Q. 1. What is the purpose of the linen Corporal in the Catholic Church?

A. 1. The Corporal, from the Latin word "body", is a square white linen cloth, now usually somewhat smaller than the breadth (side to side width) of the Altar, upon which the Chalice and Paten, and also the Ciborium containing the smaller Hosts for the Communion of the laity, are placed during the celebration of the Holy Mass.

According to traditional liturgical rules, the Corporal must not be ornamented with embroidery, and must be made entirely of pure white linen, though there seem to have been many medieval exceptions to this rule. It is not to be left to lie open upon the Altar, but when not in use is to be folded and put away in a burse, or corporas-case, as it was commonly called in pre-Reformation England. Upon these burses much ornamentation is lavished, and this has been the case since medieval times, as many existing examples survive to show. The Corporal is now usually folded twice in length and twice in breadth, so that when folded it still forms a small square. At an earlier period, when it was larger and was used to cover the Chalice as well, it was commonly folded four times in length and thrice in breadth. This practice continued to be followed by some of the older religious orders, even when the rest of the church changed. The Corporal and pall have to pass through a triple washing at the hands of a priest, or at least a subdeacon, before they may be sent to a laundry. Also, when they are in use they may not be handled by any but the clergy, or sacristans to whom special permission is given. [Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporal_(liturgy)]