“Bow down for the blessing” is what was said. (There was slightly different wording in the prior version of the Missal, but off-hand, I don’t recall the exact wording of the prior version.) (Edited to add: Ahh! There it is! Ad Orientem wrote the previous version of the line!)
I assume you mean besides bowing your head.
Do you mean that (regarding the final blessing) there are norms in the OF as well? Is the norm to bow? Thanks
What I mean is that the posture for the Blessing in OF Mass is regulated, that the posture is standing and that, strictly speaking, one should bow one’s head any time one hears the Three Divine Persons mentioned together, thus necessarily at the Blessing and some other parts of Mass. That is the rubrics regarding this.
Hmm… for the congregation, you mean? The GIRM specifies postures for the priest and ministers, but in the case of the blessing and dismissal, IIRC, there’s nothing there that prescribes a posture for the people. Do you have a citation to back up your claim? Thanks!
Of course: there’s no spoken response.
Hmm… to you, perhaps. The language in the GIRM simply distinguishes between a profound bow (that is, bowing at the waist) and a simple bow of the head. Neither is specified as a response by the people to the priest’s (or deacon’s) invitation to “bow down for the blessing.” I might suspect that a simple bow of the head is the appropriate response, but since no direction is given, it would seem that either bow (and by that, I mean a bow, not kneeling) would be reasonable.
. Yup I mean specifically to me through my filter! My understanding of terms and such is largely based on my Baptist upbringing and experiences. I’m still learning “Catholic” as my second language. Some things are obvious differences like own of my first question “what on earth is a Eucharist”, others you think you know what they mean until you suddenly realize you don’t!“275. A bow signifies reverence and honor shown to the persons themselves or to the signs that represent them. There are two kinds of bow: a bow of the head and a bow of the body.” It doesn’t say who, so it certainly applies to the priest, and I’d say also to the people by implication.
I understand now, thanks!
Yes, the section “bows and genuflections” defines what is meant by the term ‘bow’. However, you claimed that “the posture for the Blessing and Dismissal are rather heavily regulated”. I’m not seeing anything like that in #275. The blessing and dismissal aren’t even mentioned among the examples of bows during the Mass.
I think I’d quibble with you on that – I don’t think there’s the notion of “to the people by implication” here. As I mentioned, #275 gives the examples at which the ministers bow (simply or profoundly). It does not mention any gestures made by anyone other than ministers. Therefore, I don’t think there’s any “by implication” here.
Sorry about that. I don’t usually go to the Ordinary Form. In the Extraordinary Form we still kneel, but I believe it’s just custom; IIRC there are no rubrics for the people, at least in the EF. Are there rubrics for the people in the OF?