THE HEAD of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has announced that kneeling during the most important part of Holy Mass would be returned, as is practiced in the rest of the Universal Church.
In a pastoral letter dated March 19, Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas, the CBCP president, said the practice of standing during the Memorial Acclamation, in which the faithful affirm Christ’s death, resurrection and future return, was a mere liturgical adaptation that did not have Vatican approval.
“We must abandon the practice of standing after the consecration until the Amen as we do not have the authority to make such an adaptation nor do we have the authority to implement it,” Villegas said in his pastoral letter.
As a result, the faithful must kneel “after the Sanctus (Holy, Holy, Holy Lord…) until the end of the Eucharistic prayer” or the “Great Amen.”
The decision was made by the CBCP Permanent Council, based on the Philippine Edition of the Vatican-approved Roman Missal of 2011. The issue was raised during the 112th CBCP Plenary Assembly in Cebu last January, when the country hosted the International Eucharistic Congress.
In 1990, the “Guidelines for the Eucharist” allowed the faithful not to kneel during the Memorial Acclamation. This was also included in the Philippine Adaptations to the General Instructions of the Roman Missal 2002 proposed during the 86th CBCP Plenary Assembly. Liturgists wanted the faithful to stand during the Memorial Acclamation and kneel after the Agnus Dei or Lamb of God.
Villegas said no “recognition” or formal reply was granted by Rome as regards the two proposed guidelines. According to canon lawyers, no answer or silence from Rome means that the recognitio has not been given, he said.
The prelate pointed out that kneeling is an important part of Christian culture. “We cannot abandon or set aside the culture of kneeling in favor of the culture that says as free men we must face God on our feet. Bending the knee before the tabernacle in genuflection, kneeling down at the celebration of the Eucharist, kneeling down to adore the exposed Blessed Sacrament—these are little but sublime acts of adoration that we must preserve and protect.” Lea Mat P. Vicencio
