To Genuflect Or Not To Genuflect... That Is The Question.

[Aloysius]

So as far as I know: a genuflection in Church is only to be made towards the tabernacle when the Eucharist is present in it. Of course, everyone always genuflects before and ater leaving the pew no matter what.. even after Holy Thursday Mass, and before Good Friday service and before Easter Vigil. The servers at my Latin Mass bow to the bare altar at these times, which I take to be the proper thing to do.

So these are the options as I see them:
1) Not genuflect
a) and bow
b) and not bow
2) genuflect towards where the Eucharist is still being held in reserve

I recommend not genuflecting, because the Eucharist is not held in reserve for the sake of being genuflected towards (you may not even know where it is held in reserve). Only when it is in the main tabernacle is it meant to be genuflected to. I don't bow either... I just go into the pew... but I suppose it might be proper to bow to the bare altar.

What do you think? I've known people to accidently genuflect in movie theatres, so of course people aren't going to generally pick up on this idea. But to me it preserves our understanding of why we genuflect normally.

What do you do?

[Maggyie]

At my parish the Tabernacle is not in plain sight anyway so most people just bow to the altar no matter what liturgical day it is...

[Aloysius]

in that case, if I were you (well, I'd probably find a latin-mass-parish but barring that...) I'd find out where the tabernacle is and then always make it a point to genuflect in that direction (even if, for some ridiculous reason, it's in the back or straight over to the left or right or something)

[homeschoolmom]

During the Triduum, our parish has the Eucharist in the chapel. So, for me to come in and genuflect, I would have to come in, turn around and kneel in the direction I just came from... I bow towards the altar.

[Noel's angel]

Usually the Eucharist is reserved outside the main Church (not outside as in the outdoors, but you know what I mean...) but this year we have another Tabernacle which has been placed on the side altar. Bow to the altar, genuflect towards the Tabernacle is the general rule I follow. So, with the reserved Host still in the main Church I genuflect towards it, but if I have to cross in front of the altar I bow.

Edited April 6, 2007 by Noel's angel

[Ash Wednesday]

Almost every Good Friday service I've been to, I start to genuflect when I enter the pew, notice the open empty tabernacle, and then stop halfway through, usually making myself wobble in the process. It's kinda funny actually.

Edited April 6, 2007 by Ash Wednesday

[homeschoolmom]

[quote name='Ash Wednesday' post='1232860' date='Apr 6 2007, 07:43 PM']Almost every Good Friday service I've been to, I start to genuflect when I enter the pew, notice the open empty tabernacle, and then stop halfway through, usually making myself wobble in the process. It's kinda funny actually.[/quote]
It's nice to have your own personal custom...

[Dave]

Well at my Latin Mass parish people bow to the altar on Good Friday.

[puellapaschalis]

Usually I genuflect to the tabernacle (we have two that are 'lived in') before sitting down; on Maundy Thursday we had watching until the early hours at the altar of repose so when we were coming and going we genuflected then too. Yesterday, as the tabernacles were empty, I bowed to the altar, but after the Commemoration I genuflected to the Cross. I don't recall if the Cross remains there until today; if it does, I shall genuflect to it, if not, I shall bow. Until the Vigil is over, of course, when everything is topsy turvy in a [i]good[/i] way again.

Yesterday I completely forgot that there'd be no holy water in the stoup and probably looked like a right fool standing there dipping my fingers into bare stone. Ah well.

PP