Why "Ad Orientem"?

     Why “Ad Orientem”? “Ad Orientem” means “To the East” and is an extremely old early Church practice where the priest and the lay faithful face the Altar which is to the East. This is highly symbolic because Christ will come from the East in the final days, and the East, ever since early Christianity was symbolic of Christ Himself. Why do many parishes choose not to do this? (Even if the Church is built facing another direction, the priest can still face the altar and look at the Crucifix). The argument against this is that the priest has his back to the people, causing a disconnect during the Mass. I have two counter arguments to this objection.

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