Should I genuflect in an Anglican church?

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Pugliese

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I am a Catholic in the U.K. and I have been invited to the confirmation of a friend into the Church of England. I was previously a member of the Church of England, so I understand the traditions of that church but my inclination is to act as I would in a Catholic church by genuflecting. Is this correct?
 
No. It’s important to understand why Catholics make the gestures they do in their own churches, and to recognize that some of those gestures therefore are inappropriate in other settings. Catholics genuflect toward the tabernacle in a Catholic church because they are acknowledging Christ’s Real Presence in the Eucharist, reserved in the tabernacle. In the event that a tabernacle is not visible, Catholics bow to the altar in a Catholic church to acknowledge that Christ will become present on the altar during Mass. Anglicans do not have valid priestly orders, and therefore do not have a valid Eucharist. That means that gestures intended to acknowledge the Real Presence are not appropriate in places where the Real Presence is not present.
 
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