Q: I appreciate so much your kind and learned replies to the vast array of liturgical questions. I recently purchased your book, Glory in the Cross, which is helping me to navigate some Holy Week concerns.
I’m writing a brief bulletin writeup on posture and gesture for Good Friday. One question whose answer I’m unsure about is what posture should the faithful assume during the start of the Adoration of the Cross. It seems to me that the faithful rise after they kneel briefly after the final, “Come, let us adore.” Then the next change in posture I can see in the rubrics is that those who have adored the Cross should return to their place and be seated. Is it your understanding that the faithful are expected to stand during that entire first portion of the rite, until they return to their places?
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A: Thanks for your comments on my work.
You’re right about the instructions for posture. This is probably a case where the revised liturgy just didn’t think of everything. In the absence of clearer instructions, people enjoy some flexibility. By inviting the faithful to be seated after their own adoration, the rubrics seem to want to make this easy on them. I’m sure it’d be fine for all to sit throughout. Some individuals may prefer to stand or kneel. It’s fine.