Mass And The Posture of Kneeling

Dear Parishioners, friends and family in Christ,

Pope Benedict in his book, The Feast of Faith, noted that soon after the Second Vatican Council people began referring to the Eucharist as a community meal. The Pope's response was that it cost Jesus his life, and only at this price can we enjoy the gift of the Resurrection.

The official teaching of the Church, defined by The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), is that "the Mass" (another name for the Eucharist) is at the same time, and inseparably, the memorial in which the Sacrifice of the Cross is perpetuated, and is the Sacred Banquet of Communion with the Lord's body and blood." (CCC #1382). 

During the celebration of the Mass, the faithful are instructed to kneel during the consecration. But why do we kneel? The Pope, in his book The Spirit of the Liturgy, cites examples of kneeling and genuflecting, as follows:  

The leper kneeling before Jesus asking Him to cure his leprosy (Mark 1:40); the rich young man kneeling before Jesus (Mark 10:17); the father of the epileptic son falling down on his knees before Jesus (Matthew 17:14) and the Magi falling down and worshipping the Infant Christ (Matthew 2:11).
 
St. Paul’s Pastoral Letter to the Philippians points out that “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:10-11).

The Holy Father affirms that kneeling and genuflecting are gestures acknowledging Jesus as the Son of God, and as acts of worship (p. 189). The kneeling comes from the Bible. It is based on Biblical Tradition, and is an expression of Christian Culture (p. 185). 

Yours in Christ!

Fr. Peter Jae Choi