To enter the kingdom of heaven, Jesus said, we must become like children (Matthew 18:2-4). At St. Peter’s Episcopal Chapel, a summer chapel located in Leland, adults as well as children gather around an altar to celebrate the Holy Eucharist on Saturdays at 5:00pm, and on Sundays at 8:00, 9:00, and 10:30am.
At the Eucharist at 10:30am on Sundays, our altar is not the usually height of thirty-nine (39”) inches, but twenty-four inches (24”) high, so that people in wheelchairs, those unable to stand, and especially young children can gather around it in order to celebrate the sacrament at it.
Why is this important? Because the sacrament is not something a priest offers for the baptized faithful, but something the baptized faithful, together with their priest, offer for the sake of the world. Thus, the altar is “sized” to accommodate all the baptized – even the smallest child.
