During the Our Father

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Jocelyn

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While I was growing up, families held hands while praying the Our Father during mass. In my parish, people have started holding out their hands like Jesus on the cross. (That is the best way I can explain it.)
Are we now supposed to hold out our hands like this, or is it ok to hold hands while saying the Our Father. Personally, I would rather hold hands with my family.
What is correct?
 
Go down to the post called “Our Father” begun by LausDeo. It deals with this question. This issue seems to pop up with frequency on these forums.
 
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Jocelyn:
While I was growing up, families held hands while praying the Our Father during mass. In my parish, people have started holding out their hands like Jesus on the cross. (That is the best way I can explain it.)
Are we now supposed to hold out our hands like this, or is it ok to hold hands while saying the Our Father. Personally, I would rather hold hands with my family.
What is correct?
Click to expand...
neither of these postures is in the rubrics as a prescribed liturgical action for the congregation.
 
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puzzleannie:
neither of these postures is in the rubrics as a prescribed liturgical action for the congregation.
Click to expand...
Bishops have authoity to allow it and they do in most places worldwide.
 
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thistle:
Bishops have authoity to allow it and they do in most places worldwide.
Click to expand...
Most Bishops would not tell a group that they cannot spontaniously hold hands, however from the Vatican down, it is stated that we are not to be encouraging this in the liturgy.
Even in the Phillipines.
This on hand holding from your Diocese…

"The news item actually came on the heels of the recently concluded 20th National Meeting of Diocesan Directors of Liturgy, held last Sept. 12-16 in Palo, Leyte, under the auspices of Palo Archbishop Pedro Dean. The national association of liturgy directors is also under the guidance of the Episcopal Commission on Liturgy of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines. At present, Bishop Romulo Valles of the Diocese of Kidapawan chairs the commission./snip/

Guiding our understanding on the matter of the “holding of hands” are the important keywords “culture” and “liturgy.”
Code: 
                 The discussions of the Palo meeting in September, centering                      on the theme "Rubrics in the Celebration of the Eucharist,"                      concluded with a statement that, despite its notable intentions,                      was twisted by some quarters and became the source of the                      so-called prohibition. The statement mentions that "it                      is possible to eliminate in the assembly indecorous movements                      or bodily gestures" in the celebration of the Vatican                      II Mass./snip/
The most controversial aspect of the kuryente news that the Vatican banned the holding of the hands is nowhere mentioned in the statement. In truth, there is no papal pronouncement prohibiting it. On the other hand, it must be noted that the holding of the hands is not in the rubrics, and hence is not the liturgical norm."
[inq7.net/globalnation/col_krm/2005/](http://www.inq7.net/globalnation/col_krm/2005/)
 
netmil(name removed by moderator):
Most Bishops would not tell a group that they cannot spontaniously hold hands, however from the Vatican down, it is stated that we are not to be encouraging this in the liturgy.
Even in the Phillipines.
This on hand holding from your Diocese…

"The news item actually came on the heels of the recently concluded 20th National Meeting of Diocesan Directors of Liturgy, held last Sept. 12-16 in Palo, Leyte, under the auspices of Palo Archbishop Pedro Dean. The national association of liturgy directors is also under the guidance of the Episcopal Commission on Liturgy of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines. At present, Bishop Romulo Valles of the Diocese of Kidapawan chairs the commission./snip/

Guiding our understanding on the matter of the “holding of hands” are the important keywords “culture” and “liturgy.”
Code: 
                 **The discussions of the Palo meeting in September, centering                      on the theme "Rubrics in the Celebration of the Eucharist,"                      concluded with a statement that, despite its notable intentions,                      was twisted by some quarters and became the source of the                      so-called prohibition. ** The statement mentions that "it                      is possible to eliminate in the assembly indecorous movements                      or bodily gestures" in the celebration of the Vatican                      II Mass./snip/
The most controversial aspect of the kuryente news that the Vatican banned the holding of the hands is nowhere mentioned in the statement. In truth, there is no papal pronouncement prohibiting it. On the other hand, it must be noted that the holding of the hands is not in the rubrics, and hence is not the liturgical norm."
Code: 
                [inq7.net/globalnation/col_krm/2005/](http://www.inq7.net/globalnation/col_krm/2005/)
Click to expand...
Thanks for the link. I’ve read the article through and it says that while holding hands during the Our Father is not in the rubrics, whether or not it is prohibited here in the Philippines is ambiguous. I do agree with the last paragraph in the article. If my fellow Filipinos want to hold hands or not, I don’t care. Here’s what our Archiocese in Manila said explicitly about holding hands lest my Filipino brethren get further confused:
rcam.org/news/2005/no_ban_on_our_father_singing_holding_hands.htm

What we don’t do here though is holding hands until the doxology, and other hand gestures that I’ve seen other people in the US do when we say “and also with you”, “we lift them up to the Lord”, etc. I think these gestures are what our bishops might be referring to regarding “indecorous movements” (I personally haven’t seen liturgical dances here, must be a US thing). They did not say holding hands during the “Our Father” is one of them (see above link).
 
I was always taught that if something is not in the rubrics/GIRM, adding it is not correct. I have heard about 4 different Priests on radio shows etc., discuss this, and not one has said it was correct to hold hands.

I also heard recently that there may be a clarification of this point from the Vatican, along with some other confusions of the Liturgy, Has anyone else heard anything about it?
 
I hate it. But I wish our Bishops would either say “do it” or “don’t do it” and I’ll happily obey. Until then, I’ll continue bow my head and keep my hands to myself when I pray.
 
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thistle:
Bishops have authoity to allow it and they do in most places worldwide.
Click to expand...
However, the Bishops have not been given the authority to command it. The Bishop can’t make it the “norm” for his diocese, for example.
 
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totustuusmaria:
However, the Bishops have not been given the authority to command it. The Bishop can’t make it the “norm” for his diocese, for example.
Click to expand...
And likewise a priest cannot add it to the liturgy of his parish.
 
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totustuusmaria:
However, the Bishops have not been given the authority to command it. The Bishop can’t make it the “norm” for his diocese, for example.
Click to expand...
I agree with you they cannot command it.
They can announce that it is not forbidden therefore it is not an abuse when the congregation holds hands.
 
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