<P> In the liturgy of the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, the altar is the structure that holds the Tabernacle, and in the Extraordinary form Mass on which the Sacrifice of the Mass is offered . In the Novus Ordo, the tabernacle is now often moved off to the side . Mass may sometimes be celebrated outside a sacred place, but traditionally never without an altar, or at least an altar stone until recent changes, a corporal now being sufficient . </P> <P> In the rites used in the Eastern Catholic churches, altar can also refer to the whole space surrounding the table within the church building (the area called the sanctuary in the West), with the table itself called the Holy Table . </P>

Where is the altar placed in a church