The "Our Father" What DO I do with my hands?

[tmitchell2]

Help! I always fold my hands during Mass and have been told, by VERY orthodox Catholics, that the Church now teaches that we should have our palms facing upward, spread apart.

I have looked in the GIRM and couldn’t find that. Does anyone know where this is written? Is is true at all?

HELP!!

 

[Asimis]

No, put your hands togheter and bow your head. Don’t go along with the “community feeling” of the liturgy. The raising of hands and the like is a novety.

 

[tmitchell2]

Asimis:

No, put your hands togheter and bow your head. Don’t go along with the “community feeling” of the liturgy. The raising of hands and the like is a novety.

Asimis:

Thank you so much for your reply. I COMPLETELY agree and want to follow the Church.

Do you know for a FACT that this has not changed? The people who are telling me this are very devout and are usually right about these things.

Deo Gratias!

Tom

 

[teresas1979]

QUERY 2: In some places there is a current practice whereby those taking part in the Mass replace the giving of the sign of peace at the deacon’s invitation by holding hands during the singing of the Lord’s Prayer. Is this acceptable? REPLY: The prolonged holding of hands is of itself a sign of communion rather than of peace. Further, it is a liturgical gesture introduced spontaneously but on personal initiative; it is not in the rubrics. Nor is there any clear explanation of why the sign of peace at the invitation: should be supplanted in order to bring a different gesture with less meaning into another part of the Mass: the sign of peace is filled with meaning, graciousness, and Christian inspiration. Any substitution for it must be repudiated: Not 11 (1975) 226.

christusrex.org/www1/mcitl/girmappx2.html

This is taken from the linked website which I believe cites current practice. Please correct me if I am wrong

 

[Tantum_ergo]

It is possible that your bishop has asked for “the raising of hands”. Some of the U.S. bishops did indeed, and still do, want the “orans” or “modified orans” posture, because they wish to abolish the widespread practice of “hand-holding” at the Our Father.

It is also possible that your priest “read about” this “wonderful” practice in things like Catholic Digest, and thought, “What a terrific idea! I’ll have my flock do this!” Some of the nicest, most devout, most wonderful people do the orans, going back to the 70s when it appeared in a lot of churches overnight. . .of course, at the SAME time period people started making spinach dip again, it seemed, overnight. . .

Until you see it either as a diocesean directive (not just from even your friends or the priest, who has absolutely no authority to alter any part of the Mass, be it posture, word, or otherwise), or part of the GIRM overall, I’d be cautious. The orans posture itself is certainly not bad, it’s a prayerful gesture that goes back many centuries. . .but OTOH, just because a gesture is OLD, or even HOLY, doesn’t mean that it belongs IN THE MASS.

 

[RCMom]

Is holding hands wrong? It seems like there is alot of talk about that recently. My husband and I (and any other family members if they are present) try to hold each others hands. Usually we each have a child though, and it isn’t always possible. I am not a huge fan of trying to get the entire church to hold hands because it seems like a huge production, but I do like holding my husband/other family member’s hands…it makes me feel like we are joining together in prayer.

 

[rcn]

Check the Missalette next time you’re at Mass. It shows you when to stand, sit and kneel. There is nothing else specified in the rubrics.

 

[tmitchell2]

rcn:

Check the Missalette next time you’re at Mass. It shows you when to stand, sit and kneel. There is nothing else specified in the rubrics.

Hi RCN:

There is nothing in the Missalette about holding your palms upright.

 

[Fortiterinre]

I have found that firmly closing my eyes and praying the Our Father as deeply as I can is a good antidote to anything that would distract me, e.g. hand-holders, broad orans gestures, etc. I keep my hands folded together, and no one has yet pried them apart while my eyes were closed!

 

[kmktexas]

Tantum ergo:

It is possible that your bishop has asked for “the raising of hands”. Some of the U.S. bishops did indeed, and still do, want the “orans” or “modified orans” posture, because they wish to abolish the widespread practice of “hand-holding” at the Our Father.

It is also possible that your priest “read about” this “wonderful” practice in things like Catholic Digest, and thought, “What a terrific idea! I’ll have my flock do this!” Some of the nicest, most devout, most wonderful people do the orans, going back to the 70s when it appeared in a lot of churches overnight. . .of course, at the SAME time period people started making spinach dip again, it seemed, overnight. . .

Until you see it either as a diocesean directive (not just from even your friends or the priest, who has absolutely no authority to alter any part of the Mass, be it posture, word, or otherwise), or part of the GIRM overall, I’d be cautious. The orans posture itself is certainly not bad, it’s a prayerful gesture that goes back many centuries. . .but OTOH, just because a gesture is OLD, or even HOLY, doesn’t mean that it belongs IN THE MASS.

Before the US Bishops submitted their requests for the US adaptations, there was some talk about their asking for the Orans posture to be included in the GIRM for the US. In the end, they did not ask for this variation, so no approval (or denial) was given. Many Bishops have been quoted as seeing this as preferable to the hand holding since the Orans posture is “heaven focused” and the hand holding is “neighbor focused”.

Your friend is wrong in that *the Church * doesn’t teach that we should use this posture. In fact, the Orans posture is not specified for the laity at any point in the Mass.

As for me (and my house ) we just fold our hands, bow our heads and pray the Our Father.

 

[rcn]

tmitchell2:

There is nothing in the Missalette about holding your palms upright.

That’s correct. You said that people have told you that the Church teaches what should be done with your hands. That is simply not true. You are not obligated to hold your hands palms-up. You are not obligated to hold anyone’s hand.

 

[Island_Oak]

Our family with 3 young children holds hands and I relish the practice. What better more appropriate time to feel our communion with each other and God? However, I have no interest in holding hands with the stranger next to me–finding it particularly awkward to be holding hands with a man other than my husband in the middle of mass. Yes, we are a community–but physical contact is hardly a requisite part of that type of relationship.

 

[tTt]

rcn:

That’s correct. You said that people have told you that the Church teaches what should be done with your hands. That is simply not true. You are not obligated to hold your hands palms-up. You are not obligated to hold anyone’s hand.

OK lets compromise, how about an Our Father High Five

 

[teresas1979]

I think Island Oak has the best practise. Although it should be open to personal opinion, to hold hands within ones own family is surely both appropriate and pleasing to God? My boyfriend regularly holds his hands to mine in prayer to signify both that it is on behalf of 2 Christians and that the answers are not selfish, but for both of us…

 

[Mysty101]

From the USCCB
Orans
Many Catholics are in the habit of holding their hands in the “Orans” posture during the Lord’s prayer along with the celebrant. Some do this on their own as a private devotional posture while some congregations make it a general practice for their communities.

Is this practice permissible under the current rubrics, either as a private practice not something adopted by a particular parish as a communal gesture? No position is prescribed in the present Sacramentary for an assembly gesture during the Lord’s Prayer.

Email us at bcl@usccb.org
Committee on the Liturgy | 3211 4th Street, N.E., Washington DC 20017-1194 | (202) 541-3000 © USCCB. All rights reserved.

Since no posture is prescribed, wouldn’t it be best to follow the custom of the Parish? There is a call for a uniform posture.
from GIRM

A common posture, to be observed by all participants, is a sign of the unity of the members of the Christian community gathered for the Sacred Liturgy: it both expresses and fosters the intention and spiritual attitude of the participants

 

[rcn]

teresas1979:

I think Island Oak has the best practise. Although it should be open to personal opinion, to hold hands within ones own family is surely both appropriate and pleasing to God? My boyfriend regularly holds his hands to mine in prayer to signify both that it is on behalf of 2 Christians and that the answers are not selfish, but for both of us…

The theology of the Our Father and of the Mass itself are contained in the GIRM. Anything you do of your own initiative, within reason, is your own business. I would not presume to say whether hand-holding is “appropriate” or “pleasing”. I do know that it’s not in the GIRM, so therefore it is not required. Some would say that therefore it’s forbidden, but this is not as certain.

 

[Kevin_Walker]

Another pertinent thread.

At the St. Anthony Shrine run by the OFM, they hold their hands out, palm up, during the Our Father. Looks too Buddhist to me. I stil clasp my both hands together, as do some others I’ve notice during service.

 

[OhioBob]

Tantum ergo:

It is possible that your bishop has asked for “the raising of hands”. Some of the U.S. bishops did indeed, and still do, want the “orans” or “modified orans” posture…

Yup, our bishop (Columbus, OH) implemented the orans as part of his implementation of Redemtionis Sacramentum (don’t ask me where he got that instruction from RS though…). Sooooooooooo, even though I hate it, I do it out of obedience to our bishop and our priest (who asked that we do it).

I close my eyes so I don’t have to look at myself, and I try to make the most minimal orans I can so that I don’t feel too silly.

 

[kamz]

We hold hands at our church except during flu season as last year we had some elderly people in our church who either got very sick died during the flu season so then we bowed our heads and kept our hands to ourselves, I have seen some people in church raise their hands up on their own but I’m not comfortable doing that myself so I don’t and even if they were to ever inforce it I still would not do it.

 

[Nota_Bene]

Island Oak:

Our family with 3 young children holds hands and I relish the practice. What better more appropriate time to feel our communion with each other and God? However, I have no interest in holding hands with the stranger next to me–finding it particularly awkward to be holding hands with a man other than my husband in the middle of mass. Yes, we are a community–but physical contact is hardly a requisite part of that type of relationship.

Catholic Christians are united through the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. The Mass cannot be “improved” by the holding of hands – it actually hurts the Mass by placing our focus on our hands/neighbors and not God and His Son Jesus Christ.

Ever wonder why Protestants hold hands? Precisely because they lack the ultimate unifying quality of the Eucharist…