Restoring the Tabernacle!

The Good Looking One and I had to attend Mass at a different parish this past weekend, so when I went to our home parish the next day for daily Mass I made sure I got a copy of the bulletin.

To my delight, I discovered a small announcement:

"BRINGING THE HOLY EUCHARIST INTO THE MAIN BODY OF THE CHURCH"

Yes!

Back in 1998, our parish church was "renovated." The pastor at that time wanted it to be the latest thing. He spent a lot of our cash reserves because the people wouldn't put up the money for his dream. (We quit the parish for a while over that one.)

The church building was old, worn out, and did need some work. But this went much further than painting, re-carpeting, or repairing. The building was transformed from a long traditional church into one of those church-in-a-semicircle sort of modern things to encourage a sense of community and closeness, or some such reason. The altar was moved from one of the long ends of the church to one of the side walls around which the pews were arranged a semicircle. A new main entrance/gathering space was installed on the opposite side wall.

The balcony/choir loft that used to be at the back of the church (where the main entrance had been) was kept, but the stairs up to it removed and two confessional rooms and a perpetual adoration chapel installed beneath it. That balcony is unused - no way to get to it except by ladder - so it just sits up there gathering dust. (Never understood that move.) Meanwhile, the choir/music groups now stand to the left of the new main altar, blocking access to one of the side altars making it more difficult for people to get to that altar to light votive candles.

Not sure who did this planning.

Back to the back. The new perpetual adoration chapel that was built there was kept open 24-hours a day, the door to it kept unlocked, with the door into the main church kept locked except for Masses, confessions, and church events. The Tabernacle was placed in the chapel, allowing for perpetual adoration. I did like having the chapel, and made use of it. But I always wondered about how safe the Tabernacle was there, and about the hassles of having to send someone there during Masses to retrieve or return the blessed hosts.

According toe the bulletin piece, the parish is requesting permission from the Bishop to move the Tabernacle to the Sanctuary. "We believe that this change will foster our efforts to emphasize the real presence and mystery of Christ in the Mass and in the Eucharist," the piece notes. "The Chapel will continue to be used for private adoration."

The parish is awaiting permission to make the move, and hopes to have the new Tabernacle installed before Advent.

I applaud this effort. I think the Tabernacle belongs in the main church in the Sanctuary. I never understood the renovation projects and new church buildings that stuck it off to the side somewhere.

Maybe having the Body of Christ right there will help to increase reverence.

Maybe people will stop carrying on the loud conversations and leaving Mass early if that sense of reverence increases.

Okay, maybe I'm overly optimistic about that.

But I will welcome the Tabernacle being back in the church.

Now if we can only figure out a use for that dust-gathering balcony. Or how to even get up to it other than by ladder.

Perhaps we should ask St. Joseph of Cupertino to offer some suggestions or to say a few prayers for us ....

Pax et bonum