My bishop has recently mandated standing during the liturgy where I am not comfortable

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No, you’re not obliged. Do what you’re comfortable doing.

One of my dioceses had that “must stand” rule in place since a number of years ago. People do not abide by it because some of them wish to kneel and others of them simply cannot stand that long at Communion time, which depending on the size of the church and number of communion stations can sometimes take 15 minutes or more.

I myself kneel, and when physically I need to sit, I sit. I am definitely not alone in doing both things. I honestly don’t even know if the rule is still in place since many people have always ignored it, it is never mentioned, and we have had a change of bishops in recent years.
 
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My in-laws’ diocese switched from kneeling to standing a few years ago.
We asked our priest what we should do when we attend Masses at my in-laws’ church. He said we should follow the bishop’s directions.
 
In how many parishes is that post-Communion hymn sung by all the community? It’s the only hymn which is mandated to be sung by the community, the other 3 (Entrance Offertory, Communion) also have the option of being sung by the choir alone, or alternating between choir and community yet I’ve never been in a parish where that hymn wasn’t sung by either a soloist or the choir alone.
 
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Tis_Bearself said:
Out of a misguided priority for a gesture of “unity”
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Misguided?

How in the world can a “gesture of unity” be misguided at Communion time? What could possibly take priority over our union with Christ?
 
My “unity with Christ” is not dependent on my assuming a certain posture, as long as I am reverent and am not getting in the way of others trying to get in and out of the pew for Communion.

I don’t buy into all the lockstep physical stuff for Mass. We are at Mass. We are not a military unit parading before the General.

I routinely see people permitted to do all kinds of different gestures for Sign of Peace (or skip it entirely) and when praying the Our Father and even when receiving Holy Communion (some people wish to kneel to receive, some stand to receive, some bow and some do not because the bow was never really promulgated in some dioceses).

With respect to the 15-minute communion stand, many people have some physical limitations. And nobody, NOBODY, is ever going to get reprimanded by clergy for wishing to kneel before Our Lord, unless like I said it’s a case of impeding others trying to get to Communion, like if I decided I wished to kneel in the middle of the aisle where others were trying to walk up to Communion. I cannot imagine an usher ever going up to someone kneeling in the pew and saying Hey don’t do that. It’s ridiculous.
 
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Dovekin said:
How in the world can a “gesture of unity” be misguided at Communion time? What could possibly take priority over our union with Christ?
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I think it is more of a misunderstanding of what the Church calls for when it speaks of unity of posture

I will reiterate the response from the Vatican when the US Bishops asked that question in 2003
intended, on the one hand, to ensure within broad limits a certain uniformity of posture within the congregation for the various parts of the celebration of Holy Mass, and on the other, to not regulate posture rigidly in such a way that those who wish to kneel or sit would no longer be free.
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When a person kneels, they are within the broad limits that the Church is asking for. And we can ask no more from anyone than that.
 
The option is for silence or a community-sung hymn, not silence or listening to a rendition by the choir or a soloist.
 
I completely agree that standing is a norm, and it should not be imposed on anyone. I do not understand when anyone would take a norm as asking people to do what they are not physically capable of. And I certainly can accept it when others misunderstand what the Church calls for, saying posture does not mean anything or acting like Communion is a private experience. There are many things I do not understand.

When the US bishops chose standing as the proper posture during the Communion procession, there were many issues discussed. The purpose of Holy Communion. Singing. Processions. Posture. The decision became something more extensive than originally expected, and was accompanied by an explanation, a version of which I linked to in an earlier post.

That explanation made clear that Holy Communion is the action of a community. While it is important for an individual, Communion is also important for the community. Unity with Christ is unity with the Church and with the church, the people at Communion with us. This is the purpose of the common posture. It is the principle the bishops are trying to teach us. Anyone can disagree with that principle if they want, but I do not see how it Is “misguided.”
It is difficult for some of us to embrace this emphasis on Mass as the action of a community rather than an individual act of my own faith and piety, but it is important that we make every effort to do so. Christ himself at the Last Supper pleaded with his Father: “Holy Father, keep them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one just as we are… as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us…” (John 17:11, 21).Baptism has joined us to Christ and to one another as the vine and its branches. The life of Christ, the Holy Spirit, animates each of us individually, and all of us corporately and guides us together in our efforts to become one in Christ.
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Phemie said:
The option is for silence or a community-sung hymn, not silence or listening to a rendition by the choir or a soloist.
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First of all the requirement is for a moment of silence. The modifier ‘also’ indicates the hymn may be used in addition, but does not replace.

Also, the ‘if desired’ has no defined actor. If, for example, that I desire to pray, does the requirement to sing apply? The term ‘if desired’ would indicate that it does not, as I do not (hypothetically) desire to sing.
 
Dovekin said:
Anyone can disagree with that principle if they want, but I do not see how it Is “misguided.”
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My point was that there are some who consider the person who kneels after returning to their pew as somehow acting outside the community act of the communion procession.

As Cardinal Arize’s reply to the US Bishops, nothing could be further from the truth.

The posture of kneeling is well within the Church’s understanding of common posture and no less of a action of community than standing.

I think that another misunderstanding might arise from a too limited understanding of what the Church means by ‘community’. Some, erroneously limit their understanding to be those who simply are in the same physical building as themselves. The Church understands community to be the whole Body of Christ, not just those physically near us, but those in the Church throughout the world, and even the Saints in Heaven. That is why the ‘common posture’ is so broad, as it encompasses all the faithful in the World, as well as those who are worshipping closer to the Heavenly Table than we are now.
 
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The GIRM specifically says that the choice of posture should be made by the conference of bishops. Cardinal Arinze was not revoking that right. It is within that choice of norms that individuals may choose to kneel or sit.

People were claiming the bishops were “out of line” or “misguided” for adopting this posture. Some portrayed it as an act of individual bishops or even parishes and claimed the GIRM did not allow it. I am only pointing out that these claims are not accurate, and explaining why the bishops chose that as the norm. That the norm is not applied rigidly does not mean it is not the norm or that it has no meaning.
the fact that the Communion Procession is a profoundly religious action tells us something about the way in which we should participate in this procession. We are the Body of Christ, moving forward to receive the Christ who makes us one with himself and with one another. Our procession should move with dignity; our bearing should be that of those who know they have been redeemed by Christ and are coming to receive their God!
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I still think it’s misguided, and while I appreciate and respect that it’s apparently highly meaningful to other people, it’s not meaningful to me. I will now leave the thread. Have a nice day.
 
I’ve heard the thing about all standing being a sign of unity going on almost 20 years. But I’ve also heard the the Eucharist is our sign of unity. That makes way more sense to me than a posture that is different depending on the OF or EF, changes to the GIRM, or what have you.
 
Bruised Reed –
Why would you think I was replying to you specifically and not the entire thread? I did not quote you or address you by nom.
 
You replied to me. I got a notification. No worries, I have to make an effort to find and the general reply button.
 
Not to be controversial here but… OP, find a Latin Mass near you. Problem solved.
 
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