Remain standing after the Agnus Dei, West Virginia bishop declares
January 03, 2025
» Continue to this story on Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston
CWN Editor's Note: Bishop Mark Brennan of Wheeling-Charleston, West Virginia’s sole diocese, has affirmed a predecessor’s policy that the faithful should remain standing after the Agnus Dei until the reception of Holy Communion.
In the dioceses of the United States, “the faithful kneel after the Agnus Dei (Lamb of God) unless the Diocesan Bishop determines otherwise,” according to the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (n. 43).
“I have been asked by individuals to restore the practice of kneeling after the Lamb of God,” said Bishop Brennan. “This is the common pattern in the dioceses surrounding ours.”
Citing no clear consensus after consultation, Bishop Brennan said that “kneeling after the Lamb of God, while traditional, actually breaks the continuous posture of the Communion Rite, even if only briefly ... This is the posture our younger Catholics have always known.”
Asking for “sincere obedience,” he concluded, “We have much more important things to do than debate the merits of standing or kneeling after the Lamb of God. We are called to serve the Lamb who was sacrificed for us to take away our sins and rose from the dead to give us new life.”
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