An altar is a picture of sacrifice. Violence. Death. An undoing. As I reflect on the violent death that surrounds Jesus Christ's sacrifice on the cross, I also contemplate the structure that has been cemented in religious practice for generations. Depiction of an ancient altar. This image is AI-generated. In scripture we are first introduced to the altar in Genesis 8:20 (NIV): Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he s