Why Are Some Tabernacles Veiled?
Question: What is the purpose of the cloth that covers the tabernacle in church? I have noticed that some Catholic churches do not have this cloth covering the tabernacle. The uncovered tabernacle door usually has a beautiful engraving of something like a ciborium or two angels. It seems a pity to hide these from sight.
Answer: The original tabernacles were little cabinets, kept away from the place where people gathered for worship, where consecrated bread was stored so that it could be taken to the sick.
By the Middle Ages, the reserved Sacrament had become a focus for devotional prayer outside of Mass times. For this reason, tabernacles were housed in a niche on the side wall of the sanctuary or secured to the top of a free-standing pillar. Some of these became elaborately carved towers called “sacrament houses”.
Another alternative was to place the Blessed Sacrament in a pyx or a metallic dove which was suspended on chains above the altar.
Tabernacles were not routinely placed on altars until the 1500s. After the Council of Trent (1545-63), our altars became ornate confections of marble, wood or plaster, with shelves for candlesticks and flowers. The tabernacle was a secured box built into the centre of this architectural feature.
Since there might be several tabernacles in one church, the presence of the Blessed Sacrament was shown by covering the doors of the chosen tabernacle with a curtain or veil, and by ensuring that a lamp was burning continuously nearby.
After the Second Vatican Council mandated a revision of the liturgy, medieval and baroque architecture gave way to earlier, Patristic usage. The ambo and the free-standing altar were restored. Tabernacles were no longer regarded as a part of the altar, but were given a variety of shapes and forms.
While the sanctuary lamp is still mandatory, tabernacle veils are not. The last mention of the tabernacle veil in an official liturgical document is in the instruction Inaestimabile Donum of 1980 which simply quotes the earlier Eucharisticum Mysterium of 1967. Since the publication of these instructions, Canon Law has been revised and the General Instruction on the Roman Missal has been updated. Neither mentions tabernacle veils.
As you have noticed, many churches now prefer to leave the tabernacle uncovered to show the beauty of its decoration. This having been said, the local bishop is entitled to make diocesan directives on these matters. For example, the late Bishop Michael Coleman of Port Elizabeth was one who insisted on tabernacle veils in all churches under his jurisdiction.
When such a veil is used, white is the default colour, though the veil is usually changed to match the colour of the vestments used for different feasts and seasons.
Answered by Fr Thomas Plastow SJ in the July 2024 issue of The Southern Cross magazine
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