 By the twelfth century it was for this purpose raised from the surface of the altar to the level of the priest's breast, while he said the words of consecration.For fear that people would adore the Host even before the consecration, the thirteenth century saw bishops forbidding priests to lift it to the sight of others before actually pronouncing the words.The practice of elevating the Host clearly into their sight immediately after the consecration was intended as sign that the change from bread to the Body of Christ had occurred at that stage, against the view of those who held that the change occurred only when the bread and the wine had both been consecrated.