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Terminology

People's altar

The term people's altar was used to refer to the free-standing altar in Catholic churches, where the priest celebrates the Eucharistic part of Holy Mass turned towards the faithful (versus populum), as opposed to ad orientem (sometimes also called Ad Deum) where the people and the priest face the altar together. That is so that those who join in the celebration can face each other, and so experience themselves as gathered around the altar. The usage of the term has diminished significantly in recent years, and is no longer commonplace in Catholic circles.

Also recorded as council altar

People's altar

Neuer Altar der Pfarrkirche Pergkirchen (seit 2009)

Pfeifferfranz · CC BY-SA 3.0

Field
Christian altar · table

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wikidata · Q1590136 · wikipedia · People's altar

In this article

  1. 01Origins and development
  2. 02Notes, references and evidence

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