I think that it’s very important to keep in mind that what a bow or genuflection means will vary by culture and time period. For example, there are some cultures today where a bow can be just a casual greeting. In older times, I imagine that to bow or genuflect was a lot more of a question of respect than of adoration like it is nowadays. Like, in those days it was customary to genuflect in front of a king or a lord, whereas nowadays when most Western cultures are run by presidents or prime ministers, that sort of gesture is unheard of - the level of power held by any one person is evened out and there is no such thing as having power by default, so these sorts of gestures have fallen out of use and come to mean something much different. The Church was once so powerful in government that a Pope was certainly an authority figure that one would bow or genuflect to just by default, as a sign of simple respect.Personally I would not bow, kneel, genuflect or kiss the ring of any human being. Even Peter, as he too was only human. Certain gestures are for God alone.
And how do you reconcile this with 2,000 of Catholic history both in the Church and in the secular world?Personally I would not bow, kneel, genuflect or kiss the ring of any human being. Even Peter, as he too was only human. Certain gestures are for God alone.
I don’t know her nationality, but personally, the way I would reconcile it is because Americans simply don’t bow to people. There is no one in the USA who really requires bowing (our figures of power are basically celebrities, the president, and various CEO’s - people of tremendous power that one would scarcely consider nodding to), and so to us, it is definitely an extra special thing that is reserved for the most high and mighty of all people. The person to whom an American might bow is a person that someone from a different culture might throw themselves on the floor and kiss the feet of. So in other words, we bow before Jesus in the tabernacle and…well, that’s about it.And how do you reconcile this with 2,000 of Catholic history both in the Church and in the secular world?
You are correct. I remember as a young girl this was also done for the Bishop & Cardinal.Yes, the traditional custom is to kneel on the left knee, kiss the Pope’s ring, and (though I could be wrong about this part) wait for his permission to rise. Whether this has become less common today, I don’t know, but it’s the proper form and it’s the way I plan to do it if I ever meet the Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church, the Vicar of Christ, the Pope.
Not that I think we should bring this practice back, which currently probably isn’t prudent, but it is the differences, not the similarities, that ultimately draw outsiders into the Church. I wouldn’t consider this fear to be a legit concern.I understand protocol and respect, and even veneration, when it comes to the office of the Holy Father. My concern was with the aspect of needlessly giving Protestants yet another reason to reject our truths, if in fact, it was only a personal decision to kneel, and not a requirement.
If you were in the Armed Forces would you Salute an Officer - if you did not you might find yourself either being kicked out, or under court martial, pride is a terrible thing as is lacking in humility. So I suppose if you were in Rome and is the custom to kiss the foot of the bronze statue of St. Peter in the Vatican you would not do that either. Sad.Personally I would not bow, kneel, genuflect or kiss the ring of any human being. Even Peter, as he too was only human. Certain gestures are for God alone.