otjm…I won’t requote all that you criticized in my previous post, but there is no denying the fact that both the orans and handholding were lay initiated mostly by the charismatics in the late 60’s and early 70’s. To introduce such things not previously used, no matter how sincere and innocent the intentions, were bold actions not resembling the humilty usually expected of Catholics in the past.
I disagree that they were either bold or not resembling the humility expected; but on second thought I will take back part of that last statement. Previous to Vatican 2 the Church was seriously infected with clericalism. Priests and bishops are to be shepards, not some sort of upper class priviliged bosses. Yet today there are many who wish them to be, to return to the “glory days” of Father always being right. That attitude lead to the hiding of the priestly abuse - Father knows best, and the fool idiots in the pews wouldn’t understand; and besides, they would stop paying. And heaven knows that only three things were expected of the simpletons in the pews - pray, pay and obey.
So as to the “humility usually expected of Catholics in the past” I would say that good riddence might be the optimum attitude.
The problem is that too many people - those on the left and the right - can’t figure out where the line should start and should stop. The far left wants to either minimize into ambivalence the priesthood, or democratize it with women’s ordinations.
The right wants someone with an iron fist who will enforce the Law, crack heads and excommunicate all who do not agree; the last being anything from cafeteria “Catholic” politicians to anyone who would not condemn the heresy of Vatican 2 and the invalid protestantized so-called Novus Ordo Mass that we all know was a conspiracy of the Masons and an absolute outright sacrilige.
Holding hands is hardly what I would call a bold action. Was it engendered by enthusiasm? What I saw was. It was an attempt to get people out of an isolationism that was a “me and Jesus” mentality, as if Paul never mentioned anything about the Body of Christ? I think it was that too. There are some people who just can’t deal with an enthusiastic, caring and loving Christian. They have the attitude of the “dry drunk” who has gotten off alchohol, but can’t get over the bitterness. They feel that worship isn’t worship if it involves any show of emotion, any warmth, any sense of community (I am so sick to death of those who want to get on about “horizontal” liturgy) in corporate worship.
There seems to be an attitude that absolutely nothing good can come from the laity; that it all has to be handed down from a high throne, most particularly if that high throne is in the Vatican.
I do not suggest a willy nilly experimentation; I have seen enough of that. But the anal attitudes I see about holding hands absolutely stops me cold. I have heard the statements about the glares and occasional comments from those who hold hands directed to those who don’t; but I have seen the hand holding for over 40 years, and I simply don’t buy that it is anything but a rare occasion; I have seen far too many people not holding hands and no one looking askance at all.
Frankly, I don’t give a rat’s patootie whether people hold hands or don’t. If Rome said tomorrow we all should, then fine. If Rome said tomorrow we must not, that’s fine too - and probably, all things considered, better liturgically. But frankly, I’d like to see Rome mandate it for no other reason than to hear the cries and moans it would engender.
I can’t think of another issue where I have heard so many rude, nasty, snotty, belligerant and outright un-Christian comments as from some of those who don’t like it.
So as far as a “pray, pay and obey” humility, I would say that it did not fit into that. But as to a “bold” violation of norms, I say hardly. Bold not at all, and an issue that sinmply is not regulated; and further, other than getting a crack on the head if my hands were not palms together from the nuns, I know of no rubric that ever said how we should hold our hands. It was just a “we always do that” norm. It was more a convention like how one holds a fork while eating than some rule from the high throne.
