Gesture after mass & leaving pew?

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faithfulwannabe

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I just went to church few times, and I saw after mass, people who are leaving pew, they bend/squat a little & then make a cross sign.

Is it what all Catholic do? I usually forgot to do that & just leave the pew, only to realize after stepping out of the door šŸ˜ƒ
 
We always genuflect before Christ (The Eucharist is usually in the tabernacle in the back center of the altar and it has been blessed, so we believe it to be the body of Christ). Therefore, as we leave the church, we usually go down on one knee and make the sign of the cross as a sign of respect before leaving.
 
faithfulwannabe said:
I just went to church few times, and I saw after mass, people who are leaving pew, they bend/squat a little & then make a cross sign.

Is it what all Catholic do? I usually forgot to do that & just leave the pew, only to realize after stepping out of the door šŸ˜ƒ
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It is called genuflection. If the tabernacle that holds the consecrated hosts is visible in the church (usually it is up front somewhere, but in some churches it is in a separate chapel), reverence is shown to Our Lord in the tabernacle by bending the knees and touching the right knee to the floor. Some people have knee problems and canā€™t bend their knees that far, (or they are in a hurry) so they kind of look like their squatting. One genuflects before entering and leaving the pew, and also if one passes the tabernacle.

If the tabernacle is empty, or if there is no visible tabernacle in the church, one makes a bow from the waist to the altar before entering and leaving the pew.

You can tell if Jesus is in the tabernacle by the presence of a lit candle (usually in a red glass holder, sometimes another color) near it and the door will be closed. If the candle is not lit and the door is open, there are no consecrated hosts present, and one does not need to genuflect.

One also genuflects before the Monstrance with the host in it for Exposition and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament before entering the pew, or during a procession with the Monstrance, when it passes them, or at certain other times. Just follow the crowd in this.
 
Oh, I see!

Uh yes, Iā€™m sorry, the right description is ā€œbending the right knee to the floorā€. Iā€™m not an English native so I couldnā€™t figure out how to describe what I see, Iā€™m so sorry. I just give the word/s that crossed my mind before, and that was, bend / kind of squat. Well, sorry about that. šŸ˜ƒ

So the term is ā€˜genuflectionā€™. Ok, I got that. Wow, Iā€™m so alien to Catholic faith, Iā€™m sorry.
 
faithfulwannabe said:
Oh, I see!

Uh yes, Iā€™m sorry, the right description is ā€œbending the right knee to the floorā€. Iā€™m not an English native so I couldnā€™t figure out how to describe what I see, Iā€™m so sorry. I just give the word/s that crossed my mind before, and that was, bend / kind of squat. Well, sorry about that. šŸ˜ƒ

So the term is ā€˜genuflectionā€™. Ok, I got that. Wow, Iā€™m so alien to Catholic faith, Iā€™m sorry.
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No worries. Itā€™s a really good question from someone coming from the Protestant end of things! šŸ‘
 
Some people do genuflect still but in the parishes in our area that is not the norm. Most people will bow their heads towards the altar before they enter the pew or leave the pew. Some people will do the sign of the cross some will not. Depending on where you attend you may see both and either is OK.
 
mountee said:
Some people do genuflect still but in the parishes in our area that is not the norm. Most people will bow their heads towards the altar before they enter the pew or leave the pew. Some people will do the sign of the cross some will not. Depending on where you attend you may see both and either is OK.
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Either is not OK. A genuflection is the required gesture, unless one is too infirm to make it.
 
CB_Catholic said:
It is called genuflection. If the tabernacle that holds the consecrated hosts is visible in the church (usually it is up front somewhere, but in some churches it is in a separate chapel), reverence is shown to Our Lord in the tabernacle by bending the knees and touching the right knee to the floor. Some people have knee problems and canā€™t bend their knees that far, (or they are in a hurry) so they kind of look like their squatting. One genuflects before entering and leaving the pew, and also if one passes the tabernacle.

If the tabernacle is empty, or if there is no visible tabernacle in the church, one makes a bow from the waist to the altar before entering and leaving the pew.

You can tell if Jesus is in the tabernacle by the presence of a lit candle (usually in a red glass holder, sometimes another color) near it and the door will be closed. If the candle is not lit and the door is open, there are no consecrated hosts present, and one does not need to genuflect.

One also genuflects before the Monstrance with the host in it for Exposition and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament before entering the pew, or during a procession with the Monstrance, when it passes them, or at certain other times. Just follow the crowd in this.
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Well stated.
 
mountee said:
Some people do genuflect still but in the parishes in our area that is not the norm. Most people will bow their heads towards the altar before they enter the pew or leave the pew. Some people will do the sign of the cross some will not. Depending on where you attend you may see both and either is OK.
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I attend Mass at many locations in Ohio and have always genuflected and observed genuflection.
 
faithfulwannabe said:
Oh, I see!

Uh yes, Iā€™m sorry, the right description is ā€œbending the right knee to the floorā€. Iā€™m not an English native so I couldnā€™t figure out how to describe what I see, Iā€™m so sorry. I just give the word/s that crossed my mind before, and that was, bend / kind of squat. Well, sorry about that. šŸ˜ƒ

So the term is ā€˜genuflectionā€™. Ok, I got that. Wow, Iā€™m so alien to Catholic faith, Iā€™m sorry.
Click to expand...
Donā€™t worry! I was attending Mass with 2 toddlers for 4 months before I noticed that people were ā€œdoing somethingā€ before the Gospelā€¦ I was sooo embarrassed at having to ask šŸ™‚

(They are making a cross with their thumb and forefinger, and then ā€œwritingā€ a cross on their head, lips, and heart. The prayer that goes along with this gesture is, ā€œMay Thy words be in my mind, on my lips, and in my heart.ā€ or (many) variations thereof.)
 
Canuck000 said:
I attend Mass at many locations in Ohio and have always genuflected and observed genuflection.
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There is not a single Church in our area that has more than a few people genuflecting and it is not a requirement according to our parish priest. Even the lectors, deacons, lay ministers and priests simply stop in the center and bow their heads. I have relied on the instruction of our parish priest and feel that given what I have witnessed in many different churches that this is acceptable although different from the way I grew up.
 
Elizium23 said:
Either is not OK. A genuflection is the required gesture, unless one is too infirm to make it.
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In the case the OP asked about they referred to people leaving Mass. If the Eucharist is not in the tabernacle it is acceptable to simply bow. That is according to the instructions we have received from our parish priest. In our parish the eucharist is not at the altar at the conclusion of the Mass.
 
mountee said:
In the case the OP asked about they referred to people leaving Mass. If the Eucharist is not in the tabernacle it is acceptable to simply bow. That is according to the instructions we have received from our parish priest. In our parish the eucharist is not at the altar at the conclusion of the Mass.
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Your original statement was ā€œeither is okayā€. That is not exactly the case. I think you will find a vast majority of parishes have a tabernacle at the front of the church that the Eucharist is stored in. For cases where it is in a chapel outside of the regular church, the head not for leaving is fine.
 
If the Eucharist is not in the tabernacle then it is forbidden to genuflect anyway, but I wasnā€™t aware that this is the case for either you or the OP.
 
While we are kind of on the subject, I have been meaning to ask something. My parish church has a side chapel for the tabernacle. The sections around the altar sort of form a semicircle, so if I sit in my ā€œregularā€ seat, the chapel is straight out from the pew. I canā€™t quite figure out how to genuflect without completely turning my back to the pew and then turning back around to enter, which feels extremely awkward. Sometimes I actually walk all the way around and come in the pew from the other direction (which puts me facing the tabernacle straight on), just to avoid having to figure out how to genuflect. Is there a ā€œrightā€ way to do it?
 
Elizium23 said:
Either is not OK. A genuflection is the required gesture, unless one is too infirm to make it.
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If thereā€™s consecrated Host in the Tabernacle. (OP: You can tell because there will be a red light next to it, modeled after the continuously burning flame in the Old Covenant Temple) If there isnā€™t, youā€™re supposed to bow to the altar instead.
 
CB_Catholic said:
It is called genuflection.

One also genuflects before the Monstrance with the host in it for Exposition and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament before entering the pew, or during a procession with the Monstrance, when it passes them, or at certain other times. Just follow the crowd in this.
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Carol,
I believed at Exposition and Adoration it is kneeling as you enter the pew or small chapel. This position is very different than genuflection.
Anyone know what the ā€˜rubric isā€™ on this?
 
decatholic said:
Carol,
I believed at Exposition and Adoration it is kneeling as you enter the pew or small chapel. This position is very different than genuflection.
Anyone know what the ā€˜rubric isā€™ on this?
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Youā€™re only required to genuflect as normal. Genuflecting on both knees was 1917, but not 1983. That said, plenty of people still genuflect on both knees at Adoration. And not just those born before 1983.
 
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