I’m working on the altar, and I am considering making it triangular in shape instead of the traditional rectangle. Is there anything in the CCC or any other regulation for church art and architecture that would prohibit this? Any information would be appreciated. Thanks.
 
The altar will have three crosses as the legs as representation of the crosses of Calvary. The artistic statement with this altar is that every time we celebrate Mass, Calvary is made present to us. Having a rectangular top to the altar and three legs makes it unstable and unattractive.
 
I am aware of no regulations about the number of sides (as viewed from above) that an altar must have.

The altar in my church is square.
 
Couldn’t you just make a rectangular altar with three crosses on the front of it? There are other ways to show such a design on a piece that’s more in line with convention.

-ACEGC
 
Lost_Sage said:
Hi guys,

I’m an artist who is currently creating the interior furnishings of a cathedral. I’m working on the altar, and I am considering making it triangular in shape instead of the traditional rectangle. Is there anything in the CCC or any other regulation for church art and architecture that would prohibit this?
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There are regulations and rubrics defined by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, a Dicastery of the Holy See, that may prohibit this.

In addition, the Constitution on Sacred Liturgy Sacrosanctum Concilium states among other things, the following:
The Church has been particularly careful to see that sacred furnishings should worthily and beautifully serve the dignity of worship …] Ordinaries, by the encouragement and favor they show to art which is truly sacred, should strive after noble beauty rather than mere sumptuous display. …] And when churches are to be built, let great care be taken that they be suitable for the celebration of liturgical services and for the active participation of the faithful. …] When passing judgment on works of art, local ordinaries shall give a hearing to the diocesan commission on sacred art and, if needed, also to others who are especially expert, and to the commissions referred to in Art. 44, 45, and 46. …] Bishops should have a special concern for artists, so as to imbue them with the spirit of sacred art and of the sacred liturgy. This they may do in person or through suitable priests who are gifted with a knowledge and love of art. …] All artists who, prompted by their talents, desire to serve God’s glory in holy Church, should ever bear in mind that they are engaged in a kind of sacred imitation of God the Creator, and are concerned with works destined to be used in Catholic worship, to edify the faithful, and to foster their piety and their religious formation.
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You may want to consider working along with the bishop’s office on these matters.

In general, innovations on liturgical matters that constitute departure from a tradition of twenty centuries are greatly discouraged within the context of Catholicism.
 
A three sided altar could be seen to represent the Trinity and could easily mirror the triangle/eye we often see on the ceilings of Catholic churches.
 
If this is a real cathedral, I would think the Bishop should be able to provide you with guidelines regarding what is prescribed by the Church for the design of alters. There is clearly defined Cannon Law that provides for the construction of the alter.

The Church: Unlocking the Secrets to the Places Catholics Call Home [Hardcover]
Cardinal Donald Wuerl (Author), Mike Aquilina (Author) This is a new book which is about building churches according to the GIRM

I have traveled around the world and have only seen rectangles and squares for alters, not even circles or ovals for shapes, including the alter in Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain.

I suggest doing some more research on this very important centerpiece of worship.

Offering a prayer for your success in building a beautiful worship place for the glory of God.
 
Lost_Sage said:
The altar will have three crosses as the legs as representation of the crosses of Calvary. The artistic statement with this altar is that every time we celebrate Mass, Calvary is made present to us. Having a rectangular top to the altar and three legs makes it unstable and unattractive.
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As much as I am resistant to novelties in the Faith, you basically won me over with this.
 
My advice is this:

Sometimes good, professional artists are so good at what they do with symbolism that it can come off as being not sublime and beautiful as they intend it to be, but instead arcane, odd, snooty, etc.

Consider also whether there will be enough space for the priest to celebrate Mass. I imagine you should have a good foot or so of usable depth on the mensa (surface) of the altar to celebrate the Sacrifice.

Consider also that the altar is not just a random surface. It does have a table quality to it. True, it is not just “a table,” but it should have some semblance of and function of a steady table.

My advice is to build a normal rectangular altar, while incorporating various carvings and bas-reliefs on its surfaces.
 
I would recommend if you insist on a triangle altar, working with the bishop.
My advice: please, please, please don’t make a triangle altar. Like others have said, just make a rectangular altar and carve certain depictions into it. Also, I would extremely encourage and recommend making the altar solid (marble) and make sure it can easily be used for both the Ordinary Form (Novus Ordo or as many know; English Mass), and as our Holy Father Emeritus Benedict XVI wanted; easily used for the Extraordinary Form (Latin or Tridentine Mass <----- 👍 )!

God Bless!
 
Wouldn’t a triangular altar make either versus populum or ad orientem celebration extremely awkward? For this reason alone I cannot envision an asymmetric altar. The rubrics clearly intend for ad orientem to be retained in the Ordinary Form, therefore I see it as extremely hostile to try and build an altar that is unsuited for it.
 
Elizium23 said:
Wouldn’t a triangular altar make either versus populum or ad orientem celebration extremely awkward? For this reason alone I cannot envision an asymmetric altar. The rubrics clearly intend for ad orientem to be retained in the Ordinary Form, therefore I see it as extremely hostile to try and build an altar that is unsuited for it.
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Exactly. :hmmm:
 
Lost_Sage said:
The altar will have three crosses as the legs as representation of the crosses of Calvary. The artistic statement with this altar is that every time we celebrate Mass, Calvary is made present to us. Having a rectangular top to the altar and three legs makes it unstable and unattractive.
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Not necessarily. While I do prefer a free-standing altar (albeit strictly for ad orientem use, but never mind that), I am not, never have been, and never will be, a fan of “table” altars (and no, I will NOT comment on that further).

That said, though, slab-type table-altars are often done with a single “Y” post and, while not at all to my taste, are not wobbly. Using a “three-legged” design would be little different, and even if the “three legs” are not identical, a rectangular shape should work just fine. For example, the centre “leg” (really a “Y” post) could be larger, while the left and right posts would be smaller and in an “I” shape. The result would be stable and (depending on the execution) could be attractive. Such an altar could even easily be used for ad orientem celebration, (depending on the sanctuary arrangement, and probably with the addition of an antipendium, but I digress) .
 
Elizium23 said:
Wouldn’t a triangular altar make either versus populum or ad orientem celebration extremely awkward? For this reason alone I cannot envision an asymmetric altar. The rubrics clearly intend for ad orientem to be retained in the Ordinary Form, therefore I see it as extremely hostile to try and build an altar that is unsuited for it.
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I agree with this. Even if it is allowed to have a triangular altar (and I don’t know either way), it wouldn’t be helpful to have an altar that would restrict priests on how they celebrate the liturgy. Whether it is permissible or not, it does not sound like a good idea.

Three non-linear points define a plane, so it should be entirely possible to give the altar three legs without making it unstable. You can make the legs in a triangle supporting a rectangular altar, for example. Symbolism is great, but really function is more important.

Just MHO, however.

–Jen
 
malphono said:
Not necessarily. While I do prefer a free-standing altar (albeit strictly for ad orientem use, but never mind that), I am not, never have been, and never will be, a fan of “table” altars (and no, I will NOT comment on that further).

That said, though, slab-type table-altars are often done with a single “Y” post and, while not at all to my taste, are not wobbly. Using a “three-legged” design would be little different, and even if the “three legs” are not identical, a rectangular shape should work just fine. For example, the centre “leg” (really a “Y” post) could be larger, while the left and right posts would be smaller and in an “I” shape. The result would be stable and (depending on the execution) could be attractive. Such an altar could even easily be used for ad orientem celebration, (depending on the sanctuary arrangement, and probably with the addition of an antependium, but I digress) .
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opus101 said:
Good point. Also, there needs to be room for several priests, if there is to be a concelebration.
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Right, the corners of the triangle and the forward point would be practically unusable as well.

See here:

i77.photobucket.com/albums/j80/n5rnd17/altarthing.png

You will end up having a huge amount of “dead space.” I admit it would be interesting to see the candle/crucifix arrangement, and I think this form would support it very well. In other words, you could have three candles on both of the two sides that are not being used by the priest, with the crucifix at the forward apex. Or, if the altar is big enough, you could do the traditional straight arrangement about halfway forward.

But still, I don’t think a triangular altar will work well practically or symbolically. Rectangular altars work well because they are practical and they have the most human proportions of all geometric shapes: longer than they are wide, ergo, Christ symbolism.
 
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