The tabernacle, which stands in the middle of the high altar, is made of wood, marble or brass, gilt inside, andlined with white silk curtains. In earlier times it was situated beside, not above the altar. The name of tabernacle, or tent is given to it, from the sacred tent of the Israelites; and the mysterious cloud that accompanied them on their journey, was a type of tabernacle of God in which He dwells with men. A lamp is kept burning continually in the sanctuary before the tabernacle, to indicate the place where the Blessed Sacrament is reserved, and also to symbolize the Light of the world. It is, besides, emblematic of the perpetual adoration the angels pay to the God present upon the altar. In the Temple at Jerusalem there was a candlestick with seven branches in which lights burned continually. Our Divine Lord is thus ever present with mortal men; as He Himself declares "I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world" (Matt. 28) He is as truly present with us as he is with the saints in heaven; the only difference is that they behold Him face to face, whereas He is hidden from our sight beneath the Eucharistic veils. The manna preserved in the ark was a type of the hidden God present in our tabernacles.
God was present in the Temple, Jesus is present, Body, Blood, Soul & Divinity in the Tabernacle of every Catholic Church, under the sacramental veil.