Genuflection gone?

  • Thread starter Thread starter mrs_abbott
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
BlyssfulDreamer said:
Tell ya what…you take my knees and back for a day and see what you have to say about it. I bow when I enter and leave the pew…a very profound bow…and when i kneel my derriere rests on the edge of the pew…but I pray the Rosary daily and I attend daily Mass and I attend Holy Hour as it is offered once a week…so maybe…just maybe the Lord will give me a “pass” for not genuflecting and maybe not being able to get up. I DO get on both knees if I am at Exposition and I am quite a sight trying to get up. I know the Lord isn’t judging me…too bad humans with human frailities are…😦

:heart:Blyss
Click to expand...
So did you read my post at all?
Or did you just react with emotion seeing that I was negatively portraying those who do not genuflect out of ignorance or evil intentions.

Please read my post carefully as I do acknowledge that there are certain people who cannot genuflect and are perfectly acceptable as Catholics to not do so if not possible.
No-one on this thread even was talking negatively of those people at all.
No-one, so don’t turn this into a feelings thing that Catholics should be more compassionate for those who cannot, as this is clearly expressed as a valid reason not to. So please read carefully as no-one here was judging you and probably are not judging you at Mass either.

Most of us don’t have time to judge as we are too busy praying that the Lord will grant faith to those who so willfully ignore Him and insult Him by irreverence, which is the more common reason for these actions at Mass.

Or maybe I am too busy at Mass trying to teach my kids the truth when heresy is taught by the very actions of the majority of people attending Mass.

Forgive my harsh tone, but sometimes we need to get our point across directly or else others can misunderstand the point.

And the point here is proper respect and belief in Jesus.

In Christ
Scylla
 
mnowlin1 said:
Thanks! Heres a question… Is it wrong to enter the church and turn away from the altar towards the Tabernacle which is in a side chapel and genuflect…or is this either disrespectful or inviting the ire of someone?
Click to expand...
Personally, I would give my attention to Jesus. You can bow to the
Altar as you pass.

I was visiting a parish in FL when a Gaggle of EMHCs came out and bowed to the Altar then went into their seats. The problem was, they passed the tabernacle on the side with no acknowledgement at all.

So sad,
 
netmil(name removed by moderator) said:
Personally, I would give my attention to Jesus. You can bow to the
Altar as you pass.

I was visiting a parish in FL when a Gaggle of EMHCs came out and bowed to the Altar then went into their seats. The problem was, they passed the tabernacle on the side with no acknowledgement at all.

So sad,
Click to expand...
Sad for sure. Thanks for the opinion.
 
scylla said:
So did you read my post at all?
Or did you just react with emotion seeing that I was negatively portraying those who do not genuflect out of ignorance or evil intentions.

Please read my post carefully as I do acknowledge that there are certain people who cannot genuflect and are perfectly acceptable as Catholics to not do so if not possible.
Click to expand...
I read and re-read your post from which I took your quote re: knees…and nowhere do you state or acknowledge that there are those who are not able to genuflect. Maybe I missed it…don’t think so though.

:heart:Blyss
 
At various times we have several Asians who attend our church and they never genuflect. Maybe that is the way they do it in their own churches…as we have a Vietnamese Catholic Church here in town.

:heart:Blyss
 
BlyssfulDreamer said:
I read and re-read your post from which I took your quote re: knees…and nowhere do you state or acknowledge that there are those who are not able to genuflect. Maybe I missed it…don’t think so though.

:heart:Blyss
Click to expand...
So did you really pay attention when you read it and the one after it which you responded to about an hour later?

My quote about the knees was acknowledging that there are people who cannot genuflect, my post had nothing negative at all with people who cannot genuflect.
These would be the exception and that is not who I was talking about because that is not the problem.
The problem is what I was addressing,

“People take the exception and make it a rule.”

You would be the exception, “the ambulance”
Does the ambulance disrespect the stop sign?
The majority of people would be the ones running the stop sign and disrespecting it, without need and putting themselves above respect for God.
Maybe I shouldn’t have used an analogy.

Now please lets get back to the subject. Everybody knows that those with problematic knees or other problems would be the exception.

What this thread is about is the common disrespect and denial of the Catholic faith that is taught to our Children\poorly Catechized Adults, in the faithless expression multiplied countless times across the nation.

In Christ
Scylla
 
BlyssfulDreamer said:
At various times we have several Asians who attend our church and they never genuflect. Maybe that is the way they do it in their own churches…as we have a Vietnamese Catholic Church here in town.

:heart:Blyss
Click to expand...
genuflexion is a posture of respect and honor for royalty in Western culture, which is why we use it for our Lord and King. Other cultures use gestures which are meaningful to them, such as a deep bow. In attending Vietnamese and Korean parishes I notice that never is their any hand holding, handshakes etc. the sign of peace is verbal, sometimes with a bow, even family members do not touch or embrace. While in Hispanic congregations, the family hugging and kissing goes on for a long time.
 
scylla said:
Or maybe bad knees have become the norm.
Click to expand...
Here’s the thing. There are a lot of young people that could genuflect and they don’t. Jesus knows who they are.

But, many don’t because of bad knees.

That said, just because someone is young, doesn’t mean that they should genuflect. They could have bad knees. I do.

At age 40, I was told that I would need a knee replacement within 10 years. Hardly old. Then or now. In fact, I look like a fit women, that could be on her knees for a long time. I could only do that if someone was there to help me up. :rolleyes:

Mrs. Abbott…make a big deal about genuflecting. Go down, stay down for a couple of seconds, cross yourself, then get back up. People will see you, and maybe someone will learn from you. Same for everyone else that can genuflect. Be an example. Show others your faith.

On a side note, the first time that my son entered our new parish, he bowed and entered the pew. I pulled him back out and told him to genuflect. See, in our old parish the tabernacle was in a side chapel and you couldn’t see it from the main church. Maybe many of the people at church on Christmas were from parishes with the tabernacle hidden away. Or this was the first time at Church in a long time. They just weren’t used to genuflecting when entering a pew.
 
mrs_abbott said:
Ok, I know I haven’t been the best Catholic and haven’t been attending Mass like I should but I went this Christmas and noticed that folks don’t genuflect anymore. 😦
Even the priest bows and doesn’t genuflect. I genuflected, since that’s what I’ve been taught to do since I was a little girl.
Is it like this in anyone else’s parish?
I was taught that genuflecting showed great reverence and respect.
Click to expand...
Maybe it’s just gone by the wayside in your parish? If people see you doing it they may, little by little, follow suit. EWTN has had a big influence in my area, we have a radio station right in town and most of our priests(and quite a few lay people) listen or watch EWTN and it’s really having an effect on everything, I mean reminding us how important it is to keep to Catholic teachings and practices.
 
wjp984 said:
Isn’t genuflecting an optional thing to do?
Click to expand...
Yes, so is following Jesus. We are not forced to do anything, to respect anything or to even love God.
They do ask that you refrain from unnecessary noise in Church to, but you are free to bring a cell phone and talk on it. It just is disrespectful to God.

It all comes down to what should we do, genuflecting is an expression of respect and honor which we do especially for God.

(I will ignore the bad knees comments as we are talking about people who can genuflect, when the majority of the parish doesn’t it isn’t bad knees affecting them)
Bad knees are a valid reason to not genuflect.
So back to the subject…

Yes it is optional, some cultures do it some do not. When it is the norm to show your respect for God in the Eucharist then you do it.

The problem is many people have been taught lies instead of the Catholic faith, so they don’t even know to do it when they enter the Church. It is a reflection of the fact that Jesus is there, that is why we do it.
They might change the custom someday to something else. I cannot think of something more appropriate, which is probably why we genuflect. It is a proper expression of respect and honor to God when we enter the Church.

Here is a quote from a nice article on this
“Just imagine how an atheist would act if he were to attend a Catholic service; would he act any differently from the average Catholic in the church? Now if the atheist acts the same as the average Catholic, then we must acknowledge that the average Catholic is acting as an atheist.”

In Christ
Scylla
 
scylla said:
So did you really pay attention when you read it and the one after it which you responded to about an hour later?

My quote about the knees was acknowledging that there are people who cannot genuflect, my post had nothing negative at all with people who cannot genuflect.
These would be the exception and that is not who I was talking about because that is not the problem.
The problem is what I was addressing,

Now please lets get back to the subject. Everybody knows that those with problematic knees or other problems would be the exception.
Click to expand...
Scylla…I responded to your message #5 which you made the comment about bad knees maybe being the “norm”…I did not choose to post to your following message…because truthfully your analogies made no sense.

As someone pointed out…it is not only the elderly who have bad knees or backs…and although I am 58, I don’t count myself as elderly either…LOL. So, we are really…none of us…in any position to judge why someone does or does NOT genuflect.

Yes, lets gat back to the subject…your analogies are giving me a headache.

:heart:Blyss
 
I actually didn’t genuflect when I went to Adoration yesterday, I was preoccupied with getting there in time for the Devine Mercy chaplet and when I realised I didn’t I was really mad at myself, but at a loss as to how to undo the damage, except for asking forgiveness of Jesus, and hoping I didn’t scandalize anyone.😦
 
Cool, let’s get back to the subject…

Which is Catholics acting as the same as unbelievers when in Church, by their actions.

And as I said before we shouldn’t worry about everyone else even if they are committing heresy if we are doing the same. We should look at our own actions and teach others.

I usually close my eyes so I don’t have to see the awful behavior of others at Mass and go to Mass first worrying about my own salvation. As ultimately that is the most important to each of us.

It doesn’t matter to you in the end if you go to Heaven and everyone else goes to Hell, but we must try and help everyone else go to Heaven. Ultimately it is up to each person and God.

Heresy is promoted by the very actions of many Priest\Religious Women and most Laypeople at Mass and this is what we each must combat by our actions and fidelity to God.

In Christ
Scylla
 
People, people . . .

Quit with the bad knees debate. That’s giving ME a headache!
 
Carrie_Andrews said:
I actually didn’t genuflect when I went to Adoration yesterday, I was preoccupied with getting there in time for the Devine Mercy chaplet and when I realised I didn’t I was really mad at myself, but at a loss as to how to undo the damage, except for asking forgiveness of Jesus, and hoping I didn’t scandalize anyone.😦
Click to expand...
No big deal, as you would have done it if you weren’t so focused on being faithful to God, So the greater fidelity won out this time, though both are important.
I am sure there are priests who have stumbled over words at Mass due to their reverence for the Sacrament.

A mistake is not something wrong, unless my mistakes are brought on by a disregard for God or hatred of being faithful.

I have felt bad for not praying before a meal, but then I just pray when I get the chance and resolve to keep God in my thoughts. We shouldn’t get scrupulous.

God Bless
Scylla
 
Carrie_Andrews said:
I actually didn’t genuflect when I went to Adoration yesterday, I was preoccupied with getting there in time for the Devine Mercy chaplet and when I realised I didn’t I was really mad at myself, but at a loss as to how to undo the damage, except for asking forgiveness of Jesus, and hoping I didn’t scandalize anyone.😦
Click to expand...
Carrie, you are much too hard on yourself 🙂 I have done this kind of thing myself. Next time you go get their earlier and pray before others arrive. I do this when I feel I’ve been too hurried and not paying attention.
 
I have felt bad for not praying before a meal, but then I just pray when I get the chance and resolve to keep God in my thoughts. We shouldn’t get scrupulous.
Click to expand...
God Bless
Scylla
Click to expand...
What I hate is when I worry too much about what others might think. In my own parish there is not a great deal of genuflecting…more bowing so I feel self conscience doing it. I am mainly refering to leaving or entering the pews here, also everyone is leaving and you know your going to hold up the line a bit. Our parish is pretty old and fairly tiny so it can be tricky. Anyway, I feel bad for allowing others to stop me from taking my time.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top