Encyclopedia of Mormonism
Altar
A focal point of religious worship throughout the ages, and
in most cultures, has been the altar-a natural or man-made elevation used for
prayer, sacrifice, and related purposes. Sacrifice on the altar was a basic
rite. The characteristic worship practice in Old Testament times was sacrificial
in nature, and consequently the altar became one of the most important ritual
objects described in that book of scripture.
Sacred and
symbolic meaning is ascribed to the altar. The stipulations of the "law of
the altar" (Ex.
20:24
-26) suggest that its construction is associated with the creation of the world
and God's covenants with humankind. As the waters of creation receded, dry land
appeared and was known as the primordial mound (first hill). Here, according to
legend, the gods stood in order to complete the Creation. Because of divine
presence, this spot became sacred or holy ground, a point of contact between
this world and the heavenly world. The altar was built that people might kneel
by it to communicate and make covenants with their God. The altar in Ezekiel
43:15 is named "the
mountain
of
God
" (Hebrew term, hahar'el), and becomes the symbolic embodiment of the
Creation, the primordial mound, and the presence of God.
At an altar
Adam learned the meaning of sacrifice (Moses 5:5-8). Following the Flood, the
patriarch Noah immediately built an altar and offered his sacrifices to the Most
High. When Abraham received the promise and covenant of an inheritance for his
posterity, he marked this sacred event with an altar (Gen. 12:6-7). On
Mount
Moriah
the young Isaac was bound upon the sacrificial table or altar in preparation
for his father's supreme offering and demonstration of obedience (Gen. 22:9-14).
Tradition says the place of this consecrated altar became the locus of the
temple in
Jerusalem
.
The temple
complex in
Jerusalem
had four different altars. In an ascending order of sacral primacy, they were
as follows: First, the Altar of Sacrifice, often called the altar of burnt
offering or the table of the Lord (Mal. 1:7, 12; 1 Cor. 10:21), was placed
outside of the temple itself in the Court of Israel and was more public than the
others. Sacrifices for the sins of
Israel
were offered here, anticipating fulfillment in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ
(Heb.
9:25
-26;
Alma
34:9-10, 14-16). Second, the Altar of Incense stood in the "holy
place" before the veil inside the temple proper. John describes the smoke
of this altar as the "prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was
before the throne" (Rev. 8:3-4). Third, within the same area of the temple
stood the Table of Shewbread, upon which rested twelve loaves of bread,
frankincense, and a drink offering. And fourth, the ark of the covenant rested
in the holy of holies, the most inner, sacred area within the temple. The ark
was to
Israel
the portable throne or Mercy Seat and symbolized the presence of the Lord. It
was here that the high priest, once a year on the Day of Atonement (Heb. 9:7;
Lev. 16:1-17), made covenants with the Lord for all
Israel
, as though he represented all at the altar.
In LDS temples,
altars of a different sort play a major role. Kneeling by them, Latter-day
Saints participate in covenant-making ceremonies. They make these covenants, as
was done anciently, in the symbolic presence of God at the altar (Ps. 43:4; cf.
Ps. 118:27). Thus, while kneeling at an altar in a temple, a man and woman make
covenants with God and each other in a marriage ceremony that is to be binding
both in mortality and in the eternal world. Here, if parents were not previously
married in a temple, they and their children may be sealed together for time and
eternity by the power and authority of the priesthood. Likewise, these
ordinances may be performed by proxies at an altar within the temple on behalf
of people identified in genealogical records as having died without these
privileges.
As the ancients
came to the altar to communicate and commune with God, so also do members of the
Church, in a temple setting, surround the altar in a prayer circle and in
supplication. United in heart and mind, the Saints petition God for his
blessings upon mankind, his Church, and those who have special needs.
In a more
public Sacrament meeting, the Altar of Sacrifice is symbolized by the
"Sacrament table." On this table are emblems of the sacrifice of Jesus
Christ, the bread and the water respectively representing the body and blood of
the Savior (Luke
22:19
-20). Each week individuals may partake of the Sacrament and renew their
covenants.
Today members
of the Church make sacred covenants with God and consecrate their lives and all
that they have been blessed with as they "come unto Christ" and lay
all things symbolically upon the altar as a sacrifice. To them a sacred altar is
a tangible symbol of the presence of God, before whom they kneel with "a
broken heart and contrite spirit" (2 Ne. 2:7; 3 Ne.
11:20
).
Bibliography
Eliade, Mircea. Patterns in Comparative Religion.
New York
, 1974.
Talmage, James E. The House of the Lord.
Salt Lake City
, 1971.
Packer, Boyd K. The
Holy
Temple
.
Salt Lake City
, 1980.
BRUCE H. PORTER