Bowing to altar or tabernacle?

  • Thread starter Thread starter AWall
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
A

AWall

Guest
Today I had the wonderful experience of seeing a “church in the round”. This church had the tabernacle in a separate chapel. I was told that you bow even if the tabernacle isn’t there b/c you are bowing to the altar. Bowing to the tabernacle is wrong.

So that confused me b/c I thought that you bow to the tabernacle b/c Jesus is in there when the lamp is lit. So if it’s the altar you bow to and not the tabernacle, then you genuflect to the altar as well before entering your pew?

Good grief I was so confused today.

Thanks for the help.

Andrea
 
“A church in the round.” That sounds like my parents’ church, and they also have their tabernacle in a separate chapel.
You are supposed to be genuflecting to the tabernacle, not to the altar.

Once when I was there, I genuflected before entering the pew out of habit, and I got some funny looks.
 
This is what I was told. Hopefully someone will confirm or correct:

If the tabernacle is visible, you genuflect towards the tabernacle (not towards the altar) when you enter/leave the pew, and also anytime you pass in front of the tabernacle. The exception is if you pass in front of the tabernacle on your way to/from Communion (if the tabernacle is off to the side of the sanctuary, for example, and you must pass in front of it given the Communion line you’re in.)

DURING Mass, if you are a lector or cantor, for example, when you leave your pew to go to the sanctuary, you do not genuflect to the tabernacle when you enter/leave the pew. Instead, you bow (profound bow) when you pass in front of/to the side of the altar.

If the tabernacle is not visible where Mass is held (a chapel off to the side, for example), then you bow to the altar upon entering and leaving your pew.
 
You bow to the altar. You genuflect when crossing in front of or approaching the Tabernacle. If the Tabernacle is in the Sanctuary usually either on top of or behind the altar it simplifies matters as you only genuflect.

As an aside, I’ve been in churches where it was almost impossible to find the Tabernacle.
 
My church’s tabernacle is in a separate chapel.

When i enter the pew, i genuflect anyway. I don’t care what people think of me.

If the tabernacle is behind tha altat, you genuflect before entering the sanctuary. If it is to the side, you bow to the altar, but if you pass the tabernacle, you genuflect.

In my church, with the tabernacle in the chapel, no-one but me and a few genuflect when we cross ourselves with holy water as we enter the church.
No-one else genuflects to the tabernacle, unless they are entering the chapel.
Silly people. My priest should erect a sign at the holy water font.
 
In latin Catholicism genuflecting is a sign of adoration or allegiance which is given to God. Bowing is a sign of respect which may be shown to people or things.
We genuflect towards the tabernacle because we are showing our adoration of and allegiance to Jesus who is present in the tabernacle. (If for whatever reason the Blessed Sacrament is not present, such as on Good Friday, we do not genuflect even if the tabernacle is in the church.)

We bow to the altar as a sign of respect for the altar itself. It will soon bear the Blessed Sacrament. But we shouldn’t be adoring the altar or promising allegiance to it.

When entering or leaving a pew, genuflecting to the Blessed Sacrament takes priority over bowing to the altar.
 
40.png
SMHW:
In latin Catholicism genuflecting is a sign of adoration or allegiance which is given to God. Bowing is a sign of respect which may be shown to people or things.
We genuflect towards the tabernacle because we are showing our adoration of and allegiance to Jesus who is present in the tabernacle. (If for whatever reason the Blessed Sacrament is not present, such as on Good Friday, we do not genuflect even if the tabernacle is in the church.)
Click to expand...
A little sidebar - I saw people genuflect before the body of JPII last year and wondered…??? I heard a priest explain that when we genuflect before the tabernacle we go down on our **right **knee - the right knee is the symbol for adoration. Savvy Catholics would genuflect on their **left **knee before the Pope - the left knee is a sign of respect for the Office of the Papacy. I assume the priest was correct?
 
40.png
palmas85:
You bow to the altar. You genuflect when crossing in front of or approaching the Tabernacle. If the Tabernacle is in the Sanctuary usually either on top of or behind the altar it simplifies matters as you only genuflect.

As an aside, I’ve been in churches where it was almost impossible to find the Tabernacle.
Click to expand...
Palmas:

I believe that you are correct. Although the Tabernacle is up at the front of the church, St. Mary’s has a Side Alter. I Bow to the Side Alter during Daily Mass, but genuflect towards the Tabernacle at all times.

Essentially, this is a matter of practice or discipline.

Regarding what is done during Mass - I’m in the habit of Genuflecting when I leave and enter the pew, as are my fellow parishioners. I can’t see why anyone whould tell someone not to do that unless they find it disruptive or they’ve forgotten who it is in the tabernacle or in the hands of the priest/deacon/EMHE.

In Christ, Michael
 
40.png
Elzee:
A little sidebar - I saw people genuflect before the body of JPII last year and wondered…??? I heard a priest explain that when we genuflect before the tabernacle we go down on our **right **knee - the right knee is the symbol for adoration. Savvy Catholics would genuflect on their **left **knee before the Pope - the left knee is a sign of respect for the Office of the Papacy. I assume the priest was correct?
Click to expand...
Elzee:

You also genuflct on the LEFT knee when you go up to adore a relic of the Church or during the service when you kiss the “Wood of the cross”.

It’s awefully hard to do if you’re a klutz as I’ve found out on a few Good Fridays.

The priest was right when he said the RIGHT knee is reserved for God.

In Christ, Michael
 
Neki?:
My church’s tabernacle is in a separate chapel.

When i enter the pew, i genuflect anyway. I don’t care what people think of me.

If the tabernacle is behind tha altat, you genuflect before entering the sanctuary. If it is to the side, you bow to the altar, but if you pass the tabernacle, you genuflect.

In my church, with the tabernacle in the chapel, no-one but me and a few genuflect when we cross ourselves with holy water as we enter the church.
No-one else genuflects to the tabernacle, unless they are entering the chapel.
Silly people. My priest should erect a sign at the holy water font.
Click to expand...
Daniel,

Actually, according to De Eucharistia, your priest should RELOCATE the tabernacle to the space behind the main alter where it belongs (or at least to a prominant place in the parish church). Anything else tends to discourage Eucharistic Adoration.

At least that’s what I think.

In Christ, Michael
 
Thank you all for this thread. I was puzzling over this issue just last night.

I think of it this way: I may bow to the altar, but my heart and mind are with the Blessed Sacrament.
 
I’m sure I’ll get slammed for not knowing something, but I was always under the impression that if the tabernacle is there (on the altar, as in my parish growing up) you genuflect whenever you cross in front of it (with the exception of when you are in the receiving line). I was also taught to genuflect when crossing the center of the altar, as the crucifix is there in the center, above the altar, and that was “who” that bend in the knee is for (not being flippant, trying to be specific.) In my church now, the tabernacle is in the sacristy, and the deacon goes to retrieve the host for consecration, replaces them at the end, etc. The lectors pause and then bow at the waist before stepping up onto the altar to give the readings.

I was ALSO taught to genuflect when entering/exiting the pew at the beginning and end of mass…no wonder my protestant friends refer to my mass as “catholic aerobics”
 
Traditional Ang:
Elzee:

You also genuflct on the LEFT knee when you go up to adore a relic of the Church or during the service when you kiss the “Wood of the cross”.

It’s awefully hard to do if you’re a klutz as I’ve found out on a few Good Fridays.

The priest was right when he said the RIGHT knee is reserved for God.

In Christ, Michael
Click to expand...
Oh, wow, that is why. I once visited the relics of the little flower. Suddenly, I was genuflecting on my left knee instead of the right. I couldn’t figure out why I was doing that and embarrassedly looked around to see if anyone noticed I was genuflecting on the wrong knee. Now I understand I was genuflecting with the correct knee. Amazing how the Holy Spirit works, isn’t it?
 
Traditional Ang:
Daniel,

Actually, according to De Eucharistia, your priest should RELOCATE the tabernacle to the space behind the main alter where it belongs (or at least to a prominant place in the parish church). Anything else tends to discourage Eucharistic Adoration.

At least that’s what I think.

In Christ, Michael
Click to expand...
The thing is that the Tabernacle has ALWAYS been in the chapel. The Church was built with the tabernacle in the chapel.

There is no original space for the tabernacle behind the altar.
Believe me, i would much rather the tabernacle behind the altar, but it just isn’t going to happen.
 
Traditional Ang:
Daniel,

Actually, according to De Eucharistia, your priest should RELOCATE the tabernacle to the space behind the main alter where it belongs (or at least to a prominant place in the parish church). Anything else tends to discourage Eucharistic Adoration.

At least that’s what I think.

In Christ, Michael
Click to expand...
In a Church in the Round, there is no “behind the main altar”. Most of these churches, did have seperate chapels for the Tabernacle.

A pre-Vatican II example in the US is the National Shrine of the Little Flower, built during the late 20’s

shrinechurch.com/image/tour/int.jpg
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top