The Tabernacle is Not a Sepulchre

 

The Tabernacle is Not a Sepulchre

Dear Brothers in the Priesthood,

Grace and peace in Christ Jesus our Lord, who gives Himself to us in the Most Holy Eucharist.

I write to you as a brother and fellow servant at the altar, out of deep reverence for the mystery we celebrate each day and out of concern for how we treat the sacred Body of Christ reserved in our churches. In some parishes, the tabernacle has quietly become a place of accumulation rather than adoration. This calls for our reflection and renewal.

The tabernacle is not a sepulchre. It is not a place for storing many sacred species as if Christ were to remain enclosed without purpose. The tabernacle is a place of presence and prayer, a dwelling of the living Lord who remains with His people out of love. As *Redemptionis Sacramentum* reminds us, “The reservation of the Holy Eucharist in the tabernacle is principally for the sick and those who cannot participate in Mass” (RS 130). This means that what is reserved should be only what is needed for this pastoral care.

My brothers, many of us, perhaps out of habit or misplaced caution, consecrate far more hosts than necessary. Often, large numbers remain in the tabernacle from one Mass to another. This does not reflect the mind of the Church. The *General Instruction of the Roman Missal* teaches clearly that “it is most desirable that the faithful receive the Lord’s Body from hosts consecrated at the same Mass” (GIRM 85). This expresses the fullness of the Eucharistic sign, the unity between the sacrifice offered and the Communion received. When we give what has been reserved unnecessarily, we weaken that sign and risk turning the living mystery into a routine gesture.

The priest is a steward, not a storekeeper, of the sacred mysteries. Every parish priest should know the number of his communicants, not by rough guess but by pastoral awareness. We must plan our celebration with care, consecrating what is needed so that the sacred species are consumed at Mass, leaving only a few for the sick and the dying. This is an act of love, of reverence, and of obedience to the mind of the Church.

When the tabernacle holds only what is truly needed, its purpose becomes clear. It remains a place of adoration, where Christ waits to strengthen the weak and accompany the suffering. It is not meant to be filled beyond need, for the Eucharist is not a thing to be kept but a person to be encountered and received.

Let us therefore renew our Eucharistic practice. Let us handle the Body of Christ with the same awe that filled the hearts of the disciples at Emmaus when their eyes were opened. Let us make every tabernacle a place of simplicity and purity, where the faithful may pray before the living Lord with faith and love.

This renewal will also teach our people that every Mass is complete in itself, not dependent on what is stored but on what is offered anew. It will deepen our reverence and draw us closer to the true meaning of the Eucharist.

Brothers, this is not a correction but a plea from one who loves the Eucharist and shares your priestly burden. Let us take up this call together for the sake of our people and for the honor of the Blessed Sacrament. May our love for the Eucharist shine forth in our care, our precision, and our devotion.

With fraternal affection and prayer,

Fr Lawrence Ogundipe SDV 

Servant of the Servants of God