On the other hand, standing at prayer is spoken of in the Psalms (Ps 134:1; 135:2), in Chronicles when Jehoshaphat prayed all of Judah stood (2 Chr 20:13), and in other places where standing in prayer is mentioned (1 Sam 1:26; Tob 8:4).
We know that Solomon knelt before the altar of the Lord at the dedication of the Temple and then stood to bless the people (1 Kgs 8:54-55). Nehemiah speaks of the people rising as the Torah is read and then kneeling to confess their sins (Neh 9:3-5).
In the New Testament there are also references to both kneeling and standing. The Gospel of Matthew uses προσκυνέω, to describe kneeling or prostrating oneself. The Magi knelt in worship before the Christchild. The Syrophonecian woman knelt before Jesus (15:25). Christ himself knelt in prayer during his agony in the garden (Luke 22:41). The Acts of the Apostles describes Stephen Protomartyr as kneeling at prayer during his stoning (Acts 7:60), and the apostles kneeling in prayer (Acts 9:40; 30:36). St. Paul speaks of bended knee to the Ephesians (3:14) and, of course, to the Philippians he asserts that “at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth” (2:10).
Hypocrites stand in prayer (Matt 6:5) but then Jesus instructs his own disciples how to pray standing (Mark 11:25). In the consummation, the faithful stand before God (Luke 21:28; Rev 7:9). Yet it is true that from the earliest of times, kneeling and standing are both accepted postures of prayer -- even apart from the obvious connection between penitence and kneeling (or prostration).
It did not take long before these postures took on symbolic meaning. St. Basil saw kneeling a symbol of the sinfulness of this life but standing upright as attesting to Christ’s resurrection. When Canon 20 of Nicea said to stand during Easter for prayer, some also included the cessation of the fast (also from Easter to Pentecost). But by the thirteenth century, kneeling was not so strongly associated with penitence as it was piety. Kneeling had become the customary posture of adoration by that time. By the time of the Reformation, Canon 20 had been largely forgotten. Luther’s sacramental theology led him to support genuflection in the liturgy. Even the East today does not quite see Canon 20 as a doctrine but discipline and understands kneeling to be tolerated. Today postures are not quite so easily identified with specific meaning. Men once stood out of respect for women and now most folks seem to think that sitting is no disrespect. But there is one who does not kneel. That is the devil. The posture of kneeling during the Confession is actually quite different from the posture of kneeling during the consecration though few pay any attention to it. The devil does and he refuses to do either -- to confess his sin in penitence or to adore the Christ whose flesh and blood are given to us for the forgiveness of those sins.
So what should we do? Lutherans are actually loathe to make rules requiring anyone to do either. For what it is worth, kneeling during the general confession is not quite within the liturgy and there is quite a history of kneeling during the Our Father. Maybe that is not the problem. Maybe sitting is -- the ultimate posture of passivity. Could it be that our sitting is so that God might entertain us? Perhaps there is a problem after all. In any case, the devil's example is the worst to follow. We ought at least to do not what he does. So there it is. Refusing to kneel may be our problem -- not because we have bad knees but because we have bad hearts. The spiritual problem is bigger than the posture problem is. Always.
1 comment:
. When I was Catholic, up to age 40, kneeling during Mass and prayers sometimes felt tough on my bony knees, yet it seemed more reverent to do so. Each night in our house we would say our prayers on our knees beside our beds prior to going to sleep. Again, it seemed more reverent to kneel, as one acknowledges the Lordship of Christ and our humble station as His sons and daughters. The two things that stopped when I departed Catholicism, which I sometimes still miss, were kneeling to pray, and making the sign of the cross before and after praying. And though Luther made the sign of the cross, few Lutherans do it. Perhaps, they want to avoid old Catholic habits in their worship, like kneeling as well. And Mary….that is another topic for another day. Though we agree as Protestants that she is not to be worshipped, most Protestants hardly even speak about her at all, this humble woman who loved God and was used of Him to carry His son into the world. In her own words, in the Magnificat, Mary stressed, “my soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my savior.” She never wanted to be worshipped or placed beside the throne of glory. But the Catholics did it anyway. I digress. But as for kneeling, it should be done at times, so long as one is physically able. It is a sign of respect and love for Our Lord. Soli Deo Gloria
Post a Comment