THE DEDICATION * 1 
OF A CHURCH 
AND AN ALTAR: 
A THEOLOGICAL COMMENTARY 



Excerpts from The Roman Pontifical: The Dedication of A Church and 
an Altar. English Translation © 1978, International Committee on 
English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. 

Copyright © 1980 United States Catholic Conference, 1312 Massa-
chusetts Avenue, N . W . , Washington, D.C. 20005. All rights reserved. 



I S " " ? » . « » « " 

THE DEDICATION OF A 
CHURCH AND AN 
ALTAR 
A Theological Commentary 

by Ignazio M. Calabuig, O.S.M. 
Consultor, Congregation for the Sacraments and 
Divine Worship 



OUTLINE 

Preface 

Introduction 

The Dedication of a Church 

Introductory Rites: A Church Gathers to Dedicate a Church 
1. Entrance into the Church 

a. Convocation of the People of God 
b. A People on a Journey 
c. A Statio at the Threshold of the Church 
d. The Opening of the Door 

2. The Blessing and Sprinkling of Water 
a. Some Historical Data 
b. The General Orientation of the New Rite 

3. The Church Glorifies the Father and the Lamb in the Spirit 

The Liturgy of the Word: The Word Calls the Community into Being 
1. The Exposition of the Lectionary 
2. "He Opened the Book in the Presence of the Entire People" 

The Prayer of Dedication and Anointing: Christ, Priest and Temple, 
Victim and Altar 

1. The Singing of the Litany of the Saints 
a. The New Place of the Litany 
b. The Text and Structure of the Litany 

2. The Depositing of Relics 
a. The Passio Christiand the Passio Martyris 
b. The New Legislation 
c. Development of the Rite of Depositing the Relics 

3. The Prayer of Dedication 
a. The Meaning of the Prayer of Dedication 
b. The Text of the Prayer of Dedication 

4. The Sign of Anointing 
a. The Altar, Symbol of Christ 
b. One Altar Only 
c. Rite of Anointing 

5. Fire and Incense 

The Liturgy of the Eucharist: The Celebration of the Liturgy Conse-
crates the Place for the Eucharist 

1. A "Situated" Celebration of the Eucharist 
jtf^lWLSignificant Structural Adaptation 

• 3. Tne Texts 
4. A Meeting Point 
5. The Inauguration of the Place for the Reservation of the Blessed 

Sacrament 

Conclusion 



Preface 

The dedication of a church is an important event in the life of a Christian 
community. It involves more than merely setting aside a building for the 
celebration of sacred things, since the people who plan and build and 
dedicate a sacred place are themselves the Church, "that is, the temple of 
God built of living stones, where the Father is worshiped in spirit and in 
truth. Rightly, then, from early times the name 'church' has also been 
given to the building in which the Christian community gathers to hear 
the word of God, to pray together, to celebrate the sacraments, and to 
participate in the eucharist" (Rite for the Dedication of a Church and an 
Altar, Chapter II, No. 1). 

Father Ignazio Calabuig's commentary on the Rite for the Dedication of a 
Church and an Altar, first appeared in Notitiae, the periodical of the 
Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine Worship. It was in the same 
issue that the Latin Praenotanda of the revised rite was initially published 
by decree of the Sacred Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine 
Worship. Father Calabuig presented his commentary in Notitiae as a 
consultor to the Congregation. The present English translation does not 
include the voluminous notes of the original, although certain references 
have been incorporated into the text (see Notitiae, 13 [1977] 391-450). 

The commentary is best read with the Rite for the Dedication of a 
Church and an Altar at hand. A provisional English language translation 
of this section of Part II of the Roman Pontifical was made available by 
ICEL in 1978. In 1979 this same translation was published in another 
format for liturgical use by the United States Catholic Conference Publi-
cations Office. 

Parishes planning to build or renovate churches may profitably read Fr. 
Calabuig's commentary along with a study of the rite itself, as well as 
Chapter 5 of the General Instruction of the Roman Missal and 
Environment and Art in Catholic Worship, a statement of the Bishops' 
Committee on the Liturgy. 

The proper celebration of the Rite for Dedication demands more than a 
simple familiarity with its structure. An understanding of the theological 
significance and liturgical purpose of each text and action will fill the 
ritual structure with that spirit and life which befits a true liturgical cele-
bration of the People of God. 

The Secretariat 
The Bishops' Committee on the Liturgy 
National Conference of Catholic Bishops 

Introduction 

On May 2 9 , 1 9 7 7 , the feast of Pentecost, The Rite for the Dedication of a 
Church and an Altar was promulgated by decree of Cardinal James 
Knox, prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine 



Worship. The document is part of The Roman Pontifical as Revised by 
Decree of the Second Vatican Council and Published by Authority of 
Pope Paul VI. 

The books of the Roman liturgy that were revised as a consequence of 
the decisions of the ecumenical council were inaugurated on August 15, 
1968, with a rite of the pontifical, The Ordination of Deacons, Priests, 
and Bishops. From that time on, the following rites have appeared: the 
Consecration to a Life of Virginity, May 31, 1970, the Blessing of an 
Abbot and Abbess, November 9, 1970, the Rite for the Blessing of Oils 
and the Rite for Consecrating Chrism, December 3, 1970, the Rite of 
Confirmation, August 22, 1971, and the Institution of Readers and 
Acolytes, Admission to Candidacy for Ordination as Deacons and 
Priests, December 3, 1972. 

The new Rite for the Dedication of a Church and an Altar, the content of 
which was previously part of Book II of The Roman Pontifical, develops 
its themes in two directions. It continues in part the reform of the pontifi-
cal which appeared in the editio typica of 1961 on the vigil of the coun-
cil. In that edition the Rite for the Dedication of a Church had been care-
fully revised, but swiftly moving events made further revision necessary, 
and showed that it was no more than a first step towards a definitive re-
ordering of the system. It also continues the work of restoration and revi-
sion of the Roman liturgical books, initiated in 1968 and promulgated 
originally by the Sacred Congregation of Rites working with the "Con-
silium," subsequently by the Sacred Congregation for Divine Worship, 
and now by the Sacred Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine 
Worship. 

In May, 1970, Study Group XXI bis, with Monsignor Pierre Jounel in 
charge, was formed within the Congregation for Divine Worship and 
given the responsibility for restoring and revising the rites of Book II of 
the pontifical. 

It is not necessary at this point to discuss in detail the phases of that 
effort, which concluded with the formulation of a proposal for the revi-
sion of Book II, approved by the plenary session of the Sacred Congrega-
tion in March, 1972. The proofs of the draft manuscript appeared the 
following spring and were sent to conferences of bishops, centers for 
liturgical studies, and liturgical experts in order to sound out their 
responses. 

Thjs project, subsequently reelaborated according to the particular out-
look and needs of other Roman departments, constitutes the immediate 
precedent for the rite that now appears in editio typica. 

The new liturgical book consists of seven chapters: 

Chapter I. Laying of a Foundation Stone or the Commencement of Work 
on the Building of a Church. 

Chapter II. Rite of Dedication of a Church. 



Chapter III. Rite of the Dedication of a Church Already in General Use 
for Sacred Celebrations. 

Chapter IV. Rite of Dedication of an Altar. 

Chapter V. Rite of Blessing of a Church. 

Chapter VI. Rite of Blessing of an Altar. 

Chapter VII. Rite of Blessing of a Chalice and Paten. 

The chapters do not cover all of the contents of Book II of the pontifical 
but only its most important rites. Each chapter, as is usually the case 
with the greater part of post-conciliar works on the liturgy, contains 
Praenotanda or introductions of a rubrical and doctrinal nature. The 
introductions, it is well known, vary considerably in depth and treat-
ment from one book to another. The doctrinal element, in this particular 
case, is not formally developed at length. Rather than confine it to the 
necessary tight forms of the introductions, the editors decided to let the 
rich theological content of the texts speak for itself. 

What were the criteria used in the revised edition of the Dedication of a 
Church and an Altar? The list contained in the minutes of "Coetus a 
studiis XXI bis" is a long one. One criterion, however, stands out: the 
need to simplify the rites. This simplification, the concern of many, was 
virtually prerequisite to the pastoral efficacy of the rite itself. The cen-
turies-old development and accretions of the ceremony had made what 
was literally a "popular" rite from the very beginning into a celebration 
that for many was incomprehensible. The liturgical point of the rite had 
been smothered by a profusion of signs. Simplification of this sort neces-
sarily entailed the pruning away of parts valid in themselves, but which 
in their accumulation—like an excess of fine furniture in an overcrowded 
room—made for a good deal of clutter. The needed simplification, then, 
had to embrace symbolic and expressive elements, but at the same time 
implement the primacy of noble simplicity as the ideal, the very ideal of 
the Constitution on the Liturgy. 

All other criteria come down to two fundamental points: faithfulness to 
the text and its renewal. These are the principles that in this field account 
for all authentic progress: faithfulness to history, to the traditional 
Roman liturgy, and to the principles formulated in the documents of 
Vatican II; and similar faithfulness to the key ideas animating the revi-
sion of postconciliar liturgical works. The pastoral efficacy of such faith-
fulness, of course, is given witness only when the rite is implemented 
with intelligence and order. 

The renewal of the rite, then, is to be appreciated not as a concession to 
changing fashions but as the recognition and discernment of authentic 
and legitimate ecclesial needs, and as the ability to incorporate into the 
ancient structure of the Roman liturgy the valid contributions of other 
cultures. As for other criteria and principles of this renewal, the way in 
which particular problems were solved, as well as the animating spirit of 
the work, will make them clear. 



The dedication of a church, like baptism and confirmation, is a rite that 
is enacted but once. And just as rites of initiation mark or attest to essen-
tial phases in Christian life, so the dedication of a church points to a 
unique and characteristic moment in the life of a local church. A Church 
may come into being, exist without masonry walls. Christ is the reason 
for its existence and the Holy Spirit the well-spring of its life. Yet since 
the pilgrim Church on earth cannot exist outside the categories of space 
and time, it usually erects buildings of stone which are the visible conter-
parts of the invisible "house of God" (1 Cor. 3:9), the place where the 
faithful meet in their worship or in holy assembly. 

The dedication of a church, consequently, is the occasion for joy over the 
completion of a work which required effort, sacrifice, and unremitting 
toil. The dedication of a church also provides the propitious moment for 
the local Church to see itself as the true 'Temple of God," to renew its 
obligation to "build itself" as the Church, and to increase its member-
ship, its 'living stones." In building itself in the midst of other buildings 
in the temporal city, the Church can ponder the meaning of its presence 
in the world, the value of its services to humanity. 

The new Dedication of a Church and an Altar can contribute much to 
this end, provided the pastoral preparation is adequate, and provided the 
liturgy be understood and loved for its eloquence and straightfor-
wardness. 

THE DEDICATION OF A CHURCH 

The structure of chapter II of the Dedication of a Church and an Altar is 
clear and linear: it distinguishes and skillfully draws attention to the vari-
ous moments which lead up to the culminating point. It consists of four 
parts: 1) the celebration of the introductory rites, which are not merely a 
preparation but are themselves meaningful ritual moments and, like 
every good introduction, contain what is to be thematically developed; 
2) the proclamation and the reception of the word of God, a significant 
part of every Christian celebration, particularly relevant in this instance; 
3) a discussion of some typical rites for the dedication of a church 
common to the liturgical traditions of both East and West; 4) the culmi-
nating point of the rite: the celebration of the memorial of the Lord, the 
central moment in the dedication of the house of worship. 

Introductory Rites 
A CHURCH GATHERS TO DEDICATE A CHURCH 

1, Entrance into the Church (nos. 28-47) 

The entry of the community into the new church, from the point of view 
of ritual, is a very meaningful and poetic moment. For the first time the 
ecclesial community enters into the new house of worship in order to 
celebrate the eucharist. 



Christian communities today live in very different circumstances one 
from another. In many places throughout the world, laws forbid the con-
gregation of the faithful outside the church for the purpose of ritual; else-
where a convocation of this sort for a variety of reasons would be inop-
portune; in other situations the occasion is not only a cause for religious 
but civic celebration as well. Taking these differences into account, the 
rite realistically considers three divergent modes of entry into the new 
church: 
—the procession (nos. 29-35), the most complete expression of the rite, 
which calls for the celebration of part of the liturgy outside the new 
church; 
—the solemn entrance (nos. 36-42), which, though limiting the liturgy 
outside the church to the indispensable minimum, marks that progress 
with a rich solemnity; 
—simple entrance (nos. 43-47), in which the introductory rites take place 
completely within the new church. In appreciation of the principle of 
authenticity (Veritas rerum) the rite of the opening of the door does not 
take place, since it would appear contrived if not playacting. 
The first form represents the most complete and fitting ritual form, even 
though it will probably not be the most frequently used. 

a) Convocation of the People of God (nos. 29-30) 

The value of nos. 29-30 of the rite is not confined to their significance as a 
rubric. These sections look upon the gathering of clergy and laity as the 
liturgical assembly of the local Church come together to celebrate a par-
ticular statio, that is, the dedication of the new church. They translate 
into ritual terms a very precise theological notion: all of the local Church 
is gathered together because all of it, hierarchically structured with its 
diversity of ministers and functions, is the celebrant of the rite of dedica-
tion. And in a certain sense what is involved here is more than an as-
sembly of the local Church at this particular moment; for in many in-
stances the local Church is one, ideally, with its celebrated sons and 
daughters who have given glorious witness in martyrdom, or in a heroic 
evangelical life. The people, in fact, come together where the relics of 
martyrs or saints have been placed beneath the altar of the new church. 

The place of convocation (no. 29) calls for a few words of commentary. 
It will be a nearby church, or, should there not be one, some other ac-
ceptable place. In this instance, too, the rite reflects the truth of the situa-
tion: as light comes from light (the symbolism of the lighting of the 
candles in the Easter Vigil), as faith generates faith (the rite of baptism), 
so does one community emerge from another. Symbolically, from a 
house of worship, a sign of the mother community arises another house 
of worship, the sign and place of a new ecclesial community. 

The People of God has come together and there is the moment of greeting 
from the bishop to the faithful, from the faithful to the bishop. The greet-
ing formula reads: 'The grace and peace of God be with all of you in his 
holy Church" (no. 30). Its intent is to emphasize from the very outset the 
ecclesial sense of the rite. 



With respect of the greeting, the rubric which follows the proposed 
formula is particularly noteworthy: "Or other suitable words taken pref-
erably from sacred scripture" (no. 30). This is a traditional rubric but in a 
certain sense new, for while it allows ample liberty for the creative gifts 
of the celebrant, it turns him toward sacred Scripture, the inexhaustible 
and insuperable fount of inspiration for all liturgy. 

The greeting and the introductory admonition are two liturgical expres-
sions which in this rite, as in many others, follow one another in logical 
order. Thus the admonition follows the greeting, as if the latter had co-
herently turned into exhortation and instruction. 

The sample offered by the rite implicitly asks that the admonition be 
brief. The rubric which precedes it—"in these or similar words", (no. 
30)—suggests that it should not be considered as a stereotyped form, but 
rather express the concrete situation of the community and the real feel-
ings of the bishop. In any case the admonition will hardly ignore the 
themes inherent in the proposed formula. That formula provides a syn-
thesis of the essential motifs of the entire celebration: 

Brothers and sisters in Christ, 
this is a day of rejoicing: 
we have come together to dedicate this church 
by offering within it the sacrifice of Christ. 

May we open our hearts and minds 
to receive his word with faith: 
may our fellowship 
born in the one font of baptism 
and sustained at the one table of the Lord, 
become the one temple of his Spirit, 
as we gather round his altar in love (no. 30). 

The reader will notice the reference to the fundamental importance of 
celebrating the eucharist in the dedication of a church: "we have come to-
gether to dedicate this church/by offering within it the sacrifice of 
Christ"; concentration on the celebration of God's word: "to receive his 
word with faith"; recalling the baptismal font as the birthplace of Chris-
tian community: "our fellowship/born in the one font of baptism"; refer-
ence to the eucharistic table as the place of spiritual nourishment for the 
community: "and sustained at the one table of the Lord." And the whole 
is seen with reference to the community's spiritual growth, for that com-
munity gathered around the altar of celebration—a visible sign of the in-
visible unanimity of hearts—is the true spiritual temple, built with living 
stones (see 1 Peter 2:5) . It must grow unceasingly and, moved by divine 
love, strive to "become the one temple of his Spirit,/as we gather round 
his altar in love." (in templum spiritale crescat/et supemo provehatur 
amore). This is an expression of the inner growth, of the striving towards 
the heights typical of every Christian community. That is the point of 
the first word of the admonition which from the very beginning expresses 
the festive and luminous joy that is a constant characteristic of the rite. 



b) A People on a Journey (nos. 31-32) 

With the end of the admonition, the People of God sets out on its jour-
ney. The processional entry is both a real journey of the community 
towards its new church and a sign of the journey of the pilgrim Church 
on earth towards the heavenly Temple. Number 31 offers specific guid-
ance for the order of the procession, and this concern is more than a 
question of rubrics: it is a reflection or meditation on the Church. The 
faithful on a journey with their bishop are not a crowd but a liturgical as-
sembly. They are a holy people hierarchically structured. The order of 
the procession reflects the ordered composition of the local Church. 

It is important that the meaning of the rubric, 'The crossbearer leads the 
procession" (no. 31), be made clear to the faithful. The Church on its 
journey follows the cross of Christ. Moreover, when the procession also 
involves the transferral of relics of martyrs or saints it is well to stress 
that, in so doing, the Church follows in the steps of its members who 
have given lofty witness to the following of Christ. 

A people in procession is a singing people. The rite proposes as a proces-
sional hymn the beautiful Psalm 121, introduced by the antiphon: "Let us 
go rejoicing to the house of the Lord" (no. 32). 

This hymn of the journey up to the Holy City, a lyrical expression of the 
joy of the Israelite pilgrims coming close to Jerusalem, becomes the hymn 
of the Church which, though it has already realized within itself the 
mystery of the City of Zion, continues its journey towards the heavenly 
Jerusalem with the aid of signs, including that of the house of the 
Church. 

c) A Statio at the Threshold of the Church (no. 33) 

Having come to the threshold of the new church, the procession will 
pause briefly before the closed doors. Here the meeting of the bishop 
with representatives of the community will take place, above all with 
those who have had a very active part in the building of the new church. 
In the history of the rites for the dedication of a church, this encounter 
constitutes a new ritual sequence that seeks to express, in liturgical terms, 
the value of an old, deeply human, and Christian reality: the labor of 
people for the building of the church. This is work by which today as in 
the past (the medieval guilds of church builders come immediately to 
mind) humanity has given admirable expression to its religious sense. 

In our times the legislative and economic context of the construction of 
churches is quite different from one country to another, from one region 
to another, indeed at times within the confines of one and the same city. 
In one case the church arises out of community demands and faith, the 
result of collective participation: the members of a community put eco-
nomic goods, intelligence, and labor at the service of the building of a 
house of prayer. In another instance, the participation of the community 
is very tenuous and indirect: the church is built at the instance of the 
state, which provides a sum of money and assigns the work to a corpora-
tion concerned almost exclusively with questions of profit and loss. 



Obviously the rite could neither contemplate all cases nor, in any one 
instance provide every directive. The meeting discussed in no. 33 will be 
adapted to individual cases and varying needs. In any case, it will express 
the appreciation of the Church for labor, the hard work and fatigue that 
are a necessary part of building a church. 

In the scenario envisioned by the rite, the meeting assumes the aspect of 
a presentation of the new ecclesial edifice to the bishop, inasmuch as he 
represents the head of the diocesan Church. Just as the community par-
ticipates with the bishop in the faith and spiritual riches of the Kingdom, 
so the community shares with him the property of the new house of 
God, which becomes part of the common patrimony of the diocese. 

According to the rite, the signs of the presentation can be expressed in a 
number of ways. Their function is to highlight one aspect or another of 
the building's construction: juridical signs (a sign of ownership of the 
building or the keys); technical signs (the architectural drawings of the 
church); affective signs (an account of the construction with the signa-
tures of administrators and workers). 

But a church also has a soul. It responds to a concept of faith. In a Byzan-
tine church, for example, the architectural design follows precise tradi-
tional canons, at times sanctioned by councils, and reflects a rich and 
complex theological reality. The history of sacred architecture docu-
ments instances in which the Church has wonderfully expressed the full-
ness of its mission or vocation: the sign of the presence of an ecclesial 
community, a quasi sacrament in which the blessed vision of the 
heavenly Jerusalem appears filtered through the veil of matter. Contem-
porary architecture, with its many contrasting trends, and in spite of 
uneven results, also seeks to express through new techniques, tech-
nology, and materials its own vision of the Church. Since the Rite for the 
Dedication of a Church could not ignore all these considerations, the 
rubric of the rite discretely suggests: "One of the representatives ad-
dresses the bishop and the community in a few words, pointing out, if 
need be, what the new church expresses in its art and in its own special 
design" (no. 33). 

d) The Opening of the Door (nos. 34-35) 

The opening of the door in the rite is of ancient origin. It goes back, for 
its inspiration, to the rite of the dedication of the basilica of Santa Sophia 
in Constantinople which took place on December 24, 562. 

In the revised rite the opening of the door is retained since it is a sensible 
recognition of what is happening: the door is closed because the church 
has not yet been inaugurated or "open" to the celebration of the holy 
mysteries. It is opened so that entering through it the local Church might 
take possession of the new edifice. All former theatrical elements, 
however, have been removed from the rite. The natural movement of en-
trance, it is recognized, is by itself a more than adequate expression of a 
liturgical act. 



The rite, consequently, calls for a brief rite of actually opening the door, 
and an invitation to the faithful, on the part of the bishop, to enter the 
church singing Psalm 23. The bishop invites the pastor of the new church 
to open the door. The rubric, no doubt, implies the pastoral and theolog-
ical notion which lies behind the action of opening: the priest, pastor of 
that part of the flock of Christ, must himself be the one who opens the 
door (ianitor), and also the door (ianua). With the proclamation of the 
word, that is, he must open the hearts of the faithful to knowledge of the 
mysteries of the Kingdom, just as with his life, in imitation of the Good 
Shepherd, he is to be the door of the sheepfold. 

For the invitation tendered by the bishop, the rite proposes a verse from 
the psalms (Psalm 99:4): "Go within his gates giving thanks, enter his 
courts with songs of praise" (no. 34). This is a particularly fitting text 
in terms of its content, an invitation to cross the threshold of the new 
church "with hymns of praise, to enter its porches with hymns of praise." 
It is taken from Psalm 99, which was sung by Israelite pilgrims as they 
entered the Temple on solemn liturgical feasts—a text, in brief, that is 
very much in the spirit of the original. But the use of this particular 
psalm is only a suggestion. The invitation may be formulated by the 
bishop with words of his own choosing. He may, if he wishes, take the 
occasion to speak, no matter how briefly, of matters that strictly speak-
ing have not found a place in the ritual action. 

On the invitation of the bishop, the holy people begins its journey anew, 
according to the typical arrangement of an entrance procession. The 
entrance hymn is Psalm 23, accompanied by an antiphon taken from the 
same psalm (verse 7): "Lift high the ancient portals. The King of glory 
enters" (no. 34). Psalm 23 is traditional in the rite of dedication of a 
church, but in the revised rite a more meaningful use is made of it, since 
it replaces the Litany of the Saints as an entrance hymn. 

The application is particularly felicitous: a characteristic entrance hymn 
for the entry into the new church. The first section (verses 1-6) was a part 
of the ritual of the arrival of pilgrims at the Temple of Jerusalem, and the 
second section (verses 6-10) appears to be an echo of the liturgy celebrat-
ing the solemn entry of the Ark of the Covenant into the tent built by 
David in Jerusalem. But it is an "entrance psalm" above all because 
Christian tradition—having identified at a very early point the Rex 
gloriae of the psalm with Christ, Lord and Savior—interpreted the psalm 
in christological terms, and accordingly saw in it a prophecy of the 
word's "coming into the world" fulfilled in the mystery of the incarna-
tion. At other times this tradition saw in it the "triumphal entry" of 
Christ into Jerusalem as his passover was drawing near, or his "entry into 
heaven" after the resurrection-ascension, where he sits at the right hand 
of the Father. In an overall view of the dedication of a church, the psalm 
is seen to have elements of a coronation: it proclaims that Christ, true 
King of Glory, is Lord and Head of the community of believers—the 
Church—which gathers him into itself. And this lordship of Christ over 
the Church-people has its symbolic expression in the solemn entry of the 



cross into the church-edifice where it will preside, glorious and peace-
bringing, from the apse or altar, over the assembly. 

The bishop, on entering, will go directly to the chair: 'The bishop with-
out kissing the altar, goes to the chair" (no. 35), and the other partici-
pants will go to their proper places. 

The omission of the gesture of kissing the altar, which is completely 

¡ E S S I " I t S i n f t h i s s i 8 n veneration is given only 
after the altar has been anointed with chrism. But the first seating in the 
chair, even if it is not the object of a particular ritual gesture, has a pre-

S f f i S f t 2 X b l S h ° P ' b y - VirutUC ° f h i s e P i s c ° P a l ordination, in an 
nnnKfifv. ™ b l e . w a Y ^ " \ t h e name of Christ teacher, pastor, and 
pontiff; thus he is first to take the place from which he will preside and 
exercise the magisterial function. That place, which is simply ?he chair of 

stresses ' * ^ ° C C a S i ° n 3 * C h a i r ° f t h e b i s h o P ' a s P rite 

2. The Blessing and Sprinkling of Water (nos. 48-50) 

1 £ 2 ? w ° W n i a t L i r \ t h e dedication of a church the rite of sprinkling 
(lustratio) formerly had a very important place, and a very elaborate 
ceremony connected with it. The lustratio of the new edifice was compli! 
cated, detailed. The walls of the building, within and without, the p ^ t 
ment and individual altars, were all sprinkled with "gregorian" water; 
each and every sprinkling was made according to a carefully defined 
manner and sequence in which song and silence, exorcisms and prayers 
were alternately used. -

a) Some Historical Data 

Historians of liturgy do not agree on when the lustratio became part of 
S T w d e d ' C t H O n ' T k t h e r e u n a n i m i t y on its application or neces-
X W e d o S k n ° W , w h e t h L e r t h e l u S t r a t i ° > w h e n firsVused, was applied 
indiscriminately or only in those instances, quite frequent after the peace 
of Constantine, in which the new church arose on a formerly pagan site 
or was actually the transformation of a former pagan temple 

The liturgy of Rome, from at least the sixth century on, was acquainted 
with the lustratio and used it with characteristic sobriety. During the 

n e S ° T h m , G a U l 1 1 ? ^ b C C O m e P a r t i c u I a r J y overgrown and com! 
plicated The love of Gallican liturgy for symbolism, and its tendency to 
express itself m biblical terms (though preferring Old Testament sources 
for inspiration), had at a very early time brought about the famous 
parallel construct: just as a Christian becomes the temple of God receiv-
ing in succession the sacraments of baptism, confirmation, and the 
euchanst so an edifice becomes a house (domus) or temple of god (tem-
plum Dei) with lustral ablutions (baptism), anointing with sacred oils 
(confirmation), and the eucharist, the celebration of which can take place 
only after the preliminary lustratio and unctio. Other rites of the dedica-
tion of a church were modeled on other parts of the Christian's initiation 



A definitive solution of the historical problems connected with the 
lustratio would allow us better to evaluate its meaning and importance 
One fact, however, is quite clear: for many centuries in all the ordines for 
dedication, and in the 1961 Roman Pontifical, the lustratio is present as 
a preparatory rite" for the consecration of a church, a preparation 
which consists of a grand and complex exorcism. Indeed with the lustra-
tio the Church meant to put the evil one to flight, as well as any influence 
he might have on the building which the community had dedicated to 
worship and to the glory of the omnipotent God. 

b) The General Orientation of the New Rite 

This ancient liturgical tradition could not be put aside, n o r - s i n c e it was 
not founded on any original element-could it be considered an 
absolutely indispensable part of the new rite. 

At this point we may see the reason for those texts chosen by the design-
ers of the revised rite: the lustratio no longer has as its end the "purifica-
tion of walls. It is retained in order to stimulate the assembly's spirit of 
conversion, to recall the rite of baptism and the first steps of the Chris-

y j t e T O ' , < Y ° U m U S t reform a n d b e b a P ^ e d , each one of you" 
(Acts 2:38). The texts speak clearly. In this spirit the rubric reads- "When 
the entrance rite is completed, the bishop blesses water with which to 
sprinkle the people as a sign of repentance and as a reminder of their bap-
tism, and to purify the walls and the altar of the new church" (no. 48). 

The same meaning also appears in the introductory admonition to the 
prayer of blessing over the water: ' l e t us ask the Lord our God to bless 
this water, created by his hand. It is a sign of our repentance, a reminder 
of our baptism and a symbol of the cleansing of these walls and this 
altar (no. 48). 

This rite of sprinkling, because of its nature and its Easter themes, has 
obvious similarities with the sprinkling of the assembly on Sunday, itself 
a weekly recalling of baptism. As a consequence, the "entrance into the 
church is considered here as the opportunity to relive baptismal con-
version. 

As we noted the ancient tradition of the lustrario could not be totally 
dismissed. Thus in the new rite the sprinkling is given to assembly and 
building, to humanity and its works. Scholars, no doubt, will appreciate 
the new orientation of the sprinkling, now conceived predominantly in 
terms of Easter. A number of them may look upon this solution as a com-
promise, as an ambiguous response. Others may see it, in view of the 
rite s central notion, as a vision of humanity and the cosmos being res-
cued from the mysterious powers of evil, brought back to God in Christ 
I his is a vision which acknowledges the mystery of evil in humanity the 
division at the center of its being (see Rom 7: 14-25; Gal 5- 17) It'is a 
vision acknowledging a world which, sharing in the curse inflicted on 
humanity (see Gen 3 : 1 7 ) , finds itself in a state of bondage where it longs 
tor deliverance (see Rom 8 :19-23) . 

13 



It would not have been prudent, consequently, as long as the problem of 
the exorcisms and the blessing of things was left unsolved, to eliminate 
this traditional liturgical element, which is common to both Eastern and 
Western churches. The present solution gives humanity the central place 
but does not forget the things of this world. 

c) The Rite of Sprinkling 

The ritual sequence is clear and the texts, even when new, have the ring 
of classical liturgical prayer. 

The admonition (no. 48), no more than a suggestion, offers a synthetic 
sense of the sprinkling and fittingly introduces the prayer for the blessing 
of the water. 

The formula for the blessing is a new text which, with slight modifica-
tions, appears in more than one chapter of the Dedication of a Church 
and an Altar: 

Lord, you call every creature to the light of life, 
and surround us with such great love 
that when we stray 
you continually lead us back to Christ our head. 
For you have established an inheritance of such mercy, 
that those sinners, who pass through water made sacred, 
die with Christ and rise restored 
as members of his body 
and heirs of his eternal covenant. 

Bless this water; 
sanctify it. 

As it is sprinkled upon us and throughout this church 
make it a sign of the saving waters of baptism, 
by which we become one in Christ, the temple of your Spirit. 

May all here today, 
and all those in days to come, 
who celebrate your mysteries in this church 
be united at last in the city of your peace. 

We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord (no. 48). 

It is not necessary to dwell at length on the analysis of this formula, but a 
few of the particulars would be helpful: 

—lines 5-7 which, inspired by the Letter to the Romans 6:1-8, recall the 
Easter significance of baptism and vividly represent the act of immersion-
emergence: 

For you have established an inheritance of such mercy, 
that those sinners, who pass through water made sacred, 
die with Christ and rise restored; 

—lines 13-14 which, with the initial ritual of the sprinkling of the build-
ing, remind the faithful of their baptism, the "saving water" achieved in 



Christ to make of them a temple of the spirit: 

make it [the water] a sign of the saving waters of baptism, 
by which we become one in Christ, the temple of your Spirit. 

One reality alone, the use of water, is expressed in terms which build to a 
climax. Ros and unda, aspersio, lavabrum, ablutio—these are different 
aspects and effects of the sacrament of water, the diverse ways in which 
the one and multiform divine mercy expresses itself. 

The two antiphons suggested by the rite for the sprinkling are biblical in 
origin and of a baptismal nature. During Lent the antiphon '1 will pour 
clean water" (no. 49), taken from Ezekiel 36:25-26, is used; for all other 
liturgical seasons the antiphon is "I saw water flowing" (no. 49), taken 
from Ezekiel 47:1-2, 9. These antiphons are well known. Their baptismal 
character underlines the modified use of the old lustratio in the revised 
rite. 

The formula "God, the Father of mercies" (no. 50) is also a new one. 
Placed at the conclusion of a rite with penitential aspects, it has the typi-
cal structure of a deprecatory absolution. It intertwines two expressions 
that run through the rite—house of prayer (domus orationis) and dwell-
ing place (templum habitations) the two realities that denote the divine 
presence. 

For the domus we pray: 

May God, the Father of mercies, 
dwell in this house of prayer, 

invoking the presence of God and his favor, mercy, and assistance for 
the community's house of worship. 

For the templum, we ask: 

May the grace of the Holy Spirit cleanse us, 
for we are the temple of his presence. 

This is an invocation for the purification of the gathered assembly. 

Here the templum (temp\e)—habitatio Dei (house of God) is not a build-
ing of stone but, according to the well-known Pauline passage used as a 
text (see 1 Cor. 3: 17), the community of the faithful. That community 
must be purified by the grace of the Holy Spirit: "Cleanse us, for we are 
the temple of his presence." And so, unexpectedly, through the use of the 
term purificet (cleanse), we recover the very deepest sense of the lus-
tratio. 

3. The Church Glorifies the Father and the Lamb in the Spirit (nos. 
51-52) 

With the conclusion of the rite of water, the celebration proceeds along 
the lines of a Sunday celebration of the eucharist; that is, with the singing 
of the Gloria (no. 51) and the opening prayer (no. 52). 

In the prescription for the singing of the Gloria we should see not so 
much the automatic application of a customary rubric—the dedication of 



a church is a solemn occasion and therefore requires a Gloria—but rather 
a conscious adherence to the spirit of the ancient hymn, the joyous song 
with which the "Church, assembled in the Spirit, praises and prays to 
the Father and the Lamb" (General Instruction of the Roman Missal, no. 
31). 

If we ponder this twofold prayer we will enter the spirit and meaning of 
the Gloria for the dedication of a church, and be aware of: 

—the analogy between the reasons for the Gloria (the natalis Domini, or 
birth of the Lord, whether it be the nativitas a matre—birth from a 
mother, or the nativitas ci sepulchro—birth from the tomb) and of the 
rite of dedication (the natalis ecclesiae—birth of a church), the sign and 
celebration of the natalis Ecclesiae (the birth of the Church); 

—the natural and meaningful way in which the Gloria takes its place in 
the ritual sequence: the community, having entered for the first time the 
house of worship, after having been purified by the grace of the Spirit in 
the rite of sprinkling, sings out in praise of the Father and the Lamb. 

The opening prayer, in accord with its function, completes the introduc-
tory rites: 

Lord, 
fill this place with your presence, 
and extend your hand 
to all those who call upon you. 

May your word here proclaimed 
and your sacraments here celebrated 
strengthen the hearts of all the faithful (no. 52). 

This prayer, which serves several functions, no doubt derives from the 
one present in the Gelasianum Vetus, which is traditional in the rite of 
dedication of a church. The text, however, is not simply retained or re-
peated. The incipit (beginning) has been changed and lines 5-6 have been 
added. They proclaim, in a vigorous sythesis, the two pastoral functions 
that are to take place recurrently in the new church: the service of the 
word and the sacraments. 

The Liturgy of the Word 
THE WORD CALLS THE COMMUNITY INTO BEING 

The community is born of the word, is nourished by it, and grows and 
develops by means of it. This is why in the revised rite the liturgy of the 
word has a value that is independent of its relationship to the celebration 
of the eucharist—even though it would be unthinkable to separate the 
mensa corporis Domini (table of the body of the Lord) from the mensa 
verbi (table of the word). This autonomy is one of the distinguishing 
traits of the revised rite with respect to its antecedents. 

From the point of view of ritual alone, the liturgy of the word in its 
development appears as the dedication of the ambo, the place-sign of 



God's word. As a liturgical reality, however, the ritual has broader 
implications: it underscores the value of the proclamation of the word, 
which calls the community into being and is itself an essential moment in 
our faith. 

The liturgy of the word is structured basically along the lines of the 
eucharistic celebration. The initial rubric is terse: "The proclamation of 
the word of God is fittingly carried out in this way" (no. 53). On the one 
hand this takes away all notions of obligation and absoluteness from the 
rite's various options; on the other, it takes into account local needs and 
conditions which make the "first proclamation" of God's word in the 
new church all the more meaningful. 

1. The Exposition of the Lectionary (no. 53) 

The lectionary, which in all future celebrations will be carried solemnly 
in entrance processions—accompanied by lighted candles, incensed, and 
reverenced with a ritual kiss—is today reverently held up to the faithful. 
The honor shown to the book is shown to Christ, incarnate wisdom, the 
master who speaks whenever the Good News is proclaimed; in this way 
the display of the book proclaims the primacy of Christ, of his person 
and Gospel. 

The book is held up for all to see by the bishop, indicating that one of his 
first and chief duties is to proclaim the Gospel of Christ, and that "the 
task . . . of authentically interpreting the word of God, whether written 
or handed on, has been entrusted exclusively to the living teaching office 
of the Church, whose authority is exercised in the name of Jesus Christ. 
This teaching office is not above the word of God but serves it (Constitu-
tion on Divine Revelation, no. 10). 

The formula that accompanies the exposition of the book is exhortative 
and well-wishing: 

May the word of God always be heard in this place, 
as it unfolds the mystery of Christ before you 
and achieves your salvation within the Church (no. 53). 

This is an obvious good wish: that the word of God might forever echo 
in the new church; and that, in a deeper sense, it might open to the faith-
ful the inexhaustible "mystery of Christ" and achieve in the Church the 
salvation of humanity. In Ecclesia, the formula reads, proposing anew a 
common locution from the rite; in Ecclesia, that is, in the authentically 
sacred place where the Spirit bursts forth, a privileged though not exclu-
sive site where men or women are regenerated "not from a destructible 
but from an indestructible seed, through the living and enduring word of 
God" (1 Peter 1,23). 

2. "He Opened the Book in the Presence of the Entire People" (no. 54) 

The rite abounds with such expressions as "his vel similibus verbis," "si 
casus fert," "pro opportunitate," showing a willingness to adapt the 
ritual to the occasion. Still, the legislator has laid down a rigid rule con-
cerning the first reading of the liturgy of the word: the first reading is 



always taken from the book of Nehemiah 8: l -4a , 5-6, 8-10" (no. 54). 
The rule is especially surprising if one considers that it has no foundation 
in Roman liturgy, is contrary to the principle of substantial freedom in 
choosing the Mass readings, and allows of no exceptions, even with 
respect to liturgical seasons. 

The pericope of Nehemiah, in fact, must be proclaimed even during the 
Easter season when, according to tradition, there are no readings from 
the Old Testament. 

The passage from the Book of Nehemiah is to be read in the light of this 
central idea: the reception of the word creates the community and the 
liturgical assembly gathers around the word. In this light, we see how all 
the elements of the pericope come together felicitously in the dedication 
of a church, a remarkable example of how the ecclesial community— 
pastors and faithful—is to approach the word of God. 

In other words, a moment centered on the proclamation-reception of the 
Law—considered by exegetes the "moment of birth" of the post-exilic 
Jewish community—becomes a symbol of the rite in which the com-
munity gathered around the Gospel of Christ celebrates the natalis ec-
clesiae, the birth of a church. 

The Prayer of Dedication and the Anointings 
CHRIST, PRIEST AND TEMPLE, VICTIM AND ALTAR 

1. The Singing of the Litany of the Saints (nos. 57-60) 

In the rite of the 1961 Roman Pontifical, the singing of the Litany of the 
Saints accompanied the entrance of bishop and faithful into the new 
church, after the solemn opening of the doors. That was the traditional 
place for this undeniably beautiful chant. Its meaning was obvious: the 
pilgrim Church on earth made its processional entry into its tent, bring-
ing with it the relics of martyrs and calling upon the saints, its friends 
and intercessors, the citizens of the heavenly city. 

a) The New Place of the Litany 

But, as noted, the revised rite has given the privileged place to Psalm 
23—a typical "entrance hymn"—as an entrance psalm. This is the proper 
psalm for the dedication of a church and, recognizing it as such, the rite 
has secured a deep thematic unity between the moment of the opening of 
the door and the moment of the entry into the church. 

The editors of the rite, however, were confronted with an alternative re-
garding the Litany of Saints—either to omit it completely or to insert it 
organically and in a liturgically valid way into another moment of the 
rite. The second alternative was chosen. The litany has been placed 
where it was traditionally found in other ordines of The Roman Pontifi-
cal, that is, before the prayer of dedication, as the preparation for it. In 
this way the litany has reacquired its time-honored place, one closely 
related to the depositing of the relics. 



The Litany of the Saints in this perspective no longer appears as a joyous 
and intercessory chant of the entrance procession. It has become a 
moment of intense prayer, of choral supplication, a portico of song 
opening onto the liturgy of the third and fourth parts of the rite. 

b) The Text and Structure of the Litany 

In the new Roman liturgy the structures of the sung litany, of the texts, 
and of the modalities are all traditional. 

The supplication is comprised of: 

—an admonition with which the bishop introduces the singing of the 
litany. The text—"Let us ask the saints" (no. 57)—is proposed only as an 
example; 

—the singing of the litany (no. 59); 

—the concluding prayer "Lord, may the prayers of the Blessed Virgin 
Mary" (no. 60) recited by the bishop. 

The text of the admonition and that of the concluding prayer are new 
compositions. They are formally correct and fitting. They also contain 
some elements missing in the principal prayers. The second part of the 
concluding prayer has a proper reference to John 4: 23, a basic teaching 
of Christ regarding the worship his disciples are to offer the Father: 

[a house] where Christians gathered in fellowship 
may worship you in spirit and truth 
and grow together in love. 

The text of the litany is that of the editio typica, published in 1969. One 
petition of the litany is proper to this rite alone: '"Make this church holy 
and consecrate it to your worship." This is a traditional petition which, 
as in other rites, has been reassigned to the schola cantorum. The em-
phatic triple repetition, however, has been omitted. 

The liturgical text is necessarily universal in character—a symbolic pro-
jection of the heavenly Church, the propitiator and intercessor for all 
time and all places. Yet, in spite of the changes noted above, several 
small rubrics show that the text also recognizes the needs and sentiments 
of the local Church. At the proper place, the name of the new Church's 
titular saint is to be added, that of the patron of the place, and under cer-
tain circumstances those of the martyrs and saints whose relics are to be 
placed under the altar. Similarly, among the petitions there will be a 
place for petitions "which are relevant to the special nature of the rite and 
the condition of the people" (no. 59)—a small rubric which, within the 
limits of a well organized liturgy, allows for the possibility of expressing 
the various needs of the ecclesial community. 

2 . The Depositing of the Relics (no. 61) 

In the rite of dedication the depositing of relics beneath the altar of the 
new church is, after the celebration of the eucharist, among the oldest 
significant rites. Testimonies to this effect date back to the first half of the 
fourth century. 



a) The Passio Christi and the Passio Martyris 

Very early, the Church grasped the connection between Christ's sacrifice 
and that of the martyrs. The martyrs are the disciples par excellence; the 
passio they endured bound them tightly to the passio Christi, and made 
them in an extraordinary way similar to their teacher. 

This theological intuition was translated into ritual during the fourth 
century. At that place where the passio Christi is celebrated—the altar— 
in mysterio—it is fitting that there be present relics of the martyrs. 

The notion also grew naturally from a meditation on Revelation 6:9, or 
at the very least was confirmed by that text—"When the Lamb broke 
open the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the spirits of those who had been 
martyred because of the witness they bore to the word of God." From 
that time on, M. Andrieu notes perceptively, "the altar referred to by the 
seer was no longer the celestial altar but the eucharistic altar under which 
were to rest those who at the price of their blood had given witness to 
Christ." 

The liturgical custom of placing relics of the saints under the altar rapidly 
spread in the West and has retained its vigor down to our day. The pre-
scriptions of Canon Law on the necessity of a sacred stone for celebration 
of the eucharist are well known. Whether in the East or West the holy 
sacrifice was not celebrated without the presence of the martyrs, wit-
nesses and disciples of the Crucified One; the consecrated tablecloth of 
the Eastern Church and the holy stones of the Latins, with their tomb 
reliquaries, assured this presence. 

The norms of Canon Law were the last codifications of the practice pre-
vailing after diffusion of the rite of depositing the relics. Obviously there 
were not enough martyrs' bodies for all the altars that would have to be 
dedicated, and the Church settled on two solutions. One option was to 
use "representative relics," such as the sanctuaria or brandea, objects 
(usually pieces of cloth) which had been in contact with bodies of 
martyrs or at least with their tombs; the other solution was to break up 
the martyrs' bones, a custom at first disapproved by Rome, but which 
ultimately prevailed, and for which Gallican liturgists found adroit justi-
fication. There arose the practice of breaking the martyrs' bones into 
microscopic particles, placing the fragments in tiny sepulchres; occasion-
ally these were prepared in a series, each relic being deposited in the altar 
at its proper time. Such customs weakened the original significance of the 
rite, so that only a pale image of the ancient and very expressive deposit-
ing of the bodies of the holy martyrs survived. The liturgical sense of the 
rite vanished and very often the historical sense as well. There were 
many instances in which, because of either ignorance or naivete, relics 
were deposited whose authenticity was more than dubious. There were 
also cases in which depositing of the relics destroyed piety, when greed 
turned relics into objects of venal transactions, of trafficking which was 
hardly edifying. 

The Apostolic See had repeatedly intervened in such instances but these 
disciplinary measures were not always sufficient to prevent abuses and 



assure authenticity of the relics. The situation had come to such a point 
that from many quarters and for many and varied reasons, the cry went 
up for revision of the regulations. 

b) The New Legislation (no. 5) 

In the case of the depositing of the relics, as in many others, one and the 
same affection for the rite has given rise to two contrary legislations. In 
the past, veneration for the martyrs made relics obligatory in each and 
every altar; in our day the very same veneration denies such a need, 
arguing that reverence demands that relics not be reduced to minute frag-
ments and dispersed in a thousand places. The first step toward a revi-
sion of the legislation concerning relics came with promulgation of The 
Roman Missal by Paul VI on April 3, 1969. The General Instruction, in 
fact, attenuates the obligation to use a sacred stone: 

"Fixed altars are consecrated according to the rite of The Roman Pontif-
ical; moveable altars may be simply blessed. It is not necessary to have 
a consecrated stone in a movable altar or on the table where the eucharist 
is celebrated outside a sacred place" (no. 265). 

This legislation obviously had immediate consequences for the custom 
of breaking martyrs' relics into minute particles. 

Regarding the depositing of the relics, however, the Instruction added: 

"It is fitting to maintain the practice of enclosing relics in the altar or of 
placing them under the altar. These relics need not be those of martyrs, 
but there must be proof that they are authentic" (no. 266). 

Thus the revised rite, although with some modifications, retains the clas-
sical custom of depositing the relics under the altar: "It is fitting that the 
tradition of the Roman liturgy should be preserved of placing relics of 
martyrs or other saints beneath the altar" (no. 5). 

The new legislation on depositing of the relics aims to recover the fullness 
of the liturgical sign and its historical reality, taking into account the 
weight of custom. The legislation consists of three paragraphs. 

The first deals with that principle which has already been amply illus-
trated: 

a) Relics intended for deposition should be of such a size that they can 
be recognized as parts of human bodies. Hence excessively small relics 
of one or more saints must not be deposited. 

A number of liturgical scholars very likely may have preferred a more 
radical solution; but that offered by the rite is sufficient for a more cor-
rect practice. Its success will depend on a proper appreciation of its li-
turgical spirit. 

The second paragraph is concerned with assuring the authenticity of rel-
ics. It firmly and definitively establishes that it is preferable to dedicate 
an altar without relics than to deposit relics of dubious authenticity: 



b) The greatest care must be taken to determine whether relics intended 
for deposition are authentic. It is better for an altar to be dedicated with-
out relics than to have relics of doubtful credibility placed beneath it. 

The third paragraph concerns correct placement of the relics beneath the 
altar: 

c) A reliquary must not be placed on the altar or in the table of the altar 
but beneath the table of the altar, as the design of the altar may allow. 

This paragraph deals with restoring the original sense of the depositing 
of relics, the only meaning which has complete liturgical value. As com-
mentary on this legislative norm, it is enough to note the text of St. 
Ambrose quoted in the introduction to the Rite for the Dedication of an 
Altar (no. 5). 

"Let the triumphant victims take their place where Christ is the victim. 
He who suffered for all is above the altar; those redeemed by his suf-
ferings are beneath the altar" (Letter 22, 13; PL 16: 1066). 

The admonition was more than justified. In recent times the custom had 
arisen of so exhibiting the body of the saint that it dominated the altar— 
a custom at odds with tradition and with a proper liturgical sense. 

The rite, it will be noticed, frequently talks of the depositing of the relics 
of martyrs or other saints. The reverence given to the bodies of saints 
who, though not having suffered martyrdom, have given witness in their 
lives to Christ, is proper and just; but the rite does not hide its preference 
for martyrs. With delicate precision it points out: "Although all the 
saints are rightly called Christ's witnesses, the witness of blood has a 
special significance, which is given complete and perfect expression by 
depositing only martyrs' relics beneath the altar." 

c) Development of the Rite of Depositing the Relics (no. 61) 

In the revised rite, the depositing of the relics is so arranged that it re-
produces the essential lines of that sober rite of the fourth century, as 
evoked in a famous letter of At. Ambrose to Marcellina. There are three 
moments in the depositing of the relics: 

—the vigil of prayer close to the relics, which takes place the preceding 
day: "When the rite of the depositing of relics takes place, it is highly 
recommended to keep a vigil at the relics of the martyr or saint which 
are to be placed under the altar" (no. 10). It recalls a moment in the rite 
of dedication of the Ambrosian basilica by St. Ambrose: "As it was close 
to evening we transferred them [the bones of Gervasius and Protasius] 
to the basilica of Faustas. All that night watch was kept . . . " (Letter 
22:2; PL 16:1063); 

—the solemn translation of the relics, during the procession towards the 
new church: "The procession to the church to be dedicated begins. 
. . . The crossbearer leads the procession; the ministers follow first; then 
the deacons or priests with the relics of the saints, ministers or the faith-
ful accompanying them on either side with torches" (no. 31). This solemn 



translation corresponds to that mentioned by Ambrose: "The next day 
we transferred them [the bones] to the Ambrosian basilica" (Letter 22:2; 
PL 16:1063); 

—the depositing of the relics beneath the altar, placed there by the 
bishop: "A deacon or priest brings them to the bishop, who buries them 
in a suitably prepared aperture" (no. 61). In Ambrose: "Under the altar 
we bury the sacred remains and carry them to worthy resting places" 
(Letter 22:13; PL 16:1066). 

For the act of depositing of relics, the revised rite proposes singing Psalm 
14, introduced by one of the two antiphons: "The bodies of the saints 
lie buried in peace, but their names will live for ever (alleluia)." Or: 
"Saints of God, you have been enthroned at the foot of God's altar; pray 
for us to the Lord Jesus Christ" (no. 61). 

The choice of Psalm 14 was probably dictated by the meaning of the 
depositio: the resting place of mortal remains in a dwelling place of hol-
iness and peace, the eucharistic altar. As well, it is a sign of the martyrs' 
entry, following upon a heroic following of Christ, into the "tent" of the 
Lord, their resting place on the holy mountain where they will enjoy 
eternal rest. 

3. The Prayer of Dedication (no. 62) 

The church and the altar have been symbolically prepared with the lus-
tratio and the relics of the martyrs have been placed in the altar. Most 
important, with the rememberence of the rite of baptism the community 
of the faithful hears the word of God in prayer. The rites of the dedi-
cation work toward a climax: the moment of the prayer of dedication. 

a) The Meaning of the Prayer of Dedication 

The prayer of dedication, referred to in the Middle Ages as the "con-
secratory preface," though not actually present in the archaic form of 
the rite, is nonetheless to be considered a traditional element in the li-
turgies of East and West. 

The community, in attesting its desire to dedicate the new edifice to God 
alone and for all time, and for the worship due him, does so in the most 
efficacious way—by prayer. 

The prayer of dedication is, in fact, the solemn declaration made by the 
bishop of the will of the community to dedicate the new church of God: 
"We come before you, to dedicate to your lasting service this house of 
prayer" (no. 62). He asks God to be present with his grace, that with his 
Spirit he might render efficacious the worship of the community in the 
new church—for the rite of dedication of a church as a whole expresses 
the conviction that if the Lord does not build his church "they labor in 
vain who built it" (Psalm 126:1). In this instance, however, the solemn 
prayer is pure praise as well as thanksgiving, a recalling or anamnesis 
of the mirabilia Dei, and an eschatological projection. 

b) The Text of the Prayer of Dedication 

23 



In the history of the rite of dedication there developed two consecratory 
prefaces: the first referred to the church, the other to the altar. The re-
vised rite, taking into consideration the deep unity binding together 
church and altar—their reciprocal and necessary relationship—has 
brought together in one prayer of dedication the elements previously 
found in the two separate prefaces. 

The prayer of dedication, Dens, Ecclesiae tuae sanctificator et rector (no. 
62), is a new composition (a few lines reproduce portions of the Am-
brosian preface for the Sunday of the Dedication), but in its structure 
and terminology draws its inspiration from the classical models. 

From a structural point of view, the prayer consists of an introduction, 
three parts, and a conclusion. 

The introduction (lines 1-5) places the prayer in its immediate celebra-
tory context. After the invocation to God, sanctifier of his Church, it 
presents the exulting community to the newly dedicated church and 
tersely describes the ends to be served: the church is "this temple of wor-
ship, this home in which we are nourished by your word and your sac-
raments." 

The first part (lines 6-22) has four sections. The first (lines 6-10) calls for 
a meditation on the relationship between the church-edifice and the 
Church-People of God: "Here is reflected the mystery of the Church." 
It also presents the Church as faithful virgin," glorious bride, fruitful 
mother—a marvelous image reminiscent of Mary of Nazareth, a holy 
icon of the Church. This prayer, as do many other prayers from patristic 
literature, often alludes to the features of the Mother of Jesus in order 
to suggest those of the Church. The next three sections elaborate other 
biblical images: vineyard of the Lord (lines 11-14), temple of God (lines 
15-18), city on a hill (lines 19-22). In an anaphoric way each section 
begins with the words 'The Church," followed by an attribute: 'The 
Church is holy . . . The Church is favored . . . The Church is exalted." 
These sections delineate a salvation history; however, God's loving in-
tervention in history is expressed more in terms of pure praise than 
chronological exactitude. The prayer is also an admirable song praising 
the holy Bride of Christ, a song that springs from the heart of a people 
conscious of its sins. These sins actually stain the nuptial robe of the 
Bride, but it remains mysteriously unsullied through the purifying pres-
ence of the Lord and his Spirit. 

The second part (lines 23-27) contains the prayer of invocation of the 
Spirit, epicletic in structure and terminology: a supplication that the 
Lord be present with the ineffable sanctifying power of his Spirit, in the 
church and on the altar; that they become a "holy place" and a joyous 
"table" for the celebration of Christ's sacrifice, the paschal banquet. 

The third part (lines 28-39) also comprises four sections bound together 
by the adverb "Here", which in anaphoristic fashion scans ternary 
groups of lines. The general request expressed in the epiclesis is trans-
formed into particular petitions, and separate parts of the ecclesial edifice 
appear in sequence: baptismal font (lines 28-30); the room for the table 



dedicated both to word and eucharist (lines 31-33); the hall in which 
humanity and angels merge their hymns of praise and supplication (lines 
34-36); the place where God's mercy is invoked, and where the liberty 
and dignity of all are asserted (lines 37-39). 

The conclusion (lines 40-41) is very brief. It expresses the trust of the 
faithful that they will eventually possess the ultimate reality, alluding to 
the exultant arrival "at the heavenly Jerusalem, at the joyous gathering 
and assembly of the firstborn" (Hebrews 12:23). This image, though a 
frequent one, is particularly apt: it recalls the festive procession by which 
the assembly of the faithful entered the church, the sign of the Heavenly 
City. 

4. The Sign of Anointing (nos. 63-65) 

Three rites follow the prayer of dedication—anointing, incensation, and 
lighting—which, as the introduction states, "express in visible signs sev-
eral aspects of that invisible work which the Lord accomplishes through 
the Church in its celebration of the divine mysteries, especially the eu-
charist" (no. 16). The three rites have the same structure: a formula of-
fered aloud by the bishop, the effecting of the individual sign, the singing 
of a biblical hymn or psalm. 

a) The Altar, Symbol of Christ 

Just as the eucharist is the center of Christian worship, so the altar is the 
ideal center of the ecclesial edifice: all leads to and all leads from the 
altar. The altar is the "place of concentration" of the purest liturgical 
spirituality and the most intense Christian piety. 

A text of the revised rite expresses the wish that the People of God make 
the altar the focus of all religious feeling and activity: 

May this altar be the place 
where the great mysteries of redemption are accomplished: 
a place where your people offer their gifts, 
unfold their good intentions, 
pour out their prayers, 
and echo every meaning of their faith and devotion (no. 46). 

The symbolism of the altar is inexhaustible, as are the mysteries it cel-
ebrates. The introduction of the rite notes that "in the Letter to the He-
brews, Christ is presented as the High Priest who is also the living altar 
of the heavenly temple," and quite early in history the altar became the 
natural symbol of Christ. Turning to the neophytes, St. Ambrose asked 
himself: "What is the altar of Christ if not the form of the body of 
Christ?" 

The relation between stone and altar—based on the texts of the Old 
Testament, and on the Pauline allegory, "The rock was Christ" (1 Cor. 
10:4)—contributed on one hand to the general use of the stone altar, and 
on the other to formulation in the patristic age of the current prayer 
"Altare Christus est" ("the altar is Christ"). 

25 



But "Christ" means "Anointed." How then could the altar become a fit-
ting symbol of the Anointed One without having been anointed? Such 
considerations suggested the anointing of the altar; but the rite also 
strove to repeat the actions of the patriarchs when they raised altars to 
God, as did Jacob who "took the stone that he had put under his head, 
set it up as a memorial stone, and poured oil on top of it" (Genesis 
28:18). 

If in the building dedicated to worship the altar is Christ, the stones 
holding up the walls are Christians (see 1 Peter 2:5). As the Head was 
anointed with the Spirit, so are the members in the sacraments; as the 
altar was anointed, so are the stones. The anointing of the new church's 
inner walls appears as ritual translation of this relationship, and as a 
second stage in the Christian initiation of the new ecclesial space. 

b) One Altar Only 

It is fitting that the church have but one altar, and few texts express this 
as forcefully and convincingly as the introduction to the Rite of Dedi-
cation of an Altar: "In new churches it is better to erect one altar only, 
so that in the one assembly of the people of God the one altar may signify 
our one Savior Jesus Christ and the one eucharist of the Church" (no. 
7). 

This is not to suggest that the text is a polemic against other epochs, 
when a different manner of worship and piety occasionally led to an 
exasperating proliferation of altars. The rite is concerned, however, that 
in planning new churches there be a return to an older, more genuine 
custom, the only completely valid one from a liturgical point of view. 

The clear affirmation of a principle does not imply, however, the refusal 
of some reasonable adaptations occasioned by local conditions the 
need for greater comfort, a conspicuous oscillation in the size of the con-
gregation. Because of such conditions, one and the same church may 
have two separate places, each with its altar, where the faithful gather 
according to number and need; that is, in either church or chapel. 

The introduction allows for such a case, and also mentions that "in a 
chapel, if possible separated to a certain extent from the main body of 
the church, where the tabernacle for the reservation of the Blessed Sac-
rament is situated, another [altar] may be erected where Mass can be 
celebrated on weekdays for a small assembly of the people" (no. 7). 

But it is extremely important that each element in liturgy conserve its 
primary function and eloquently express that original meaning: the altar 
is to be built for viewing by an assembly and, according to certain 
rhythms, the memorial of the Lord will be celebrated upon it. To reduce 
the altar to a decorative element would be to degrade it: "The erection 
of several altars in a church merely for the sake of adornment must be 
entirely avoided" (no. 7). 



c) The Rite of Anointing 

The symbolic riches of this rite, and the usefulness of noting some of its 
new or modified elements, lead one to dwell on this section more than 
on any other. 

A Concelebration. The rite of dedication is presented as a great concele-
bration of the entire local Church—bishop, priests, deacons, various 
ministers, and the faithful. Among them, the bishop, the "high priest of 
his flock," is the celebrant of his hierarchic place. The priests are with 
him and after him. As they collaborate with the bishop in the pastoral 
service of the Church-People of God, so they concelebrate with him in 
the dedication of the church-edifice—above all in celebrating the euchar-
ist, the climax of the dedication. The rite of anointing is another instance 
of concelebration. 

This particular concelebration is one of the innovations of the revised 
rite. The rite, however, does not prescribe it, leaving the bishop to 
choose at his descretion. However, the option should be chosen for, in 
addition to shortening a long liturgy, it underlines the ecclesial meaning 
of the rite. 

If the bishop opts for the "concelebration of the anointing," the principal 
anointing, that of the altar, is his; the priests'have responsibility for the 
minor anointings, the walls. 

The Anointings. In prior pontificals the anointing rites were performed 
in a circular sequence—the left wall, door, right wall, altar—in general, 
the movement going from minor to major points. In the revised rite the 
anointing begins at the altar and continues with the walls; this more 
clearly builds to a climax, and manifests a deeper sense of the mysteries 
involved. In re, anointing of the members takes its meaning from the 
anointing of Christ the Head; in signo, anointing begins with the altar, 
symbol of Christ, and proceeds to the side walls, symbols of Christians, 
stones of the Church. 

The anointing of the altar is a simple and solemn rite. The bishop ini-
tiates it with a supplicatory prayer which refers to both altar and church: 
"We now anoint this altar and building. May God in his power make 
them holy, visible signs of the mystery of Christ and his Church" (no. 
64). 

There is an obvious correspondence here, classical in its Roman eu-
chology, between the visible action performed by the Church ("we now 
anoint") and the invisible action of God ("in his power make them 
holy"). The altar and church, marked with the same chrism, become an 
expressive sign of the mystery of Christ and his Church, that is, of "the 
Anointed One" par excellence and his anointed people. 

But the act of anointing is even more eloquent than the formula. The 
revised rite prays that the sign of anointing be rejuvenated in its fullness: 
"Then he pours chrism on the middle of the altar and on each of its four 
corners, and it is recommended that he anoint the entire table of the altar 



with this" (no. 64). The rubric proposes the integral version of the pre-
scription of the German Pontifical: "From the blessed oil the bishop 
forms the cross in the middle of the altar and on the four sides . . . and 
anoints with his hand the entire altar with blessed oil" (nos. 52-53, p. 
144). 

The anointing of the walls follows that of the altar. The rite has retained 
the traditional use of twelve anointings, recalled in the twelve crosses— 
attached to or sculpted in the walls—which are a clear allusion to the 
twelve apostles: "The wall of the city had twelve courses of stones as its 
foundation, on which were written the names of the twelve apostles of 
the Lamb" (Rev. 21:14). 

The rite, however, foresaw that it would be excessive to place twelve 
crosses on the walls of some smaller churches, and offers another pos-
sibility: four anointings only, with four valid symbolic meanings. These 
anointings, radiating from the altar to the four cardinal points, sym-
bolize the lordship of Christ over the entire universe. More precisely, as 
the rite suggests, the four anointings associate the sacred edifice more 
closely with that image of the heavenly Jerusalem found in the Book of 
Revelation, where the city appears "in the shape of a square, its length 
equal to its width" (Rev. 21:16). There are cultures for which the square 
is the symbol of the perfection of the Absolute. 

During the anointing of the walls, Psalm 84 is sung (no. 64), the song 
of intense yearning for the house of the Lord. In the rite, the song of the 
pilgrim becomes the canticle of the bride, yearning for the porches of 
the heavenly temple. 

The two proposed antiphons accompanying the psalm do not belong to 
the antiphon tradition of the Rite of Dedication of a Church; still, they 
express very fitting concepts. However, it would have been better had 
one of them, at least, referred to the anointing. 

The first antiphon reproduces Revelation 21:3. In the liturgy the con-
secrated church prefigures the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, the splen-
did dwelling place of God with humanity: "See the place where God lives 
among his people; there the Spirit of God will make his home among 
you; the temple of God is holy and you are that temple" (no. 64). 

The second antiphon is of Pauline inspiration (see 1 Cor. 3:9) . The lit-
urgy of the hours uses it in the Common of the Dedication of a Church, 
at midmorning: "Holy is the temple of the Lord, it is God's handiwork, 
his dwelling place, alleluia" (no. 64). 

In the finished building, the Church recognizes the symbol of the Church 
which grows and develops by the Lord's action: he is planter of the vine, 
architect of his house. 

5. Fire and Incense (nos. 66-68) 

For many centuries, down to our day, the most moving part of the entire 
rite was the blessing of the incense. On five points of the altar signed 
with holy chrism there burned five crosses made of wax and grains of 



incense. The altar became a field of fire from which arose dense clouds 
of smoke and fragrant balsam. During this the schola sang the solemn 
Vem, Sancte Spiritus while the entire assembly—clergy and laity—re-
mained kneeling, listening intently to the singing, in silent prayer. 

Of the first altar Scripture says: "Noah built an altar to the Lord . . he 
offered holocausts on the altar . . . the Lord smelled the sweet odor" 
(Gen 8:20-21). At a very early time, incense, because of its fragrant 
spirals, became the symbol of that sacrifice performed on the altar: the 
rising to God in an acceptable way. Israel, in organizing its worship 
used incense as the ritual scent frequently and abundantly. 

Fire consumes the victim. In the chronicles of Israel there is the vivid 
memory of the "fire come down from heaven" to consume the sacrifice 
that Elijah, true prophet, had offered to the true God (see 1 Kings 18:20-

Fire and incense: it was inevitable that, at some point in the history of 
the rite, these two elements should become part of the altar's symbolic 
meaning. 

But there were two objections to the incensation as it developed over the 
centuries. From one point of view, it tended to make the faithful erro-
neously believe that this part was the culminating point of the entire 
celebration. From another point of view, it appeared to draw its content 
almost exclusively from the schema and themes of the Old Testament. 
To solve these difficulties those who revised the rite came to the follow-
ing conclusions. 

—The incensation, justifiable in its natural and biblical symbolism, was 
to be retained. Those parts, however, which altered its meaning or'gave 
it undue importance were to be removed (the solemn invocation of the 
Spirit, the entire congregation on its knees). Thus, in deference to Veritas 
rerum, any disproportion between the deeply touching beauty of the in-
censation and the actual importance of its content would be corrected. 

—The ritual elements (gestures and texts) were to express a decidedly 
christological and ecclesial content; thus their spirit would not seem prin-
cipally indebted to that of Old Testament liturgy. 

Fire and incense, in fact, are valid symbols from a New Testament per-
spective: fire recalls the Holy Spirit, that fire sent upon the Church by 
Christ, risen and seated at this Father's right hand (see Acts 2:1-3). This 
is the very same fire that consumes the eucharistic sacrifice on the altar 
The fragrance acceptable to the Father is that which comes from Christ's 
Easter sacrifice, as we read in St. Paul: "Follow the way of love even 
as Christ loved you. He gave himself for us as an offering to God a gift 
of pleasing fragrance" (Eph. 5:2). 

The Book of Revelation (5:8; 8:3-4) says that incense-besides symbol-
izing the "acceptable fragrance"—is also a symbol of prayer that rises 
to God. The assembled faithful are incensed prior to the edifice This 
ritual sequence suggests that the "temple of God" where we are to offer 

29 



"spiritual worship" (Romans 12:1) is the individual baptized Christian 
and, at the same time, the entire assembly. 

The formula pronounced by the bishop before the incensing is a com-
posite one: "Lord, may our prayer ascend as incense in your sight. 
As this building is filled with fragrance so may your Church fill the world 
with the fragrance of Christ" (no. 66). 

The first part (lines 1-2) is from Psalm 140:2; the second is a new text 
which, in light of the relationship between Christ and Church, and of 
the traditional parallelism between "edifice" and the People of God, 
prays that the Church impart the fragrance of Christ to all (see 2 Cor. 
2:14-15). 

The theme of the angel who brings to the Most High the prayers of the 
just, and abides in the temple near the altar of sacrifice—a traditional 
biblical theme—accounts for the choice of Psalm 137 (no. 68) and the 
antiphons. The texts are particularly appropriate in a liturgy of incense, 
recurring periodically in the rites for dedication of a church. 

In Psalm 137 particular attention should be devoted to verses 1-2: "In 
the presence of the angels I will bless you. I will adore before your holy 
temple." 

The vision of the angel who "came in holding a certser of gold" (see Rev. 
8:3-5), a symbol of the prayers of the saints who hasten the coming of 
the Great Day, has provided the material for the antiphons, well known 
in the Roman liturgy: "An angel stood by the altar of the temple, holding 
a golden censer". Or : "From the hand of an angel, clouds of incense rose 
in the presence of the Lord" (nos. 69-70). 

The altar has been honored with incense. Now other signs follow so that 
it might efficaciously express its original function as a table of the Lord 
(1 Cor. 10:21), around which happily sit the sons and daughters who 
share the table with Christ. The prayer of dedication of the altar joyously 
proclaims this meaning: "Make it [this altar] a table of joy, where the 
friends of Christ may hasten" (no. 48). 

The time has come, therefore, to cover the stone with a white cloth, to 
decorate with flowers, to light lights and sing hymns of glory. 

It would be wrong, however, to believe that the "rite of light" has only 
a decorative function at the banquet table. It has a deep theological 
meaning: Christ is the 'light of the world" (John 8:12), "a revealing light 
to the Gentiles" (Luke 2:32), the only true light of the Church. That light 
prefigures the last condition of the human race, proper to the heavenly 
Jerusalem (See Rev. 21:10, 22-23). 

To this point the rite has not mentioned light. Indeed, there are frequent 
rubrics prescribing that lights should not be used in procession—neither 
in the entrance procession, nor in that formed for the proclamation of 
the Gospel. The symbol of light is deliberately saved for this particular 
point, the moment of praise to Christ the light. The rubric notes: 'There 
the festive lighting takes place: all the candles . . . and the other lamps 



are lit as a sign of rejoicing. Meanwhile the following antiphon is sung 
. . . [or] another appropriate song may be sung, especially one in honor 
of Christ, the light of the world" (no. 71). Even the text of the rubric is 
infused with the luminous joy of the moment. 

The bishop pronounces a formula which recalls the Easter Vigil's dia-
gonal admonition concerning the lighting of candles. Taken as a whole, 
however, the formula is a virtual synthesis of Chapter 1 of the Consti-
tution on the Church: ' l ight of Christ, shine forth in the Church and 
bring all nations to the fullness of truth" (no. 70). 

The church resplendent in light is a symbol of the Church, illumined by 
Christ, and of the heavenly Jerusalem whose lamp is the Lamb. But the 
hymns which accompany the festive lighting also call forth a dear mis-
sionary vision which, flashing forth from the words of the bishop, is 
mirrored and amplified in the Canticle of Tobias and its lyrical anti-
phons: 

Your light will come, Jerusalem; 
upon you the glory of the Lord will dawn 
and all nations will walk in your light, alleluia; 
Jerusalem, city of God, 
you will shine with the light of God's splendor; 
all people on earth will pay you homage (no. 71) 

The first antiphon is a thematic synthesis of Isaiah 60:1-3, the classic text 
for the solemnity of Epiphany and for missionary celebrations because 
of its universal perspective. 

The second antiphon is derived from Tobias 13:11, 13. The canticle of 
Tobias is a prophetic hymn of Jerusalem's destiny, and an expression of 
the exiles' hope in the ideal City of God. In the context of the dedication 
of a church, the canticle becomes the prophecy of the Church's perennial 
mission: "Nations will come from afar . . . they will be gathered together 
to praise the Lord" 

The Litugy of the Eucharist 
THE CELEBRATION OF THE LITURGY 

CONSECRATES THE PLACE FOR THE EUCHARIST 

In ancient Roman liturgy the dedication of a church consisted essentially 
in celebrating the eucharist. No doubt, when the Church came to con-
sider which rites were required for the dedication of a church, it realized 
that no rite could be as "dedicatory" and meaningful as celebration of the 
eucharist. This was not only because the eucharist is the deepest expres-
sion of the Church's worship, but also because the entire ecclesial edifice 
was structured for celebration of the Lord's memorial. In celebrating the 
eucharist on this occasion, mysterium, (mystery) factum, (fact) and 
signum (sign) corresponded perfectly. In mysterio the Church is con-
stantly oriented toward Christ; in facto the assembly concentrates on the 
action of the celebrant; in signo all things converge towards the a l t a r -
walls and apse, roof and ceiling. That very altar appears to be sheltered 

31 



and highlighted by the architecture, gathered in at the apse and opening 
out toward the nave. The church is where the congregation meets; sim-
ilarly, its altar is the center of the union between Christ and Church, 
where the oblation is unique and all comprehensive. The entire dedica-
tion of a church was brought to completion in the dedication of an altar, 
which in turn was completed with a particular celebration of the euchar-
ist. 

In the revised rite too the church is dedicated by a celebration of the 
eucharist. The rite itself is in effect a eucharistic preparation which now 
comes to its climax. It should be emphasized that a perfect seam unites 
the celebration of the memorial of the Lord and the Rite of Dedication of 
a Church. 

On this matter the introduction points out: 

—for when the eucharistic sacrifice is celebrated, the chief end for which 
the church was built and the altar erected is attained and manifested by 
particularly clear signs; 

—furthermore, the eucharist, which sanctifies the hearts of those who 
receive it, in a sense consecrates the altar and the place of celebration, 
as the ancient Fathers of the Church assert more than once: 'This altar 
is an object of wonder: by nature it is stone, but it is made holy when 
it receives the body of Christ"; 

—finally, the bond whereby the dedication of a church is closely linked 
with the celebration of the eucharist is likewise evident from the fact that 
the proper preface of the Mass is, as it were, an integral part of the rite 
of a dedication of a church. 

if. A "Situated" Celebration of the Eucharist 

The eucharistic celebration, then, today as yesterday, is the central fact 
in the dedication of a church. But this eucharist is "situated" or "placed" 
in a given context—that is, in a statio where all of the local Church is 
gathered together—bishops, priests, faithful—to express its wish to ded-
icate (voluntas dicandi) a building, open to all the faithful, which will 
be reserved always and exclusively for the celebration of divine mysteries 
and other ecclesial activities. The voluntas dicandi with its social, com-
munal, and concrete aspects, constitutes the human and ecclesial pre-
supposition of the dedication of the new church. 

T o dedicate a church edifice to God is to effect a rite with which the 
Church assembly recognizes God's absolute lordship over it according 
to the Pauline formula: "All things are yours! . . . All these are yours 
and you are Christ's and Christ is God's" (1 Cor. 3:22-23). It is a lordship 
that exalts humanity as one hears in the well-known expression of St. 
Irenaeus: "The glory of man is God; man is the receptacle of the works 
of God and of all his wisdom and virtue." 

2 . A Significant Structural Readaptation 

Over the centuries, it cannot be denied, the importance of the eucharist 
with respect to the dedication of a church had weakened; the rubrics of 



The Roman Pontifical were such that the celebration of the memorial of 
the Lord seemed almost a complementary part of the rite. In the 1888 
Roman Pontifical, for example, the bishop, after having blessed the altar 
cloths, ". . . goes to the sacristy where he takes off the cope. If he wishes 
to celebrate, which is more fitting, he puts on the pontifical vestments 
. . . Mass is said as in the Missal, for the dedication of a church." Having 
returned to the altar, the bishop, as if nothing had developed up to that 
point, began Mass with the prayers at the foot of the altar. The 1961 
Roman Pontifical brought about a substantial reform in this part of the 
rite, a noteworthy change considering the times, but one that was still 
deficient in expressing the central function of the eucharist in the dedi-
catory rites. Here are a few examples of how the 1961 Roman Pontifical 
established a closer tie between the celebration of the Mass and the ded-
ication of a church: 

—the phrase "if he wishes to celebrate" of The Roman Pontifical (1888) 
becomes "it is fitting that he celebrates the Mass, although he may des-
ignate another priest to do so"; 

—it is expressly declared "in the Mass of the dedication the act of con-
secration of a church is part of the entire rite of consecration"; 

—from the rubrical point of view the omission of certain acts prepara-
tory to the Mass is prescribed: "When the celebrant comes to the altar 
he makes a reverence and immediately kisses it, omitting the Psalm Iud-
ica me, Deus and the confession with the verses and prayers." 

But these minor reforms were still far from restoring the eucharist to the 
position that tradition and liturgical integrity demanded. 

Today's pontifical has restructured the Rite of Dedication of a Church 
so that the entire celebration is a unified and unique rite, articulated in 
the typical sequences of the eucharistic preparation. Those parts of the 
dedication which, according to the General Instruction of The Roman 
Missal, are parts of the Mass, appear in the rite according to their orig-
inal disposition, but as characteristic moments of the rite. The third part, 
for example, is the prayer of dedication and the anointings, and its con-
tent is directly related to the dedication. Yet this part harmoniously 
blends with the other elements of preparation of the gifts in the eucha-
ristic celebration—a result of its place (after the homily) and its imme-
diate end (preparation of the altar). 

This close and harmonious fusion of all the elements of the one celebra-
tion constitutes one of the principal merits of the new rite. 

3. The Texts 

The euchological texts of the fourth part, and of the section that corres-
ponds to it in the Rite for the Dedication of an Altar, are new composi-
tions. Born from one clear intuition, they are characterized by a clear 
geometrical structure and by a strong thematic unity, even when the 
theme is considered from various points of view and developed accord-
ing to different perspectives. They do not, consequently, result in a kind 



of 'liturgical collage," even though an attentive reader could recognize 
in each line one or more liturgical, biblical, or patristic sources. 

One trait of the eucharistic prayer should be emphasized. The preface 
contains an explicit mention of the dedication: "With hearts full of joy 
we consecrate to your glory this work of our hands, this house of 
prayer." The preface of the dedication of an altar states: 'Therefore your 
people have built this altar and have dedicated it to your name with 
grateful hearts." The two expressions are similar not only in their phra-
seology; they express, in this arrangement, the very same idea. 

Some might consider the mention of the dedication in the preface as an 
anomaly. It is not, however, if viewed in the light of that particular 
celebration termed "situated eucharist." Though it is not necessary at 
this point in the eucharistic prayer, mention of the dedication does serve 
to make explicit what the eucharist effects or brings about: the dedica-
tion. 

4. A Meeting Point 

The new Rite of Dedication of a Church is the point of arrival where, 
after a long journey through history, various tensions have been dialec-
tically resolved. Quite significant for the life of the Church has been its 
understanding of the relationship between altar and eucharist; this un-
derstanding, is in fact, the key to the history of the rite of dedication. 
The value of the eucharist, and its meaning in the dedication of a place, 
marked it as the primary rite. Similar profound reasons led to prepa-
ration of both the altar for eucharistic sacrifice and the site where the 
altar was situated. 

In the high Middle Ages, Rome (Ordines Roman XLII) and the Churches 
in Gaul (Ordines Romani XL/)—independently of one another—sought 
to unify elements from very different sources. When that attempt suc-
ceeded, even partially, the moment marked the birth of the Rite of Dedi-
cation of a Church as a composite rite. The long history of the rite is 
nothing more than the history of the integration and development, not 
always harmonious, of two diverse but not contradictory concepts: (1) 
it is fitting to prepare properly the place where the eucharist will be cel-
ebrated; (2) the eucharist sanctifies the place where it is celebrated. Me-
dieval and recent simplifications are an index of how one or the other 
tendency prevailed. In the new rite there is a moment which can be con-
sidered the point of contact between the two approaches: the moment 
of the veneration of the altar. When all the preparatory rites have been 
completed, the bishop goes to the altar and kisses it. The Mass continues: 
significantly the work "prosequitur" (continues), not "incipit" (begins), 
is used (no. 73). 

The kiss of the altar with which every eucharistic celebration begins had 
been deferred because the altar was not ready; now the altar, having 
become the sign of the Anointed One and decorated as a joyous Easter 
table, is ready to receive the ritual gesture of veneration with which 
every eucharist begins and ends. 

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5. The Inauguration of the Place for the Reservation of the Blessed Sac-
rament (nos. 79-82) 

This point has been stressed: in liturgy, the ritual moments must cor-
respond to the genuine aspects of the mystery, or of the sacramental acts 
in which it is reflected, as well as satisfying the real needs of the com-
munity. Pure symbolism gives birth to purely empty gestures. With this 
realistic, sane notion of liturgy the brief liturgical sequence known as the 
Inauguration of a Blessed Sacrament Chapel, a sequence not found in 
previous rites, is more easily understood. 

The sacred species, the body and blood of the Lord, are on the altar to 
be distributed as food and drink to the faithful. But according to a very 
ancient tradition they are also to be kept in the church for later distri-
bution to the sick (above all, as Viaticum for those in their last agony), 
and as a reference point and meeting place for adoring silent prayer. The 
authoritative instruction Eucharisticun mysterium of May 25, 1967 
points out in clear synthesis the motifs and modalities for reservation of 
the Blessed Sacrament. 

It is not the presence of the reserved sacrament that makes the church 
"sacred" and makes of it a domus Dei in the genuine sense of the work; 
nonetheless, the reservation of the blessed sacrament is a precious good 
for the spiritual life of the community. Since the sacred species are to be 
reserved, they are brought to the place prepared for the reservation of 
the blessed sacrament; and this is done in the usual way, with a very 
brief procession to the place. In this way the place of reservation is in-
augurated by using it, just as the bishop had inaugurated the chair by 
sitting in it, and the reader had inaugurated the ambo by proclaiming 
from it the word of God. 

The rite does not provide in this case for the blessing of a tabernacle but 
suggests a moment of silent prayer, the sign-gesture that fittingly cor-
responds to one of the ends of the eucharistic reservation. 

Even if this rite has no precedent in the tradition of the rites of dedica-
tion, this sober rite reflects one of the aspects of the mystery, and re-
sponds to a real need of the community. The discretion of the rubric is 
noteworthy: 'The inauguration of a chapel where the blessed eucharist 
is to be reserved, is carried out appropriately in this way . . . " (no. 79). 

CONCLUSION 
The rite has an exemplary structure, a very clear logical line—not of a 
cerebral logic, cartesian or mathematical, but the logic of M y s t e r y -
faithful to the Roman tradition, a rite that in a very natural way inserts 
itself, in a spirit of truth, into the rites revised after the Second Vatican 
Council. 

As noted, the doctrinal riches of the Rite of Dedication of a Church are 
explicable above all in terms of having been inspired by the rich repor-
tory of antiphons. The antiphons— drawn mostly from the bible, though 

35 



without a preconceived plan—appear as incisive and lyrical theses. The 
psalms that accompanied them, read in an ecclesiological and christo-
logical key, complete and enrich the rite's theology. The doctrinal con-
tent of the euchological texts, by comparison, was more tenuous. In not 
a few of them the motifs, proper to the lustratio, were excessive. 

In the revised rite the situation is turned upside down, so to speak. In 
a celebration which has been notably simplified, the place given to the 
antiphons and psalms is necessarily smaller; the euchological repertory, 
by contrast, is noticeably increased. 

The Rite of Dedication of a Church is a biblical, liturgical pageant of 
many temples: the cosmic temple that tells of the glory of God; the tent-
temple of the days of Exodus; the temple of Jerusalem; the temple that 
is Christ, the only necessary one, the only absolute one in which is 
achieved the perfect oblation, and in which the Spirit dwells in its plen-
itude; the temple that is his Church built with living stones; the temple 
that is each faithful soul, a primordial templum Dei; the temple of the 
consummation, the ultimate temple of the last and final City. And this 
great pageant is brought together and evoked in the temple of stone, the 
smallest of them all, whose glory is to be a sign and a reverberation of 
the glory of the others. 

The Rite of Dedication of a Church is also an admonition to experience 
and live above all else the sacredness of the Church assembly, for as 
Pope Paul VI states, "If a church is the place of the divine presence, this 
place is the assembly of the faithful, is the soul of each believer." But 
this thought is also an admonition not to underestimate the value and 
function of the holy space of the ecclesial edifice. No theologian, no bibl-
ical scholar, no liturgist can think of the church edifice as the earthly 
dwelling place of God whom "the heavens and the highest heavens can-
not contain" (2 Chronicles 6:18). It is nonetheless true, as Pope Paul VI 
reminds us, that "there wings over the temple a presence, the presence 
of God," and it is that presence on which all the doctrine and actions 
converge: the altar table, the baptismal font, the tomb of the martyr and 
the eucharist tabernacle, the icon of the Virgin Mary and the pictures of 
the saints; and still more the Word proclaimed and the sacramental ac-
tions celebrated. All the rites performed in the church, according to their 
original ends, culminate in Christ and in the Holy Spirit, to the glory of 
the Father and the service of humanity. All summon forth the Presence. 

Above all the rite attempts to manifest, and by manifesting, unveil, the 
mystery of Christ and Church: "May God in his power make [this altar 
and this building] holy, visible signs of the mystery of Christ and his 
Church" (no. 64). What else does this formula express but the wish and 
prayer of a thirst that can never be quenched? 

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